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Reenactment Marks Anniversary of Pilot Knob, Mo. Civil War Battle
Story & Photos by Mark Fetters
Scenes from the Reenactment Battle at Pilot Knob. Missouri
It’s Rare For Reenactments at Actual Battlefield
On Sept. 25, the scenic Arcadia Valley trembled with reports of canon and gunfire as over 700 Civil War re-enactors gathered to commemorate the 146th Anniversary of the Battle of Pilot Knob, MO.
“It is our privilege to share this experience with so many people,” said marketing chairperson Shanna Moore. More than 20,000 visitors came to Fort Davidson State Park for the weekend long event that featured battle reenactments on both Saturday and Sunday, as well as military drills, lectures, demonstrations and a grand evening ball accompanied by the 52nd Regimental String Band.
In September of 1864, Major General Sterling Price, a former Missouri governor, marched a Confederate army of approximately 12,000 soldiers north into Missouri. Although one of Price’s main objectives was to capture St. Louis for the Confederacy, he came upon Fort Davison and decided to deploy his forces. Fort Davidson was a hexagonal earthen fort defended by General Thomas Ewing, Jr. and his 1,500 Federal troops.
Outnumbering the resistance nearly ten to one, Price’s soldiers advanced toward the fort. After an entire day of grueling battle, Price was unable to capture the fort by force. However, at approximately 3:00 AM the next morning, Ewing decided to evacuate. Not wanting to leave behind anything useful to the Confederates, the Federal army lit a short fuse that blew up the remaining powder and ammunition.
Due to National Park Service policies, the tri-annual Battle of Pilot Knob Reenactment is one of the few reenactments to take place on an actual Civil War Battlefield. A granite monument marks a mass grave providing testimony of the hundreds of soldiers whose lives were sacrificed during the assault on Fort Davidson. It reads in part, “Whatever transgressions existed on either side let the passage of time bury amid the ruins of the past; but whatever was noble and honorable it is our sacred duty to transmit to succeeding generations.”
To learn more about the Battle of Pilot Knob and future reenactments, visit the Arcadia Valley Chamber of Commerce website at www.acardiavalley.biz.
