why was the battle of prairie grove important

Encyclopedia of Arkansas The house was rebuilt by Archibald Borden several years later and is reported by Caldonia Ann Borden to have closely resembled the original. The rebuilt home is still located at Prairie Grove Battlefield State Park today and was the basis for the 3D model of the Borden home. Major General William T. Shermans corps overran Rebel trenches, and the enemy retreated to the protection of the fort and adjacent rifle pits. The Confederates bungled an excellent chance to destroy Steeles army, which after crossing the river, regrouped at Little Rock. All models from Sketch-Up were imported with textures directly into Vue using the .3DS format. The 1st Corps, Trans-Mississippi . Blunt continued to pursue, and several miles south of the William Morrow house, Confederate troops led by Colonel Charles A. Carroll laid an ambush for Blunt's leading elements. For more information, contact 501-918-3025 orcalsfoundation@cals.org. Bowden, Bill. The divisions near Springfield were commanded by Brigadier General Francis J. Herron, who after receipt of the message from Blunt, moved his men 110 miles (180km) south on foot in three and a half days. [30] Patrols from Colonel Joseph O. Shelby's force guarded the Fayetteville Road. HEADQUARTERS ARMY OF THE FRONTIER, RAY's MILLS, ARK., Sunday, Dec. 7, 1862. B. However, Arkansas and several other states seceded. C. It was the first battle fought on Arkansas soil. [19] While Marmaduke had around 2,000 men, Federal intelligence placed the Confederate strength at 5,000 men. Little did Hindman realize though that this move would prove useful and allow his cavalry to strike an early deadly blow to the 7th Missouri and the 1st Arkansas. J.H. Although the Rebels had more troops and initially captured some of the fortifications, the Union forces repelled them. For terms and use, please refer to our Terms and Conditions Carroll ordered 85 men led by Monroe to attack, in order to allow the rest of his force to retire. Creating an account gives you access to all these features. Battle of Pea Ridge, Arkansas by Kurz and Allison. Battle of Prairie Grove poem, Arkansas State Archives, Little Rock, Arkansas. Battle of Prairie Grove | Military Wiki | Fandom Walking trails, home tours and a self-guided driving tour begin at Hindman Hall, the park's visitor center. The Rebels captured most of the men and all of the supply wagons. The Battle of Prairie Grove was a battle of the American Civil War fought on 7 December 1862, that resulted in a tactical stalemate but essentially secured northwest Arkansas for the Union. Prairie Grove Battlefield State Park protects the battle site and interprets the battle there, the last major Civil War engagement in northwest Arkansas. While tactically indecisive, the battle secured the Union control of northwestern Arkansas . After failing to take the square by force, the Rebels attempted to burn out the Union forces but to no avail. The historic battlefield landscape is completely 3D however for depicting the battle events a single 2D perspective was chosen. The Battle of Prairie Grove was a battle of the American Civil War fought on December 7, 1862. [39] The cavalry units behind the infantry regiment (the 11th Kansas Infantry Regiment) were ordered to pass the marching men, and the 11th Kansas moved forward at double time behind them. Prairie Grove Confederate order of battle, List of Arkansas Civil War Confederate units, Lists of American Civil War Regiments by State, Present-day photos of Prairie Grove battlefield from CivilWarAlbum.com, Community & Conflict: The Impact of the Civil War In the Ozarks, The Encyclopedia of Arkansas History and Culture, The War of the Rebellion: a Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, The Arkansas History Commission, State Archives, Civil War in Arkansas, "A Study of Initiative: Prairie Grove December 7, 1862", http://markerhunter.wordpress.com/2010/09/11/initiative-prairie-grove/, Articles incorporating text from Wikipedia, Battles of the Trans-Mississippi Theater of the American Civil War, Union victories of the American Civil War, Military units and formations in Arkansas, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, Cozzens, Peter. [26][27] Furthermore, most of the Confederate cannons were obsolescent. [70] Historian Stephen B. Oates has Blunts loss at eight men killed and thirty-two wounded, and Oates estimates that Confederate casualties were similar. Information was compiled from multiple sources including historic maps of the area, civilian accounts, and published books and manuscripts to create a holistic view of how the landscape may have looked in 1862. As a project, the Prairie Grove Lion's Club cleaned up the grounds. 