Memories of a Fort Smith War Widow

Commissary Storehouse at Fort Smith

One of the saddest stories I have encountered in my research into the Civil War in Arkansas is that of Catherine C. Cox, who lived on the outskirts of Fort Smith.
She and the men of her family were Unionist in their sympathies and her husband, Christopher Cox, had died of natural causes shortly after the beginning of the war. His death, sadly, was just the beginning of tragedy in her life, as she explained in a later petition to the U.S. Government:

...My husband left three children, two sons and a daughter. The oldest son, Albert Cox, enlisted in the United States service in Genl. Steele's Arkansas Regiment and died have neither wife nor children. I think his regiment was the 1st Arkansas. - under command of a man named Stele. His second son was named Henry was taken away aged 15 years by the rebels and it is said he died of small pox. His daughter Mary Jane is about 22 years old, married as I understand since I left Arkansas. I forget the name of her husband. - Deposition of Catherine C. Cox, November 6, 1872.

Commissary Storehouse at Fort Smith

The degree to which the Union families around Fort Smith suffered because of their attachment to the Union is one of the seldom told stories of the CivilWar in Arkansas. Not only did they risk the loss of their men and boys in the service of the Union army, but many also saw their sons and husbands - like young Henry Cox - conscripted into the Confederate army by roaming cavalry companies.

In addition, they faced raids on their farms by Southern troops and guerrilla bands, but their greatest losses often came from the Union army itself. The large numbers of soldiers stationed in Fort Smith required supplies, the only source for which was the collection of farms spread out in the vallies and prairies around the post. Mrs. Cox later described how men from the Union army came and took away all that she had:

Farm Scene near Fort Smith

...While thus living and cultivating my farm, several soliders I do not know how many but some fifteen or twenty said to be a foraging party from Fort Smith came and took my corn and oats and wheat and a portion of my hogs, and in about one week or ten days afterward these men or others said to be a foraging party came and took my...cattle, the balance of my hogs, my horses, chickens...four stand of bees and honey. I was at the time at the house, and very much alarmed that these soldiers were taking all that I had.... I never saw any of it afterwards. - Deposition of Catherine C. Cox, November 6, 1872.

Such foraging raids in the area around Fort Smith were so common during the war that they were barely mentioned in even the most detailed military accounts. To the people they impacted, however, these efforts to keep the military storehouses full, left them with no food. Many suffered greatly, having been left to either starve, scrounge the woods for what they could find, or depend on the charity of neighbors, few of whom were much better off.

To learn more about Fort Smith, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/ARFortSmith1.

War on Civilians in the Ozarks - The Depopulation of the Mountains

The Ozarks

While many stories are told of Sherman's March to the Sea and other campaigns, nowhere in the South did attrocities against civilians approach what happened in the Ozarks of Arkansas and southern Missouri during the Civil War.

Many of the mountain people had no interest at all in the war and most just wanted to be left alone. They had moved west to the Ozarks in search of country that they liked and the isolation and freedom that life in the mountains offered them.

When war came, however, the very isolation of the mountain communities and homes made them easy prey for a reign of terror waged by soldiers and guerrillas from both sides and outlaws who came only to raid, rob and destroy. By the winter of 1864-1865, in fact, so many of the mountain people had been killed, burned out or driven away that the Ozarks presented a scene of desolation unparalleled in American history.

Elkhorn Tavern
Built on Ruins of Tavern burned by Guerrillas

The following account of a report by a postal official appeared in a South Carolina newspaper:

In the resumption of mail service in the South, continued evidence of the despoliation of the land is brought out. An employee of the Post Office Department, now superintending mail matters in Arkansas, writes that “on the mail route from Fort Smith, in that State, to Caswell, in Missouri, there is not a house nor habitation where a mail carrier could refresh himself or beast, in a distance of nearly two hundred miles. From Fayetteville to Caswell, by the old mail road, the distance is seventy-five miles, and there is not a house or garden fence left standing, nor a field under cultivation. - Keowee Courier, November 11, 1864.

The terrorism inflicted on the people of the Ozarks would continue for many years after the war, with guerrilla bands and outlaws roaming almost at will through the region.

