National Park Service 53

Existing Conditions and Analysis

Introduction

This chapter of the Stones River National

Battlefield Cultural Landscape Report (CLR) is

intended to provide a detailed understanding of

the park’s landscape as it currently exists, and

compare that understanding with historic

conditions during National Register periods of

significance.

The purpose of documenting the park’s existing

landscape is threefold. The most important goal

of the documentation is to understand the range

and breadth of landscape features, to identify

them by name, describe them, and locate them

on a map to serve as a reference and a baseline of

information for the rest of the document. The

second goal of the existing conditions

documentation is to generate an inventory list of

park features to which several analyses may be

applied. These include a condition assessment,

identification of their date and period of origin

and therefore connection to National Register

periods of significance, and consideration of

how much the landscape reflects its character

during these periods of significance through an

integrity assessment. The final reason for

preparing existing conditions documentation is

to provide a record of the landscape that may

prove useful to future research efforts.

The existing conditions information comprises

written, graphic, and photographic

documentation of the current landscape

conditions associated with the Stones River

National Battlefield (Refer to Fig. 37). The

documentation was derived from on-site visits

conducted by project team members in October

2005 and April 2006 and existing conditions

source material, such as aerial photographs and

GIS mapping, provided by park staff.

The information presented below is organized by

character area—which are based primarily on the

individual units or parcels that comprise the

park—although a description of the park as a

whole and its relationship to surrounding areas

and adjacent features introduces the parcelspecific sections. The character area designations

88. Cathy Gilbert, Robert R. Page, and Susan Dolan, A

Guide to Cultural Landscape Reports: Contents,

Process, and Techniques (Washington, D.C.: National

Park Service, 1997).

deviate from the park’s unit designations in two

ways: the National Cemetery is not included in

this study; and the Hazen Brigade Monument,

technically a part of the Nashville Pike unit, has

been treated as a separate character area due to

the fact that it is located across the Old Nashville

Highway from the rest of the unit. The character

areas utilized to describe the landscape as part of

this study include the following (Refer to Fig. 38).

z Nashville Pike (or Main) unit

z McFadden Farm unit

z General Rosecrans’s Headquarters Site

z Hazen Brigade Monument

z General Bragg’s Headquarters Site

z Fortress Rosecrans: Curtain Wall No. 2 and

Lunettes Palmer and Thomas

z Fortress Rosecrans: Redoubt Brannan

For each of these areas, short descriptions of the

overall character area landscape precedes a more

detailed discussion of their individual features.

Landscape features are classified and described

using the categories indicated in A Guide to

Cultural Landscape Reports, one of the standard

methodologies used to prepare cultural

landscape reports.88 The letters in parentheses

following each category refer to the

abbreviations used on the existing conditions

maps to identify features.

z Natural Systems and Features (N)

z Spatial Organization (SO)

z Land Use (not mapped)

z Circulation (C)

z Vegetation (Ve)
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

54 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield

z Buildings and Structures (B, S)

z Views and Vistas (V)

z Small-scale Features (SS)

Each character area section also includes a

comparative analysis of historic and existing

conditions, resulting in an integrity assessment

for the area. Based upon identification of the

park’s significance, and the period during which

it is significant, the CLR indicates the degree to

which the park and its resources today reflect

their character and appearance during the period

of significance. The comparative analysis

narrative generally focuses on two discrete time

periods that fall within the overarching period of

significance for the park: the Battle of Stones

River (December 31, 1862–January 2, 1863) with

commentary regarding the Civil War era in its

entirety (1861–1865); and the early park

development period (1927–1931). Graphic

documentation, in the form of maps and

photographs, is found at the end of each

character area section. Each inventoried feature

is located on a map. All photographs used to

illustrate existing conditions are coordinated

with photographic station point maps found at

the end of this chapter (Figs. 178 through 180).

The character area sections are followed by an

inventory of park landscape features, which

identifies which features are contributing, noncontributing, and missing from the historic

landscape, and also provides condition

information for each existing inventoried feature.

Resources that survive from the period of

significance are referred to as contributing

features. Resources that originated after the

period of significance are identified as noncontributing features. The condition assessments

included with the general description of each

feature describe the physical condition of

landscape features within Stones River National

Battlefield landscape using standards established

by the National Park Service in A Guide to

Cultural Landscape Reports. Features are

described as being in good, fair, poor, or

unknown condition based on the following

criteria:

Good. Indicates the cultural landscape shows no

clear evidence of major negative disturbances

and deterioration by natural and/or human

forces. The cultural landscape’s historical and

natural values are as well preserved as can be

expected under the given environmental

conditions. No immediate action is required.

Fair. Indicates the cultural landscape shows clear

evidence of minor disturbances and

deterioration by natural and/or human forces,

and some degree of corrective action is needed

within three to five years to prevent further

harm. If the current condition is not corrected,

the landscape will deteriorate into a poor

condition.

Poor. Indicates the cultural landscape shows

clear evidence of major disturbance and rapid

deterioration by natural and/or human forces.

Immediate corrective action is required to

protect and preserve the remaining historical and

natural areas.

Unknown. Indicates that not enough

information is available to make an evaluation.

Features categorized as fair, poor, or unknown

are accompanied by a brief annotation to explain

the rating. Throughout the text, LCS

identification numbers for individual structures

are provided, as applicable.89

Each character area section ends with a brief

assessment of integrity. The comparative analysis

discusses which features have changed, been

added, remained intact, or are missing in relation

to the historic landscape. These analyses serve as

the basis for the integrity assessments. The

primary objective of each integrity assessment is

to determine to what degree the park retains its

ability to convey conditions during the identified

period of significance and continues to convey

89. The List of Classified Structures (LCS) is a

computerized inventory of all historic and

prehistoric structures, in which the NPS has, or plans

to acquire, any legal interest. These structures must

have historical, architectural, or engineering

significance. Structures listed on the LCS must meet

one of the following criteria: either the structure is

listed individually or is eligible for the National

Register or the structure is a contributing element

of an historic site or district that is listed or is

eligible for the National Register. In addition, the

LCS includes other structures: moved, reconstructed,

and commemorative structures, and structures

which have achieved significance within the last

fifty years that are managed as cultural resources.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

National Park Service 55

91. Ibid., 11–12.

92. Much of this overview was adapted from the Final

General Management Plan / Development Concept

Plan / Environmental Impact Statement for Stones

River National Battlefield, November 1998, 77–83.

93. Civil War Sites Advisory Commission Report on the

Nation’s Civil War Battlefields (Washington:

National Park Service, 1993), 22. Core areas are

within the study area of a battlefield and include

only those places where the combat engagement

and key associated actions and features were

located. Core areas include, among other things,

what often is described as “hallowed ground.”

Study areas include all places related or

contributing to the battle event: where troops

deployed and maneuvered before, during, and

after the engagement. They are the maximum

delineation of the historical site and provide more

of the tactical context of a battle than do the core

areas.

its historical associations with a significant event

in American history. While integrity assessments

are generally conducted by considering the seven

aspects of integrity identified by the National

Register—location, design, setting, materials,

workmanship, feeling, and association—

National Register Bulletin 40, Guidelines For

Identifying, Evaluation, and Registering America’s

Historic Battlefields, suggests that “the most

important aspects of integrity for battlefields are

location, setting, feeling, and association.”90 The

bulletin discusses an approach to assessing

overall integrity for battlefields that is relevant to

this study, and has been taken into consideration

as part of the development of the integrity

assessment that follows:

Battlefields cannot be frozen in time . . . Even

where efforts to preserve the battlefield were

initiated almost immediately, as at

Gettysburg, it proved impossible to

perpetuate the scene in the exact form and

condition it presented during the battle.

Instead, Gettysburg presents several layers of

history, including its post-battle

memorialization. The best-preserved

battlefields appear much as they would have

at the time of the battle, making it easy to

understand how strategy and results were

shaped by the terrain. All properties,

however, change over time and nearly all

battlefields will contain non-contributing

properties. The impact of non-contributing

properties on a battlefield as a whole

depends not only on their number, but also

on their nature and location and the size and

topography of the battlefield. While this is a

subjective judgment, there are some general

principles for assessing integrity. If the type of

non-contributing property reflects a

continuing layer of development of

traditional land use, then the impact of these

properties may not be as great as that of

modern properties that do not reflect the

historic use of the land. For example, in

battlefields located in rural or agricultural

areas, the presence of farm related buildings

dating from outside the period of significance

generally will not destroy the battlefield’s

integrity. It is important that the land retain

its rural or agricultural identity in order for it

to convey its period of significance. The

impact of modern properties on the historic

battlefield is also lessened if these properties

are located in a dispersed pattern. If a

battlefield is characterized by rolling

topography, the impact of later noncontributing properties may also be lessened.

The covering of former open fields with trees

is a natural and reversible alteration to the

landscape. If it can be demonstrated that,

despite the forestation of an area, the battle

took place in that particular spot, then the

battlefield retains integrity of location.91

Project Area Overview

Stones River National Battlefield protects a

portion of the area over which the Civil War

Battle of Stones River was contested. The battle,

which occurred between December 31, 1862, and

January 2, 1863, was a key event in the struggle for

middle Tennessee, and ultimately resulted in the

Union Army assuming control over the region.92

When first established in 1927, the park

encompassed approximately 325 acres of the

battlefield land where some of the fiercest

fighting occurred. Today, the park’s authorized

boundary extends over some 712 acres, of which

the NPS currently owns approximately 650

acres. The park includes much of the core area of

the battlefield,93 but encompasses only a small

percentage of the nearly 4,000 acres considered

to constitute the battlefield in its entirety. The

park comprises six units: the Nashville Pike unit,

which includes Stones River National Cemetery

and the Hazen Brigade Monument; McFadden

Farm unit; the Rosecrans’s Headquarters site;

90. Patrick W. Andrus, National Register Bulletin 40:

Guidelines for Identifying, Evaluating, and

Registering America’s Historic Battlefields

(Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office,

1992), 11.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

56 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield

Bragg’s Headquarters site; Fortress Rosecrans:

Redoubt Brannan; and Fortress Rosecrans:

Curtain Wall No. 2 and Lunettes Palmer and

Thomas. The largest of these is the Nashville Pike

unit. This 480-acre parcel is located primarily

south of the Old Nashville Highway, and

encompasses the landscape where General

Bragg’s Confederate forces turned the Union

flank and were in turn checked by massed

Federal artillery. The park also includes two tiny

parcels that mark the headquarters sites of the

two commanders—Generals Bragg and

Rosecrans—and a portion of high ground near

McFadden’s Ford—the McFadden Farm unit—

where much of the Union artillery was stationed.

In addition, the park contains fragments of

Fortress Rosecrans—the largest enclosed

earthwork built during the Civil War—and

Stones River National Cemetery, documentation

and analysis of which is not included in this

study. For the purposes of this study, the Hazen

Brigade Monument is addressed as a separate

character area due to the fact that it is located

across Old Nashville Highway from the rest of

the Nashville Pike unit.

Stones River National Battlefield is located in

Rutherford County, Tennessee, three miles

northwest of downtown Murfreesboro and

twenty-eight miles southeast of Nashville. It is

adjacent to and within a major northwest-tosoutheast transportation corridor consisting of

the CSX Corporation railroad tracks, the Old

Nashville Highway, and the New Nashville

Highway (U.S. Highway 41/70S). The McFadden

Farm unit is located between Thompson Lane

and Van Cleve Lane. General Rosecrans’s

Headquarters Site is located northwest of the

Nashville Pike Unit. The Hazen Brigade

Monument is located along the Old Nashville

Highway, across from the Nashville Pike Unit

and east of Van Cleve Lane. The General Bragg

Headquarters Site is found southeast of the

Nashville Pike Unit and adjacent to the Stones

River Greenway’s General Bragg trailhead and

parking lot. The remnants of Fortress

Rosecrans—Lunettes Palmer and Thomas,

Curtain Wall No. 2, and Redoubt Brannan—are

located just northwest of downtown

Murfreesboro amidst a relatively heavily

developed area. Lunettes Palmer and Thomas

and Curtain Wall No. 2 abut the City of

Murfreesboro’s Old Fort Park located near the

intersection of Routes 96 and 99. Redoubt

Brannan sits directly north of the Lunettes and

Curtain Wall parcel and is accessed by West

College Street.

The park lies within a Tennessee physiographic

region known as the Inner Basin, a gently rolling

area of about 600 square miles surrounded by

steeper hills. Much of the region is characterized

by karst topography, with outcroppings of

thickly-bedded Ridley limestone occurring

within the Nashville Pike unit and along the two

forks of the Stones River. These outcroppings

played an important role during the battle: the

thickly-bedded limestone outcroppings provided

cover for the troops, yet prevented the

movement of artillery pieces and wagons. The

McFadden Farm unit and General Bragg

Headquarters site are underlain by Pierce and

Murfreesboro limestones that form outcrops

along the banks of Stones River. Most of the

groundwater in the region is found in solution

cavities and cracks in limestone bedrock, and at

least one cave and a number of sinkholes—

typical of karst topography—are found within

the park’s boundaries.

In general, the park occupies level or gently

rolling land that drops steeply along the banks of

Stones River. Elevations range from about 520

feet to 600 feet above sea level. Stones River

flows east along much of the park, yet also forms

the northern edge of the McFadden Farm unit

and runs west of the Fortress Rosecrans units.

The banks of Stones River rise to a height of

forty feet above the stream corridor in several

places. It was the high ground along the western

edge of Stones River that gave Union artillery the

advantage over Confederate soldiers who

approached from the east in the final battle

action. Except for these areas of high ground,

much of the park lies within the Stones River

100-year floodplain.

The park is encompassed within Braun’s (1950)

Western Mesophytic Forest Region. Overall, the

park contains more than 500 species of plants,

which not only promote vegetative diversity but

also create and support wildlife habitats.

According to the 1998 General Management Plan

(GMP), the woody vegetation of the Nashville

Pike unit consists of open farmland and scattered

forests of mixed hardwood and cedar, similar to

the vegetative composition that existed during

the battle. In the vicinity of the visitor center,
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

National Park Service 57

much of the landscape is maintained in mown

lawn, which is a deviation from the Civil War

period. The park has worked diligently to

manage vegetation to approximate 1863

conditions. However, invasive alien plant species

such as privet and Japanese honeysuckle, which

are difficult to control, have become an integral

part of these communities, altering their

character from mid-nineteenth century

conditions.

Woodlands at Stones River include cedar forests,

and mixed hardwood and cedar forests in

various stages of secondary succession. Some of

the cedar stands are very dense, as during the

Civil War period. Red cedar is a shade intolerant

species that can be replaced by hardwoods over

time. The principal hardwood species that can be

found within the area include chinquapin oak,

black and northern red oak, white and blue ash,

elm, honeylocust, American beech, sweetgum,

hackberry, and hickory. Stream and river margins

are typically colonized by hardwood

communities of river birch, black willow, and

cottonwood.

An important and distinctive environmental

feature of the park’s landscape is its

approximately forty-three acres of limestone

glade community. Glades are found within the

Nashville Pike, McFadden Farm, and Fortress

Rosecrans units of the park. A 185-acre area that

encompasses the heart of the cedar glade

ecosystem in the park was officially designated a

Tennessee State Natural Area in 2003.94

Glades form in areas where limestone is at or

near the ground surface on southern, western,

and northwestern facing slopes. The plant

communities that colonize the shallow soils of

the glades are primarily herbaceous—annuals

and perennials—and require high light

conditions. Some species are allelopathic—they

emit compounds that leach into the soil around

them that inhibit the growth of other species.

Adapted to the deeper soil pockets and vertical

crevices in the rock outcrops is Eastern red cedar

(Juniperus virginiana), which often occurs in

conjunction with glade privet (Forestiera

ligustrina) and aromatic sumac (Rhus aromatica).

