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Okla-homey
3/5/2006, 09:28 AM
If you live in eastern Oklahoma or western Arkansas, you should take the short drive to Pea Ridge National Military Park over in the Rogers/Springdale/Bentonville area.

It is a beautiful site, and IMHO among the best preserved Civil War battlefields in the US.

Pea Ridge gets short shrift among Civil War addicts who usually assume nothing of consequence happened west of the the Mississippi, but Pea Ridge which occurred this week 144 years ago actually ensured the entire state of Missouri would remain in Union control.

See, pro-South forces were holed up in SW Missouri in the winter of 1861-1862. The Yanks had the rest of the state. CS reinforcements including Cherokees, Louisiana, Arkansas and Texas regiments formed an army and were headed up thru eastern Arkansas to link up with them, then bust out and take control of the entire state of Missouri.

http://img380.imageshack.us/img380/3065/zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzv.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
Prior to the Pea Ridge campaign, CS Major General Earl Van Dorn wrote home to his wife, "I am now in for it, to make a reputation and serve my country conspicuously or fail. I must not, shall not, do the latter. I must have St. Louis -- then Huzza!" A "ladies man" Van Dorn was killed later in the war by a jealous husband.

The CS forces under Van Dorn were stopped cold at Pea Ridge on March 7&8 1862 by US forces made up of mostly Iowa, Indiana and Illinois troops under MG Samuel Curtis. The CS fellers were met in open battle at Pea Ridge and routed, thus sealing the fate of conventional Confederate forces in Missouri to wither on the vine and thus keep Missouri in Union control.

http://img385.imageshack.us/img385/9853/zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz14.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
MG Sam Curtis. Old by Civil War standards at 56.

Take the short drive over and check it out. Its only about 30 miles north of Fayetteville. I expect its spectacular in the fall when the leaves turn.

http://img385.imageshack.us/img385/8339/zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz15.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
Elkhorn Tavern, around which the worst fighting raged at Pea Ridge. The inn was being used as a Federal headquarters and base of supply. Many an Iowa and Arkansas farm boy breathed his last while struggling to blow the brains out of each other at this site

http://www.nps.gov/peri/

SoonerBorn68
3/5/2006, 10:20 AM
As soon as I get the chance Homey I'm taking the family there. Two of my great-great grandfathers fought there--both were from Franklin Co. in Prairie Township. One was in the 1st AR Cav, and one was in the AR infantry (but the Division escapes me at the moment). The one from the infantry was wounded and then captured. He died later at the prison camp in St. Louis and is buried there. I've done the research and have copies of all the service records from all my kin that fought in the Civil War--all four.

Flagstaffsooner
3/5/2006, 10:25 AM
Please quit calling it the Civil War. It was the War Between the States or the War of Northern Aggression.

SoonerBorn68
3/5/2006, 11:06 AM
Or the War For Southern Independence...I was just trying to be PC. ;)

reevie
3/5/2006, 11:22 AM
I've been to Pea Ridge several times. Along with Shiloh, Franklin and several others. The battlefield site I was most impressed with was Petersburg, VA. Very impressive how they've maintained the site, trenches and crater.

AlbqSooner
3/5/2006, 11:35 AM
Vicksburg is a pretty impressive site to visit as well.

1stTimeCaller
3/5/2006, 01:20 PM
As soon as I get the chance Homey I'm taking the family there. Two of my great-great grandfathers fought there--both were from Franklin Co. in Prairie Township. One was in the 1st AR Cav, and one was in the AR infantry (but the Division escapes me at the moment). The one from the infantry was wounded and then captured. He died later at the prison camp in St. Louis and is buried there. I've done the research and have copies of all the service records from all my kin that fought in the Civil War--all four.

that's nuts. I have letters from one of my great great grandfathers that was with an AR unit and was captured and later died in that prison in Alton, ILL just across the river from St. Louis. I visited the site and took pictures of the Confederate Cemetary. One of the letters has a lock of his hair tied onto it!!! According to the records my gg granddad had TB twice and small pox once. He survived one bout of TB and the smallpox but the second TB did him in. The prison in Alton, IL was known as the 'Andersonville of the North'. The had an island in the Mississippi where they housed the smallpox folks.

I will see if I can find the pictures of the cemetary and send you copies.

Oh, if you want to check out info on the cemetary or former prison, a guy in Alton named Don Huber is the local historian.

Frozen Sooner
3/5/2006, 02:24 PM
Please quit calling it the Civil War. It was the War Between the States or the War of Northern Aggression.

How about the War of Insurrection Getting the Crap Kicked Out of It?

Okla-homey
3/5/2006, 02:39 PM
The US gubmint officially called it "The War of the Rebellion." I figure that's prolly correct since they won and all.

just saying.

Frozen Sooner
3/5/2006, 05:54 PM
Yeah, I guess it technically wasn't a Civil War, because the Southerners weren't trying to establish a new government over the previously-established nation.

I'm standing pat with "insurrection."

Okla-homey
3/5/2006, 07:18 PM
Yep, they were mistaken in their opinion that once they joined the Union, they could check-out if things didn't work out they way they wanted -- you remember, that pesky chattel slavery dealio. Heh.;)