Some places to learn about some of the destruction in the region include War Eagle Mill and Blue Spring Heritage Center in Northwest Arkansas. Both were the locations of important water mills destroyed during the war. The famed Elkhorn Tavern at Pea Ridge battlefield in Benton County was also destroyed by guerrillas the year after the battle. The present structure was rebuilt on the ruins after the war ended. To learn more, please follow these links:

• Blue Spring Heritage Center
• War Eagle Mill
• Pea Ridge National Military Park

1863 Pro-Union Demonstration in Fayetteville

The following report from Fayetteville appeared in newspapers across the North during late January and early February of 1863. I found it interesting because it speaks well to the divided nature of the war in Northwest Arkansas. The rally took place shortly after the Battle of Prairie Grove and the successful Union raid across the Boston Mountains to van Buren and indicates a strong swing of public opinion in favor of the Union in Fayetteville. Most of the pro-secession citizens had fled the city by this point and were living as refugees elsewhere.

Union Demonstration at Fayetteville, Arkansas.
Fayetteville, Ark., Jan. 25,
An enthusiastic Union demonstration occurred here yesterday. Over 1,000 loyal citizens of Arkansas were present. Speeches were made by Dr. Johnson, a prominent Union refugee: Colonel Bishop, of the 1st Arkansas Cavalry, and others. Fifteen Home Guard companies were organized and wish to be accounted as Arkansas militia. Hundreds of citizens signed a petition to order an election of member of Congress from this State. All citizens having arms in their possession have given them up, to be used for the defence of their homes.

I'll be posting additional transcripts of reports from Fayetteville over the coming days so be sure to check back. You can also learn about the battlefields and historic sites in and around the beautiful Northwest Arkansas city by visiting www.exploresouthernhistory.com/fayetteville.

The Union Fortifications of Fort Smith

After the Union troops took possession of Fort Smith in 1863, their focus turned to holding the key post.

This initially was not a problem, as the Confederate forces in the region had been driven away and were suffering from extremely low morale. The winter months, however, gave them time to reorganize and for new recruits and desperately needed supplies to arrive. By early 1864, rumors were reaching Fort Smith of Confederate plans to retake the vital city and post.

To prepare a defense against such a plan, the Federals began building an impressive line of fortifications that rings the main garrison as well as the downtown area of the city itself. Running from just below today's Fort Smith National Historic Site and National Cemetery, the defenses started on the Poteau River. From there they followed a series of ridges and hilltops around the city to the banks of the Arkansas River just north (downstream) from the downtown area.

This line consisted of rifle pits and breastworks, some of which were stockaded. The land in front of the defenses was cleared and tangled branches and tops from felled trees were used to create an additional defense against an infantry attack. At key hilltops along the line, earthwork forts and batteries were built to serve as strong points. Cannon placed in these works could sweep the approaches to the defenses and control the main roads leading into Fort Smith.

Key forts were built to control the Fort Towson Road (today's Towson Avenue), the Van Buren Road and on the grounds of the Immaculate Conception Church. The Catholic church owned a full square mile on the hills just west of the downtown area and the Sisters of Mercy strongly voiced their opposition to the construction of fortifications on church property. Their pleas reached deaf ears. The military importance of the site was obvious.

The construction of these fortifications continued through the spring of 1864. Citizens often picked up shovels and axes to join in the work, as did details from the various regiments stationed at Fort Smith.

In addition to the main line that surrounded the town, Union engineers also threw up earthen embankments against the stone walls of the main fort and placed a battery at Belle Point in front of the fort to control the river approaches to the garrison.

Very little remains of these fortifications today. Some small sections of rifle pits can still be seen and in a few places vague traces of earthworks are still visible. For the most part, though, the Union defenses of Fort Smith vanished during the late 19th and early 20th century residential and industrial expansion of the city. To learn more about Fort Smith National Historic Site, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/fortsmith

The Second Fort Smith, 1838-1871

Politics, in the 19th century as much as today, often played a role in where military posts were located and how much money went into building them. This was definitely the case at Fort Smith in Arkansas.

The original Fort Smith had been evacuated by the U.S. Army in 1824 in favor of new posts closer to the rapidly expanding Western frontier. But politics came into play and, over the objections of the army itself, the U.S. Congress appropriated money for a new Fort Smith. Army officers saw no need for the new fort, but since the money had been appropriated, they oversaw its construction.

The second Fort Smith was a magnificent piece of construction. A complex of brick and stone buildings surrounded by a five-sided stone wall with imposing bastions at its corners, the fort was one of the most beautiful of the growing nation's western posts. Because at the time no one could see the need for a major defensive work at Fort Smith, the engineers designing and building the post halted construction of the original plans and developed the citadel to serve a primary function as a supply post for troops assigned to the frontiers.

