Battle of Athens State Historic Site [MO]

Description

Battle of Athens State Historic Site interprets the northernmost Civil War battle fought west of the Mississippi River. Some of the land and buildings included in the site were part of the once-thriving town of Athens. Located on the Des Moines River, 19th-century Athens boasted about 50 businesses before the Civil War, including a large mill that produced flour, cornmeal, lumber, cotton, and woolen goods. A large brick hotel, the St. Louis Hotel, was one of many other buildings on the Athens waterfront. Today, only a few structures remain. The historic site administers the remaining buildings in the town of Athens, including the Thome-Benning House, which was pierced by a cannonball during the battle. Exhibits and tours interpret the battle and the history of the town.

The site offers exhibits, tours, occasional living history events, and occasional educational and recreational events.

Battle of Lexington State Historic Site [MO]

Description

It was once called "the largest and best arranged dwelling house west of St. Louis." Today Oliver Anderson's mansion is best known for the three bloody days in 1861 when it was a fiercely contested prize in a Civil War battle between the Union army and the Missouri State Guard. Today, it is restored and furnished in the mid-19th-century fashion, but it still displays damage from the shot and shell that hammered it during the Battle of Lexington. The house changed hands three times, and soldiers met their death in the downstairs hallway. The battlefield is quiet now, and restored gardens and orchards dot the landscape. But the remnants of the trenches can still be seen, and the graves of unknown Union dead echo a time less peaceful. In addition to tours of the 1853 Anderson House, visitors may explore the 100 acres of the battlefield preserved at the historic site. A visitor center with exhibits and audiovisual programs explains the stirring events of Sept. 18–20, 1861, and why the "Battle of the Hemp Bales" lifted Southern spirits and further dampened Northern hopes of an easy victory in the struggle for Missouri.

The site offers exhibits, tours, a short film, occasional living history events, and occasional recreational and educational events.

Fort Davidson State Historic Site [MO]

Description

In 1864, the Arcadia Valley was the scene of one of the largest and most hard-fought battles waged on the state's soil: the Battle of Pilot Knob. Confederate Maj. Gen. Sterling Price invaded Missouri from Arkansas, leading an army of 12,000 men. On Sept. 26–27, 1864, while en route to the St. Louis area, Price attacked the weakly defended Union post of Fort Davidson at Pilot Knob. This proved to be a mistake. Fort Davidson was defended by a garrison of 1,450 men led by Gen. Thomas Ewing Jr., the brother-in-law of Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman. The Confederates lost nearly 1,000 men in attacking the small earthen fort and its 11 cannons. Today, the site preserves Fort Davidson and the Pilot Knob battlefield where so many Confederate and Union soldiers lost their lives. A visitor center interprets the battle and Maj. Gen. Price's raid. It features exhibits, a research library, an audiovisual presentation, and a fiber optics diorama of the battle.

The site offers a short films, exhibits, research library access, tours, occasional living history events, and occasional recreational and educational events.

Fort Recovery [OH]

Description

In late 1791, Miami Indians defeated General Arthur St. Clair's forces at this site along the Wabash River. Nearly three-quarters of St. Clair's men were killed or wounded in the Indian attack. In late 1793, General Anthony Wayne sent a force to build a four-blockhouse post named Recovery at the site of St. Clair's defeat. It was completed in March of 1794 and on June 30 of that year General Wayne's army defeated a huge Indian force. This set the stage for Wayne's final triumph at Fallen Timbers in August of 1794. Today Fort Recovery State Memorial offers visitors a glimpse of the 1790s, featuring two reconstructed blockhouses with connecting stockade, a monument, and a museum.

A second site, specifically for the fort's museum, can be found here.

The site offers exhibits and tours.

Princeton Battlefield State Park and Clarke House [NJ]

Description

On January 3, 1777, the peaceful winter fields and woods of Princeton Battlefield were transformed into the site of what is considered to be the fiercest fight of its size during the American Revolution. During this desperate battle, American troops under General George Washington surprised and defeated a force of British Regulars. Coming at the end of "The Ten Crucial Days" which saw the well-known night crossing of the Delaware River and two battles in Trenton, the Battle of Princeton gave Washington his first victory against the British Regulars on the field. The battle extended over a mile away to the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University). Also in the park stands the Clarke House. Built by Thomas Clarke in 1772, the house was the scene of heavy fighting during the Battle of Princeton. General Hugh Mercer was mortally wounded nearby and was carried to the Clarke House, where he died nine days after the battle.

A second website for the site, maintained by the Princeton Battlefield Area Preservation Society, can be found here.

The site offers tours, lectures, and occasional recreational and educational events (including living history events).

U.S. Brig Niagara and Erie Maritime Museum [PA]

Description

As homeport of U.S. Brig Niagara, the Erie Maritime Museum presents the story of Niagara as the reconstructed flagship of Pennsylvania and the warship that won the Battle of Lake Erie in the War of 1812. Offering a wide range of multimedia and interactive exhibits and coupled with lively interpretive programs, Erie Maritime Museum vividly illustrates Niagara's history and the region's rich maritime heritage. As the premier exhibit at the Erie Maritime Museum in Erie, PA, the Niagara is docked for public viewing September through May and intermittently during the summer each year.

The museum offers exhibits, tours, and educational programs.

Stony Point Battlefield State Historic Site [NY]

Description

This site preserves the location of the Battle of Stony Point, one of the last major Revolutionary War battles in the northeastern colonies. This is where Brigadier General Anthony Wayne led his corps of Continental Light Infantry in a daring midnight attack on the British, seizing the site's fortifications and taking the British garrison as prisoners on July 16, 1779. The site features a museum, which offers exhibits on the battle and the 1826 Stony Point Lighthouse, as well as interpretive programs, such as reenactments highlighting 18th-century military life, cannon and musket firings, cooking demonstrations, and children's activities.

The site offers exhibits, tours, demonstrations, educational programs, and occasional recreational and educational events (including living history events).

Sackets Harbor Battlefield State Historic Site

Description

Following the outbreak of war between the United States and Great Britain in June 1812, Sackets Harbor became the center of American naval and military activity for the upper St. Lawrence Valley and Lake Ontario. In an attempt to destroy the American shipyard, a British-Canadian force launched an attack on May 29, 1813, while the majority of the American forces were attacking Fort George. In December 1814, the Treaty of Ghent officially ended the War of 1812, and the fleet was placed in storage. After the war the earthen fortifications were graded off and the battlefield reverted to farmland.

Today, the site offers tours, demonstrations, exhibits, and occasional living history events, as well as other educational and recreational programs.