Mine Creek' Heritage Day celebrates 160th anniversary of the battle

Daniel Seller loads and fires his mountain howitzer at last year's Heritage Day. Saturday's event will begin with firing cannons. (Journal file photo)

The Mine Creek Battlefield Foundation will sponsor its annual Heritage Day event at the battlefield site this Saturday, Aug. 2, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. This year the foundation commemorates the 160th anniversary of the battle that was fought on Oct, 25, 1864.

The battlefield site is located at 20485 Kansas Highway 52, a half mile west of U.S. Highway 69 at the Mound City exit.

Visiting the site is free, however the cost for the museum is $5 for adults, $2 for students and children 4 or younger are free.

The event begins at 10 a.m. with the firing of the cannons. At 10:30 a.m. the Generals Lee and Grant presentation begins, and at noon a musket presentation will begin.

At 1 p.m. will be the rededication of the Confederate Memorial on Foundation property near the visitor center. At 2:30 p.m. there will be a skirmish between Confederate and Union re-enactors from across the region.

Throughout the day, the Fine and Dandy String band will play. There will also be vendors demonstrating Civil War period skills and selling goods. There will also be food vendors available.

The Mine Creek Battlefield Foundation, a nonprofit organization, promotes the preservation of battlefield site, owns a significant portion of the site, and works in conjunction with the Kansas State Historical Society that owns and runs the visitors center.

The Battle of Mine Creek was the largest Civil War battle fought in Kansas and one of the largest cavalry engagements of the Civil War.