Where soil over the local Ridley limestone is very

shallow, permanent and substantive tree growth

is precluded. The plants that are adapted to the

mass-heat relationships of the exposed bedrock

and the alkaline properties of the limestone are

relatively rare and unique to the glade ecosystem.

Many of these plant species are listed as

endangered or threatened because their habitat is

limited, very fragile, and diminishing. Shading

out of the glade species by Eastern red cedar

trees is often a factor in glade habitat

deterioration; the trees shade the herbaceous

plants around them to the point where they can

no longer survive, and cools the substrate below,

and the leaf litter further affects the gladeadapted species by altering the soil pH. Eastern

red cedar is highly sensitive to fire and would

have been kept in check naturally by drought and

fire.

Over the course of the year, ephemeral species

come and go in response to climate and moisture

conditions. Beginning as early as mid-February,

glade cress dominates wet areas within the

glades. By the time summer arrives, these plants

have set seed and died back. As spring

progresses, a host of deep rooted perennial

species—many of which are endemic to the

glades—blooms. They include Nashville

breadroot (Pediomelum subacaulis), glade

scorpion-weed (Phacelia dubia), Tennessee milkvetch, and Gattinger’s prairie-clover (Dalea

gattingeri). A different suite of species is evident

in the summer. The summer flowers include the

Tennessee purple coneflower and limestone

fameflower. Annual and perennial grasses are

also notable during the summer. These include

Elliot’s broomsedge (Andropogon gyrans),

splitbeard broomsedge (Andropogon ternarius),

slimspike three-awned grass (Aristida

longespica), and poverty grass (Sporobolus

vaginiflorus). During dry periods, prickly pear

cactus (Opuntia humifusa) and other xerophytics

become more prevalent.

Glades throughout the middle Tennessee region

are threatened by development, rendering these

communities rare and worthy of protection

beyond the presence of their listed species. They

are typically delicate and can easily be damaged

by cultural activities and grazing livestock.

94. "Stones River Cedar Glade and Barrens Class II

Natural-Scientific State Natural Area," Tennessee

Department of Environment and Conservation,

Division of Natural Areas, http://www.state.tn.us/

environment/nh/natareas/stonesriver/ (accessed May

24, 2006).
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

58 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield

The Federally-listed endangered plant species

found in the park include:

z Tennessee purple coneflower (Echinacea

tennesseensis)

z Pyne’s (Guthrie’s) ground-plum (Astragalus

bibullatus)

In addition, the following plant species are listed

as threatened or of special concern by the State

of Tennessee and have been documented in the

park:

z Eastern blue-star (Amsonia

tabernaemontana var. gattingeri)

z Western hairy rockcress (Arabis hirsuta)

z Tennessee milk-vetch (Astragalus

tennesseensis)

z Evolvulus (Evolvulus nuttalianus)

z Tennessee glade cress (Leavenworthia exigua

var. exigua)

z Limestone fame-flower (Talinum

calcaricum)

The features and facets described above combine

to make Stones River National Battlefield a place

of both historical and ecological importance.

Through the physical conditions that exist at

present, visitors have the potential to understand

the key events of the battle, as well as learn about

and enjoy the natural features that affected the

battlefield during the war and today.

EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

60 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield


EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

National Park Service 65

Existing Conditions and

Analysis

This section of the chapter provides a detailed

description of existing landscape features and

conditions found within the project boundaries,

and is organized by the character areas listed

above. This section is written with an emphasis

on features that support and define the historic

character of the park. Contemporary site

functions, visitor services, and natural resources

are described to the extent that they contribute

to or influence the character of the landscape

and treatment recommendations made in the

Treatment Plan chapter of this report.

Nashville Pike Unit

The Nashville Pike unit character area is the main

unit of the park, and encompasses approximately

480 acres of land (Refer to Fig. 81). It is generally

surrounded by post-Civil War residential,

industrial, and commercial development on all

sides, except for the Stones River National

Cemetery and Hazen Brigade Monument across

the pike. This character area receives the majority

of visitors and contains the primary point of

visitor contact: the visitor center. It includes

various interpretive opportunities including a

tour road with interpretive nodes, interpretive

trails, and various waysides, as well as the visitor

center. Special programs are often held at the

park within the Nashville Pike unit.

Natural Systems and Features

The Nashville Pike unit character area is

comprised of relatively level and gently rolling

topography. The character area is dominated by a

broad, circular knoll near its center, which is

edged by the park tour road. Limestone

underlies much of the character area; the

landforms associated with the local geology—

known as karst—are the result of weathering and

dissolution of the underlying calcium-rich

limestone. Over time, the ground water that

percolates through fractures in the limestone has

slowly dissolved and enlarged the fractures to

form caves and tunnels. The limestone geology is

also prone to the development of sinkholes, or

depressions formed by the solution and collapse

of underlying beds of limestone. Sinkholes, at

least one cave, and limestone outcroppings are

present within the Nashville Pike unit. Limestone

outcroppings are particularly noticeable along

the trail leading to the Slaughter Pen, where

General Sheridan made a stand against

Confederate forces (Fig. 40).

Several slope and depressional wetlands are

found within this character area, mainly to the

north, west, and east of the knoll. Depressional

wetlands occur in topographic depressions, and

retain water from precipitation, groundwater

discharge, and interflow; these wetlands are

found close to the area’s western boundary and

between Van Cleve Lane and Thompson Lane.

Slope wetlands typically occur on sloping land

where groundwater is discharged to the land

surface. These wetlands are found along the tour

road in closer proximity to the visitor center.

Further information on the park wetlands is

provided in Thomas H. Roberts and Kenneth L.

Morgan, Inventory and Classification of Wetlands

at Stones River National Battlefield, Murfreesboro,

Tennessee.

Spatial Organization

At a broad level, the Nashville Pike unit character

area is spatially divided into areas of field and

forest. Much of this character area is covered in

woodlands, but many important viewsheds and

historically-farmed fields are maintained in open

cover for interpretation purposes. Open fields

are most prevalent along the northern, eastern,

and southern edges of the character area. Fence

lines also contribute to patterns of spatial

FIGURE 40. Limestone outcroppings near the Slaughter

Pen.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

66 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield

organization. Fences occur along boundaries of

Federal ownership as well as to convey historic

fence lines known to have existed during the

Civil War.

Vehicular circulation features also help define

space within and around the character area. The

most obvious edge is formed by the Old

Nashville Highway, which edges the unit to its

north.95 To the east, Thompson Lane edges much

of the character area, except for a thin strip of

land that falls to its east in the far southeastern

corner of the park. Wilkinson Pike forms the

area’s southern boundary.

Within the Nashville Pike unit, the park tour

road creates a vehicular corridor through

wooded areas. Van Cleve Lane—a road that was

present during the battle but is now closed to

public vehicular traffic—splits the Nashville Pike

unit along a north/south line east of the tour

road.

The visitor center and adjacent parking lot and

loop road form a space or place that conveys a

feeling that is unique to the unit. This space is

defined by mown turf dotted with shade and

ornamental trees edged by woodland to the west,

a cedar grove to the south, and the Old Nashville

Highway to the north and east.

The Pioneer Brigade earthworks parcel is also

unusual in its spatial character due to its relative

isolation from the remainder of the Nashville

Pike unit and deciduous hardwood cover.

The toll house site comprises a third place or

space within this character area (Fig. 41). The toll

house site is marked by a break in the picket

fence along Old Nashville Highway and by four

small markers that denote the corners of the

missing building.

Land Use

Land uses within this character area consist of

museum/education, including various

interpretive activities within the visitor center

FIGURE 42. Park tour road as it curves near Tour Road Stop

Two.

FIGURE 41. Toll house site on Old Nashville Highway.

and the battlefield landscape; recreation, such as

jogging, biking, picnicking, and hiking;

administration, through the use of the visitor

center as the park headquarters; and agriculture,

comprised of hay cut and harvested, and crop

fields planted and harvested. Scientific research

and conservation also occur in association with

the cedar glade areas and the park’s protection of

threatened and endangered species.

Circulation

Both pedestrian and vehicular circulation are

accommodated within the Nashville Pike unit.

The primary vehicular circulation features are

associated with the visitor center and the paved

tour road that begins and ends at the facility,

forming an oblong loop through much of the

95. Old Nashville Highway forms the northern

boundary of the character area within this report.

The official northern boundary is formed by the CSX

Corporation railroad tracks that edge Stones River

National Cemetery.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

National Park Service 67

FIGURE 43. Small parking lot along the tour road.

character area (Fig. 42). There are five designated

tour stops along the tour road, four of which are

associated with short trails. The first tells the

story of the “Eve of the Battle,” the second of the

“Slaughter Pen,” the third focuses on the “Cotton

Field” where retreating Union troops established

a last line of defense along the railroad and

turnpike, and the fourth depicts the “Defense of

the Nashville Pike.” These stops are marked by

small asphalt-paved parking areas (Fig. 43).

These parking areas are associated with

interpretive opportunities composed either of

wayside exhibits that describe the importance of

the various landscapes adjacent to the stop, or

trailheads for pedestrian routes that provide

connections to interpretive areas located farther

away. Additionally, there is a parking area located

along the southwestern margin of the tour road

that provides access to the Boundary Trail. It

includes a picnic area. The tour road as it

currently exists was developed during the

Mission 66 era. It overlays a portion of the

original park tour road established in the late

1920s and early 1930s. The tour road is generally

in good condition, but reconfiguration of its

orientation and alignment is currently under

consideration to enhance park interpretation

and to direct visitors away from the sensitive

cedar glades.

Van Cleve Lane (LCS ID 007036), also known as

McFadden’s Lane or Bowen Lane, is a historic

route that was present at the time of the Battle of

Stones River. Van Cleve Lane is closed to public

vehicular traffic but is used as an access route for

park personnel (Fig. 44). The road extends

north/south between the Wilkinson or Manson

Pike and the Old Nashville Highway. The

northern entrance from the Old Nashville

Highway (LCS ID 007037) is blocked by worm

rail fencing, while the southern entrance along

Wilkinson Pike is gated. Currently surfaced in

chip-and-seal, the historic road is in fair to poor

condition. A portion of the road is caved in due

to a sinkhole and the road margins are eroding.

Another section of this historic route extends

north of U.S. Highway 41/70S and provides

access to the McFadden Farm unit.

A second vehicular road provides access to the

earthwork located on the Pioneer Brigade parcel

(Fig. 45). This gravel road, known as Nickens

Lane, is also closed to public vehicular use. It is

in fair condition, with some vegetation growing

FIGURE 44. Van Cleve Lane as it runs through the Nashville

Pike Unit. Note poor road edge conditions.

FIGURE 45. Gravel road that accesses and extends through

the Pioneer Brigade parcel in the northwest corner of the

character area.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

68 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield

in the road prism. The date of origin of this road

is not currently known, but it does not appear on

maps of the site during the period of significance

and is not likely a historic feature.

The pedestrian circulation within the character

area includes two official trail systems, as well as

walks associated with the visitor center and

connections to the cemetery across the street

and the interpretive nodes at tour road stops.

There are also numerous unofficial social trails

that lead through portions of the park. The

official trails are the unpaved Boundary Trail and

the asphalt-surfaced Cotton Field Trail. The

three-and-one-half mile Boundary Trail leads

from Tour Road Stop Two along the southern

and western portions of the park’s boundary

before ending at the visitor center (Fig. 46).

Connections to the trail are afforded, as noted

above, from the small parking area in the

southwestern corner of the park, and from Tour

Stop Three. Trails extend west from Tour Stop

One, and between the visitor center and Tour

Stop One. The Boundary Trail and Cedar Trail

were established circa 1970s and are generally in

good condition.

The Cotton Field Trail, established 1998–1999,

begins at the visitor center, extends eastward

along the tour road, across Van Cleve Lane and

an agricultural field. This trail links to a larger

trail system that follows the Old Nashville Pike

before providing a spur trail connection to the

City of Murfreesboro Stones River Greenway

Trail. It is also generally in good condition.

FIGURE 46. The Boundary Trail. FIGURE 47. Social trail located within the tour road loop.

Although difficult to quantify, there are a number

of social trails that occur within the wooded

areas of the park (Fig. 47). Park staff have

observed evidence of foot traffic, vandalism, and

bicycle use in association with these trails. Of

particular concern are the trails that run through

sensitive ecological environments such as the

cedar glades. The date of origin of these trails is

not known, but they certainly post-date the

period of significance. Further use of these

features should be discouraged, and therefore

their condition is not under consideration.

At the visitor center, concrete sidewalks edge

many of the parking spaces and lead to the

entrance of the building. The parking lot and

sidewalks were initially developed in 1963 as part

of the construction of the visitor center, and the

sidewalk was reconstructed on its original

location in 2004 as part of the renovation of the

visitor center.

The final circulation feature associated with the

unit is a mulch trail that leads from the parking

area through an opening in the four-rail worm

fence that edges the unit along the Old Nashville

Pike and provides a pedestrian connection to the

National Cemetery entrance. The date of origin

of this feature is not currently known, but it postdates the period of significance.

Vegetation

The Nashville Pike unit includes a wide range of

vegetation types and communities. In association
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

National Park Service 69

FIGURE 48. Dense cedar plantings found on the

northbound portion of the tour road, close to the visitor

center.

with the visitor center, native plantings are

primarily of cultural origin and ornamental in

their intent. The unit also includes large expanses

of open fields used to interpret agricultural

conditions and spatial patterns at the time of the

battle. These are maintained variously in exhibit

crop fields and warm-season grass fields. Much

of the remainder of the park is wooded.

Woodlands are a combination of secondary and

tertiary successional growth of deciduous

hardwoods and groves of Eastern red cedar

trees. Cedar glades occur in areas where

limestone bedrock is nearly exposed. Invasive

alien plants are present in many of the naturally

occurring and succeeding areas. Some are of

particular concern for the threat they pose to

native species, the manner in which they limit

Civil War era restoration attempts, and the

difficulty and expense their control poses.

In the vicinity of the visitor center, the majority

of the plantings are designed and ornamental in

nature, and set within an overall expanse of

mown turf. The palette is primarily native

deciduous trees and shrubs used in association

with the entrance, parking lot, and around the

foundation of the building. Plantings also include

a few evergreen shrubs and trees, and flowering

perennials. Tree species include: redbud (Cercis

canadensis); dogwood (Cornus florida); black

cherry (Prunus serotina); sycamore (Platanus

sp.); tulip poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera); sweet

gum (Liquidambar styraciflua); sugar maple

(Acer saccharum); oaks (Quercus spp.); southern

magnolia (Magnolia grandiflora); Eastern red

cedar; American holly (Ilex americana);

hackberry (Celtis occidentalis); and red maple

(Acer rubrum). Juniper shrubs (Juniperus sp.)

adorned the entrance gates but were removed in

late 2006. Perennials and ornamental grasses

include black-eyed susan (Rudbeckia sp.);

Tennessee purple coneflower; glade phlox (Phlox

bifida); and river oats (Chasmanthium latifolium).

The ornamental plantings in the vicinity of the

visitor center are generally in good condition.

In the 1970s, a dense linear grove of Eastern red

cedar was planted between the visitor center and

Tour Road Stop Three (Fig. 48). The plantings

were intended to recreate an important battle

landscape feature as identified in Edwin Bearss’

“Fence and Ground Cover Map,” which

interprets the landscape at the time of the battle.

Today, the trees help to screen views of the

visitor center from a portion of the tour road.

