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Battle of Carthage State Historic Site

Battle of Carthage State Historic Site is located at 1111 E Chestnut St, Carthage, Missouri.

This the parking lot.

At first we thought there was not much here but a field and a board of writings to read to tell us what happened here, but then we discovered that we could cross the field and find a short hiking trail called Carter Spring Trail, which is .2 miles. On the information boards it calls it James Spring.

The battle was fought on July 5, 1861. Both the federal (union) (Col. Franz Sigel) and the Missouri State Guard (Gov. Claiborn Fox Jackson), a pro-Southern (confederate) force camped here on different nights. Who one is debatable. See more details on the Missouri State website and the video above.

The trail starts at this cave-like rock below and goes up the hill to follow above the stream. There is a James Spring that the Civil War soldiers used in this stream and I believe it is located where the bridge crosses and not at the beginning of the trail where we started.

This is looking down into the stream we are following above.

We came to a foundation to what used to be a home.

I have seen these before and it amazes me how people on the frontier built their own homes by gathering nearby rocks and staking them up. This one has stood the test of time for sure!

The hike is a short one. You come down at the bridge to cross the stream to the field and walk back by way of the field.

This is my feet as I look down on what I believe is the James Spring. I tried observing where the water was stagnant and where the water was flowing and more clear to discern where the spring was located.

 

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