Bloody Hill

On August 10, 1861, Union and Southern forces met at Wilson’s Creek in the second major battle of the Civil War. Called the “Bull Run of the West,” some of the battle’s most pivotal moments occurred on high ground later christened “Bloody Hill.”

• A ¾-mile walking trail across Bloody Hill includes points of interest such as the 1928 “Lyon Marker, a simple carved stone marker that is the only monument on the battlefield, and a low place off the trail that is a natural sinkhole. The sinkhole, with protruding boulders along its collapsing sides, served as a temporary mass grave for Union soldiers killed in the fighting. Bloody Hill also has cannon in place including three artillery pieces at the Union Lt. John Du Bois Battery location. These cannon face trees that now obscure the view toward the Ray House, about a mile away. Two artillery pieces representing Union Captain James Totten's unit face northwest near the beginning of the trail. The trail winds through tall trees, while an open meadow drops off gradually on the southern side.

Lyon Marker on Bloody Hill

The Lyon Marker commemorates Brigadier General Nathanial Lyon, the first Union general to die in combat. In 1928, a community social club placed the marker on or near the spot on Bloody Hill where General Lyon fell during the battle of Wilson's Creek. Previously, a large stone cairn dating back to the Civil War era served as an informal memorial to Lyon.

• An unpaved path leads through trees to an open area in which stands a large upright engraved stone marker located in front of wooden split-rail fencing. The marker of light-colored stone is 3.5 feet tall and 2 feet wide. Engraving covers the front side of the marker.

Ray House

During the battle of Wilson's Creek, John Ray's family hid in the cellar as he watched the battle from the porch. The farmhouse then transformed into a field hospital and the family cared for wounded soldiers. After the battle, soldiers recovered the body of General Nathaniel Lyon, the first Union general to fall in combat during the Civil War. They brought Lyon's body to the Ray home and placed it on a family bed. The "Lyon Bed" now is part of the park's museum collection.

• A single-story, wood-frame home with wooden shingles sits on a high stone foundation and features a porch running the length of the front of the home. Two separate sets of stone steps lead up to the high railed porch, with two doors leading into the house and two front windows looking out onto the porch. A stone chimney dominates one side of the home, and a large tree sits nearby. The house is on a grassy hill that drops sharply down to a meadow and cornfield. In a low place some distance from the home sits a stone spring house constructed in the form of a rough stone barrel vault with a wooden door. A spring still flows up from the ground in the spring house. Inside the Ray house are three main rooms, including two large front rooms now outfitted as bedrooms and living space, and a large back room used as a dining room and kitchen area. A large stone fireplace with double openings divides the room. An indoor entrance to the cellar is situated in one corner. The home includes antique furniture of the period including three beds, desks and dressers, a dining room table with chairs, a spinning wheel, trunks, shelves, and various items such as books and papers, dishes, lamps, children's toys, and bedding.

Sinkhole on Bloody Hill

On a boiling hot August day, soldiers fought the battle of Wilson’s Creek. After more than six hours, the terrible toll included more than 2,539 individuals dead, wounded, captured, or missing. On Bloody Hill, some Union dead were buried in a mass grave formed by a natural sinkhole.

• An oblong depression in the ground about 10 feet by 15 feet in size and about 3 feet deep is surrounded by rocky outcrops, rough ground, and plants and trees.

Wire Road

The historic Wire Road (also known as the Telegraph Road) runs from St. Louis, Missouri, to Fort Smith, Arkansas. Telegraph wire ran on the route, which also was a major corridor for moving troops and supplies. The road also lies on what was a historic Native American travel route and the old Butterfield Overland Mail route. A portion of the Wire Road runs through Wilson's Creek National Battlefield and is open to foot traffic.

• A narrow unpaved road crosses through several areas of the park including where it runs directly in front of a historic farm house and then runs down a slope between overhanging trees and through other scenic areas and on beyond the park boundaries.

Wilson's Creek Visitor Center & Museum

• Wilson's Creek Visitor Center & Museum
• The recently renovated visitor center contains a staffed contact station, exhibits housing items from our extensive museum collection, a twenty-eight-minute film, an eight-minute fiber optics troop movement map, a bookstore, and the John k. and Ruth Hulston Civil War Research Library.

• Report for Duty at Wilson's Creek NB
• Become a Junior Ranger at Wilson's Creek National Battlefield!

• Seek and Find
• Seek and Find nature and plant species as you visit the battlefield.

• In the Steps of Soldiers
• Hike in the footsteps of Federal and Southern soldiers.

• Let Nature Surprise You
• Let Nature Surprise You! Bring a notebook to journal about the nature you find at Wilsons Creek.

• Ponder on the Porch
• Visit the Ray House and imagine how their family home was trasformed by battle into a field hospital.

• Moving on the Tour Road
• Choose a method of exploring the Wilson’s Creek National Battlefield Tour Road that works best for you.

• Explore with your Animal Companion
• Explore with your Animal Companion. Wilson's Creek National Battlefield has over 10 miles of designated trails.

• Reflect at Wilson's Creek
• Relax by the waters of Wilson’s Creek and transport your mind to a place of reflection.

• Battlefield Museum
• Let your curiosity be your guide while visiting one of the nation's finest publicly held Civil War museum collections.

• Tour a Family Farm Turned Field Hospital
• See the battle of Wilson’s Creek through the eyes of a farming family caught up in combat and its aftermath. The Ray family not only lost much of their property to foraging soldiers, but they witnessed the horrifying toll of battle when their home became a makeshift field hospital. The historic Ray House and Springhouse are the only surviving period structures from 1861 in the park, which is one of the country’s best-preserved Civil War battlefields.

• Travel the Tour Road at Wilson's Creek
• A 4.9-mile paved road for driving, walking, or cycling loops through Wilson's Creek National Battlefield, once of the most pristine Civil War sites in the nation. Along the tour road you'll see historic structures and farm fields, artillery placements, the historic Wire Road, and the iconic Bloody Hill.

• March with the Missouri State Guard
• Follow in the footsteps of Missouri State Guard soldiers! Cross Wilson's Creek on a historic bridge and peek into a cabin near where Major General Sterling Price set up his headquarters. Continue the adventure at Bloody Hill, the battlefield's most iconic location.