The wooded portions of the Nashville Pike unit

character area include a range of vegetation

classification categories, primarily Temperate

Needle-Leaved Evergreen Forests, Submontane

Cold-Deciduous Forest, and Cedar Glades and

Barrens Complex. Within these categories are

Eastern red cedar successional forest, Southern

Interior Low Plateau Chinquapin Oak/Redbud/

Rusty Blackhaw Forest, Nashville Basin Shumard

Oak-Chinquapin Oak forest, and a range of

communities associated with the cedar glades

and barrens complex. Hardwood stands are

typically dominated by oaks, hickories, winged

elm, hackberry, and white ash. Hardwood and

mixed forest stands were present at the time of

the battle, but their current configuration and

composition is not consistent with historic

conditions. The woodlands are downgraded to

fair condition due to the presence of invasive

species such as Japanese honeysuckle (Lonicera

japonica), bush honeysuckle (Lonicera maackii),

and Chinese privet (Ligustrum sinense). Eastern

red cedar forests are also known to have existed

at the time of the battle, and played an important

role in the events of the battle. The exact

configuration and composition of red cedar

stands during the battle is closely, but not exactly,

represented in the park today. The red cedar

forests are currently in fair condition due to

problems associated with invasive alien plants.

Cedar glades dot the Nashville Pike unit, but are

particularly prevalent in the southern half of the
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

70 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield

unit near its center. As described above, the

glades are natural openings in Eastern red cedar

successional forests that have limestone bedrock

at or near the surface of the ground. The rock is

bare or covered with thin soil and populated by

herbaceous plants.96 The glades support a

community of specially-adapted plant species,

many of which are found only in glade habitat.

State and federal lists of threatened and

endangered plants include two known to exist

within the park: the Tennessee coneflower and

Pyne’s (Guthrie’s) ground-plum, both of which

were planted.97 Glades were present at the time

FIGURE 49. Cotton growing in a field used to interpret historic field and forest patterns.

of the Battle of Stones River. The glades are also

in fair condition, currently suffering from

pedestrian use and shading by encroaching

cedars, and possibly from changes in hydrology

caused by construction of the tour road in the

1930s by the War Department.

Agricultural crop fields are also present within

the Nashville Pike unit. A number of fields are

planted with soybeans, cotton, or warm-season

grasses to interpret historic field patterns as they

existed during the Civil War battle (Fig. 49).

Many of the fields that are not maintained in

crop cover contain tall fescue (Festuca

arundinaceae) and other exotic and native

grasses and forbs, such as Johnson grass

(Sorghum halapense).98 The park’s conversion of

former crop fields to native warm-season grass

fields is relatively recent. The agricultural fields

are generally in good to fair condition. The

96. Dennis Horn and Tavia Cathcart, eds., Wildflowers

of Tennessee, the Ohio Valley, and the Southern

Appalachians (Auburn, Washington: Lone Pine

Publishing and the Tennessee Native Plant Society,

2005), 34.

97. National Park Service, “Natural Resources: Cedar

Glades.” National Park Service Stones River National

Battlefield, http://www.nps.gov/stri/

natural_cedarglades.htm (accessed December 12,

2005) 98. NPS Vegetation Map from GIS.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

National Park Service 71

presence of invasive plants, such as Johnson

grass and musk thistle, diminishes the rating to

fair when present.

Invasive plant species clearly pose a problem in

this character area. Those of particular concern

include Chinese privet, musk thistle (Carduus

nutans), Japanese honeysuckle, bush

honeysuckle (Lonicera maackii), winter

honeysuckle (Lonicera fragrantissima), climbing

euonymus (Euonymus fortunei), and Johnson

grass. Also of concern are the large stands of

poison ivy (Toxicodendron radicans) located

throughout the park, particularly along the trails

and in other areas frequented by visitors.

Buildings and Structures

Several buildings and structures exist within the

Nashville Pike unit character area. These range

from the visitor center, to earthen fortifications

built during the Civil War, and stone entrance

piers and culverts associated with the park tour

road.

The primary building within the park is the

visitor center (Fig. 50), which contains

interpretive and museum displays, a cooperating

association store, restrooms, and park offices.

The visitor center was constructed in 1961–1963

as a Mission 66 project. The original plan

included three equal wings at 120-degree angles

arranged around a central hexagonal lobby

space. The visitor center was greatly remodeled

FIGURE 50. View of the visitor center from the southeast. FIGURE 51. Section of the Pioneer Brigade earthworks.

and expanded in 2003–2004. As remodeled, the

visitor center is a one-story building with a

partial basement. Each of the original three

wings was extended to form an irregular plan. All

exterior materials were replaced as part of this

work; the building is now clad with limestone

veneer and a synthetic stucco exterior insulating

finish system (EIFS), and the roof is standing

seam sheet metal. The building is generally in

good condition.

The Pioneer Brigade earthwork is located within

the woodlands west of the visitor center (Fig. 51).

This Civil War era earthen fortification structure

is not currently interpreted. It consists of shallow

entrenchments—used as a rifle pit to reinforce an

artillery battery located to the rear—forming an

angled shape with the narrow end pointing

toward the west. The rifle pit is currently covered

in leaf litter from the deciduous hardwood trees

growing in and around the structure. This feature

is in fair condition due to signs of soil erosion.

Within and around the structure, trash, including

bottles and cans, was observed during 2005 field

investigations.

The vehicular entrance to the park and visitor

center is marked by a pair of entrance piers and

gates (Fig. 52). Constructed in the early 1930s, the

piers are tall, square structures constructed of

limestone block with pyramidal cannonball caps.

Low limestone block wing walls extend from the

interior of the pillars toward the entrance road;

these were added to the piers as part of the
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

72 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield

FIGURE 52. Limestone entrance piers and wooden gates designating the park’s public entrance.

Mission 66-era visitor center improvements

(Figs. 77 and 78). Swinging wood gates block the

entrance to the park during off-hours. The

entrance piers are in good condition; the gates

are in fair condition.

Culverts are utilized along the tour road to

permit passage of water beneath the road. Just

past the area where the tour road begins to be

one-way, there are two large, round, corrugated

metal culverts. Stone headwalls are located on

either side of the road and at the ends of the

culverts (Fig. 53). These large culverts carry water

from a wide drainage swale established in the

1970s that was extended in association with the

construction of the Cotton Field trail in 1998–

1999. The culverts may have been established in

conjunction with the tour road improvements

conducted in 1963. A second, smaller corrugated

pipe culvert with a stone headwall is located

closer to Tour Road Stop One (Fig. 54). It is in

good condition. Its date of origin is not currently

known. Nearby is a rectangular stone pit filled

with limestone rubble (Fig. 55). This feature may

have been a drainage structure. Its date of origin

is not currently known. The feature is in poor

condition. Additional culverts are located along

the tour road once it enters the wooded portion

of the park. These structures typically consist of

corrugated metal pipe edged by battered stone

headwalls (Fig. 56). These culverts were likely

constructed as part of the Mission 66-era tour

road improvements. They are generally in fair

condition due to the presence of a fair amount of

organic growth. Finally, an L-shaped culvert and

concrete headwall is found near Tour Road Stop

Two (Fig. 57). The date of origin of this feature is

not currently known, but it most likely post-
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

National Park Service 73

FIGURE 54. Small corrugated pipe culvert with a stone

headwall.

FIGURE 56. Corrugated pipe culvert with a battered stone

headwall. Note large amount of organic growth on the

stones.

FIGURE 55. Open drainage structure found along the

southbound portion of the tour road.

FIGURE 57. Pipe culvert and L-shaped concrete headwall

near Tour Road Stop Two.

FIGURE 53. Large corrugated pipe culverts with a stone

headwall.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

74 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield

FIGURE 60. Vista into the Slaughter Pen field after the trail

exits the woods.

FIGURE 59. View across open fields from the northbound

portion of the tour road.

dates the period of significance. It is in fair

condition due to some erosion and deposition

issues associated with intake and outflow.

Views and Vistas

The most prominent views and vistas within the

Nashville Pike unit landscape are those available

when looking across the open fields. The low

height of the warm-season grasses and crops,

and the broad, level topography, afford

expansive views. The views from the tour road—

both northbound and southbound—looking

across the former cotton fields are particularly

striking (Fig. 58 and 59). These views also show

glimpses of the railroad tracks to the north and

east that would have been available during the

battle. The view from the end of the Tour Road

Stop Two trail toward Wilkinson Pike is also

compelling, particularly as the vista opens up at

the edge of the woodland (Fig. 60).

Recent removal of exotic species from the park

has served to open the understory of the

woodlands in some areas. Portions of the cedar

glades are relatively free of woody vegetation,

affording some more open views, particularly in

winter.

Views across Old Nashville Highway and

Wilkinson Pike include commercial and

residential development (Fig. 57 and 60) and are

therefore in fair to poor condition.

Small-scale Features

Small-scale features located within the Nashville

Pike unit include signage, site furnishings,

fencing, interpretive exhibits, and utility lines and

poles. These features all post-date the period of

significance and relate to Mission 66 park

improvements, or later programs.

 At the visitor center, small-scale features support

visitor uses, safety, and comfort. Picnic tables

allow visitors to eat meals within the park, while

bicycle racks provide a place to store and lock

bicycles. Brown-painted wood benches and

stone seat walls provide seating (Fig. 61 and 62).

Two types of trash cans provide containers for

refuse (Fig. 63 and 64). These include a woodslat model and a green metal model. A flagpole

stands close to the visitor center. All of these

features are in good condition.

FIGURE 58. View across open fields within the Nashville

Pike Unit. View shows Old Nashville Highway, railroad

tracks, and industrial development in the distance.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

National Park Service 75

FIGURE 61. View across field toward development. Note large church complex in background.

FIGURE 62. Wood bench found at the visitor center. FIGURE 63. Stone seat walls in front of the visitor center.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

76 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield

FIGURE 67. Typical hexagonal metal interpretive sign

found throughout the park. Note damaged photograph.

FIGURE 66. Contemporary park sign near the front of the

visitor center.

FIGURE 65. Green metal trash can at the visitor center.

FIGURE 64. Wood-slat trash can at the visitor center.

Multiple types of signage exist throughout the

Nashville Pike unit character area. The largest

signs are the two NPS park identity signs. The

older park sign was installed in 1963 and consists

of a square brick pier placed at one end of a

rectangular wooden signboard; a new signboard

was installed circa 1992. The wooden sign rests

on a low brick base. A compartment in the rear

of the sign holds a functional traffic counter and

a water hook-up that no longer works. This sign

is in fair condition. The second park identity sign

was installed in 2004 and is located next to the

visitor center (Fig. 65). This brown, rectangular

sign is supported by two posts. It is in good

condition.

Also near the visitor center is a small, brown,

plastic directional sign that points the way to the

Cotton Field Trail. Small, wooden signs with

routed letters designate “Areas Closed For

Restoration” along the tour road. These wood

signs also denote special areas of the park, such

as “Slaughter Pen” and “Eve of Battle.” Painted

metal elongated-hexagonal wayside exhibits

placed in the mid-1960s describe events of the

battle as they relate to the surrounding landscape

(Fig. 66). These signs are found at each tour stop.

All of the park’s interpretive and directional signs

are in good condition except the hexagonal

wayside exhibits, which show evidence of

deterioration and vandalism and are therefore in
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

National Park Service 77

FIGURE 69. Rustic picket fence found along Old Nashville

Highway east of Van Cleve Lane.

FIGURE 68. Worm rail fencing found throughout the park,

typically along park boundaries. Visible in the distance is

one Civil War-era cannon and one replica cannon.

FIGURE 70. Worm rail fence blockades used to prohibit access to certain areas of the park. This blockade is found at the

southern intersection of Van Cleve Lane and Old Nashville Highway.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

78 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield

FIGURE 72. Civil War-era cannon are used throughout the

park to interpret the battle.

FIGURE 73. Large drain inlet found at the intersection of

Van Cleve Lane and Wilkinson Pike. The spacing of the

bars that create the inlet grate may be too wide and pose

a hazard to the public.

fair physical condition. The park rates their

condition as poor due to the outdated nature of

the interpretive material.

At least three types of fencing are found within

the character area.99 Wooden worm rail fencing is

the most prevalent, edging most of the park’s

boundaries and tour stops (Fig. 68). A picket

fence edges the southern side of Old Nashville

Highway east of Van Cleve Lane (Fig. 69). Fourrail-high worm rail fencing is used to prevent

access to certain portions of the park, such as

Van Cleve Lane (Fig. 70). Post and rail fencing

lines the southern edge of Old Nashville

Highway between Van Cleve Lane and the visitor

center (Fig. 71). Worm rail fences intended to

represent historic fence lines are typically six

rails high, while four-rail-high worm fence is

used to demarcate park boundaries. Fencing is

generally in good condition.

Civil War-era cannon are used throughout the

Nashville Pike unit to help visitors understand

the positions of soldiers and artillery during the

battle (Fig. 72). Most of the cannon within this

character area are original, although the carriages

are reproductions.100 There is one non-original

cannon located south of the cemetery along Old

Nashville Highway. These cannon are in good

condition. Near the Slaughter Pen, two

purposefully damaged cannon help illustrate the

difficulty of moving wheeled cannon and

caissons through the limestone outcroppings.

Utility lines and poles stretch across the visitor

center node and the southeastern agricultural

field. These utility systems are generally in good

condition. Large drain inlets are found at the

intersection of Van Cleve Lane and Wilkinson

Pike (Fig. 73). These inlets are in fair condition

FIGURE 71. Two-post and rail wood fence found between

Van Cleve Lane and the visitor center.

99. The terms picket fence and post and rail fence were

taken from Edwin Bearss’ “Fence and Ground Cover

Map.” In this report, the term worm rail fence is

used instead of Bearss’ term rail fence.

100. Possibly, most of the Civil War-era cannon

displayed in the park were placed on the site in the

1940s. Refer to the memorandum by George F.

Emery, Assistant Historical Technician, National Park

Service, “Artillery Needs, Stones River National

Military Park,” January 6, 1941, which includes a list

of types of cannon to be provided to the park.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

National Park Service 79

due to the presence of vegetation growing in

them, which potentially blocks the intake system.

Comparative Analysis

The Nashville Pike unit retains features and

characteristics of the landscape that existed at

the time of the Battle of Stones River, including

its landform and topography; broad patterns of

spatial organization relating to landform and

landcover derived from field and forest areas;

broad views of open spaces within park

boundaries and toward the railroad; limited

views of open space located on nearby

properties; Van Cleve Lane; and the Pioneer

Brigade earthworks, constructed during the Civil

War. Buildings and structures that are missing

from the historic battlefield landscape include a

toll gate along the Nashville Pike, cabins, and a

log house. Also missing are some of the field

patterns, fencelines, and some of the woodland

that existed at the time of the battle.

Commemorative era features that survive from

the early park development period (1927–1931)

that contribute to the site’s history include the

entrance piers along the Old Nashville Pike, and

a portion of the original tour road. Additions to

the landscape that post-date the period of

significance include the visitor center, portions

of the tour road and its associated parking pulloffs, park site furnishings, fencing, signage, trails,

utility poles and lines, and limited areas of

woodland and fields or mown turf that are not

consistent with historic patterns of spatial

organization (Fig. 39). One of the features

missing from the early park development period

is the pair of entrance pillars, similar to those

that survive along Old Nashville Highway, placed

at the second park entrance along Van Cleve

Lane. Patterns of spatial organization and land

cover associated with the early park

development period are not considered in this

comparative analysis, although they are a key

FIGURE 74. Proposed mixed used developments adjacent to the park boundaries. The Nashville Pike unit is the wooded

area at top center. The purple line at center is a proposed road intersecting the recently completed Medical Center

Parkway.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

80 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield

element of the comparison of battle conditions

with conditions present today.