They could not then imagine the conflict that would soon divide North and South and split the United States in two.

State troops from Arkansas seized Fort Smith in 1861, even before the state left the Union, and it remained an important Confederate post for the next two years. As had the U.S. Army, the Confederate army used Fort Smith as a supply post. It played a particularly critical role in the Prairie Grove Campaign of 1862, when its storehouses served to equip and provision General Thomas Hindman's growing Trans-Mississippi Army.

Fort Smith fell to Union troops in 1863 when it was evacuated ahead of the advance of an army led eastward through the Indian Nations of today's Oklahoma by General James G. Blunt. Southern troops tried to turn the tide of the disaster at the nearby Battle of Devil's Backbone, but failed. Despite demonstrations and actually bringing the fort under fire in 1864, they never again seriously threatened Union possession of Fort Smith.

The army continued to hold the post until 1871 when it was declared surplus and turned over to the Federal Court for the Western District of Arkansas and its famed "hanging judge," Isaac C. Parker.

To learn more about the second Fort Smith, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/ARFS4.

Did the White River Monster sink a Gunboat?

I've been doing some research recently into historical accounts of the White River Monster, the strange creature that some claim inhabits the White River in the vicinity of Newport and Jacksonport, Arkansas.

One of the notations I've seen regarding the monster is that it may have been responsible for the sinking of a gunboat on the river during the Civil War. Obviously, I have not found any mention of this in the Official Records set. But I am curious as to the origin of the claim. If you have any clue on this one, drop me a comment and let me know!

If you aren't familiar with the White River Monster, it is a fun and unique part of Arkansas history and folklore. As best I can tell, the first written report of something strange in the White River appeared in 1912 when a party of timber workers spotted what they described as a giant turtle in the river downstream from Branson, Missouri. They at first thought it was a boulder, but then realized it was a living creature. Its weight was estimated at 300 pounds! The report generated quite a buzz in Branson and a group of sportsmen set out downstream in boats with ropes and other tools in hopes of catching what was already being described as "the monster." The results of the expedition are not known.

There were other reports over the next 15 years, but then in 1937 the story exploded into the national media. A farmer reported that he and his farm workers had seen some kind of huge creature in a deep eddy about 6 miles downstream from Newport, Arkansas. The Newport Chamber of Commerce got in on the act and spread the story to newspapers far and wide. Hundreds of people flooded to the town, some from as far away as California, in hopes of catching a glimpse of the White River Monster. The chamber gave them the chance - for 25 cents a piece - and even hired a diver to come in from Memphis and search the river. He had no luck in finding the answer to the mystery.

The monster continued to pop up now and again over the years, but the next big splash of publicity was in 1971 when, once again after a time of high water, numerous people reported seeing it.

If you are interested in learning more and seeing a possible photograph of the monster, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/whiteriver1.

Ozark, Arkansas - Civil War Landmark

One of my favorite communities in Arkansas is the beautiful city of Ozark. Nestled on the banks of the Arkansas River, the community has a rich history that dates back for hundreds of years.

French fur trappers and hunters frequented this area during the 1600s and 1700s. In fact, it is believed that today's "Ozark" originated from the French term "Aux Arc" ("The Arc"). The term is thought by some to refer to the sweeping bend of the Arkansas River where Ozark is located. It has grown to apply not just to the vicinity, but to the entire mountainous region known today as the Ozarks.

During the Civil War, Ozark was an important base of operations for Confederate troops following the Battle of Prairie Grove. General W.L. Cabell marched from Ozark in April of 1863 on his way to the Battle of Fayetteville. Today's Pig Trail Scenic Byway follows part of the old road that led north through the mountains from Ozark to Fayetteville.

Several small engagements were fought at Ozark during the last two years of the Civil War and a monument on the grounds of the courthouse pays tribute to a Confederate officer who was killed just north of town.

The area was also frequented by guerrilla bands that hid out in the mountains just north of town. These groups, some associated with the Confederates, some associated with the Federals and some worried only about themselves, terrorized local citizens both during and after the war.

Ozark today is a beautiful community. Overlooking the river, the city's museum includes fascinating exhibits on area history. It is also a stop on the water route of the Trail of Tears. There are historic structures, a nice collection of monuments on the grounds of the courthouse, and the Arkansas River bridge at Ozark offers what has been named one of the finest views in the country. And by the way, Rivertowne BBQ in downtown Ozark cooks up some of the finest BBQ in the South. To learn more about Ozark, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/ozark.