1, p. 85. H. P. Spellman, Seventh Missouri Cavalry, was a close friend of Lieutenant DeWolf and became a major following the battle of Prairie Grove. [17] Blunt learned of this movement, and on November 7, sent Colonel William F. Cloud with 500 men and an artillery battery to attack the Confederates. | Today, the park includes about 840 acres of the battlefield and provides even more than a reunion grounds for veterans. As part of the Operations to Control Indian Territory, Union commander Major General James G. Blunt correctly surmised that Confederate forces, mostly Native American troops under Brigadier General Douglas H. Cooper, were about to concentrate and would then attack his force at Fort Gibson, Oklahoma. Poison Spring April 18, 1864 As part of the Camden Expedition, dwindling supplies at Camden forced Major General Fred Steele to send out a foraging party to gather corn that the Confederates had stored about 20 miles up the Prairie DAne-Camden Road on White Oak Creek. After Reconstruction, Arkansas was officially readmitted to the Union in 1868. At ten o'clock on the morning of the 7th (Sunday) we discovered that HINDMAN had essayed to trap us. [67], Shea and Scott and Burgess place Federal losses as eight men killed and thirty-six wounded,[64][65] with Scott and Burgess also mentioning that Blunt reported the capture of a Lieutenant Campbell. Harris moved forward with elements of the 11th Wisconsin, 33rd Illinois, and the 1st Indiana Cavalry, moved forward, he blundered into an ambuscade. The visualizations presented on this website are the result of extensive research and collaboration by researchers at the Center for Advanced Spatial Technologies and park officials at Prairie Grove Battlefield State Park. During the night of 7 December and 8 December Blunt began to call up his reserves. Marmaduke was pushed back but Blunt found himself 35miles deeper into Arkansas and that much farther from the remainder of his army. To ford the river, Marmaduke established a rearguard that received heavy punishment on May 1-2. The Confederate retreat began, and although Cooper fought a rearguard action, many of those troops counterattacked, failed, and fled. [77], A portion of the battlefield, about 5,750 acres (2,330ha), was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1994 as the Cane Hill Battlefield. The Confederate forces retired, leaving Pine Bluff to the Federals. Seeing the effect of his artillery, Herron ordered an advance on the hill rather than waiting for Blunt to arrive. The fields would have probably been plowed with horse or oxen-drawn plows or possibly hand-tilled. The Confederates had wet powder, causing misfires, and the problem intensified when the rain began. 2023 Encyclopedia of Arkansas. Request Permissions, Published By: Arkansas Historical Association. Not knowing the precise location of the fighting, the Federal troops ignored roads and traversed through farm fields and over fences straight toward the sound of battle at the double quick. If you'll but pay attention, I won't detain you long 'Twas of the gallant charges We made at Prairie Grove, Where we and Southern rebels In unequal numbers strove. [51] During the Confederate retreats before Reed's Mountain was reached,[53] Shelby responded with defensive tactics that Scott and Burgess refer to as "brilliant". Lieutenant M.F. Prairie Grove Union order of battle Following the capture of Fort Sumter, South Carolina, in April 1861, President Abraham Lincoln called for troops from every Union state to put down the rebellion. Cloud's men led the Federal advance, which made contact with Colonel Joseph O. Shelby's Confederate troopers on the morning of November 28. Saint Charles June 17, 1862 As part of the Operations on White River, the USS Mound City, St. Louis, Lexington, Conestoga, and transports proceeded up White River on the morning of June 17. Gen. James Blunt remained in the northwestern part of Arkansas, and the second under Brig. In late 1862 Confederate forces had withdrawn from southwest Missouri and were wintering in the wheat-rich and milder climate of northwest Arkansas. | The Battle of Prairie Grove was a battle of the American Civil War fought on December 7, 1862. Read our Privacy Policy. Again and again our infantry would charge into the woods from the open fields and drive them back, and in turn they would charge our men and drive them again to the edge of the opening. The Union victory resulted in 1,251 