Where Two Battles Raged to Secure One Nation, Now Eloquent Silence

There is a quiet that envelopes the pristine, gentle countryside comprising two Civil War battlefields on the edge of the Ozarks.

But in the silence, one can almost hear the boom of cannons, the crack of rifle fire, the yells of charging soldiers. It was on simple hills and cornfields such as these that a nation was truly born, when the United States ceased to be plural and became singular.

The clashes at Pea Ridge, in northwest Arkansas, and Wilson’s Creek, in southwest Missouri, may not be the best-known Civil War battles, but they were crucial in the campaign for control of the border state of Missouri--a campaign the North won with victory at Pea Ridge in March of 1862.

Both former battlefields, preserved and operated by the National Park Service, offer the subtle beauty of wide vistas across meadows and fields framed by trees, hills and slight ridges. We visited last autumn amid sparse crowds, golden foliage and swirling leaves. As we looked out across the expanse of one battle area at Pea Ridge, a deer nibbled on grass 100 yards away.

The Battle of Wilson’s Creek (called Oak Hills by the Confederates) signified the beginning of the Civil War for Missouri, an important state to the Union because of its manpower and strategic position on the Mississippi and Missouri rivers. The North, though outnumbered by the South, attacked on Aug. 10, 1861. The battle was brief before the North retreated. Losses were heavy and almost even--1,222 dead for the Confederates, 1,317 for the Union.

Today, the Wlson’s Creek battlefield can be seen along a five-mile loop road that connects the major historic points. One of the first stops is at the Ray House, the sole surviving structure from the war at the Wilson’s Creek National Battlefield. A post office operated by postmaster John A. Ray from 1856 to 1866, the modest house was transformed into a Confederate field hospital during and after battle.

Near the end of the auto tour is Bloody Hill, a deceptively mild incline for its name. There, troops from the North and South fought for five hours before the Union was overpowered. A short hike will take you to a granite marker at the approximate spot where the North’s Brig. Gen. Nathaniel Lyon, struck by a musket ball through his chest, fell from his horse and died in the arms of one of his men.

“Living history” demonstrations are presented at Bloody Hill and at Ray House on weekends during the summer, and special programs are featured on Memorial Day, July 4, Aug. 10 and Labor Day.

Even more beautiful and moving is Pea Ridge National Military Park, about a two-hour drive southwest, just over the Arkansas border on scenic U.S. 62. The park is full of gentle hills and open fields, accented by strategically placed antique cannons. Named for the wild pea vines that grew on the ridge along the park’s northern border, the Battle of Pea Ridge on March 7-8, 1862, was won by the federal troops and saved Missouri for the Union.

The auto tour through the park takes you to 11 historic points, one of them showing where 1,000 Cherokees from Indian Territory (now Oklahoma) fought alongside the Confederate troops. Pea Ridge was the only major Civil War battle in which Indians fought. Another stop along the road offers a sweeping view of the battlefields from a concrete structure perched on the east end of the ridge and outfitted with maps and an audio tape explanation of the battle.

But perhaps the most affecting stop on the tour is the Elkhorn Tavern, a landmark in the area even before war broke out. (Indeed, the Confederates called this the Battle of Elkhorn Tavern.) Built in the 1830s, the two-story wooden structure served through the years as a trading post, a post office and an inn, with Jesse Cox as proprietor. In 1862, as Cox family members huddled in the basement, 26,000 Union and Confederate soldiers collided near the building, which served as a hospital and headquarters to first one army, then the other, as the fighting raged.

In 1863, bushwhackers, who pledged allegiance to neither flag, burned the Elkhorn down. Joseph Cox, Jesse’s son, soon rebuilt it, but over the years it little resembled the original structure. In 1975, it was restored by the National Park Service.

Nearby the tavern are two obelisks, commemorating the soldiers--Union and Confederate alike--who lost lives there.

There is a 12th stop on the Pea Ridge tour, located several miles outside the confines of the military park, marking where Union trenches were. However, the route to the spot is poorly marked and the stop is anticlimactic after the heart of the tour.

