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Contact: Steve T. Phan, 859-382-6902
NICHOLASVILLE, KY – The National Park Service (NPS) announces that the visitor center at Camp Nelson National Monument is currently open 7-days a week. The building will be open 9:00 am to 5:00 pm. The grounds remain open sunrise to sunset.
The NPS is excited to share our July Calendar featuring three major events (Exhibit Unveiling, History at Sunset, and Ranger Presentation). August features the biggest event on the 2023 Calendar: The 160th Anniversary of the Knoxville Campaign.
Friday, July 7th: Network to Freedom Exhibit Unveiling (11:00 am – 12:00 pm)
The Camp Nelson Preservation and Education Foundation, in partnership with the NPS, received a grant from the NPS Underground Railroad Network to Freedom to fund a new interpretive exhibit at Camp Nelson National Monument. The exhibit, entitled, “True to the Cause of Freedom,” highlights the service and legacy of African American soldiers who served in the US Army during the Civil War. It features an interpretive wayside panel installed outside of the reconstructed Barracks building and exhibits mounted in the interior space. The official unveiling includes a ribbon cutting and remarks delivered by Foundation and NPS staff.
Saturday, July 8th: Ranger Presentation (2:00 pm – 3:30 pm) “The Finishing Blow to the Rebellion”: Victory Summer 1863
By July 1863, U.S. military forces were on the ascension following the dramatic victories at Gettysburg, Vicksburg, and Tullahoma. In the Western Theater, the Armies of the Cumberland and Ohio were tasked with delivering the final deathblow to the Confederacy with offensives into East Tennessee and Georgia. The presentation features Dr. Jennifer Murray (Oklahoma State University) and NPS staff: Steve Phan (Camp Nelson National Monument); Lee White (Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park); and Andrew Miller (Vicksburg National Military Park). The program will be held inside the Barracks building at the park.
Saturday, July 22nd: History at Sunset (7:00 pm – 8:30 pm) Military Impressment: Enslaved Laborers at Camp Nelson
For over eight months in 1863-1864, the US Army forced enslaved African Americans to work at Camp Nelson. This program marks the160th anniversary of the military's impressment policy in Central Kentucky and will explore how slave labor was used to support the US war effort and emancipation. NPS staff will begin this special event with a short orientation at the Camp Nelson National Monument visitor center, before guiding participants on a 1.5-mile hike of the park's grounds.
Friday-Sunday, August 11-13th: 160th Anniversary of the Knoxville Campaign
The summer programming culminates with the largest event organized at the park in 2023! The Army of the Ohio launched the long-awaited East Tennessee offensive from Camp Nelson on August 16, 1863. The campaign successfully liberated civilian Unionists who had suffered under Confederate occupation since 1861. The inhabitants referred to Major General Ambrose E. Burnside's force as the "Army of Liberation." The commemorative weekend features immersive living history demonstrations and programs, ranger guided tours, history presentations, and children's activities.
The full schedule will be released soon!
Happy Independence Day!
#FindYourPark
Camp Nelson National Monument, the 418th unit of the National Park Service, is located six miles south of Nicholasville, KY on Highway 27 and directly north of the Camp Nelson National Cemetery.
For more information, visit the park’s website at: www.nps.gov/cane or the park’s Facebook page at https:www.facebook.com/CampNelsonNPS.
Last updated: July 3, 2023