Union casualties and 1,317 Confederates. Help using Search. At first, the Union escort rebuffed Rebel attempts to halt them. The Union troops assaulted twice and were repulsed. The Union victory resulted in 79 Union casualties and 637 Confederates. Afterwards, the ladies of the UDC discussed discontinuing the reunions. The Confederates made a stand at Reed's Mountain, but were forced to withdraw. Staff of the Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism. The fight occurred when Union Army troops marched through Confederate-held lands. [67] After the fighting ended, Blunt withdrew his forces to Cane Hill, which became a base of operations for his division. There is no John Wyatt in the Use and reproduction of images held by the Arkansas State Archives without prior written permission is prohibited. While the fighting was inconclusive, Hindman withdrew from the field and the Federals retained control of Missouri and northwestern Arkansas. Colored Troops.. This most recent skirmish ended, more or less, the same way, except it was a win-win for the state and those people in . Though the battle was a tactical draw, it was a strategic victory for the Federal army as they remained in possession of the battlefield and Confederate fortunes in northwest Arkansas declined markedly from that point on. Flags of truce were sent from both lines to pick up the wounded. For this project, nine of the maps around the Prairie Grove area were georeferenced in ArcMap GIS software. Battle of Prairie Grove - Wikipedia Pea Ridge March 6-8, 1862 As part of the Pea Ridge Campaign, on the night of March 6, 1862, Major General Earl Van Dorn set out to outflank the Union position near Pea Ridge, dividing his army into two columns. The Confederate victory resulted in 301 Union casualties and 114 Confederates. On 3 December Hindman started moving his main body of 11,000 poorly equipped men and 22 cannon across the Boston Mountains toward Blunt's division. For information on reproducing images held by the Arkansas State Archives, please call 501-682-6900 or email at state.archives@arkansas.gov. The Confederate victory resulted in 40 Union casualties and 45 Confederates. The collection of eleven parcel maps known as the Skelton maps represent the first systematic survey of Washington County, Arkansas completed by Gordon V. Skelton. Hindman's characteristically aggressive nature seems to have failed him at this moment. They turned up the foot of the bed and . This project is funded in part by a National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) Sustaining the Humanities through the American Rescue Plan grant award. Further Deep South states seceded early in the next year, forming the Confederate States of America. The following Confederate attack, however, was stopped. While Blunt did not order the maneuver he quickly endorsed it even chastising a regimental commander for not showing enough initiative when he failed to follow the unorthodox procedure. https://www.nytimes.com/1862/12/27/archives/the-battle-at-prairie-grove-ark.html. Blunt moved on the offensive to attack Marmaduke on November 27. Privacy Leaving the main road, we took a straight shoot over fences, ditches, through fields of chapparel and thorn brush, until we came to the enemy's lines upon their left flank. [22] Wanting to stop the Confederates' supply-gathering in the Cane Hill area and believing himself abandoned by Schofield, Blunt decided to go on the offensive. The Federals pursued the retreating Confederates with reinforcements and turned the retreat into a rout as the day progressed. As the surviving Federals rolled back down the hill toward the safety of Union lines, Confederate soldiers spontaneously pursued and attempt to break Herron's lines. We have also eliminated the modern development of the landscape and have reintroduced historic elements that no longer exist. [72] The work by Hess, Hatcher, Piston, and Shea describes the battle as a Federal tactical victory. HINDMAN had fully four miles the start with the front of his column, his men enthusiastic with the prospect of gaining our rear and cutting off our trains of over 200 wagons and a fresh supply of commissary stores. [25] Leaving on November 27 with 5,000 men,[24] Blunt's force reached Rhea's Mill the next morning;[28] Rhea's Mill was only 7 miles (11km) from Cane Hill. Abbreviations used Military rank MG = Major General BG = Brigadier General Col = Colonel Ltc = Lieutenant Colonel Maj = Major My Account Cabells forces ambushed approaching Union troops and momentarily halted their advance. Anticipating that the Federal