150th Anniversary of the Battle of Pea Ridge, Arkansas

Elkhorn Tavern at Pea Ridge National Military Park

This week marks the 150th anniversary of the Battle of Pea Ridge, Arkansas. The battle was fought in Northwest Arkansas on March 7-8, 1862.

One of the most important battles of the Civil War and one of the largest engagements west of the Mississippi River, Pea Ridge is regarded by many as the battle that saved Missouri for the Union. Extremely bloody and fought over a vast area, it culminated a campaign by General Samuel Curtis (US) to drive the Missouri State Guard of General Sterling Price (CS) out of its home state.

Confederate Cannon at Pea Ridge

The fight, also called the Battle of Elkhorn Tavern, took place when a Confederate army led by General Earl Van Dorn stormed out of the Boston Mountains and onto the Ozark Plateau of Northwest Arkansas. Using a long and exhausting night march to swing his army around the Federal camps behind Little Sugar Creek, Van Dorn attacked the right flank and rear of the Union army on the morning of March 7, 1862.

Leetown area of Pea Ridge Battlefield

The battle opened near the little community of Leetown in Benton County, Arkansas. One division of the Confederate army attacked through fields and woods in a desperate assault on the Union right flank. General Curtis rushed reenforcements to his men in that sector of the field and intense fighting erupted.

Disaster struck the Confederates making the attack, however, when General Ben McCulloch, who was leading the attack, was killed. General James McIntosh then rose to the command but was killed just fifteen minutes later. Colonel Louis Hebert then took command, but a combination of terrain, smoke, friendly fire and determined Union resistance broke the Confederate apart and he was captured. In just an hour or so, three Confederate division commanders were killed or captured.

View of the Pea Ridge Battlefield from the Mountain

As the fighting neared an end near Leetown, the second Confederate attack came down the Telegraph Road from directly behind the main Union line. This assault was more successful and through an afternoon of heavy fighting drove the Federals from the area around Elkhorn Tavern and back into the middle of the battlefield. Had darkness not ended the drive, Van Dorn might well have won the Battle of Pea Ridge.



Union cannon at Pea Ridge Battlefield

It did not happen that way. In his rush to get his army into battle, General Van Dorn had failed to properly see to his logistics and supply train and darkness found his army without food and almost out of ammunition. When the fighting resumed the next morning, he was not prepared to meet the now reorganized Union army.

After blasting the Confederate positions with artillery fire on the morning of March 8, 1862, General Curtis moved his army forward and drove Van Dorn from the field.

The site of the battle is now preserved as Pea Ridge National Military Park, one of America's finest national park areas. Driving and walking tours take visitors to all key areas of the battlefield and the mountains in the park offer outstanding views of the entire field.

To learn more, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/pearidgeindex.

Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park - Kennesaw, Georgia

Kennesaw Mountain Battlefield

A park that commemorates the Atlanta Campaign and preserves the scene of some of its heaviest fighting, Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park is a rare Civil War landscape in the rapidly spreading Atlanta metropolitan area.
Fought on July 27, 1864, the Battle of Kennesaw Mountain was one of the few direct Union assaults of Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman's campaign to take Atlanta. The Federal troops tried to storm heavily fortified position along the slopes of the mountain but were hurled back with severe losses. More than 4,000 men were reported killed, wounded or missing in just a few short hours.

Cannon on top of Kennesaw Mountain

The battle developed as Sherman pushed the last few miles to the Chattahoochee River, beyond which no natural barriers separated him from the vital rail junction of Atlanta. To reach the river, however, there was one more great natural barrier to pass - Kennesaw Mountain and its connected ridges.

The high ground, however, was held by the outnumbered but still determined Confederate Army of Tennessee led by Gen. Joseph E. Johnston. His Southern forces had entrenched themselves heavily on the mountain and connected slopes and his cannon were firing from the summit of the mountain on the trains that brought Sherman's supplies down from Tennessee.

Monument at the Dead Angle

Recent rains had made a flanking maneuver too difficult to undertake, so on the morning of July 27, 1864, Sherman hurled his forces at the mountain.  The attack went wrong almost immediately. The Confederate positions were just too strong and the Union attacking columns were swept by Southern cannon and musket fire.

The Confederate victory at Kennesaw Mountain would be the last Southern triumph of the Atlanta Campaign. Five days later Sherman was able to move his army around one of Johnston's flanks and Southern troops were forced to give up the mountain and fall back first on the line of the Chattahoochee and soon into the defenses of Atlanta itself.  Johnston was replaced by Gen. John Bell Hood who launched poorly coordinated and futile attacks on Sherman's forces, decimating his army and losing Atlanta in the process. The fall of the city drove a bayonet into the heart of the Confederacy.

To learn more about this beautifully preserved battlefield, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/kennesaw.

Colonial Heritage Center - Greensboro, North Carolina

Colonial Heritage Center

Located just up New Garden Road from the entrance to Guilford Courthouse National Military Park (see yesterday's post), Colonial Heritage Center is a fascinating destination in Greensboro, North Carolina.

