Another one of our outings in Arkansas took us to the Pea Ridge National Military Park - a Civil War battlefield. While I enjoy history in general, the Civil War is an era that I really don't know a ton about. So I learned a lot here.
I won't bore you with all the details - suffice it to say the Battle of Pea Ridge was an important battle that secured Missouri for the Union and also gave the Union control of the Mississippi River. The South was favored to win the battle, yet a series of miscommunication, bad weather, and arrogance gave the victory to the North.
There was a museum and then a drive-through tour of the battlegrounds, which are kept to look the same as they did in the 1860s.
Also, the Trail of Tears went through this same area in 1830.
Justin with a replica cannon.
From this ridge the generals could see their entire armies - about 10,000 troops. It's probably a fair statement to say that it was really, really rare for a general to witness an entire battle.
The tavern that became a hospital
The amputation center
Years later, soldiers from both the Union and Confederacy started having reunions and erected this monument. What a true testament to the camaraderie built during war that soldiers of the opposing sides were brought together because of their shared experiences in hell.
Justin ended up with three ticks. We're from Wyoming and Idaho and never had ticks. Weird. Well, thanks to Google and two siblings who are nurses, I removed the ticks with my eyebrow tweezers.
How cute.
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