forces would take the direct route via the Cincinnati Road, the Confederates took up a position defending that road. The Confederates reached Van Buren on 10 December, demoralized, footsore, and ragged. A museum, home tours and interactive maps are also available. In addition, Confederate forces suffered from severe demoralization and lost many conscript soldiers during and after the campaign. Description: On Sunday, December 7, 1862, two armies collided at an obscure Arkansas hamlet named Prairie Grove in a desperate battle that effectively ended Confederate offensive operations west of the Mississippi River. The wounded were scattered through the brush and woods, and the darkness made the work slow and tedious. However, Blunt actually approached via the Ridge Road, which intersected the Fayetteville Road before leading to the Cane Hill area. One division under Brig. Atkinson. Copyright. Home He sent an aide, Verplanck Van Antwerp, to the rear to hurry forward the rest of his command. As the infantry moved slower than the cavalry, it was causing a delay. As night came, neither side had won, but Hindman retreated to Van Buren. By 29 December Blunt and Herron would threaten Hindman at his Van Buren sanctuary and drive him from northwest Arkansas permanently. This collection contains a poem, "The 19th Ioway or the Prairie Grove Fight," dated February 2, 1868. The Federals withdrew to Cane Hill while the Confederates returned to Van Buren. Reed's Mountain was located 1 mile (1.6km) south of Newburg. At the onset of the project, it was decided that human elements would not be used in the visualizations. Hearing of this movement, Brigadier General James Blunt advanced to meet Marmadukes command and destroy it. National Park Service Battle Descriptions [75] Federal troops looted the Cane Hill College during the early portion of the stay at Cane Hill. As a result, he was removed from district command by the Confederate government and replaced by Major General Theophilus Holmes. Brigadier General John S. Marmadukes and Brigadier General Samuel B. Maxeys Confederate forces arrived at Lee Plantation, about 15 miles from Camden, where they engaged Williams. This movement was probably initiated by Colonel Thomas Ewing and the 11th Kansas Infantry. Carroll's men began to panic, and the Confederate retreat became more disorganized; Carroll later referred to the conduct of his own soldiers as "disgraceful". Caldonia Ann Borden Brandenburg was nine years old when the Battle of Prairie Grove raged around her family's home on the southeast side of the battlefield. | The result is the numerous images of the historic landscape and structures of 1862 found throughout this website. Use and reproduction of images held by the Arkansas State Archives without prior written permission is prohibited. The Thompson house was located where Fayetteville Road crosses the Illinois River and the West house was located on a knoll in the Northwest section of the battlefield. The forests of the area were described by Shea in the following excerpt: The corn and wheat fields of the area would have been harvested in the previous fall. Location. Elongated balls are a major class of Civil War-era artifacts found on battlefields. Battle of Prairie Grove How Its Made - University of Arkansas Print. To preserve these articles as they originally appeared, The Times does not alter, edit or update them. Cultural Resources Council, funded by the Arkansas Real Estate Transfer Tax. The terrain layer was clipped to match the extent of the regional map and was imported directly into the Vue Infinite software using the .dem format. [79] While the town of Cane Hill was a regional cultural center at the time of the battle, it has since greatly declined. Union boats began landing troops near Arkansas Post on the evening of January 9, 1863. Union forces controlled Indian Territory north of the Arkansas River following this battle. The United States government established the American Battlefield Protection Program to help private, local, and state efforts to preserve historic battlefields through federal funding and other assistance. Union Major. Arkansas raised 48 infantry regiments, 20 artillery batteries, and over 20 cavalry regiments for the Confederacy, primarily serving in the Western Theater. The first time you log in to our catalog you will need to create an account. The foundation also sought the passage of Senate Bill 278 in 1957, creating a state-appointed Prairie Grove Battlefield Park Commission with a state appropriation of $50,000 for development. A lot of decisions are made when recreating