161 years after the fight

Art, artillery, cannons, tours to commemorate Battle of Pea Ridge

PEA RIDGE — The 161st anniversary of the Battle of Pea Ridge will be commemorated Saturday with musket and artillery programs, living history talks, a guided interpretive hike to Clemens Field and original artwork from local artist Dan Hoffbauer in the Pea Ridge National Military Park visitor center.

The event is not a battle reenactment. The programs are educational in scope and meant to provide insight into the lives of the men who fought at the battle of Pea Ridge.

There will be:

• Artillery demonstrations: 10 a.m., 11:30 a.m., 1 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. behind the visitor center.

• U.S. Infantry demonstrations: 11 a.m., 12:30 p.m., 2 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. at Elkhorn Tavern.

• CS/Missouri State Guard camp and talks: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the Elkhorn Tavern yard.

• A guided interpretive hike “Fight for Clemens Field” meets at 9 a.m. in front of Elkhorn Tavern. The 1½-mile hike takes about one to 1½ hours.

• Elkhorn Tavern will be open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

• A chance to meet Hoffbauer whose art will be on display in the visitor center from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The Battle of Pea Ridge was a three-day battle in March 1862.

The battle and subsequent Union victory helped the federal government maintain control over Missouri, which remained quasi-neutral during the war, according to Troy Banzhaf, chief of interpretation and visitor services for the 4,300-acre park.

Banzhaf said Missouri was a slave state that never seceded and supplied both Union and Confederate outfits but would rather have been left alone.

The battle, which began March 6, turned March 8, when a contingent of 10,000 Union soldiers stretching nearly a mile in length marched toward Huntsville Road and into Confederate defenses. Supported by 21 cannons, the Union overwhelmed the remaining Confederates and forced them to retreat.

Roughly 2,000 Confederate soldiers died, compared with 1,384 losses for the Union, according to national park data. The battle is touted as “the battle that saved Missouri for the Union.”

“The Union victory pretty well kept the Confederacy from capturing Missouri,” Banzhaf said.

The Battle of Pea Ridge was one of the most pivotal Civil War battles and is the most intact Civil War battlefields in the United States, according to National Park Service data.

Pea Ridge National Military Park preserves and commemorates the battle that helped Union forces maintain physical and political control of the state of Missouri. Administered by the National Park Service, the 4,300-acre battlefield is located 6 miles east of Pea Ridge, just off U.S. 62.

(NWA Democrat-Gazette/ Annette Beard) In the background, the top of the original water tower for the city of Pea Ridge is visible to the west of the Pea Ridge National Military Park, established in 1956. In these fields, two armies collided with about 7,000 Confederate troops marching toward Elkhorn Tavern when a small Union force of Iowa cavalrymen unexpectedly appeared from the trees to the south.

The Pea Ridge National Military Park, established in 1956, commemorates the Battle of Pea Ridge. The visitor center includes a museum, theater and gift shop.

The Union line stretched about a mile across the fields and hills mid-morning March 8. The Pea Ridge National Military Park, established in 1956, commemorates the Battle of Pea Ridge.

In 1956, the Pea Ridge National Military Park was established to commemorates the battle which was the largest battle fought west of the Mississippi River during the Civil War.