Both Wilson’s Creek and Pea Ridge battlefields have equestrian and hiking trails, and both have visitors’ centers that offer slide shows and exhibits about the war. One particularly interesting display at Pea Ridge shows how a single cannon shot was fired--an exhaustive task that consumed the efforts of six men.

Both battlefields are within easy driving distance of popular Ozark towns.

Wilson’s Creek is about 10 miles outside of Springfield and a little more than an hour away from Branson, Mo., a touristy town full of interesting craft shops, rousing country music halls and garishly lit motels.

While visiting Branson, we stayed far from that madding crowd at a rustic, secluded and inexpensive cabin at the Crow’s Nest Resort, right on Table Rock Lake and less than a mile from Silver Dollar City, a fun and well-designed country crafts theme amusement park. Motels in the heart of the Branson tourist district were about five miles to the east in an area that offered little mountain charm, and were jammed with miniature golf courses and and other attractions on an always-congested road.

Pea Ridge is separated from the quaint and historic city of Eureka Springs, Ark., by a winding, scenic 25-mile drive over mountains and along picturesque farms. During our Pea Ridge tour, we stayed at the 104-year-old Crescent Hotel in Eureka Springs, a marvelous, stately looking stone hotel perched high above the rest of the mountain city. The town also offers an abundance of charming bed-and-breakfast inns in preserved Victorian homes.

GUIDEBOOK

Wilson’s Creek, Pea Ridge Battlefields

Getting there: Springfield, Mo., has the closest airport to Wilson’s Creek National Battlefield, and is served from Los Angeles by United (with a connection in Denver), TWA (connecting in St. Louis) and American (connecting in Dallas). For the 20-minute drive to Wilson’s Creek, take U.S. 60, turn left on state road M, go three-quarters of a mile and turn right on state road ZZ. The park is two miles south on ZZ. The closest airport to Pea Ridge National Military Park is in Fayetteville, Ark., which is served by Northwest and USAir, as well as several regional airlines. Or, to drive there from Springfield (about two hours by car), head south on Highway 65 and turn west on Highway 62.

Hours: Wilson’s Creek tour roads are open 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. (the visitor’s center closes at 5 p.m.). Formore information, call the visitor’s center at (417) 732-2662. Re-enactments of the battle will be staged near the park Aug. 9-11. For more information, call the Wilson’s Creek Battlefield Foundation, (417) 886-0676. Pea Ridge is open daily, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. For information about special programs, call the visitor’s center, (501) 451-8122. Both parks have hiking and equestrian trails and picnic areas.

Where to stay: For hotels and motels in Springfield, call the Convention and Visitors Bureau at (800) 678-8766. To better enjoy the Ozarks, you can stay in Branson, Mo., about an hour’s drive south of Wilson’s Creek, on the way to Pea Ridge. The Crow’s Nest Resort there is an exception to the rule of garishly lit motels on busy thoroughfares. Featuring scenic and inexpensive cabins, it is located next to the Silver Dollar City amusement and craft park on Indian Point Road. Call (417) 338-2524. Also on Table Rock Lake is the Artilla Cove Resort, (417) 338-2346. While visiting Pea Ridge, stay in Eureka Springs, Ark., known as the “Little Switzerland of the Ozarks.” Try the Crescent Hotel, a stately stone hotel built in 1886 with Victorian-decor rooms, (501) 253-9766. Information on three other historic hotels are also available at that number. For bed and breakfast inns in restored Victorian homes, call the Eureka Springs Bed and Breakfast Assn. at (501) 253-6657.

Where to eat: Outside of Branson, try the Wooden Nickel, just west of Silver Dollar City on SR76, (417) 338-2737.

In Eureka Springs, the Crescent Hotel has an old-fashioned dining room offering a buffet as well as a full menu. A half-block away is The Victorian Sampler, a beautifully restored Victorian home, which serves lunch every day and dinner Wednesday through Saturday (except Memorial Day through Christmas, when it serves dinner seven nights a week), (501) 253-8374.