Fort Gibson Historic Site - Fort Gibson, Oklahoma

Although it is located across the line in eastern Oklahoma, historic Fort Gibson played a major role in the Civil War in Arkansas.

The old fort near Muskogee was the base for operations against Fort Smith in 1863, a campaign that resulted in the occupation of the Fort Smith area by Union troops and the Battle of Devil's Backbone.

After Federal troops occupied Fort Smith, the two installations were closely linked. Soldiers and supplies constantly moved back and forth between the forts, and in the process often provided tempting and easy targets for Confederate forces. General Stand Watie, for example, targeted steamboat traffic between the two forts with great success in 1864.

Union troops went to extraordinary steps to defend Fort Gibson during the war. The encampments were surrounded with strong earthworks, a small portion of which can still be seen at the historic site. They also launched an attack that led to the Battle of Honey Springs during the summer of 1863 in an effort to defend the post against a rumored Confederate attack.

If you would like to learn more about this historic fort, which was a major installation on the Oklahoma frontier for much of the 19th century, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/okfortgibson.

War Eagle Mill - Northwest Arkansas

As the disorganized survivors of General Earl Van Dorn's Confederate army made their way back south from the Battle of Pea Ridge, a large group camped at the War Eagle Mill.

Still the site of an operating water-powered gristmill and the location of one of the most popular arts and crafts fairs in the nation, War Eagle helped feed both armies at various points of the Civil War. On the night after the battle, the fresh water of War Eagle River was a welcome sight for the exhausted and hungry Confederates.

The mill, however, did not survive the war. It was burned during the dark years between 1862 and the end of the war and, due to the hard and turbulent times of Reconstruction, was not replaced until 1873. The current structure, built in 1973, is a modern reproduction.

Structures like the War Eagle Mill were located along streams, rivers and creeks throughout the Ozarks region, but few survived the Civil War. Vital places where both armies could grind grain, they evolved into military targets as the war continued. Guerrilla bands and regular forces torched many of the mills, depriving not only enemy forces of their use, but also local citizens who depended upon the water-powered mills for survival.

War Eagle Mill is located 12 miles from Rogers, Arkansas, and 25 miles from Eureka Springs. To learn more, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/wareagle.

Overgrown Grave of an Arkansas Soldier

This is the overgrown grave of Robert A. Worthington, a soldier in Company A, 3rd Arkansas Infantry.

Worthington is buried in the old Providence Methodist Church cemetery near the rim of Providence Canyon in Lumpkin, Georgia. Several other soldiers from his family are buried there as well, but they all served in Georgia regiments.

Raised in the Spring of 1861, the 3rd Arkansas served until the surrender of General Lee at Appomatox Courthouse, Virginia, and took part in some of the bloodiest fighting of the war.

Battles involving the 3rd Arkansas included the Seven Days, Antietam, Fredericksburg, Gettysburg, the Wilderness and Chickamauga. Part of the famed Texas Brigade of Gen. John Bell Hood, the 3rd Arkansas ended the war with only 144 of its 1,353 soldiers still in service and able to fight.

Company A was known as the "Arkansas Travelers" at the beginning of the war and was raised in Ashley County (in the sourtheast corner of Arkansas). Worthington enlisted at Portland, Arkansas, on February 14, 1862, and was paroled at Albany, Georgia, on May 18, 1865.

If you are interested in reading more about Providence Canyon and the Providence Church in Georgia, please visit: www.exploresouthernhistory.com/providencecanyon.

Flag of the C.S.S. Arkansas

This is the flag of the famed Southern ironclad C.S.S. Arkansas.

One of the most successful inland warships ever built by the Confederacy, the Arkansas was a unique, makeshift ironclad that was actually built in two places.

Work on the vessel started in Memphis in 1861, but when that city was captured by Union troops the unfinished gunboat was carried to the Yazoo River in Mississippi for completion.

On her maiden voyage, the Arkansas steamed down the Yazoo and smashed through a flotilla consisting of the Union warships Carondelet, Queen of the West and Tyler. The Queen escaped, but the Carondelet was driven aground by the Confederate warship. Heavy damage and casualties were inflicted on the Tyler as well.

Leaving the Yazoo, the ironclad entered the Mississippi and stormed through the Union river fleet to reach the cover of the Confederate batteries at Vicksburg.