The major periods of change associated with the

landscape of the Nashville Pike unit character

area includes the late nineteenth/early twentieth

century establishment of a small African

American community along the Old Nashville

Pike, establishment of the park between 1927–

1931, and the Mission 66 period, circa 1956–1966,

which resulted in the construction of the visitor

center and tour road. Changes to the unit’s

setting have been dramatic with industrial,

commercial, transportation, and residential

development heavily altering views from the

park. This development is anticipated to

continue in the future. For example, one road,

Garrison Drive, was constructed in the vicinity of

the park’s eastern boundary in 2006, and there

are plans to build a second road as well as a

mixed-use development south of the park

(Fig. 74).

Changes wrought on behalf of development of

the park in the 1930s included removal of the

African American community along the

Nashville Pike, and manipulation of land cover

to approximate more closely battlefield

conditions but also to enhance the appearance of

the park. Work conducted by the Public Works

Program in 1934 and 1935 describes planting and

clearing efforts undertaken at the park based on

this original proposal:

Exotic plant material should be removed

from within the Park and re-grouped in mass

plantings within the Cemetery, and around

the various entrance: . . . the shrubbery along

the Highway should be taken up and regrouped: . . . native intermediate and low

shrubs [should] be purchased or collected,

and planted near the Park drives to break up

the fence row lines, and to underplant

existing wooded areas; . . . deciduous and

evergreen trees [are] needed in the large

open fields and meadows to relieve the

barrenness and to add more interest.101

Later, a more scientific approach to

approximating the character of the historic

battlefield landscape was considered necessary.

In 1961, National Park Historian Ed Bearrs

developed a thorough and detailed “Fence and

Ground Cover Map” of the Stones River

battlefield consistent with his work relating to

other battlefields for parks around the country.

Bearrs utilized historic maps and first hand

accounts of the battle to locate the fields, woods,

natural resources, fencelines, buildings and

structures, and roads present and influential to

the events of the battle. The primary source of

reliable information was a map prepared by

Federal Topographical Engineer Nathaniel

Michler after the war. The plan identified crop

field locations, areas of tree cover and their

general composition, fenclines, roads, and

dwelling complexes and other buildings. For

many parks, Bearss’s maps are generally

considered an exceptional source of historic

period information that registers historic maps

of varying scales and degrees of detail to current

conditions.

In 1983–1984, however, a study prepared by the

Department of Geography and Geology at

Middle Tennessee suggested that vegetation

restoration efforts undertaken in the 1970s

resulted in gross inaccuracies of landcover due to

the use of an 1862 map of poor quality. Work

conducted on behalf of this CLR has not

determined why Bearrs’s map was not utilized in

these vegetation reconstruction efforts, but the

1984 study suggested that wooded areas such as

the “Finger of Woods” and “Round Forest” had

been inadvertently altered from their 1862

configuration based on inaccurate interpretation

of historic mapping.102 More recent analysis using

GIS overlay mapping, however, suggests that the

existing replanted woodland area may be more

accurate than previously thought, and should

continue to be treated as an interpretive asset.

Since the 1980s, attempts have been made at the

park to restore vegetative field-and-forest

patterns using first-hand soldier accounts and

maps to approximate the spatial character that

existing during the battle. While the locations of

the fields and forest are likely very similar to

those that existed during the battle, there remain

101. Letter from Richard B. Randolph to the Director,

National Park Service regarding completion of PWA

work at Stones River National Battlefield, January

25, 1935.

102. Karen Joyce Ridolfo, student cartographer, “1983–

1984 Stones River National Battlefield Vegetation

Reconstruction Project,” Middle Tennessee State

University, December 1983. The map that is

described as accompanying this report was not

available at the time this material was prepared.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

National Park Service 81

inconsistencies as identified in comparing

historic and contemporary mapping (Fig. 39).

Also of interest is the composition and density of

the forests. Dense, almost impassable, groves of

cedar, referred to as cedar brakes in Civil War

accounts, were an important component of the

battle. At present, the understory of most park

cedar groves is moderately dense but contains

numerous exotic and invasive plant species that,

once removed, will affect the density of the

stands. Due to the fact that Eastern red cedar is a

shade intolerant species, replicating the Civil War

era density will not be possible without cutting

and regenerating the stands from young trees.

Elsewhere, particularly in hardwood stands

where livestock is known to have grazed, the

understory is typically denser than during the

Civil War period, diminishing the ability to

interpret the historic scene and events.

Open fields and crop fields—historically corn,

cotton, and hay—generally approximate their

day-of-battle locations, and provide broad views

and direct lines-of-sight at present as they did

historically. Differences that exist in the

landcover include native warm-season grass

fields in locations of former crop fields or hayed

or grazed meadow areas, and less extensive areas

in crop fields.

FIGURES 77 AND 78. The primary park entrance has been marked since the 1930s by stone pillars flanking the park road.

The pillars, which were also used at Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park, survive from their original

installation. Other elements of the original design composition associated with the pillars have been altered, as seen in

these comparative views from 1934 and 2005. The central island that included a gatehouse and plantings has been

removed. The plantings and fencing features that lined the road have been replaced with worm fencing. Beyond the

gate, ornamental and shade trees have replaced the formerly open landscape.

FIGURES 75 AND 76. Stones River National Battlefield, as it was called after 1960, gained a new visitor center during the

Mission 66 era of National Park Service development. Along with the visitor center, the park received a new identity sign

with two faces. The sign was similar in design to those found at many other national park units around the country.

Today, the sign frame remains but the rear text panel has been removed.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

82 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield

Several farmsteads and a toll house were present

on the battlefield within the Nashville Pike unit

landscape during the battle. These are mentioned

in soldier accounts and are shown on period

maps. Specifically, cabins were located west of

Van Cleve’s Lane near the park’s center and

southern boundary, a toll gate was located near

the intersection of the Nashville Pike with Van

Cleve’s Lane, a log house existed near the pike,

and another in the far northwestern corner of

the unit. Nearby, a Block House existed along the

railroad tracks in the northwestern corner of the

unit, the Blanton House existed just outside of

the current park property near its southwestern

corner, and the Cowan House stood near the

Nashville Pike just east of the park’s eastern

boundary. The buildings and structures

associated with these farmsteads were utilized as

field hospitals or headquarters, or received

collateral damage from gun and cannon fire.

None of these features remain in the landscape

today. The only building constructed since the

battle that is extant is the 1960s visitor center,

which was enlarged in 2004. In the 1920s and

1930s, an African American community evolved

to the west of Van Cleve Lane near the center of

the character area; the residences, churches, and

roads associated with the community were

removed when the land was purchased by the

federal government for creation of the park.

Finally, circulation patterns have also changed a

great deal since the nineteenth century, although

most historic roads present at the time of the

battle survive today. In 1862, the Nashville Pike

was the primary circulation route between

Nashville and Murfreesboro (Figs. 79 and 80).

Van Cleve Lane and Wilkinson Pike were

secondary, but still important, routes to the west

and north of Murfreesboro. These survive today.

Little or nothing is currently known about

unimproved roads providing access to residential

dwelling or agricultural complexes, or field or

farm roads during the Civil War period. None

survive today.

Beginning in the late 1920s, roads were

developed to afford access to the battlefield for

visitors. The first tour road constructed through

the battlefield began across the Old Nashville

Pike from the cemetery, and generally followed

the western edge of the park before curving

eastward in the lower third of the park to

connect with Van Cleve Lane. The tour road was

modified in the 1960s to avoid the use of Van

Cleve Lane; rather than exiting into the lane, the

road was reoriented to form a loop that followed

the park’s eastern margin, and reconnected with

the western lane just south of the visitor center.

The tour road currently follows the 1960s

alignment, but this route is being reconsidered at

present.

The New Nashville Highway/U.S. Highway 41

was completed in the 1940s and became the

primary circulation artery for the region, thus

reducing the importance of the Nashville Pike.

The role of the railroad for travel diminished

during the twentieth century as the automobile

became more available and affordable.

Thompson Lane, begun in the 1960s and

completed in 1994, vastly changed the physical

character of the regional landscape and flow of

traffic. The bridge is highly visible from the

eastern end of the park, and the road allows

traffic to completely bypass the park. At present,

the Old Nashville and Wilkinson Pikes are used

by commuters and for local transportation.

Evaluation of Integrity

The integrity of Stones River National Battlefield

is assessed below for both the Civil War and early

park development periods. The primary

objective of the integrity assessment is to

determine whether the landscape retains the

ability to convey the story of the battle through

its existing physical features. The integrity

assessment will focus on the four primary

aspects of integrity most important to battlefield

assessment: location, association, setting, and

feeling.

The Nashville Pike unit continues to be situated

just northwest of Murfreesboro, and therefore

retains integrity of location.

The character area also retains integrity of

association due to the continued link between

the existing landscape and the historical events

of the battle. The vegetation and field patterns

that currently exist approximate the day-of-battle

appearance closely enough to relate the story of

troop movements to visitors. The field patterns

also convey the fact that the battlefield was an

agricultural landscape at the time of the battle.

The limestone formations in this area are still

visible and provide a deeper understanding of
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

National Park Service 83

FIGURES 79 AND 80. The Old Nashville Highway exists in a similar alignment to that which existed at the time of the

Battle of Stones River. The surface material has changed from hard-packed earth or gravel to asphalt, and the fence

types along the roadway have changed over time, but the road remains similar in many locations to its historic character.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

84 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield

how difficult traveling across this landscape must

have been and why certain routes and offensive

or defensive maneuvers were chosen over others.

Integrity of feeling is the ability of the landscape

to convey an historic period of time. Within this

character area, the feeling of being on a rural

battlefield in 1862–1863 is diminished by views to

adjacent non-contributing features such as

twentieth and twenty-first century residences,

businesses, and churches, and roads and

highways, and the loss of farmsteads and other

historic buildings that are known to have been

present at the time of the battle. Nonetheless, the

existing field and woodland patterns and large

expanses of undeveloped park land provide

sufficient integrity of feeling to support the

park’s ability to convey this important quality of

integrity.

The Nashville Pike unit does not retain integrity

of setting, however, due to the loss of much of

the area surrounding the park to residential,

commercial, and industrial development that

post-dates the period of significance. Not only

have the surroundings been irreversibly altered,

but much of the original battleground has been

lost to development. Within the character area,

the level of integrity of setting is much higher,

owing to the restoration of the field and

vegetation patterns. However, it is the overall

setting of the park and its surroundings that no

longer lends itself to conveying the breadth and

scope of the battle. Overall, the Nashville Pike

unit is still able to convey the events of the Battle

of Stones River, and therefore retains integrity

for the Civil War period.

The character area possesses integrity for the

early park development period due to the

continued presence of features developed to

support its initial development, such as the entry

gates and much of the tour road. Features that

post-date the period of significance, such as the

Mission 66-era additions including the Visitor

Center and revised tour road, as well as later

changes to these features to support

interpretation and visitor use, diminish to a

degree the integrity of both periods of

significance due to their modern character.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

National Park Service 85

Table 1. Nashville Pike Unit Landscape Features

CLR# Landscape Feature Condition Signif.* Date Comment

N-1 Slaughter Pen limestone beds Good C-B by 1863

N-2 Wetlands Good U by 1863 Some invasives present

SO-1 Field and forest patterns Good U by 1863 Field and forest patterns vary in their

date of origin; many were present at

time of the battle; refer to Fig. 39

SO-2 Visitor Center environs Good NC 1963/2004

SO-3 Pioneer Brigade earthworks Fair NC 1863 The node no longer retains its setting

SO-4 Toll house site Good NC ca. 1842

C-1 Park tour road Good C-P 1927/1963 Portion of road built in 1927 is extant

and connected to Mission 66 loop road

C-2 Tour road stops Good NC 1963

C-3 Van Cleve Lane Poor C-B by 1863 Road open to pedestrians and

(McFadden Lane) bicyclists, sections deteriorating north

of battlefield, sinkhole damage within

battlefield, eroding edges

C-4 Nickens Lane Fair NC unknown Some vegetation growth through gravel,

not a historic road

C-5 Walking trails Good NC 1970s; 1999 Boundary and Cotton Field Trails

C-6 Social trails Good NC 20th c.

C-7 Concrete sidewalks Good NC 1963/2004

C-8 Mulch path from Visitor Good NC 20th c.

Center to cemetery

Ve-1 Visitor Center ornamental Good NC 1963/2004

vegetation

Ve-2 Mown turf Good NC after 1931

Ve-3 Cedar plantings Good NC 1970s

Ve-4 Woodlands Fair C-B varies Contain invasive plant species. Refer to

Fig. 39

Ve-5 Cedar glades Good U varies Being shaded by cedar and trampled by

visitors. Refer to Fig. 39

Ve-6 Crop fields Good C-B 1970s Soybeans, cotton in exhibit area

established by park

Ve-7 Open fields Fair C-B 1930s-2006Contain some invasive exotic plant

species

B-1 Visitor Center Good NC 1963/2004

S-1 Pioneer Brigade earthworks Fair C-B 1863 Erosion, exposed earth, litter

S-2 Entrance piers and gates Good/Fair C-P 1931/1963 Gates are in fair condition

S-3 Large stone culverts Good NC 1990s

S-4 Drainage swale Good NC 1970s

S-5 Small stone culverts Good NC 1963

* The following abbreviations are used: C-B = Contributing to the Battle Period, 1862–1863; C-P = Contributing to

the Early Park Development Period, 1927–1931; NC = Non-Contributing; U = Undetermined.

** Thomas H. Roberts and Kenneth L. Morgan, Inventory and Classification of Wetlands at Stones River National

Battlefield, Murfreesboro, Tennessee (Cookeville, Tennessee: Center for the Management, Utilization, and

Protection of Water Resources, Tennessee Technological University, report prepared for the National Park Service,

December 2006). The report describes fifteen wetlands of various characteristics and conditions with the park.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

86 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield

CLR# Landscape Feature Condition Signif. Date Comment

S-6 Possible drainage structure Poor NC 1963 No longer functioning

S-7 Tour road culverts Fair NC 1963 Exhibit a great deal of organic growth

S-8 L-shaped concrete culvert Fair NC 1963 Some erosion and soil build-up

V-1 Views across fields Good C-B by 1863

V-2 Views to railroad tracks Good C-B by 1863

V-3 Views to residential, Fair NC 20th c. Views to development are not

commercial, and industrial screened

development

SS-1 Contemporary park sign Good NC 2004 (?) Located near Visitor Center

SS-2 Mission 66-era park sign Fair NC 1963/1992 Base constructed 1963, new sign

installed circa 1992. Water hook up

non-functioning.

SS-3 Stone seat walls Good NC 2004

SS-4 Flagpole Good NC 1963

SS-5 Picnic tables Good NC after 1963

SS-6 Wood benches Good NC after 1963

SS-7 Wood-slat trash can Good NC after 1963

SS-8 Green metal trash can Good NC after 1963

SS-9 Bike rack Good NC after 1963

SS-10 Cannon Good NC unknown

SS-11 Utility poles and lines Good NC unknown

SS-12 Drainage inlets Fair NC unknown Intersection of Van Cleve Lane and

Wilkinson Pike; some vegetation overgrowth, may pose a hazard to public

due to wide grate spacing

SS-13 Hexagonal wayside exhibit Fair NC 1963 Some signs show evidence of

deterioration and vandalism

SS-14 Plastic directional sign Good NC 1999 Sign to Cotton Field Trail

SS-15 Picket fence Good NC unknown Southern edge of Old Nashville Hwy.

