Brices Cross Roads National Battlefield Site commemorates the Battle of Brices Crossroads, in which the Confederate army, under Major-General

Nathan Bedford Forrest Nathan Bedford Forrest (July 13, 1821October 29, 1877) was a prominent Confederate Army general during the American Civil War and the first Grand Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan from 1867 to 1869. Before the war, Forrest amassed substantial wealt ...

, defeated a much larger Union force on June 10, 1864, to ultimately secure supply lines between

Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and th ...

and

Chattanooga, Tennessee Chattanooga ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States. Located along the Tennessee River bordering Georgia, it also extends into Marion County on its western end. With a population of 181,099 in 2020 ...

. The 1-acre site is a grassy park with a flagpole, memorial monument, and two cannons. There are no visitor services; information is provided at the visitor center for the

Natchez Trace Parkway The Natchez Trace Parkway is a national parkway in the southeastern United States that commemorates the historic Natchez Trace and preserves sections of that original trail. Its central feature is a two-lane road that extends 444 miles (715&nbs ...

15 miles south. The monument and site are very similar to that at

Tupelo National Battlefield Tupelo National Battlefield commemorates the Battle of Tupelo, also known as the Battle of Harrisburg, fought from July 14 to 15, 1864, near Tupelo, Mississippi during the American Civil War. The Union victory over Confederate forces in north ...

Description

The Brices Cross Roads National Battlefield Site, in

Lee County, Mississippi Lee is a county in Mississippi. At the 2010 census, the population was 82,910. The county seat is Tupelo. Lee County is included in the Tupelo Micropolitan Statistical Area. History Lee County was established on October 26, 1866, and name ...

preserves Fruit preserves are preparations of fruits whose main preserving agent is sugar and sometimes acid, often stored in glass jars and used as a condiment or spread. There are many varieties of fruit preserves globally, distinguished by the met ...

the battlefield at Brices Cross Roads which extended northward into southwestern Prentiss County. This is the spot where the Brice family house once stood. It is located about 6 miles (10 km) west of Baldwyn, on Highway 370. The site features a memorial erected soon after the battlefield was designated as a historic site in 1929. In addition, on June 11, 2005, a second memorial was dedicated to Confederate Capt. John W. Morton, Chief of Artillery, and his battery. Brices Cross Roads is the only component of the

National Park System The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propertie ...

designated a "battlefield site". The modern Bethany Presbyterian Church is located on the southeast side of the crossroads. At the time of the battle, this congregation's meeting house was located further south along the Baldwyn Road. The Old Bethany Cemetery, adjacent to the battlefield site, predates the Civil War. Many of the area's earliest settlers are buried here. The graves of more than 90 Confederate soldiers killed in the battle are also located in this cemetery. Union dead from the battle were buried in common graves on the battlefield, but were later reinterred in the

Memphis National Cemetery Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Memphi ...

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the seat of Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 U.S. census, Memphis is the second-mo ...

. The Brices Cross Roads

Visitor Center A visitor center or centre (see American and British English spelling differences), visitor information center, tourist information center, is a physical location that provides tourist information to visitors. Types of visitor center A visi ...

, located in Baldwyn, is owned and operated by a public commission. Brices Cross Roads National Battlefield Commission, Inc., formed in 1994 by concerned local citizens, is also involved in protecting the greater battlefield, which is considered one of the most beautiful preserved battlefields of the American Civil War. With assistance from the

American Battlefield Trust The American Battlefield Trust is a charitable organization (501(c)(3)) whose primary focus is in the preservation of battlefields of the American Civil War, the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812 through acquisition of battlefield land. T ...

and the support of federal, state, and local governments, the commission has purchased for preservation of the original battlefield.

"Saved Land" webpage. Accessed November 24, 2021.

Administrative history

The site was established February 21, 1929, and transferred from the United States Department of War, War Department to the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational properti ...

on August 10, 1933. The battlefield was automatically listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

on October 15, 1966. It is administered under the

References

External links

*
Brices Cross Roads National Battlefield Site
at the

American Battlefield Protection Program The American Battlefield Protection Program (ABPP) is a United States federal government program created by the Secretary of the Interior in 1991, with the aim of preserving historic battlefields in the United States. In 1996, Congress signed into ...

Brice's Cross Roads National Battlefield Site
at the

Civil War Trust The American Battlefield Trust is a charitable organization (501(c)(3)) whose primary focus is in the preservation of battlefields of the American Civil War, the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812 through acquisition of battlefield land. T ...

Brices Cross Roads National Battlefield Site
at the

National Park Foundation The National Park Foundation (NPF) is the official charity of the National Park Service (NPS) and its national park sites. The NPF was chartered by Congress in 1967 with a charge to "further the conservation of natural, scenic, historic, scienti ...

{{Authority control 1929 establishments in Mississippi American Civil War museums in Mississippi American Civil War on the National Register of Historic Places Conflict sites on the National Register of Historic Places in Mississippi Battlefields of the Western Theater of the American Civil War Museums in Lee County, Mississippi Mississippi in the American Civil War National Battlefields and Military Parks of the United States National Park Service areas in Mississippi National Register of Historic Places in Lee County, Mississippi Protected areas established in 1929 Protected areas of Lee County, Mississippi

Description

Administrative history

See also

References

Further reading

External links