Marks Mills State Park
Marks Mills State Park is a historical park located in south central Arkansas. It commemorates the Battle of Marks Mills during the Civil War as part of the Union Army’s Red River Campaign. The park contains several exhibits and informative displays that offer new perspectives on the events that transpired during the conflict. It is important because it serves as a reminder of this location’s crucial role in the history of Arkansas and the United States. Visitors can tour the park’s grounds and learn about the conflict through the various instructive displays around the park.
History of Marks Mills State Park
The Union Army’s Red River Campaign included three battles in south central Arkansas in April 1864. Conflicts occurred in Poison Springs, Marks Mills, and Jenkins Ferry. The Arkansas Confederate capital, the 1836 Courthouse at Historic Washington State Park, is part of the Red River Campaign National Historic Landmark. On April 25, 1864, 150 wagons supplied Pine Bluff Union forces. General Steele planned to send the train and 60 wagons north to Pine Bluff for supplies, but he learned that Confederate forces, notably Louisiana General Edmund Kirby Smith’s army, had crossed the Ouachita River downstream.
He led 1,200 men, 240 mounted troops, and six artillery pieces. Confederate forces attacked the supply train, causing Union casualties. General Steele’s march to Shreveport and Texas failed. He focused on escaping Camden and returning to Little Rock. His only known exit after the Red River Campaign was the Military Road north between Princeton and Jenkins Ferry. Marks’ Mills Battleground State Park has exhibits on the war and picnic spaces.
Location: Cleveland County, Arkansas
Opens-Closed: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Area: 7.05 km²
Phone number: (888) 287-2757
Email: marksmills@arkansas.com
Added to NRHP: January 21, 1970
