Battle of Pea Ridge commemorated

From Staff Reports

The 154th anniversary of the Battle of Pea Ridge -- a three-day battle in March 1862 -- was remembered with reenactors demonstrating artillery fire and camp life Saturday. 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.

Each year the park marks the anniversary with a living history exhibit. A cacophony of cannon fire at 10 a.m. signaled the start of this year's event, followed by a brief symposium on Civil War artillery from Banzhaf. The cannons were fired every two hours until 4 p.m., while reenactors with the 11th Regiment, Missouri Calvary State Guard and federal infantry filled the interim with infantry programs.

Kevin Miller of Bentonville has been active in living history exhibits for the last five years. He said the immersion factor allows him to share Civil War history in a way textbooks can't.

"I love it. I get to teach people about it, and anything a person can teach someone is going to be more beneficial than telling them something," Miller said.