SS-16 Worm rail fence Good NC unknown

SS-17 Post and rail fence Good NC unknown Near Visitor Center

SS-18 Fence blockades Good NC unknown Van Cleve Lane

SS-19 Small wood signs Good NC unknown

SS-39 Parking/wayfinding sign Good NC unknown

Missing Features

Block House Toll Gate

Cabins along Van Cleve Lane Cabin along Nashville Pike

Cotton Fields along Nashville Pike Corn Field along Nashville Pike

Corn Field associated with Blanton House (off-site) Corn Field associated with Cabins

Open Field southwest of Pioneer Brigade Earthworks Fencing along Van Cleve Lane

Fencing around Cabins and Corn Field near Van Cleve Lane Fencing along Nashville Pike

Fencing around Corn Field associated with Blanton House Ranger Station and flagpole near park entrance

Fencing associated with Cotton Field near Nashville Pike United Daughters of the Confederacy cabin

Ornamental plantings along the tour road and at

park entrances

Stone entrance gates located at the intersection of

Old Nashville Highway and Van Cleve Lane

EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

National Park Service 89

McFadden Farm Unit

The McFadden Farm unit character area is

located to the north of the Nashville Pike unit,

and is the park’s second largest parcel at

approximately 135 acres (162 acres within the

authorized boundary) (Refer to Fig. 111). Visitors

can ascertain the importance of the high ground

overlooking Stones River to the Union’s

defensive efforts and ultimate success in the final

throes of the Battle of Stones River. They can

view the Artillery Monument, erected in 1906 by

the Nashville, Chattanooga & St. Louis Railroad.

They can also view the McFadden Cemetery,

which is the last remnant of the McFadden

family’s ownership of this land. Natural

resources within and abutting this character area

are also of interest, particularly the river. One of

the problems with this unit is its close proximity

to light industrial, commercial, and residential

development, and the fact that the access road to

the unit passes by these elements.

Natural Systems and Features and

Responses to Natural Resources

Natural systems and features are key characterdefining features of this character area. The

variable topography of the unit, which includes

both gentle slopes leading to the river and high

river-edge bluffs, as well as the river corridor and

its broad upland plateau are important elements

in the interpretation of the unit’s role in the

battle. The topography was important in the

battle due to the Union artillery’s utilization of

the higher elevation to fire upon Confederate

troops attacking from the eastern side of Stones

River. The site’s natural resources are also of

interest for educating visitors about local heritage

(Fig. 82).

Other natural resource features, many of which

post-date the battle period, include depressional

and riverine wetlands. Depressional wetlands

occur in topographic depressions and accrue

water primarily from precipitation, groundwater

discharge, and interflow from adjacent uplands.

These wetland types occur south and west of the

McFadden Farm unit parking lot. Riverine

wetlands occur in floodplains and riparian

corridors and accrue water from overbank water

flow and adjacent groundwater flow. Within this

character area, riverine wetlands occur east of

the McFadden Farm unit interpretive area, and

just north of the Thompson Lane bridge. For

further inormation, see Roberts and Morgan,

Inventory and Classificationof Wetlands at Stones

River National Battlefield, Murfreesboro,

Tennessee. In addition, this character area

contains at least one spring that is still active. It is

located along the river’s edge near the park’s

connection to the Stones River Greenway Trail.

Cultural responses to natural features are also

present within the character area. These include

rock work that protects the river bank from

erosion, a channeled ditch along the Stones River

Greenway, and rock work associated with the

spring near the river’s margin. The rock wall

facing Stones River was constructed in the 1970s.

FIGURE 82. Stones River and high limestone bluffs, looking

north.

FIGURE 83. Limestone boulders placed in the 1970s to

prevent flooding. Note how well the limestone blends

with the native landscape.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

90 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield

Limestone boulders were added to reduce bank

erosion from flooding (Fig. 83). Although the

limestone boulder wall is not a natural feature, it

appears to have been placed in such a way as to

blend with existing limestone bluffs. Stacked

stone has been used to channel and contain the

spring located along the river bank. This feature

is discussed in further detail under the

“Buildings and Structures” section below. The

deeply-channeled ditch located along the Stones

River Greenway, close to the Thompson Lane

bridge is badly eroded. Its origin is unknown

(Fig. 84). The majority of these features are in

good condition, with the exception of the ditch

which is in fair condition due to erosion

problems.

Spatial Organization

At a broad scale, the spatial organization of the

McFadden Farm unit character area is defined by

property lines, Stones River, and roads.

Thompson Lane and a cleared electrical utility

corridor define the eastern edge of the character

area, while boundary fences separate NPS

property from the light industrial development

to the south. Van Cleve Lane (formerly

McFadden Lane) and boundary fences serve as

the unit’s western edge, while Stones River edges

the unit to the north.

Within the character area, space is defined by

fields and woodlands (Fig. 85). Open fields,

including the remnants of former agricultural

fields and house sites, are generally edged by

hedgerows and woodlands (Fig. 86). Open fields

occur in the northern portion of the character

area, south of Van Cleve Lane, and west of the

river in the southern portion of the unit. There is

also an open area associated with the parking lot,

Artillery Monument, and McFadden Cemetery,

which is maintained in mown turf (Fig. 87). The

fields and woodlands are generally in good

condition, although a former farmstead site

south of Van Cleve Lane has been colonized by

invasive alien plants and is undergoing

succession.

To the west is an abandoned landfill site that was

recently acquired by the NPS. The site is partially

wooded but also includes an open expanse

associated with the landfill (Fig. 88). This area is

in poor condition due to the large amount of

construction debris stockpiled there.

FIGURE 84. Eroded, deeply-channeled ditch near the

Stones River Greenway.

FIGURE 86. Former house site southwest of the parking

lot. Note views to development in the background.

FIGURE 85. Field and forest pattern near the Artillery

Monument and parking lot.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

National Park Service 91

FIGURE 87. Artillery Monument and parking lot node.

Note cannon and mown turf.

FIGURE 88. Recently-purchased landfill site to be

rehabilitated and blended with the character area.

FIGURE 89. McFadden cemetery space west of the parking

lot. Note large hackberry tree in the center of the space.

FIGURE 90. Van Cleve Lane north of Old Nashville

Highway, as it runs along the western edge of the

character area.

The McFadden family cemetery is a small,

intimate space marked by concrete posts and a

large hackberry tree located near the McFadden

Farm unit parking lot (Fig. 89). This area is kept

mown and well maintained, and is in good

condition.

Land Use

Land uses within this character area consist of

recreation, such as jogging, biking, picnicking,

and hiking; museum/education;

commemoration; utility; and agriculture.

Secondary uses include scientific research and

natural resource conservation. A portion of this

character area was once used to dispose of solid

waste and still contains land fills, dump sites,

rubbish piles, and borrow pits, and will most

likely be remediated in the future.

Circulation

Both pedestrian and vehicular circulation

features exist within this character area.

Vehicular circulation includes Van Cleve Lane,

which provides access to the site, and the parking

lot, as well as farm lanes and road traces that

provide access to the fields and former

homesteads north of the Artillery Monument,

and south of Van Cleve Lane. Pedestrian

circulation includes the McFadden Lane Trail.

The primary entrance to the character area

occurs along Van Cleve Lane from the New

Nashville Highway/U.S. Highway 41/70S. Van
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

92 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield

FIGURE 91. Two-track road trace leading to the former

house site. Note how vegetation is beginning to obscure

the road trace.

Greenway to the east, yet also leads into the

woods to the north of the parking lot. These

unofficial trails are not assessed for their

condition due to the fact that they are

undesirable elements within the park landscape.

Vegetation

Vegetation within this character area is a mix of

native and exotic plants; grasses, forbs, and

woodlands; individual shade trees; agricultural

crops; and cultural vegetation.

Hay fields border Van Cleve Lane to the east as it

approaches the Artillery Monument location.

These fields are edged by hedgerows of early

succesional invaders. Hedgerows throughout the

character area include a mix of sugarberry (Celtis

laevigata); common hackberry; elms (Ulmus

spp.); black walnut (Juglans nigra); osage orange

(Maclura pomifera); and Eastern red cedar.

These hedgerows are generally in fair to poor

condition due to the high number of invasive

plant species. Also present within this area are a

small stand of Eastern red cedar successional

forest-glade complex, stands of old field

vegetation, and a pond.

The utility line corridor that parallels Thompson

Lane is maintained as a mown field that edges

successional woodland along the park’s eastern

boundary north of Stones River.

In the vicinity of the monument, vegetation

primarily consists of mown turf and hay fields

edged by stands of Eastern red cedar

Cleve Lane is part of the Civil War-era road that

runs through the Nashville Pike unit character

area to the south (Fig. 90). The road ends in a

turnaround loop at the unit’s parking lot located

near the Artillery Monument. The parking area

accommodates approximately seventeen

vehicles, depending on their size. The lane and

parking lot are in good condition.

A two-track road trace runs from Van Cleve

Lane to a former house site west of the Artillery

Monument (Fig. 91). Wooden worm fencing

limits vehicular access to the trace. Vegetation is

beginning to colonize the road trace, which is in

fair condition. Another gated road trace is found

just to the west, running north from the bend in

Van Cleve Lane (Fig. 92).

A third road trace was converted into a trail and

paved with asphalt with a chip seal coat in 1999.

This trail—called the McFadden Lane Trail—

runs south of the Artillery Monument, between

Van Cleve Lane and Stones River (Fig. 93). This

follows the extension of historic McFadden Lane

as it led towards the river, which was present

during the Civil War and appears as a road or

lane on historic maps. Tour Stop Six along this

trail interprets the McFadden Ford site. It is

currently in fair condition due to some cracking

and erosion of the pavement and its margins.

Social trails also criss-cross the site. An unpaved

social trail extends from the parking lot to the

river (Fig. 94). A second social trail follows the

river’s edge atop the limestone bluffs (Fig. 95).

This trail eventually intersects the Stones River

FIGURE 92. Gated road trace found west of the parking

lot.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

National Park Service 93

successional forest to the west, north, and east.

The mown turf areas are generally in good

condition. The river margins are characterized by

species associated with the Nashville Basin

Sugarberry, Northern Hackberry, Elm, Black

Walnut Successional Forest. The woodland areas

are generally in fair condition due to the

presence of invasive plant species.

Floodplain along the river is characterized by

Southern Interior Box Elder Riparian Forest.

Carolina willows (Salix caroliniana) are present

on a sandbar within Stones River near the park’s

junction with the Greenway trail (Fig. 96).

Although this plant community is not rare

according to state and federal guidelines, it is the

only example of this type within the park.

The park is in the process of converting many of

the unit’s hay fields to native warm-season grass

fields, specifically those located north of the

Artillery Monument and adjacent to Van Cleve

Lane (Fig. 97). At present these fields contain

little bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium),

switchgrass (Panicum virgatum), Indian grass

(Sorghastrum nutans), and Virginia wildrye

(Elymus virginicus); weedy native and non-native

forbs; and invasive non-native grasses such as

Johnson grass and foxtail (Seteria spp.). These

fields are in fair condition due to the presence of

invasive alien species. The fields located to the

south of the Artillery Monument are mostly

hayfields which contain various species of tall

fescue and the invasive forb sericea lespedeza

(Lespedeza cuneata).

A savanna-like plant community grows between

the parking lot and river (Fig. 94). This landscape

consists of open grown deciduous shade trees

and an herbaceous layer of grasses and forbs.

The grasses and forbs are maintained through

semi-annual mowing. This area plays an

important role in the park: it helps to visually

separate the developed areas from the river; aids

in flood control; shades the river’s edge; and the

roots of the plants help to stabilize the slope and

river bank.

Hackberries are very prevalent within this unit. A

single large hackberry marks the McFadden

family cemetery. This tree appears to be in good

condition. A row of trees dominated by

hackberries edges much of gravel trail found to

the south of the Artillery Monument (Fig. 93).

FIGURE 93. Trace of a former road or lane, now used as a

trail. A row of hackberry trees lines the northern edge of

the trail. These trees may be volunteer plants or may have

been purposefully planted.

FIGURE 94. Social trail from the parking lot to the river.

Note the savanna-like vegetation of tall trees growing

amidst short grasses with little to no understory trees or

shrubs.

FIGURE 95. Social trail following the river’s edge.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

94 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield

These plants may be volunteers, grown from

seeds dropped by birds as they sat on an old

fence or trees within the hedgerow, or may have

been planted at some time to define the edge of

the road.

Numerous invasive plant species are found

throughout this character area. These include

sericea lespedeza; tree-of-heaven (Ailanthus

altissima); Chinese privet; Johnson grass;

multiflora rose (Rosa multiflora); bush

honeysuckle (Lonicera spp.); and Japanese stilt

grass (Microstegium vimineum). All of these

plants are considered severe threats to

Tennessee’s native plant communities, according

to the Tennessee Exotic Plant Pest Council.

Johnson grass is prevalent in the field behind the

parking lot. The presence of Japanese stilt grass is

enabled by mowing the area between the parking

lot and river.

Buildings and Structures

There are three structures and no buildings

located within this unit. The structures include

the Artillery Monument, the spring box

discussed above, and a wooden footbridge.

The Artillery Monument (LCS ID 007034) is

located just south of the parking lot (Fig. 98). It is

composed of a thirty-four-foot tall, white coated

concrete obelisk elevated on a fifteen-footsquare stepped base. A metal plaque is attached

to the south face of the monument. This feature

is in fair condition, due to concrete and coating

deterioration. The monument was erected in

1906.

The spring box comprises a narrow alcove, about

two feet in width and six to seven feet high,

incised in the earth behind the limestone

retaining wall (Fig. 99 and 100). The alcove is

lined with mortared stacked stone. Near the

terminus of the alcove is a set of simple steps

curving upward from the floor of the alcove to

the top of the bluff. A sign, stenciled in black

paint on a rock at the floor of the alcove, states

“No Lurking About.” A wooden footbridge

extends the river-edge trail across the alcove. The

spring box and the wooden footbridge likely

were constructed at the same time as the rock

wall in the 1970s. They are in good condition.

Views and Vistas

This character area affords numerous bucolic

views of open fields, woodlands, and the riparian

corridor. Light industrial development, a utility

corridor, and major roads and highways edge the

character area, and are visually intrusive from the

entrance drive and along the river trail (Fig. 101).

Small-scale Features

Small-scale features in the McFadden Farm unit

character area support visitor safety,

interpretation, and utility functions. They

include battlefield markers, cannon, cemetery

headstones, utility poles and lines, drain inlets,

concrete culverts, and signage. All of these

features post-date the period of significance,

FIGURE 96. Carolina willow plant communities growing in

a sandbar within Stones River.

FIGURE 97. Old agricultural field adjacent to Van Cleve

Lane contains warm-season native grasses, weedy native

and non-native forbs, and invasive non-native grasses.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

National Park Service 95

FIGURE 98. Artillery Monument, built in 1906.

FIGURE 99. Stacked stone alcove containing a spring. Note FIGURE 100. Curving steps that lead into the alcove.

the wood footbridge that carries the river’s edge trail

across the alcove.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

96 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield

with the exception of the McFadden Cemetery

headstones and a few surviving War Department

boundary markers. These markers, found in the

McFadden cemetery and on the McFadden Lane

Trail, are concrete obelisks placed by the War

Department in the early 1930s to demarcate park

boundaries (Fig. 102). One of the boundary

markers lies broken on the side of the trail and is

in poor condition. The others are in fair

condition. The cemetery headstones, some of

which are broken, are in poor condition

(Fig. 103).

Five cannon are on display within the area. Two

are located in the parking lot median, and three

are sited in the open fields to the west. These

cannon represent the extent of the line of fiftyseven guns of Union artillery engaged on

January 2, 1863. The cannon are in good

condition.

Iron drain inlets carry stormwater associated

with the McFadden Lane Trail (Fig. 104). Two

such drains were added along the trail during

construction in 1999. Some of these drains are in

poor condition as they have become partially

buried under soil and vegetation. There is also a

concrete culvert located along the road as it

approaches the parking area. The culvert is in fair

condition due to the fact that it is partially buried

under deposited soil.

Two types of wood fencing are found within this

area. Wooden worm fencing demarcates NPS

property along Van Cleve Lane as far as the

parking area loop. The McFadden Lane Trail is

also edged to either side by wooden worm

fencing (Fig. 105). The style represented is known

as Virginia worm rail fencing and has wooden

cross-members that form an X at regular

intervals as an added measure of stability. This

fencing is in good condition.

