Pea Ridge National Military Park

Pea Ridge National Military Park
IUCN category V (protected landscape/seascape)

Location	Sugar Creek Township / Garfield Township, Benton County, Arkansas, USA
Nearest city	Garfield, Arkansas
Coordinates	36°27′16″N 94°02′03″W / 36.45444°N 94.03417°W / 36.45444; -94.03417Coordinates: 36°27′16″N 94°02′03″W / 36.45444°N 94.03417°W / 36.45444; -94.03417
Area	4,300 acres (1,700 ha)^[1]
Authorized	July 20, 1956 (1956-July-20)
Visitors	114,234 (in 2011)^[2]
Governing body	National Park Service
Website	Pea Ridge National Military Park

U.S. Historic district
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Designated	October 15, 1966
Reference no.	66000199^[3]
Built	1862

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

Park history

The 4,300-acre (17 km²) Pea Ridge National Military Park was created by an act of Congress in 1956 to preserve the battlefield of the 1862 Battle of Pea Ridge. It was dedicated as a national park during the nation’s Civil War Centennial in 1963.^[4]

In 1956, the Arkansas congressional delegation proposed legislation to make Pea Ridge a national military park. This was a major breakthrough in Civil War battlefield preservation. At that time, under the National Park Service classification system, only 1-acre (4,000 m²) should have been preserved, along with a monument. On July 20, 1956, Congress enacted legislation to accept a 5,000-acre (20 km²) donation from the state of Arkansas.^[4]

Elkhorn Tavern, center of day two's fighting

In acquiring the land for the park, the government purchased or used eminent domain on dozens of farms and residences of various sizes, ranging from a few acres to the large Winton Springs estate. Many of the houses and structures were sold and moved off of park property, including some that still stand in nearby Pea Ridge. All other remaining structures, with the exception of the historic Elkhorn Tavern, were demolished by the park, including the elaborate Winton Springs mansion.

Many Union and Confederate veterans attended several reunions at the Pea Ridge battlefield long before it was a park. The first of these reunions was held in 1887, twenty-five years after the battle. The reunions promoted not only remembrance, but healing. The veterans dedicated the first monuments on the battlefield to both the Union and Confederate dead. These monuments are located within the park today.^[4]

The battle

Main article: Battle of Pea Ridge

The Battle of Pea Ridge (also known as Elkhorn Tavern) was fought on March 7 and March 8, 1862, near Bentonville, Arkansas. In the battle, Union Army forces led by Brig. Gen. Samuel R. Curtis defeated Confederate troops under Maj. Gen. Earl Van Dorn effectively securing Missouri, St. Louis, the Missouri River and the Upper Mississippi River for the Union.

Visiting the park

The park is acknowledged as one of the best preserved Civil War battlefields. The park features a visitors center and museum, a driving tour, the restored battlefields, hiking trails, a portion of the pre-war Old Telegraph/Wire Road, approximately 2.5 miles (4.0 km) miles of the Trail of Tears as followed by some members of the Cherokee Nation and the restored Elkhorn Tavern, which was the epicenter of much of the battle.

The Winton Springs Mansion was the primary residence on the large Winton Springs estate, which became part of the Pea Ridge National Military Park. The mansion, which was built several years after the Civil War, was considered inappropriate for the nature of the park and was too large to be moved when the government acquired the land in the early 1960s. It stood empty for more than 20 years after the establishment of the park before being torn down by the National Park Service.

References

↑ "Listing of acreage as of December 31, 2011". Land Resource Division, National Park Service. Retrieved 2012-03-19.
↑ "NPS Annual Recreation Visits Report". National Park Service. Retrieved 2012-03-19.
↑ National Park Service (2010-07-09). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service.
1 2 3 Warren, Steven L. Pea Ridge National Military Park, The Encyclopedia of Arkansas History and Culture.

External links

Official site: Pea Ridge National Military Park

U.S. National Register of Historic Places

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Protected areas of Arkansas

Federal

National Park	Hot Springs

National Historic Sites	Fort Smith Little Rock Central High School President William Jefferson Clinton Birthplace Home

National Forests	Ouachita Ozark-St. Francis

National Memorial	Arkansas Post

National Military Park	Pea Ridge

National River	Buffalo

National Wildlife Refuges	Bald Knob Big Lake Cache River Felsenthal Holla Bend Logan Cave Overflow Pond Creek Wapanocca White River

Wilderness Areas	Big Lake Black Fork Mountain Buffalo National River Caney Creek Dry Creek East Fork Flatside Hurricane Creek Leatherwood Poteau Mountain Richland Creek Upper Buffalo

State

State Parks	Arkansas Museum of Natural Resources Arkansas Post Museum Bull Shoals-White River Cane Creek Conway Cemetery Cossatot River Crater of Diamonds Crowley's Ridge Daisy Davidsonville Historic DeGray Lake Resort Delta Heritage Trail Devil's Den Hampson Archeological Museum Herman Davis Historic Washington Hobbs Jacksonport Jenkins' Ferry Lake Hamilton and Lake Catherine Lake Charles Lake Chicot Lake Dardanelle Lake Fort Smith Lake Frierson Lake Ouachita Lake Poinsett Logoly Louisiana Purchase Lower White River Museum Mammoth Spring Marks' Mills Millwood Mississippi River Moro Bay Mount Magazine Mount Nebo Ozark Folk Center Parkin Archeological Petit Jean Pinnacle Mountain Plantation Agriculture Museum Poison Springs Battleground Powhatan Historic Prairie Grove Battlefield Queen Wilhelmina South Arkansas Arboretum Toltec Mounds Archeological Village Creek State Park\|Village Creek White Oak Lake Withrow Springs Woolly Hollow

State Forest	Poison Springs State Forest

Wildlife Management Areas	List

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