The vessel eventually engaged additional Union warships on the Mississippi but finally was destroyed by her own crew after she experienced engine trouble about 5 miles above Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Her flag is now on display at the Port Columbus National Civil War Naval Museum in Columbus, Georgia. The museum preserves the wrecks of two Confederate warships as well as numerous artifacts relating to both the Confederate and Union navies. For more information, you can visit them at www.portcolumbus.org.

Battle of Honey Springs, Oklahoma - Conclusion

This is the interpretive shelter in the memorial area at Honey Springs Battlefield State Park.

The battle was a decisive Union victory. Confederate losses were about twice those of the Federals, which were reported at 75 killed and wounded. Considering the severity of the fight and number of men engaged, however, casualties were not excessive.

Cooper also reported that he was able to remove most of his critical supplies from the field before retreating, although some flour, sugar and other items were burned.

General Blunt's army occupied the battlefield after the fight and buried the dead. The next day they returned to Fort Gibson (Blunt), citing lack of ammunition and supplies necessary for further pursuit of the Confederates. Cooper withdraw south to North Fork Town.

The Battle of Honey Springs opened the way for Blunt's capture of Fort Smith later that same summer. Any hopes that the Confederates held of recapturing Fort Gibson and driving the Federals out of Oklahoma ended along the banks of Elk Creek, making the battle one of the most strategic of the war in Indian Territory.

The site of the fighting is now preserved at Honey Springs Battlefield State Park just north of Checotah, Oklahoma. A fairly new park, it offers interpretive trails and a tour road as well as a small visitor center, memorial area and picnic tables. There are no camping facilities at the park.

Our new Battle of Honey Springs pages are now active, so for more information please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/honeysprings1.

Battle of Poison Spring, Arkansas - Part Three

When the Confederates began their main advance, the Union wagon train was in tight formation along the road (visible here beyond the interpretive shelter) and the Federal troops were positioned beyond the road to defend the train.

Maxey and Marmaduke's plan was to push against the main Union force to divert their attention while a surprise assault was launched against their right flank.

The flank attack was not really a surprise because Col. Williams and his men were able to see the Southern troops moving into position through gaps in the underbrush, but even so it proved highly effective.

As the firing between the two sides reached a peak, the Confederates moved forward. Williams estimated his effective force at the beginning of the battle at around 1,000 men and Maxey later reported that, although his command was much larger, only about 1,500 of his men were actually engaged. Much has been said about the overwhelming size of the Southern force during the Battle of Poison Spring, but in truth the forces actually engaged were closer in size than has generally been stated.

The Confederates did have a major advantage in field artillery during the battle and employed it to good use. The twelve Southern guns devastated the Union lines and had inflicted heavy losses on Williams' command even before the main attack began.

When the Confederates moved forward against their front and right flank, the Federals quickly realized that they were in serious trouble. Williams tried to bring forward additional men from his rear guard to help, but found out that the Southern lines were overlapping him in all directions.

He and his officers would later report that they beat back three distinct Confederate attacks, but the reports of Generals Maxey and Marmaduke do not agree. The Confederate generals describe one constant push that ultimately drove the Federals beyond their wagons and broke their lines.

Our series on the Battle of Poison Spring, Arkansas will continue. Until the next post, you can read more and see battlefield photos by visiting the new Battle of Poison Spring website at www.exploresouthernhistory.com/poisonspring.

Civil War Anniversaries in Fort Smith

The anniversaries of two of the most significant events in the history of Fort Smith - the 1864 Battles of Massard Prairie and Fort Smith - will pass over the next two weeks and I thought it might be interesting to mark the occasion with a new series.

Beginning tomorrow, I will start a series on Gen. Douglas B. Cooper's 1864 Confederate expedition against Fort Smith. I've previously devoted some attention to the Battle of Massard Prairie here, but this series will be more wide-ranging and will look at the expedition as a whole.

Over the next two weeks, please stop by for a continuing discussion of both battles, as well as an overview of Cooper's movements and their significance as preliminaries to the dramatic Southern success at the Second Battle of Cabin Creek a short time later.

Also, if you are interested in learning more on the expedition, please consider my recent book The Battle of Massard Prairie: The 1864 Confederate Attacks on Fort Smith, Arkansas. For more information, please click here.

Arkansas Post, Part Four

This is a section of a Civil War diagram of Fort Hindman now housed in the collection of the National Park Service.

The sally port or gate of the fort is at the top of the image and the Arkansas River can be seen running along the bottom.

The cannon sketch shows damage inflicted on one of the fort's big guns during the Battle of Arkansas Post.