an environment in 3D. THE BATTLE AT PRAIRIE GROVE, ARK. - The New York Times When Abraham Lincoln, the newly inaugurated President of the United States, called for 75,000 volunteers to put down the rebellion, this proved the catalyst for the southern state of Arkansas to secede and join the Confederacy. Thousands of others were wounded. Orchards were shown with rows of apple trees in leaf-off conditions. Federal troops under Brigadier General James G. Blunt had entered northwestern Arkansas, and Major General Thomas Hindman of the Confederate Army sent a force under Brigadier General John S. Marmaduke to Cane Hill to collect supplies, in the opening stages of a campaign in which Hindman hoped to catch Blunt's command while it was isolated from the rest of the Federal Army of the Frontier, which was near Springfield, Missouri. The men were speedily formed, the guns unlimbered, and the "war dogs" let loose. [24] While Blunt's men had plentiful ammunition, Marmaduke's Confederates were short on both ammunition and percussion caps. During the day the enemy advanced his pickets, driving ours over the mountains. Both sides' batteries fired upon each for about an hour, with little effect. All Rights Reserved. | The Confederate army withdrew from Prairie Grove on the night of December 7, leaving Missouri and northwest Arkansas in Federal hands. On the morning of the 5th Gen. BLUNT learned that the enemy were making preparations to cross Boston Mountains, and attack us at Boonsboro. Guides and finding aids The Arkansas Historical Association is dedicated to promoting the preservation, writing, publishing, teaching, and understanding of Arkansas history through the publication of the Arkansas Historical Quarterly and other activities, This item is part of a JSTOR Collection. The 11th Kansas Infantry was positioned between Hopkins's battery and the 2nd Indiana Battery. Both armies then commenced strengthening their pickets. [76], On December 3, Hindman moved his army north from Van Buren to attack Blunt; the day before, Blunt had suspected that the Confederates were going to be on the move, and ordered the two divisions at Springfield to join him, while he took up defensive positions near Cane Hill. Van Dorn led a second column to meet the Federals in the Elkhorn Tavern and Tanyard area. The enemy fought with desperation. Even during the Great Depression, the reunions continued with the last surviving Confederate veterans in the area attending the August, 1938, event. Major funding provided by the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation. Battle of Cane Hill - Wikipedia Listen Now . Herron brought his artillery across the Illinois River and initiated an artillery duel. These resources were instrumental in creating 3D models of all of the homes in the battle area. A division of Union troops in the Army of the Frontier, commanded by James G. Blunt, was posted in northwestern Arkansas after winning the Battle of Cane Hill on November 28. Chalk Bluff May 1, 1863 As part of Marmadukes Second Expedition Into Missouri, Union Brigadier General William Vandever pursued Brigadier General John S. Marmaduke to Chalk Bluff, where the Confederates hoped to cross the St. Francis River. Shea, William L. Fields of Blood: The Prairie Grove Campaign. Phone: 501.682.6900 / Email: "Battle of Prairie Grove poem, 1868" - Arkansas Digital Archives Hindman's force gathered at Fort Smith, Arkansas, and sent out approximately 2,000 cavalry under General John S. Marmaduke to harass Blunt's forces and screen the main Confederate force. About three miles, a little south of east of Ray's Mills, Gen. HERRON and HINDMAN ran together, similar to two locomotives, both rather thunder-struck at this unexpected meeting. Blunt began crossing the swollen Arkansas River on July 15, 1863. The enemy supposed us retreating, as our cannon were still, and they came charging to the very open fields, with hideous' cheers. The Battle of Prairie Grove - JSTOR The lead portion of the 2nd Kansas Cavalry was in the front, along with the 1st Indian Home Guard. Both survived the battle and were described as two-story log structures. Renderings of the Thompson house and West house are provided below. With his cavalrymen running low on ammunition as well, Marmaduke ordered a withdrawal. The Confederate victory resulted in 1,500 Union casualties and 293 Confederates. As they crossed, the Confederates attempted to stop them but to no avail. All fallow fields were depicted with a scrubby undergrowth and with occasional tall weeds and grasses.

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