Prairie Grove Battlefield State Park

Last updated

Prairie Grove Battlefield State Park
Borden House at Prairie Grove.png
During the Battle of Prairie Grove, on December 7, 1862, the Borden Farm was the scene of some of the heaviest fighting of the day.
Location Prairie Grove, Arkansas
Coordinates 35°58′59.2″N94°18′38.4″W / 35.983111°N 94.310667°W / 35.983111; -94.310667 Coordinates: 35°58′59.2″N94°18′38.4″W / 35.983111°N 94.310667°W / 35.983111; -94.310667
Area707.8 acres (286.4 ha)
Established1957 (1957)
Original use Field, forest, battlefield
Governing bodyArkansas State Parks
Website Official website OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
USA Arkansas relief location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Location of Prairie Grove Battlefield State Park in Arkansas
Prairie Grove Battlefield
NRHP reference No. 70000133 [1]  (original)
92001523 [1]  (increase 1)
05001167 [1]  (increase 2)
Significant dates
Added to NRHPSeptember 4, 1970
Boundary increasesNovember 9, 1992
October 27, 2005

The Prairie Grove Battlefield State Park is an Arkansas state park located in Prairie Grove. It commemorates the Battle of Prairie Grove, fought December 7, 1862, during the American Civil War. The battle secured northwestern Arkansas for the Union.

Contents

Description and administrative history

In 1908, the local chapter of the United Daughters of the Confederacy purchased 9 acres (3.6 ha) at the center of the Battle of Prairie Grove. It was maintained by the UDC as a meeting spot and in commemorations of the battle for almost 50 years. A local business owner and politician, J. Sherman Dill, sought funds while serving in the 38th Arkansas General Assembly to improve the park, and was successful in procuring $10,000 ($302,000 in today's dollars). These funds led to the construction of the stone archway at the park entrance, a wooden bandstand, and gravel driveway around 1925. However, the park fell into disrepair during the Great Depression, and was fenced off from use for years.

In 1953, a newly formed Lions Club chapter adopted the park as a club project, raising money through community events and constructing benches, picnic tables, and sidewalks. In 1957, a 55-foot (17 m) stone chimney from nearby Rhea's Mill was carefully moved to the park site. Other historic buildings from the area, including a 1834 log home and blacksmith's shop, were moved to the park site in the following years.

Hindman Hall HINDMAN HALL ON PRAIRIE GROVE BATTLEFIELD.jpg
Hindman Hall

A museum was constructed following a bequest by Biscoe Hindman, the grandson of Major-General Thomas C. Hindman who commanded the 1st Corps, Trans-Mississippi Army, during the battle. Dedicated on May 31, 1964, the museum is named Hindman Hall. The park was added to the state park system in 1971 in a joint effort among Governor Dale Bumpers and state legislators Morriss Henry, Hugh Kincaid, and Charles W. Stewart. The state park grew through land acquisitions and donations in 1980, 1992, and 2005. [2]

The portion of the state park within a 64-acre (26 ha) triangle formed by North Road on the northwest and Highway 62 was first listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1970. The area of this district was increased in 1992 to 65.8 acres (26.6 ha) and then again in 2005 to 707.8 acres (286.4 ha). [1]

Prominent features of the state park include its battle monument, a chimney carefully relocated here from the site of a skirmish, and the Hindman Museum. [3] The Prairie Grove Airlight Outdoor Telephone Booth, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, is opposite the entrance to the park on Highway 62. [4]

Battle of Prairie Grove reenactment

A Civil War reenactment is held at the state park during the first weekend in December of even-numbered years. [5]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Washington County, Arkansas</span> County in Arkansas, United States

Washington County is a regional economic, educational, and cultural hub in the Northwest Arkansas region. Created as Arkansas's 17th county on November 30, 1848, Washington County has 13 incorporated municipalities, including Fayetteville, the county seat, and Springdale. The county is also the site of small towns, bedroom communities, and unincorporated places. The county is named for George Washington, the first President of the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prairie Grove, Arkansas</span> City in Arkansas

Prairie Grove is a city in Washington County, Arkansas, United States. The population was 4,380 at the 2010 Census. It is part of the Northwest Arkansas region, and home to Prairie Grove Battlefield State Park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Prairie Grove</span> 1862 battle of the American Civil War