Our series on Arkansas Post National Memorial will continue. Until then, you can read more by visiting www.exploresouthernhistory.com/arkansaspost.

Eureka Springs, Arkansas

Although the city itself dates from the post-Civil War years, you will find bits and pieces of Union and Confederate history around Eureka Springs, Arkansas.

The beautiful little Victorian city is a major Southern destination and a great place to stay if you are exploring the Civil War sites of Northwest Arkansas and Southern Missouri.

I've just launched a new Eureka Springs section that you might find of interest at www.exploresouthernhistory.com. Just follow the link and look for the heading on the main page.

Fort Smith Museum of History - Arkansas

If you are looking for a good indoor activity during the cold weather, I highly recommend the Fort Smith Museum of History in downtown Fort Smith.

Located adjacent to the Fort Smith National Historic Site, the museum provides a fascinating walk through time. Among the exhibits is a section on the Civil War in Fort Smith that is well worth seeing.

In addition, the museum has a nice display on the history of Fort Chaffee, the 20th century army post at Fort Smith, as well as other aspects of the community's military history.

You can obtain further information (including hours, directions, etc.) by visiting their website at www.fortsmithmuseum.com.

Fort Smith - The Old Barracks

Continuing our look at Fort Smith National Historic Site, this brick structure is the highly altered barracks building of the old fort. Located inside the five-sided walls of the fort, the barracks were used by both Confederate and Union troops during the Civil War.

The U.S. garrison of the fort abandoned the post in the spring of 1861 after receiving word that an overwhelming force of state militia was coming to seize the works. State troops then occupied the barracks briefly. When Arkansas joined the Confederacy, Fort Smith became a Confederate post and the barracks were occupied by Confederate troops. Southern soldiers remained here until 1863 when the post was abandoned ahead of a Union advance. The barracks were then used by Federal troops until the end of the war.

Fort Smith remained a military post until 1871, when it was abandoned. The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Arkansas then made use of the barracks structure, adding a second floor and attaching a new wing, visible here in the left of the photograph, containing a much improved Federal jail.

The structure now contains the visitor center of the national historic site, along with the restored courtroom of "Hanging Judge" Isaac C. Parker. Among the exhibits are displays on the fort's Civil War history.

We will continue our look at Fort Smith over the next few days and you can also learn more by visiting www.exploresouthernhistory.com (just scroll down to the Index and look for the links under the Arkansas section).

Hot Springs - A Civil War Landmark

Steam can be seen rising in the background of this winter photograph of Hot Springs National Park in Arkansas. Just as the natural hot springs flowing from the Ouachita Mountains continue to amaze visitors today, they also attracted the attention of soldiers during the Civil War.

The springs were already well known then and owned by the U.S. Government, which had secured the "Hot Springs of the Ouachita" as the nation's first national ecological preserve. Early settlers and visitors believed the water held curative properties of benefit to individuals suffering from a variety of afflictions, and a small industry catering to visitors had grown in the area of the springs long before the war.

The outbreak of conflict, of course, interrupted the use of the springs, but also exposed the natural wonder to thousands of new visitors - the troops of both sides who marched back and forth through the Hot Springs Valley during the Civil War.

Thousands of troops en route from Fort Smith to participate in the Red River Campaign marched past the springs early in 1864 and comments appeared in letters and diaries written at the time expressing wonder and amazement at the springs.

Hot Springs National Park is today one of the most unique attractions in Arkansas. To learn more, visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com and scroll down to the Arkansas heading in the Index section.

Blue Spring, Arkansas

Located just outside of Eureka Springs, Blue Spring is one of the most beautiful places in Arkansas. Nestled in the Ozarks, the spring is now the center piece of the Blue Spring Heritage Center, a park area that interprets its natural and cultural history.

An important camping place on the Cherokee Trail of Tears during the 1830s, the spring was a landmark for early settlers of the region. A mill was constructed here during the 1840s, with the flowing water from the spring run as its power source.

Such small industries were targeted throughout Arkansas during the Civil War and the mill at Blue Spring was burned by soldiers. It was part of a larger strategy of defeating the South by denying its residents the means to support the Confederate armies in the field. By destroying mills, crops, stored up supplies and other necessities, citizens were placed in dire straits and prevented from supporting the war effort.

Blue Spring Heritage Center is located off U.S. 62 West about six miles northwest of Eureka Springs. Open during the spring, summer and fall, the park features walking paths, boardwalks, an interpretive center and more.