The NPS installed a new wayside exhibit near the

parking lot in 2005 (Fig. 106). Other signage

includes brown, metal NPS signs; small wood

signs with white, routed letters; hexagonal

wayside exhibits; and traffic signs. The signage is

generally in good condition.

Within the area there is a major electric utility

corridor running north-south parallel to

Thompson Lane. The corridor is maintained in

open vegetative cover. Finally, there are utility

FIGURE 101. Views to development from Van Cleve Lane.

FIGURE 102. Concrete War Department boundary marker.

FIGURE 103. McFadden cemetery headstones. Note the

poor condition of all of the headstones.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

National Park Service 97

poles and lines associated with the former

homestead property south of the Artillery

Monument. These are in fair to poor condition

based on the fact that they are no longer

serviceable, there are wires hanging down to the

ground, and some of the poles are leaning.

Comparative Analysis

The McFadden Farm unit retains features and

characteristics of the landscape that existed at

the time of the Battle of Stones River, including

its landform and topography, relationship to the

river, Van Cleve Lane, the McFadden family

cemetery, and the site of the homestead with

which it was associated. Features that are missing

from the historic battlefield landscape include

the McFadden farmstead, fencelines, and

portions of crop fields and the generally open

character that was historically associated with

the unit. Features that survive from the early park

development period include the Artillery

Monument and War Department markers.

Additions to the landscape that post-date the

period of significance include the loop road and

parking extension of Van Cleve Lane, the river

trail, large areas of successional woodland and

tree cover, fencing, signage, and utility poles and

lines. Patterns of spatial organization and

landcover associated with the early park

development period are not considered of

importance to this comparative analysis,

although it is a key element of the comparison of

battle conditions with conditions present today

(Figs. 107 through 110).

The most evident change when comparing the

present-day McFadden Farm unit to its

appearance during the Civil War period is the

extent of woodland vegetation that now

populates the unit, occupying formerly open

crop and hay fields. Civil War-era maps and

photographs from the 1930s show much less

woodland vegetation and many more open and

farmed fields in the area. Aerial photographs

from the 1930s show fewer, and less vegetated,

fence rows, and crop fields that extend to the

edge of Stones River.

At present, much of the northern portion of the

character area is wooded and there is a wide

vegetated strip between the northernmost

agricultural field and the river. Non-contributing

woodland and successional growth occupies the

FIGURE 105. Virginia worm rail fence running along both

sides of the trail south of the Artillery Monument.

FIGURE 104. Partially buried drain inlet found along the

trail south of the Artillery Monument.

FIGURE 106. Contemporary NPS interpretive wayside

exhibit.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

98 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield

center of the unit between the road trace and the

park boundary. The fields located south of Van

Cleve Lane are generally small and divided by

hedgerows that were not present during the Civil

War period.

The parking lot, installed in the 1960s as part of

the Mission 66-era development, is a feature that

post-dates the period of significance. Also

established after the park’s early development is

the 1970s-era limestone block wall that edges the

riverbank. Although non-contributing due to its

date of construction, this feature is generally

visually compatible with the character of the

landscape and other rock outcroppings in the

vicinity. The feature does have a negative impact

on interpretation of the river crossing and the

events of the battle that occurred nearby,

however. Finally, the utility corridor that parallels

Thompson Lane negatively impacts the character

of the battlefield landscape.

Features that survive from the Civil War period

include the river, Van Cleve Lane, and the

topography of the character area that serves to

convey the strategic advantage of the high

ground gained by the Union artillery who

massed there to fire upon the attacking

Confederate soldiers. The field of fire, however,

is obscured due to the growth of vegetation

between the river and Thompson Lane. The

McFadden Cemetery also survives from the

battlefield period, although its physical context

and setting has changed. The alignment of Van

FIGURES 109 AND 110. A pair of photographs of the Artillery Monument dated 1935 and 2005 illustrate that the

monument continues to be sited on a knoll overlooking Stones River, but that tree cover has increased dramatically over

the seventy year period between photographs. Bronze tablets erected by the War Department to mark the site shown in

the 1935 view are not present in the 2005 photograph.

FIGURES 107 AND 108. The Artillery Monument has changed little since its construction in 1906. Its setting, however, has

been altered over the years by park development and an increase in woodland. A 1920 view of the monument illustrates

that a building was located near the monument at that time, that the land in close proximity to the monument was

being used for agriculture, and that a rustic wood fence edged a road (Van Cleve Lane) near the monument. Today, the

building is missing, the land is no longer utilized for agriculture, and the road is now a paved six foot wide trail

constructed in 1998 and edged by wooden worm fencing.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

National Park Service 99

* The following abbreviations are used: C-B = Contributing to the Battle Period, 1862–1863; C-C = Contributing to

the Early Commemoration Period, 1863–1926; C-P = Contributing to the Early Park Development Period, 1927–

1931; NC = Non-Contributing; U = Undetermined.

** Thomas H. Roberts and Kenneth L. Morgan, Inventory and Classification of Wetlands at Stones River National

Battlefield, Murfreesboro, Tennessee (Cookeville, Tennessee: Center for the Management, Utilization, and

Protection of Water Resources, Tennessee Technological University, report prepared for the National Park Service,

December 2006). The report describes fifteen wetlands of various characteristics and conditions with the park.

Cleve Lane also remains intact, although its

width and surface material have changed. A

portion of the road corridor, extending between

the Artillery Monument and the river, was

converted to a six-foot-wide paved trail in 1998.

The historic route retains more integrity here

than the access road, which has been widened

and paved for automobile traffic.

Very few historic features are missing from this

character area. They include the McFadden

farmstead, the exact location of which is

unknown, and McFadden’s Ford.

Evaluation of Integrity

The McFadden Farm unit character area retains

integrity of location, feeling, and association.

Integrity of setting, however, is greatly

diminished due to development along the

periphery of the unit.

The character area retains integrity of location as

both the site of the battle and the efforts to

commemorate it. In addition, the associations

between the physical landscape, the battle, and

commemorative events remain strong and

discernible. As with the Nashville Pike unit,

integrity of feeling is diminished by adjacent

development and views to non-contributing

features, such as the Thompson Lane bridge.

However, the presence of fields, fence lines, the

river, and the former road trace help to convey

the feeling of being in this landscape in 1862–

1863.

The character area does not retain integrity of

setting due to the intense residential, industrial,

and commercial development that has occurred

on adjacent parcels. Even within the character

area, the setting has been altered by an increase

in woodland vegetation, subdivision of fields,

and the addition of landfills and borrow pits.

Table 2. McFadden Farm Unit Landscape Features

CLR# Landscape Feature Condition Signif.* Date Comment

N-3 Variable topography Good C-B by 1863

N-4 Stones River Good C-B by 1863

N-5 Wetlands Good U by 1863 Some invasives present

N-6 Spring Good C by 1863

N-7 Ditch Fair NC unknown

SO-5 Field and forest patterns Unknown U by 1863 Field and forest patterns vary in their

date of origin; many were present at

time of the battle; refer to Fig. 39

SO-6 Artillery Monument and Good NC 1964

parking lot node

SO-7 Recently-purchased landfill Poor NC 20th c. Large amount of construction debris

including concrete, asphalt, and gravel

SO-8 McFadden cemetery node Good C-B by 1863 Grave markers from mid-1850s

SO-9 Electrical utility corridor Good NC unknown A wide swath of vegetation is cleared

in association with corridor.

C-9 Van Cleve Lane Good C-B by 1863

C-10 Parking lot and loop road Good NC 1964

C-11 Road trace to former Fair NC unknown Vegetation is beginning to obscure the

house site trace.

C-12 Gated road trace Unknown NC unknown The trace was inaccessible during

fieldwork.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

100 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield

CLR# Landscape Feature Condition Signif. Date Comment

C-13 Road trace/trail south of Fair C-B by 1863

Artillery Monument

C-14 Social trails Good NC 20th c.

Ve-2 Mown turf Good NC after 1931

Ve-9 Woodlots and fence rows Poor U by 1863 Field and forest patterns vary in their

date of origin; many were present at

time of the battle; refer to Fig. 39. High

number of invasive plant species,

numerous dump sites, borrow pit, and

non-historic fences and outbuildings.

Ve-10 Field vegetation Fair U by 1863 Field and forest patterns vary in their

date of origin; many were present at

time of the battle; refer to Fig. 39.

Some invasive plant species.

Ve-11 Vegetation between parking Fair U 20th c. Possibly some invasive plant species

lot and river

Ve-12 Carolina willows Unknown U N/A

Ve-13 Hackberry Good U unknown

Ve-14 Row of hackberries along trail Good U unknown Former road south Artillery Monument

S-9 Spring box Good NC 1970s

S-10 Wood footbridge Good NC 1970s

S-11 Artillery Monument Good C-C 1906

S-18 Stonework along river bank Good NC 1976

V-4 Views to river from parking Good C-B by 1863

V-5 Views to river from bluffs Good C-B by 1863

V-6 Views to development from Poor NC 20th c.

Van Cleve Lane

SS-10 Cannon Good NC unknown

SS-11 Utility poles and lines Poor NC unknown No longer functioning, may pose

hazard to visitors

SS-13 Hexagonal sign Good NC 1963

SS-14 Metal directional signs Good NC unknown

SS-16 Worm rail fence Good NC unknown

SS-19 Small wood signs Good NC unknown

SS-20 Drain inlet Poor NC unknown Partially buried with soil and vegetation

SS-21 Virginia worm rail fence Good NC unknown

SS-22 War Department boundary Fair C-P 1927–1931 One marker broken in half

markers

SS-23 Vertical wayside exhibit Good NC 2005

SS-24 McFadden headstones Poor C-B by 1863 (?) Broken, toppled

SS-25 Concrete culvert Fair NC unknown Partially buried by soil

Missing Features

McFadden Farmstead, including dwelling and two outbuildings Fencing associated with farmstead

Fencing along Van Cleve Lane leading to farmstead Fencing along road leading to river

Two fords at river Corn field near farmstead

Open fields east of Van Cleve Lane

Fencing associated with open fields east of Van Cleve Lane

Small woodlots edging fields east of Van Cleve Lane

EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

National Park Service 103

General Rosecrans’s

Headquarters Site

The Rosecrans’s Headquarters site parcel is the

smallest unit of the park. Located along the Old

Nashville Pike northwest of the Nashville Pike

unit, the unit is approximately three-tenths of an

acre in size (Refer to Fig. 122). This squareshaped site is surrounded by private property

and the Old Nashville Pike.

Landscape Features

This unit represents the site of the battle

headquarters of Union commander Major

General William S. Rosecrans. Features

associated with the unit include a parking lot,

concrete walks, a monument, signage, a shrub

hedge, mown turf, and an enclosing fence edged

by volunteer vegetation.

A five-car parking lot accessed directly from the

Old Nashville Pike fronts the headquarters site

(Fig. 112). The parking lot is generally in good

condition. A concrete sidewalk edges the parking

lot, and another leads to a commemorative

monument featuring Civil War-era cannonballs.

These features are generally in good condition. A

clipped privet hedge edges the parking lot to

either side (Fig. 113). It is also in relatively good

condition. Built in 1931 by the War Department,

the Rosecrans’s Headquarters monument (LCS

ID 007039) is a four-foot-high pyramid of Civil

War ordnance resting on a six-inch-square

beveled granite base (Fig. 115). The LCS identifies

the feature as in good condition, but large cracks

in the base and the loss of original fabric suggest

that a more appropriate rating would be fair. The

LCS description for this feature states that some

of the original cannon shot were stolen and

replaced with cast concrete shot. The monument

sits at the center of a circular concrete pad. The

concrete pad is edged by mown turf that is

generally in good condition. A chain-link fence

marks the boundary of the federally-owned

property. Holes have been cut in the fence to

facilitate non-sanctioned access to the quarry

behind. The fence is in fair condition. Weedy,

overgrown woody vegetation, including Eastern

red cedars, hackberries, elms, greenbriar (Smilax

sp.), and invasive alien plants such as Japanese

honeysuckle and privet enclose the site beyond

the fence (Fig. 114).

FIGURE 112. Rosecrans’s Headquarters parking lot and site.

FIGURE 113. Manicured privet hedge found at each side of

the parking lot.

FIGURE 114. Vegetative buffer surrounding the site.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

104 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield

A tall, earthen mound of quarry tailings

surrounds the site, adding to the sense of

enclosure formed by the vegetation beyond the

fence. The mound is the result of former quarry

operations that once took place around the site.

Social trails run up and down the mound; people

use these trails to gain illegal access to the quarry

through the Headquarters site.

Views associated with the parcel are limited given

the small size of the property and the enclosure

provided by woody vegetation on three sides.

The view afforded to the northeast across the

Old Nashville Highway consists of volunteer

Eastern red cedars and piles of construction

materials, such as gravel (Fig. 116). This view

detracts from the historic character and feeling

of the site and is in fair condition.

An NPS wayside exhibit was placed near the

parking lot in 2005 (Fig. 117). Other signage

consists of a hexagonal marker, traffic signs, and

a sign located at the back of the site that states

“Posted Private Property.” These are generally in

good condition. An NPS sign placed on the

south side of the site alerts traffic to the

upcoming monument; there is no sign marking

the site for traffic traveling southeast.

Comparative Analysis

The Rosecrans’s Headquarters site character area

no longer retains any of the features and

characteristics of the landscape that existed at

the time of the Battle of Stones River. However, it

does retain features established as part of the

1927–1931 early park development period,

including its level landform and topography,

grass plane, connection to the Old Nashville

Highway, and most importantly the cannon ball

monument marking the site of Rosecrans’s

Headquarters. Additions to the landscape that

post-date the period of significance include the

parking area, privet hedge, and chain-link

fencing. The landscape surrounding the

character area has changed dramatically, with

topographic modifications resulting from

quarrying activities edging the site on three sides

and a heavy growth of weedy woody vegetation

colonizing the disturbed earth (Figs. 118 through

121).

FIGURE 115. 1931 Rosecrans’s Headquarters cannonball pyramid monument.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

National Park Service 105

FIGURE 116. View across Old Nashville Highway to eastern

red cedars and material piles.

FIGURE 117. View toward the monument from the

parking lot, showing the new NPS wayside exhibit erected

in 2005.

The Rosecrans’s Headquarters site unit and

monument mark the approximate location of

where Union General William Rosecrans used an

existing cabin for his headquarters during the

Battle of Stones River. This cabin was located

along the Old Nashville Pike and, according to

historic maps, tucked into woods that lined the

pike. After the war, the cabin was apparently

used as an African American church.103

In the late 1920s, the War Department acquired

the land upon which the cabin was located in

order to commemorate the headquarters site. It

is not known whether the cabin was still standing

at this time. In 1931, the pyramidal marker and a

concrete walk to and around it were erected

using actual Civil War-era cannon shot. The

configuration of the unit, grass plane, and the

pyramidal cannonball monument survive from

the early park development period. In 1935, the

site was described:

This reservation is located on Highway

No. 41, 0.7 miles north of the Park, and is also

enclosed by wire fence and marked by a

cannon ball pyramid. The wide grassy

shoulder of the highway, which is at a slight

crest here, offers at present sufficient

opportunity to stop and park.104

It thus appears that the parking area, concrete

sidewalk adjacent to it, the chain-link fence, and

privet hedge all post-date the period of

significance.

Evaluation of Integrity

The Rosecrans’s Headquarters site character area

landscape does not retain integrity to the Civil

War, but does retain integrity to the early park

development period (1927–1931).