Established to help visitors learn more about the Battle of Guilford Courthouse and the colonial era in the region, the center offers a variety of exhibits that bring both the battle and the area's past to life. Among these are a series of full-scale displays that interpret various aspects of colonial life in North Carolina. There is a life-size reproduction of a log cabin interior, an exhibit explaining how water mills operated, displays on farming and a variety of other exhibits.

Part of the Battle Model

In a second area of the center, a large model of the Battle of Guilford Courthouse uses sound and light to interpret the tactics of the battle. It is a great way to learn about the battle and battlefield before actually taking the self-guided tour of the national park.

On the walls surrounding the model display is a collection of original Revolutionary maps of Guilford Courthouse and North Carolina. Included is an original copy of the map used by both Nathaniel Green and Lord Cornwallis during the Carolina campaign.  For map lovers, this collection is a must see.

Outside the center is Tannenbaum Historical Park, site of the farm of Joseph Hoskins, where Cornwallis formed his troops at the beginning of the battle. Interpretive panels and historic buildings explain life on a small farm at the time of the American Revolution.

To lear more about Colonial Heritage Center, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/guilfordcenter.

Two Florida Civil War Battlefields facing Possible Closure

Olustee Battlefield

With the 150th anniversary observation of the Civil War now underway and tourists flocking to Civil War sites across the nation, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) is considering locking the gates to the only two state-owned Civil War battlefields.

Olustee Battlefield Historic State Park and Natural Bridge Battlefield Historic State Park are among 53 parks and historic sites DEP is considering closing to save $6.5 million from the agency's $1.5 BILLION budget. The cut would represent the closing of one-third of Florida's state parks and historic sites while barely impacting DEP's massive budget.

Olustee Battlefield Historic State Park (just east of Lake City) preserves the scene of the February 20, 1864 engagement that was the largest Civil War battle in Florida. The Battle of Olustee was a massive Confederate victory that preserved the supply lines providing beef and other food for Southern armies and stopped a Union plan to restore the allegiance of at least part of the state in time for its electoral votes to be counted in the 1864 Presidential Election. Olustee was the bloodiest battle of the war for the Union army in terms of the number of men involved (around 10,000). To read more about this highly significant park, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/olustee.

Natural Bridge Battlefield Historic State Park (south of Tallahassee) preserves earthworks and other features from the last significant Confederate victory of the Civil War. The Battle of Natural Bridge was fought on March 6, 1865, and preserved Tallahassee's status as the only unconquered Southern capital east of the Mississippi River. The battle also prevented the destruction of much of the infrastructure and public and private property across a large area of North Florida and South Georgia. The cadets from West Florida Seminary (today's Florida State University) fought in the battle and to this day the FSU ROTC is one of only three in the nation authorized by the Pentagon to carry battle streamers.  To learn more, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/nbindex.

Natural Bridge Battlefield

Both battlefields are also landmarks of black history. At Olustee, the famed 54th Massachusetts Infantry, a famed African American regiment, took part in heavy fighting and played a key role in the escape of the Union army from the battlefield. At Natural Bridge, virtually all of the Union soldiers engaged were from the 2nd and 99th U.S. Colored Troops. More than 150 men from the two African American regiments were killed, wounded or captured in the battle.

I encourage you to contact Governor Rick Scott of Florida to voice your opposition to these proposed closings. You can obtain his address or write him through an online form by clicking here.

Battle of Marianna, Florida Tours set for next Saturday...

If you are interested in learning more about one of the most significant Civil War actions in Florida, the Blue Springs Society of the Children of the American Revolution will offer a unique opportunity to do so next Saturday (September 27th).

The day will mark the 144th anniversary of the Battle of Marianna, Florida, and the C.A.R. will be hosting two guided tours of the Marianna battlefield.

The tours will begin at 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. at the historic Russ House (Jackson County Chamber of Commerce) on West Lafayette Street (U.S. 90 West) in Marianna. The cost to participate is $5 for individuals over 12. Children 12 and under can take the tour for free.

Each of the tours will last 60-90 minutes and will give participants a chance to visit some of the key points associated with the fighting including St. Luke's Episcopal Church.

If you would like to learn more about the Battle of Marianna, please visit www.battleofmarianna.net or consider my book, The Battle of Marianna, Florida. You can click here for ordering information.

Prairie Grove Battlefield - Prairie Grove, Arkansas

One of the most pristine Civil War battlefields in the South can be found at Prairie Grove Battlefield State Park in Prairie Grove, Arkansas. The scene of a massive battle involving tens of thousands of Union and Confederate soldiers, the battle stymied a Southern attempt to destroy the Union Army of the Frontier.

Fought on December 7, 1862, and involving some of the bloodiest fighting of the war west of the Mississippi, the Battle of Prairie Grove lives on at the battlefield park. An outstanding facility operated by the State of Arkansas, the battlefield includes an interpretive center at Hindman Hall (seen here), monuments, markers, cannon, historic buildings, preserved landscape, a one mile paved walking trail and a driving tour.

For more on Prairie Grove, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com and scroll down the page to the links section. Sites are categorized by state.