Saving Mill Springs on its 150th Anniversary

On January 19, 2012 we will be commemorating the 150th anniversary of the Battle of Mill Springs. While not a large battle by the later standards of the American Civil War, Mill Springs still played an important role. It was here at Mill Springs that Brig. Gen. George Thomas' Federal forces defeated a Confederate army that was hoping to secure Southeastern Kentucky for the Confederacy. Victory at Mill Springs, the first significant battlefield victory for the Union army, helped to keep the Bluegrass state tentatively within the Union. During the intense combat at Mill Springs, Confederate Brig. Gen. Felix Zollicoffer accidentally stumbled into a Union line that would subsequently kill this prominent Civil War figure.

Now we have the chance to save a key section of this historic Civil War battlefield. We can't think of a better way to mark this important anniversary than by adding a critical tract to this beautiful and pristine battlefield. Doing so is the most powerful and lasting legacy of this commemoration that we can leave for our children and grandchildren.