One Year on the Road

Two women, their golden retriever, and an orphaned kitten hit the road in an RV for one year of "pretirement"

Wilson’s Creek Photos

Jennifer Meyer September 12, 2015 Photos No Comments

We visited the Wilson’s Creek Civil War battlefield just a few miles southwest of Springfield.

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It was raining when we arrived at the battlefield, so we watched a movie at the visitor center.

The union soliders in General Lyon's brigade included professional calvary initially bound for the frontier.

The confederate uniforms were gray.

General Sturgis's volunteer army for the Union also wore gray.

The walk up to the Ray family home.

The Rays owned slaves but sided with the Union.

On August 10, 1961, the Ray property was swarmed with soliders.

The women and children, including slaves, hid in the cellar.

At 6:30 in the morning, Captain Plummer and 300 Union soliders moved into Ray's cornfield to protect the Lyon's left flank.

But 900 confederates charged through the corn and sent Plummer's men running.

Mr. Ray watched soliders battle in his cornfield below.

When the battle was over, wounded soliders were brought to the Ray's house.

General Lyon's body was laid on a family bed.

Ray children were charged with carrying water from the springhouse for the wounded.

The Union sympathizers were now running a Confederate hospital.

We walked to the field where the Pulaski Arkansas battery was stationed.

Just peaceful wildflowers now.

The road crosses Wilson Creek.

The flowers didn't mind the rain.

Wilson Creek.

On August 6th, Confderate General Price took over this farm home as his headquarters.

The original house was destroyed.

This house was built by the same builder as the original.

It was moved here from three miles away.

Generals Price and McClullough were having breakfast here when Union soldiers began their attack.

They watched confederate soidiers fleeing down Bloody Hill as General Lyon's 4,000 Union soliders crested it.

They quickly organized soliders for a counter attack.

This was the beginning of the Wilson Creek battle.

In this field, General Siegel's 1,200 men attacked the Confederates from the south.

Seigel's men fired on the 2,300 Confederate soliders camped in Sharp's cornfield.

It was a two-pronged surprise attack meant to squash the Conferates.

At first, rebels retreated, but when they came back, Seigel mistook their gray uniforms for Iowa reinforcements.

By the time Seigel realized they were rebels, it was too late.

Our next stop was at Bloody Hill.

We walked around the hill where thousands of soliders fought and died.

These are authentic Civil War canons.

They've see a lot of action.

Oxidation turns the brass to blue.

Such a peaceful setting now.

After our auto tour, we went back to the Visitor Center to check out the museum.

I wonder if this is like the gun my great uncle found there.

An officer's tent.

It was four and half years later before slavery was finally abolished in Missouri.

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