The Battle of Prairie Grove was a battle of the American Civil War fought on December 7, 1862. While tactically indecisive, the battle secured the Union control of northwestern Arkansas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pea Ridge National Military Park</span>

Pea Ridge National Military Park is a United States National Military Park located in northwest Arkansas near the Missouri border. The park protects the site of the Battle of Pea Ridge, fought March 7 and 8, 1862. The battle was a victory for the Union, and helped it gain control of the crucial border state of Missouri.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Poison Springs Battleground State Park</span> United States historic place

Poison Springs Battleground State Park is an Arkansas state park located southeast of Bluff City. It commemorates the Battle of Poison Spring in the American Civil War, which was part of the 1864 Camden Expedition, an element of a Union Army initiative to gain control of Shreveport, Louisiana and get a foothold in Texas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Cane Hill</span> Battle of the Trans-Mississippi Theater of the American Civil War

The Battle of Cane Hill was fought during the American Civil War on November 28, 1862, in northwestern Arkansas, near the town of Cane Hill. Union troops under Brig. Gen. James G. Blunt had entered northwestern Arkansas, and Major General Thomas Hindman of the Confederate Army sent a force under John S. Marmaduke to Cane Hill to intercept Blunt. Blunt attacked on November 28, and quickly broke Marmaduke's first line. An effective rear guard action by Joseph O. Shelby allowed the Confederates to form a second position on Reed's Mountain, but Blunt also broke this line, with the help of his artillery. Blunt's Union troops pursued the retreating Confederates, and darkness ended the action. The battle set the stage for the Battle of Prairie Grove, which occurred the next month.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fayetteville National Cemetery</span> Historic veterans cemetery in Washington County, Arkansas

Fayetteville National Cemetery is a United States National Cemetery located on the southern side of the city of Fayetteville in Washington County, Arkansas. It encompasses nearly 15 acres (6.1 ha). As of 2020, over 11,000 veterans and family members were interred in this location, with approximately 200 new burials per year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fort Smith National Cemetery</span> Historic veterans cemetery in Sebastian County, Arkansas

Fort Smith National Cemetery is a United States National Cemetery located at Garland Avenue and Sixth Street in Fort Smith, Sebastian County, Arkansas. It encompasses 22.3 acres (9.0 ha), and as of the end of 2005, had 13,127 interments.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cedar Creek and Belle Grove National Historical Park</span> National Historical Park of the United States

Cedar Creek and Belle Grove National Historical Park became the 388th unit of the United States National Park Service when it was authorized on December 19, 2002. The National Historical Park was created to protect several historically significant locations in the Shenandoah Valley of Northern Virginia, notably the site of the American Civil War Battle of Cedar Creek and the Belle Grove Plantation.

Elkhorn Tavern is a two-story, wood-frame structure that served as a physical center for the American Civil War Battle of Pea Ridge, also known as the Battle of Elkhorn Tavern, which was fought on March 7 and March 8, 1862, approximately five miles east of Pea Ridge, Arkansas, located in the northeastern Benton County, Arkansas. The tavern, a replica built in 1865 following the burning of the original building by bushwhackers, is now the centerpiece of the Pea Ridge National Military Park, which includes approximately 5,000 acres (2,000 ha) around the structure, including the restored battlefields, a stretch of the pre-war Telegraph Road, which runs directly in front of the tavern, and a section of the Trail of Tears. The tavern is on the National Register of Historic Places.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arkansas in the American Civil War</span> State of the Confederate States of America

During the American Civil War, Arkansas was a Confederate state, though it had initially voted to remain in the Union. Following the capture of Fort Sumter in April 1861, Abraham Lincoln called for troops from every Union state to put down the rebellion, and Arkansas and several other states seceded. For the rest of the civil war, Arkansas played a major role in controlling the Mississippi River, a major waterway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Camden Expedition Sites National Historic Landmark</span> Historic district in Arkansas, United States

The Camden Expedition Sites is a national historic landmark consisting of nine nationally significant historic places in southwest Arkansas where events of the Union army's disastrous Camden Expedition of 1864 occurred during the American Civil War. The Union was attempting to take over Shreveport, Louisiana. Each of the sites are individually listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It was designated a national historic landmark on April 19, 1994.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jenkins' Ferry Battleground State Park</span> State park in Arkansas

