Trust Transfers 93 Acres at Mill Springs to the National Park Service

Here at the American Battlefield Trust, we have the goal of saving as much historically significant battlefield land across the United States as possible, and, when we have an opportunity, transfer that land to a permanent steward that can care for the land forever.

The Trust is pleased to announce that just this month more than 92 acres of pristine battlefield land has been transferred to the Mill Springs National Monument at Mill Springs, Kentucky. Our ongoing work at the site is especially meaningful, as Trust efforts were integral to the establishment of this unit of the National Park System. 

Without the support of our friends and partners saving this land would not have been possible, and you have our sincerest thanks.  

The Battle of Mill Springs

Kentucky was the physical embodiment of the Civil War era, with newly elected President Abraham Lincoln remarking about his birth state, “I hope to have God on my side, but I must have Kentucky.”

On January 19, 1862, fighting broke out in Pulaski County — named after the famed ‘father of American cavalry’ Casimir Pulaski — during a dark, rain-soaked night with Confederate General Felix Zollicoffer and his troops hoping to surprise the sleeping Federals. Brutal close quarters fighting ensued, with Federal troops pushing back Zollicoffer’s troops through a dense fog. In the ensuing melee, Zollicoffer was shot and killed after mistaking Federal lines for his own.  

More than 4,000 Union troops continued to surge against nearly 6,000 Confederates, leading to the latter’s hasty retreat back into Tennessee.  

After the Union drubbing at First Manassas and a string of other losses, the Battle of Mill Springs represented the first major Union victory in the Western Theater of the American Civil War.

Now, after an eight-year journey, these 92.86 acres of battlefield land have now been successfully transferred to the National Park Service — all thanks to you.