For the earlier battle period, the landscape

retains integrity of location for its association

with the headquarters. However, integrity of

setting, feeling, and association are lacking or

highly diminished due to the loss of the cabin

and subsequent additions and changes to the

landscape and context. The setting in particular

has been greatly altered by use of adjacent lands

for quarrying activities. The woods that once

surrounded the cabin, as well as the cabin itself,

are missing. At present the feeling of the

landscape is one of a park, not a battlefield

landscape or the site of a general’s headquarters.

Lastly, integrity of association is lacking. The

original cabin would have served as a direct link

between the battle events and the site of General

Rosecrans’s headquarters. Again, because the

cabin is missing and both the commemorative

landscape and adjacent lands have been highly

altered, this association has been lost.

For the early park development period, the

character area retains integrity of location,

design, materials, workmanship, feeling, and

association. The headquarters monument and

parcel layout and configuration remain in their

original 1931 location. The original design,

materials, and workmanship are generally still

intact, but are diminished by the later

103. Styles, 56.

104. 1939 Plan, “Stones River National Military Park

and Cemetery,” 3.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

106 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield

replacement of some of the original cannon shot,

and the addition of the asphalt parking area and

associated sidewalk, and chain-link fencing.

Photographs from the mid-1970s show that the

character area was once set in a level, open

landscape with only a fence and minimal

vegetation surrounding it. Adjacent lands

appeared to be used for agriculture. Given the

large mounds of quarry tailings that surround

the site at present, and the dense vegetation that

grows along the fence, this character area does

not retain integrity of setting for the early park

development period.

FIGURES 118 AND 119. The Rosecrans’s Headquarters Monument itself has changed little since its construction. Fig. 118 is

a 1975 photograph of the monument taken for the National Register nomination. The setting of the monument has

changed dramatically since the 1970s as chain link fencing has replaced wire fencing, and successional growth of trees

and shrubs now forms a hard edge around three sides of the site. The growth hides evidence of a quarry beyond that

has heavily altered the surrounding landform and topography.

FIGURES 120 AND 121. A concrete walk historically led to and encircled the monument from a grassy pull-off along the

Nashville Pike. A similar walk continues to characterize the site. Today, a parking lot edges the road, with a sidewalk

providing a connection to the concrete walk. Some of the monument’s cannonballs were stolen in past decades and have

been replaced. Wood fencing has replaced the chain link fencing seen in the 1975 photograph (Fig. 120).

EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

108 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield

* The following abbreviations are used: C-B = Contributing to the Battle Period, 1862–1863; C-P = Contributing to

the Early Park Development Period, 1927–1931; NC = Non-Contributing; U = Undetermined.

Table 3. General Rosecrans’s Headquarters Site Landscape Features

CLR# Landscape Feature Condition Signif.* Date Comment

N-8 Mounded topography Fair NC 20th c. Some erosion and much litter

C-15 Parking lot Good NC unknown

C-16 Concrete sidewalk Good C-P unknown

Ve-2 Mown turf Good C-P 1931

Ve-15 Successional growth Poor NC unknown Contains numerous invasive plant

species

Ve-16 Manicured privet hedge Poor NC unknown

V-7 Views across Old Nashville Fair NC 20th c. Views across road detract from setting

Highway

SS-13 Hexagonal wayside exhibit Good NC 1963 Park considers these features to be in

poor condition due to their outdated

interpretive content.

SS-23 Vertical wayside exhibit Good NC 2005

SS-26 Cannonball pyramid Fair C-P 1931 LCS lists monument in good condition

monument but deterioration suggests fair rating.

SS-27 Chain-link fence Fair NC unknown

SS-39 Parking/wayfinding sign Good NC unknown

Missing Features

Dwellings and outbuildings appropriated for use as General Rosecrans’s Headquarters.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

National Park Service 109

Hazen Brigade Monument

The Hazen Brigade Monument character area

comprises a one-and-one-half acre parcel

located north of the Old Nashville Highway, east

of its intersection with the Van Cleve Lane trace

(Refer to Fig. 135). It is bordered by woods and

the CSX railroad tracks to the north. The main

feature of the site is the Hazen Brigade

Monument, a twelve foot high limestone block

monument surrounded by the graves of Union

soldiers who died during and after the battle, and

an enclosing limestone wall. A small visitor

parking area that can accommodate five cars

edges the highway, and a concrete walk leads

through a grove of ornamental and shade trees to

the monument.

Landscape Features

The Hazen Brigade Monument (LCS ID 007033)

is located on a long, narrow, rectangular site

accessed directly from the highway. A five-car

parking lot serves the monument (Fig. 123). The

parking lot is in good condition. A concrete

sidewalk edges the parking lot, while a second

sidewalk gently curves between the parking lot

and the monument. These concrete walks are in

good condition. A wide, unpaved trail leads to a

woodlot found northwest of the monument (Fig.

124). The trail is in good condition. Tour Stop

Five is located at the monument. It interprets the

“Fight for the Round Forest,” a forested area that

once stood to the north of, and may have

encompassed, the monument.

Site vegetation consists of mown turf dotted with

ornamental and shade trees (Fig. 125), all in good

condition. Tree species include Eastern red

cedar, black walnut, post oak (Quercus stellata),

hickory (Carya spp), red maple, sugar maple,

Southern red oak (Quercus falcata), pecan

(Carya illinoisinensis), and dogwood (Cornus

florida). These trees both provide shade and

ornamental interest for the site. During 2005 field

investigations, park personnel noted the

presence of a productive butternut (Juglans

cinerea) tree in this area; this species is listed as

endangered in the State of Tennessee.

The monument itself is located in the

northeastern portion of the site near the CSX

railroad tracks (LCS ID 090232) (Fig. 126).

FIGURE 125. Landscape leading up to the Hazen Brigade

Monument. Note the mown turf, ornamental trees, and

curving sidewalk.

FIGURE 123. Hazen Brigade Monument parking lot and

concrete sidewalk.

FIGURE 124. NPS trail leading to the woodlot northwest of

the monument.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

110 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield

Constructed in 1863 by Union soldiers and

veterans of the Battle of Stones River, the

monument is a four-sided, battered-wall,

coursed limestone block structure approximately

twelve feet in height. The top of the monument

consists of a hipped cap with rounded, mitered

coping (Fig. 127). Each elevation has inscriptions.

The monument has been repaired at various

times during its history.

Masonry work on the Hazen Brigade Monument

was most recently performed in 2003. As part of

the work, all mortar was removed from the joints

using hand tools. The stone was then cleaned

using a twenty percent bleach solution. Finally,

the joints were pointed with mortar composed of

one part hydraulic lime and three parts sand.105

Photographs accompanying the treatment record

for this work show that the joints between

limestone units had previously been

inappropriately routed out and widened.

The monument is listed in good condition on the

LCS, but minor staining and the degree of

weathering of the stone suggest that a more

appropriate condition rating is fair. The newly

pointed mortar joints are intact. There is some

minor staining on the stone surfaces of the

monument, but the staining is less significant

than prior to the 2003 work. Staining and lichen

growth is concentrated at the cap of the

monument. The limestone used for the

monument is relatively coarse and has weathered

preferentially along planes which are coincident

with the natural bedding layers, creating the

potential for fragments of stone to spall.

The monument is enclosed by a five-foot-high,

coursed limestone-block wall (LCS ID 090225).

The wall is listed in good condition on the LCS,

but deterioration of the masonry suggests that a

more appropriate condition rating is fair. It was

repaired and its design altered in 1895. A metal

105. Preservation of the Hazen Brigade Monument:

Historic Structures Record of Treatment (Frederick,

Maryland: National Park Service Historic

Preservation Training Center, 2003).

FIGURE 126. CSX Corporation railroad tracks behind the monument wall, looking northwest.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

National Park Service 111

gate provides access to the monument through

the wall. Included within the confines of the

perimeter wall are fifty-five headstones

(LCS ID 090224) that mark the graves of fallen

Union soldiers (Fig. 128). These include twentynine limestone headstones (20 inches high by 13

inches wide by 5 inches thick) and up to twentysix marble headstones (16-1/2 inches high by 10

inches wide by 4 inches thick, and 15-1/2 inches

high by 10 inches wide by 2 inches thick).106 Some

of these headstones are deteriorating. They are

listed in good condition on the LCS; however,

their condition suggests a rating of fair.

Outside of the wall and to the southeast of the

enclosure are two additional marble headstones

marking the graves of William Holland (died

1909) and William Harlan (died 1979) (Fig. 129).

Holland was a former slave who purchased a

tract of land adjacent to the Hazen Brigade

106. Height is measured from the average ground

plane to the top of the stone. Typically, at least

two-thirds of the stone is underground.

FIGURE 127. Hazen Brigade monument, limestone wall, and metal gate at entrance.

Monument site. Harlan was a descendant of

Holland.

Views to the railroad tracks to the north are

afforded from the monument, and are consistent

with those present at the time of the monument’s

construction, since the railroad tracks were in

place prior to the battle. This view is in good

condition. The view to the northwest, however,

has been negatively impacted by a twentieth

century cement factory; little screening

vegetation currently exists to diminish the impact

of this view on the historic setting. From the

southwestern corner of the character area, views

across to the large expanse of the Nashville Pike

unit are afforded that help provide a connection

between the Hazen Brigade Monument and the

battlefield landscape. These views are in good

condition. Also evident in this location are views

to the Thompson Lane Bridge as it passes over

the Old Nashville Highway (Fig. 130). These

views are generally incompatible with the

historic setting of the Hazen Brigade Monument.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

112 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield

Small-scale features within the character area are

limited in number. They include hexagonal and

vertical wayside exhibits placed at the monument

and along the walk leading to the monument

from the parking area; worm fencing placed

along the road near, and edging, the parking area;

and cannon along the walk leading to the

monument. These features are generally in good

condition.

Comparative Analysis

The Hazen Brigade Monument character area

retains features and characteristics of the

landscape that existed at the time of the Battle of

Stones River, including its landform and

topography and its visual and physical

relationship to the Old Nashville Highway, the

battlefield, and the railroad line. Constructed

after the battle in 1863, the monument was

completed while the region, including Fortress

Rosecrans, was still occupied by Union forces,

and while the war continued to rage. The parcel

upon which the monument stood was

administered by the War Department after its

construction in 1863, and remained in federal

ownership until, and after, the park was

established. Although the Hazen Brigade

Monument was likely the second or third Civil

War monument erected in the United States, it is

likely the oldest surviving monument today.107

Features associated with its original construction

continue to survive, including the monument,

headstones, and enclosing limestone wall. Some

of the original headstones have since been

replaced with concrete replicas. Missing is the

Round Forest referred to in various period

accounts. Later additions that relate to or were

present by the early park development period

include repair of the limestone enclosing wall in

1895, placement of a gravestone for William

Holland outside the wall, the parking lot, and

possibly the sidewalk. The date of origin of the

ornamental and shade tree plantings and the

grave of William Harlan appears to post-date the

commemorative period of significance, as does

existing signage (Figs. 131 through 134).

107. Sean M. Styles, Stones River National Battlefield

Historic Resource Study (Atlanta, Georgia: National

Park Service, February 2004), 72. Two older

gravestone-like monuments are known, one at

Manassas, Virginia (no longer in existence), and

one at Munfordville, Kentucky (relocated).

FIGURE 128. Headstones located within the monument

wall.

FIGURE 129. Headstones of William Harlan and William

Holland located outside of the monument wall.

FIGURE 130. View looking southeast toward Thompson

Road bridge from the Hazen Brigade Monument parking

lot.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

National Park Service 113

According to the Stones River National

Battlefield Historic Resource Study, the Hazen

Brigade Monument was constructed in “an area

in the Round Forest containing the graves of

forty-five of the brigade’s fallen.”108 Historic

photographs, however, consistently show the

monument with little to no vegetation nearby. In

reviewing current topographical maps, and with

the knowledge that the Round Forest was

located atop a hill, it appears that the Hazen

Monument may have actually been located on

the edge of the forest, rather than within it,

although it is possible that the Round Forest was

cut down after the battle for construction

materials and firewood.

In comparing today’s landscape to that present

during the Civil War, and later during the early

park development period, little has changed. The

landscape currently has a more manicured

appearance and contains more deciduous woody

vegetation than historically, but the general

character of the site is intact. However, if future

research shows that the Hazen Brigade

Monument was indeed built within the Round

Forest and was surrounded by a cedar thicket,

than the historic scene will have changed to a

greater degree.

While views to the railroad are still available,

industrial and commercial features, as well as the

Thompson Lane bridge, are also visible. These

features post-date the commemorative period of

FIGURES 131 AND 132. The Hazen Monument was erected in 1863. The monument is comprised of a limestone block and

surrounding perimeter limestone wall. Inside the wall, more than fifty soldiers are thought to be buried. The monument

appears very much as it did when first constructed as seen in these two photographs, with the addition of interpretive

signs and markers in the later photograph.

FIGURES 133 AND 134. The primary change to the monument occurred after 1888 when the enclosing wall was rebuilt

and made taller. Today the setting of the monument is altered by views of a nearby factory, as seen in the contemporary

image.

108. Ibid., 38.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

114 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield

significance and detract from the monument’s

setting.

Evaluation of Integrity

The Hazen Brigade Monument character retains

all seven aspects of integrity for both the Civil

War and early park development periods,

although the monument was built after the battle

and pertains to the broader Civil War period

rather than the battlefield. The monument

possesses integrity of location for its continued

presence on this site, integrity of design for its

ongoing existence and general maintenance in its

original form; integrity of materials and evidence

of workmanship for the same reason; integrity of

feeling due to the fact that it is still able to express

the feeling of the 1863 post-battle aesthetic; and

integrity of association based on its connection

with the Civil War soldiers who constructed the

monument. Integrity of setting is diminished by

the intrusive views of nearby industrial and

commercial development.

* The following abbreviations are used: C-B = Contributing to the Battle Period, 1862–1863; C-C = Contributing to

the Early Commemoration Period, 1863–1926; C-P = Contributing to the Early Park Development Period, 1927–

1931; NC = Non-Contributing; U = Undetermined.

Table 4. Hazen Brigade Monument Landscape Features

CLR# Landscape Feature Condition Signif.* Date Comment

C-17 Parking lot Good U unknown

C-18 Concrete sidewalk Good U unknown

C-19 Earthen trail Good NC unknown

Ve-2 Mown turf Good C-P 1931

Ve-18 Ornamental and shade trees Good U unknown

Ve-26 Woodland at Round Forest Good U unknown

S-12 Hazen Brigade Monument Fair C-C 1863 LCS suggests monument is in good

condition, but some limestone

deterioration observed

S-13 Limestone wall Fair C-C 19th c. LCS suggests wall is in good

condition, but some limestone

deterioration observed

V-8 Views to railroad tracks Good C-B by 1863

V-9 Views to cement factory Fair NC 20th c. Views of factory detract from setting

V-10 Views to battlefield landscape Good C-B by 1863

V-11 Views to Thompson Lane Fair NC 1990s Views of bridge detract from setting

bridge

SS-10 Cannon Good NC unknown

SS-13 Hexagonal wayside exhibits Good NC 1963 The park considers these features to

be in poor condition due to their

outdated interpretive information

SS-16 Worm rail fence Good NC unknown

SS-23 Vertical wayside exhibit Good NC 2005

SS-28 Headstones Fair C-C 19th c. LCS suggests good condition, but

deteriorating marble and limestone

suggest fair condition

Missing Features

Portions of the Round Forest

EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

116 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

National Park Service 117

General Bragg’s

Headquarters Site

The General Bragg’s Headquarters site character

area occupies approximately three-quarters of an

acre (seven acres within authorized boundary)

south of the Nashville Pike unit (Refer to Fig.