The Jenkins' Ferry Battleground State Park is the site of the American Civil War battle of Jenkins' Ferry, also known as the Engagement at Jenkins' Ferry, fought on Saturday, April 30, 1864, in present-day Grant County, Arkansas. The park was listed in the U.S. National Register of Historic Places on January 21, 1970, and, with seven other sites, is part of the Camden Expedition Sites National Historic Landmark, designated a National Historic Landmark District on April 19, 1994.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prairie D'Ane Battlefield</span> United States historic place

The Prairie D'Ane Battlefield, also known as Prairie D'Ann Battlefield or Prairie De Ann Battlefield in anglicized forms, was the site of the Civil War Battle of Prairie D'Ane, one of the engagements in southwestern Arkansas of the Union's Camden Expedition of 1864. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974, and, with other sites, is part of the Camden Expedition Sites National Historic Landmark. It was declared part of the National Historic Landmark in 1994.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Borden House (Prairie Grove, Arkansas)</span> Historic house in Arkansas, United States

The Borden House is a historic house on the grounds of Prairie Grove Battlefield State Park in Prairie Grove, Arkansas. In the Battle of Prairie Grove on December 7, 1862, the original Borden House was one of the central points of the Confederate line, and was the scene of heavy casualties. The Borden House was burned the next day. Archibald Borden built the current house on the original site. It is a 1+12-story wood-frame house, five bays wide, with a side-gable roof pierced by three gabled dormers. A porch extends across the center three bays of the front.

The following Confederate Army units and commanders fought in the Battle of Prairie Grove of the American Civil War on December 7, 1862, in Washington County, Arkansas. The Union order of battle is listed separately.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">22nd Arkansas Infantry Regiment</span> Military unit

The 22nd Arkansas Infantry Regiment was a Confederate Army infantry regiment during the American Civil War (1862–1865). This regiment was originally organized as the 17th Arkansas Infantry Regiment, reorganized after the battle of Pea Ridge as 1st Regiment, Northwest Division, Trans-Mississippi Department, or Rector's War Regiment, redesignated as the 35th Arkansas in the summer of 1862, and reorganized and redesignated as the 22nd Arkansas following the Battle of Prairie Grove. The unit was also sometimes referred to as, King's Arkansas Infantry or McCord's Arkansas Infantry. This was the second regiment to be officially designated as the 22nd Arkansas. The first was mustered in at DeValls Bluff, Arkansas, on April 9, 1862, and later reorganized as the 20th Arkansas Infantry Regiment.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fayetteville Confederate Cemetery</span> Historic cemetery in Washington County, Arkansas

Fayetteville Confederate Cemetery is a cemetery for soldiers of the Confederate States located on the eastern side of Fayetteville in Washington County, Arkansas. Added to the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) in 1993, the cemetery encompasses 3.5 acres (1.4 ha).

The Civil War Trust's Civil War Discovery Trail is a heritage tourism program that links more than 600 U.S. Civil War sites in more than 30 states. The program is one of the White House Millennium Council's sixteen flagship National Millennium Trails. Sites on the trail include battlefields, museums, historic sites, forts and cemeteries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prairie Grove Airlight Outdoor Telephone Booth</span> United States historic place

The Prairie Grove Airlight Outdoor Telephone Booth is a telephone booth installed at the southwest corner of East Douglas and Parker Streets in Prairie Grove, Arkansas, United States. It is an early example of the Airlight, the first American mass-produced weather-resistant metal telephone booth, which made possible widespread installation of outdoor payphones. In 2015, it became the first phone booth on the National Register of Historic Places.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
  2. Rice, Maylon (June 23, 2021). "Battlefield State Park Turns 50". Washington County Enterprise-Leader. Vol. 81, no. 24. Farmington, AR: Northwest Arkansas Newspapers LLC. pp. 1, 5A. Retrieved July 3, 2021.
  3. "NRHP nomination for Prairie Grove Battlefield State Park (original nomination)" (PDF). Arkansas Preservation. Retrieved April 13, 2015.
  4. Bowden, Bill (November 20, 2015). "Arkansas phone booth is first of its kind to make National Register of Historic Places". Arkansas Democrat-Gazette . WEHCO Media . Retrieved November 20, 2015.
  5. Kutter, Lynn (December 16, 2020). "Park Staff Stay Busy In Downtime". Washington County Enterprise-Leader. Vol. 80, no. 49. Farmington, AR: Northwest Arkansas Newspapers LLC. pp. 1, 8A. Retrieved December 24, 2020.