Pea Ridge and Prairie Grove: Scenes and Incidents of the War in Arkansas

The Civil War in the West

by William Baxter

With the goal of sketching “at least some of the bright lights and dark shadows of the war;” William Baxter authored his regional classic, Pea Ridge and Prairie Grove, in 1864, before the actual end of the Civil War.

Primarily focusing on the civilians of the region, Baxter vividly describes their precarious and vulnerable positions during the advances and retreats of armies as Confederate and Federal forces marched across their homeland. In his account, Baxter describes skirmishes and cavalry charges outside his front door, the “firing” of his town’s buildings during a Confederate retreat, clashes between secessionist and Unionist neighbors, the feeding of hungry soldiers and the forceful appropriation of his remaining food supply, and the sickening sight of the wounded emerging from the Prairie Grove battlefield.

Since its original printing, this firsthand account has only been reprinted once, in 1957, and both editions are considered collectors’ items today. Of interest to Civil War scholars and general readers alike, Baxter’s compelling social history is rendered even more comprehensive by William Shea’s introduction. Pea Ridge and Prairie Grove is a valuable personal account of the Civil War in the Trans-Mississippi West which enables us to better comprehend the conflict as a whole and its devastating effect on the general populace of the war-torn portions of the country.

Genres: Civil War

126 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1864

Reviews

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

An informative look at the first years of the war from the point of view of a Union supporter living in Northwest Arkansas. A region that saw both armies march through it, and often found itself a no-man's land filled with guerrillas.

[Avis Black · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is not really about the battles of Pea Ridge and Prairie Grove except as a sidelight. The author, a minister and a civilian, spent the war in the town of Fayetteville, Arkansas, a town that changed hands several times during the conflict. He documents depredations by both armies and by bushwackers in a town with mixed North-South loyalties. Fayetteville suffered from arbitrary arrests, murders, property theft, explosions, burning, and just about everything else you can think of. Because the townfolk were a mix of both northern and southern sympathizers, neither army trusted its citizens, and no civilian was safe.

The book is an intriguing read, but be warned that it's a very slow starter. Be prepared to jump ahead to the interesting bits if you're getting bogged down at the beginning. Ultimately, it was good book that gives a solid idea of what border civilians suffered during the war.