149). It is found north of West College Street and

the CSX railroad tracks, between West College

Street and Stones River (Fig. 136). West College

Street becomes the Old Nashville Highway closer

to the park’s Nashville Pike unit. The unit abuts

the Stones River Greenway’s General Bragg

trailhead and parking lot. The City of

Murfreesboro plans to alter the road and parking

area associated with the site to facilitate access to

both features. A fenced dog park was

constructed adjacent to the site in 2006.

Landscape Features

Visitors to the General Bragg’s Headquarters site

leave their vehicles in the Stones River Greenway

parking lot and follow a concrete sidewalk to the

Bragg’s Headquarters site. A section of this

concrete sidewalk extends into the site to

provide access to the actual monument, while

another section leads to the Greenway trail

northeast of the monument (Fig. 137). The

sidewalk is in good condition.

The Bragg’s Headquarters site character area is a

long, rectangular parcel that stretches from the

greenway trailhead access road almost to Stones

River. The interior of the site is dominated by

mown turf. The site is edged by rows of trees.

The southeastern row of trees is comprised

primarily of Eastern red cedars, although there

are also two hackberry trees included in the row.

The northwestern row of trees contains both

hackberry trees and Eastern red cedars (Fig. 138).

A single Eastern red cedar tree grows behind the

monument. The mown turf and the trees are

generally in good condition, but the rows appear

to have lost some of the individuals, and others

are in decline.

The parcel boundaries are marked by wood

fencing (Fig. 139). The fencing is composed of

stacked, hewn rails supported by two tall posts.

The lowest railing in each section rests on a rock

to limit contact with the ground and slow

FIGURE 136. Bragg’s Headquarters site. Note open lawn

and concrete sidewalk leading to the marker.

FIGURE 138. One of two rows of trees that bound the site.

FIGURE 137. NPS sidewalk as it intersects the Stones River

Greenway. Stones River is in the background.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

118 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield

FIGURE 143. View to the adjacent field southeast of the

site.

FIGURE 142. View to the Stones River Greenway trailhead

and parking lot.

FIGURE 144. View looking southwest from Bragg’s

Headquarters site to the road and railroad tracks.

FIGURE 139. Close view of the two-post and stacked rail

fence that bounds the site.

FIGURE 140. 1931 Bragg’s Headquarters cannonball

pyramid marker.

FIGURE 141. Vertical NPS wayside exhibit erected in 2005.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

National Park Service 119

Comparative Analysis

The Bragg’s Headquarters site character area no

longer retains any of the features and

characteristics of the landscape that existed at

the time of the Battle of Stones River. However, it

does retain features established as part of the

1927–1931 early park development period,

including its level landform and topography,

grass plane, connection to the Old Nashville

Highway, and most importantly the cannon ball

monument marking the site of Bragg’s

Headquarters. Additions to the landscape that

post-date the period of significance include the

concrete walk, wood fencing, and rows of trees

that mark the edges of the parcel. The landscape

surrounding the character area has changed with

the addition of the greenway and associated

parking lot, and the loss of agricultural land uses

within view of the monument (Figs. 147 and 148).

During the battle, this landscape was used as

Confederate General Bragg’s second

headquarters. It is not known if General Bragg

occupied a building or a tent in this location.

Historic maps show that the second

headquarters site was most likely a farm field or

open field during Bragg’s occupation and was

located directly adjacent to the intersection of

Old Nashville Pike and the railroad. Images from

the 1930s show that little had changed in regard

to adjacent lands by this time: the landscape

surrounding the site continued to be used for

agriculture.

moisture-related deterioration. The fencing is

generally in good condition.

The monument that marks the site of General

Bragg’s Headquarters is a pyramidal cannon ball

monument similar to the one that marks General

Rosecrans’s Headquarters site (LCS ID 007038).

Built in 1931, the monument is a four-foot-high

pyramidal stack of cannon shot resting on a sixfoot-square granite base set in a circle of mown

turf (Fig. 140). The aforementioned concrete

sidewalk encircles the monument. The

monument is in good condition.

An NPS wayside exhibit was erected near the

parking lot in 2005 (Fig. 141). It replaced a

Mission 66-era hexagonal sign interpreting the

site that was stolen in the 1990s. The new sign is

in good condition.

From the site, views are available in many

directions due to the relative lack of

development and the openness of the adjacent

field and parking lot (Fig. 142 and 143). Views to

the south, toward the railroad tracks and road,

detract somewhat from the feeling and character

of the site (Fig. 144). In 2006, the city constructed

a post and wire fence-enclosed dog running area

on the city owned parcel southeast of the Bragg’s

Headquarters site (Figs. 145 and 146). The city has

also proposed constructing a new access road to

the unit, which would circle behind an adjacent

private residence before connecting to West

College Street. These recent changes have a

visual impact on the site.

FIGURE 145. View from the Bragg’s Headquarters site to

the fenced dog park recently established by the city of

Murfreesboro.

FIGURE 146. View from the dog park to the Bragg’s

Headquarters site.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

120 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield

Alterations to the headquarters site came in the

1930s when the War Department constructed the

cannonball pyramid monument. In addition to

the monument, a sidewalk and wire fence were

erected. The wire fence is no longer present. The

concrete walk at the site was replaced in the late

1990s. During that time, the original parking area

was also removed. Also as part of the late 1990s

work, new sidewalks were added connecting

northwest to the adjacent city-owned trailhead

parking lot and northeast to the Stones River

Greenway trail.

Evaluation of Integrity

The Bragg’s Headquarters site character area

retains the four key aspects of integrity—

location, setting, feeling, and association—for

the battle period of 1862–1863 and all seven

aspects of integrity for the early park

development period of 1927–1931.

The headquarters site retains integrity of

location as the site of the headquarters during

the battle and the site of the monument during

the early park development period. The integrity

of design, materials, and workmanship of the

cannonball monument are fairly intact. The

setting of the character area is diminished for the

battle period, owing to the presence of the

greenway trailhead to the west, the dog park to

the southeast, and the presence of the hedgerows

and fences that delineate the site. However, the

site possesses integrity of setting because the

trailhead is not overly intrusive, a field still

remains to the east of the character area, and the

site retains its relationship to the river, road, and

railroad. The integrity of setting is somewhat

diminished by the fenced dog park that was

established near the site in 2006. Integrity of

feeling is also somewhat diminished due to the

trailhead and dog park, yet the site’s context

remains open and it is easy to imagine how the

landscape might have appeared when

agricultural fields surrounded the headquarters.

The character area retains integrity of association

for conveying the link between this particular

piece of land and its use as a military

headquarters.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

National Park Service 121

FIGURES 147 AND 148. The setting of the Bragg’s Headquarters Monument has changed slightly since the monument was

constructed in 1931. Worm fencing and tree plantings have been added along portions of the perimeter of the site.

Fig. 147 shows that a curving concrete walk evident in this 1975 image has since been replaced with a straighter walk.

The setting of the monument has been altered by the addition of a local trailhead and the loss of agricultural land uses

around the monument.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

122 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield

* The following abbreviations are used: C-B = Contributing to the Battle Period, 1862–1863; C-C = Contributing to

the Early Commemoration Period, 1863–1926; C-P = Contributing to the Early Park Development Period, 1927–

1931; NC = Non-Contributing; U = Undetermined.

Table 5. General Bragg’s Headquarters Site Landscape Features

CLR# Landscape Feature Condition Signif.* Date Comment

C-20 Concrete sidewalk Good NC 2004 (?)

Ve-2 Mown turf Good C-P 1931

Ve-19 Rows of trees Fair NC unknown Some of these trees are in decline or

missing

V-12 Views to adjacent parking lot Good NC 20th c.

V-13 Views to adjacent field Good NC 20th c.

V-14 Views toward road Fair NC 20th c. Views of road detract from setting

V-21 Views to dog park Fair NC 2006

SS-19 Small wood sign Good NC unknown

SS-23 Vertical wayside exhibit Good NC 2005

SS-29 Two-post, stacked rail fence Good NC unknown

with stone support

SS-30 Cannonball pyramid Good C-P 1931

monument

SS-39 Parking/wayfinding sign Good NC unknown

Missing Features

Features associated with use of site as General Bragg’s Headquarters

EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

124 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

National Park Service 125

Fortress Rosecrans:

Curtain Wall No. 2 and

Lunettes Palmer and

Thomas

The surviving Fortress Rosecrans Curtain Wall

No. 2 and Lunettes Palmer and Thomas

earthworks are located southeast of the Nashville

Pike unit and adjacent to the City of

Murfreesboro’s Old Fort Park (Refer to Fig. 168).

The site is bounded to the north by Lytle Creek,

to the west by the Stones River Greenway Trail,

to the south by Golf Lane/Route 99, and to the

east by Old Fort Park. Once part of the 200-acre

earthen fortification known as Fortress

Rosecrans, built immediately after the Battle of

Stones River in 1863, the earthworks that survive

today are some of the last remaining portions of

a once-massive fortress/supply depot structure,

and exist within a twenty-six-acre parcel that is

administered as part of Stones River National

Battlefield. Access to the earthwork occurs by

way of an asphalt trail and boardwalk circulation

network that also includes interpretive wayside

exhibits. A second remnant earthwork—referred

to as Redoubt Brannan—is also protected within

the park. Redoubt Brannan is located north of

the Curtain Wall No. 2 and Lunettes parcel, and

is described later in this section.

Landscape Features

Curtain Wall No. 2 (LCS ID 090231), Lunette

Palmer (LCS ID 090229), and Lunette Thomas

(LCS ID 090230) comprise the last 2,500 feet of

the southwest section of Fortress Rosecrans—

roughly 17 percent of the original 14,600 linear

foot earthwork structure that comprised the

fortification. Fortress Rosecrans, built by Union

soldiers to either side of the river in 1863, was

originally constructed to serve as a supply depot

for the Union army and to defend the critical

bridge crossings of the railroad and Wilkinson

Pike over Stones River. The fortification formed a

loose oval covering some 200 acres. The fortress

consisted of several types of earthen structures,

supported by wooden planking and wire, placed

to support each other and maintain a military

advantage against attack. These structures were

designed in accordance with the standards

FIGURE 150. Interior of Lunette Palmer with magazine in

center.

FIGURE 151. Western edge of Curtain Wall No.2.

established by West Point commandant Dennis

Mahan in his Treatise on Field Fortifications.

A line of curtain walls, lunettes, and rifle pits

14,600 feet in length formed the fort’s outer

perimeter. The nine lunettes were fieldworks

that consisted of two faces forming a salient

angle with two parallel flanks that opened to

the interior of the fort. Each lunette was

named for a general officer assigned to the

Army of the Cumberland. . . . [A] line of

earthworks known as Curtain Wall No. 2, ran

between Lunettes Thomas and Negley on the

fort’s southwestern face. Because Lunettes

Negley, Thomas, and Curtain Wall No. 2

could be enfiladed by artillery on the west

bank of the river, traverses set at right angles

were constructed behind their walls. The

lunettes and curtain walls were fitted with

embrasures, V-shaped openings in the
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

126 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield

earthwork through which defenders fired

their cannon. Large earth-filled wicker

baskets called gabions were placed outside

the embrasures for extra protection. Gabions

were much larger than sandbags, portable,

and would absorb several incoming

Confederate rounds before splintering. Both

the railroad and the pike bisected the fort,

with openings in the fortress walls to allow

passage on these arteries. . . .

Trees and brush within a thousand yards of

the fort were cleared to provide unobstructed

lines of fire for the defenders. Abatis, felled

trees laid with their branches pointed

outward, were placed between the lunettes

and in the marshy ground where Lytle Creek

and the river crossed the fort. . . .

Lunettes Palmer and Thomas and Curtain

Wall No. 2 were constructed on the south

bank of Lytle Creek to guard the Franklin

Road.109

The design of the system was intended to

provide for cross fire and direct fire of both

artillery and infantry on all of the possible

approaches. Features such as bastions, redoubts,

redans, lunettes, demilunettes, traverses,

curtains, gabions, scarps, and embrasures were

sited to accommodate the placement of artillery

and the movement of equipment and personnel.

Batteries were placed at various locations, and

were typically associated with a magazine. Inside

the fortification were blockhouses, huts, storage

structures, stables.

The two earthwork components that survive at

this site are curtain walls and lunettes (Figs. 150

and 151). Lunette Palmer today includes

approximately 400 feet of parapet wall, 10 feet in

height, a foward trench or ditch, a double

traverse, and a third traverse and parapet that

intersects with the curtain wall. The remains of a

powder magazine are also present. Lunette

Thomas, located along the southwestern end of

the fortress, also consists of 400 feet of parapet

wall, 10 feet in height, with a forward trench or

ditch. Half of the lunette, along the side

connecting to the curtain wall, has been lost.

Curtain Wall No. 2 extends between Lunettes

Palmer and Thomas. It includes 650 feet of

parapet wall, approximately ten feet in height, a

forward trench or ditch, and five traverses.

109. Ibid., 35–37.

FIGURE 152. View from Lunette Palmer to parking lot and

athletic complex beyond.

FIGURE 153. View from Lunette Thomas to golf course.

FIGURE 154. Asphalt parking lot with native plantings.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

National Park Service 127

FIGURE 155. Worm rail fence-edge social trail leading

from path near Lunette Palmer to Lytle Creek.

FIGURE 156. Lytle Creek, looking northwest, with

Greenway Trail pedestrian bridge in background.

FIGURE 157. Sinkhole covered with a grate and

surrounded by worm rail fence.

Currently, the earthworks parcel is edged to one

side by a golf course and to the other by Lytle

Creek (Figs. 152 and 153). These features serve to

surround the site with open space and

woodland, protecting it from views of nearby

residential and commercial development. Views

afforded from the site include the golf course and

associated athletic complex, a smokestack, and

the access road to the unit.

An asphalt parking lot that can accommodate

twenty-seven cars serves both the NPS property

and the city of Murfreesboro’s Stones River

Greenway Trail, which runs along the western

edge of Lunette Palmer (Fig. 154). The parking lot

is in good condition. Native plantings of shrubs,

forbs, and grasses in the curbed islands lend an

informal appearance to the parking lot. Species

include aromatic sumac, shrubby St. John’s wort

(Hypericum frondosum), switch grass, whorled

milkweed (Asclepias verticillata), false blue

indigo (Baptisia australis), Tennessee purple

coneflower, gay-feather (Liatris spicata),

aromatic aster (Aster oblongifolius), prairie phlox

(Phlox pilosa), and prairie coneflower (Ratibida

pinnata). These plantings are in good condition.

Social trails lead down the sloped topography of

the site to access Lytle Creek (Figs. 155 and 156).

These trails are in fair condition, with soil

erosion of their hard-packed earth surface. A

crevasse-like sinkhole sits near the western edge

of Lunette Palmer. The sinkhole is covered with a

metal grate and surrounded by wooden worm

fencing to protect visitors from falling into the

opening (Fig. 157).

The earthworks are maintained primarily in

warm-season native grass cover including

broomsedge (Andropogon virginicus), little

bluestem, side-oats gramma-grass (Bouteloua

curtipendula), Indian grass, and switch grass.

This cover is generally in good condition,

although there is also a great deal of poison ivy

(Toxicodendron radicans) present on the

earthworks and in surrounding areas.

Some trees are currently growing on the tops and

sides of the fortification, primarily on Lunette

Palmer and Curtain Wall No. 2. Predominant

species include Eastern red cedar, Shumard oak

(Quercus shumardii), winged elm (Ulmus alata),

white ash (Fraxinus americana), shagbark

hickory (Carya ovata), common hackberry,
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

128 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield

FIGURE 162. Recycled wood and plastic boardwalk at

Lunette Palmer.

FIGURE 163. Boardwalk providing access to the parapet of

Lunette Thomas.

FIGURE 159. Erosion and exposed earth on a segment of

Lunette Palmer.

FIGURE 158. Mature trees growing atop Lunette Palmer.

FIGURE 160. Erosion and an animal burrow on a segment

of Lunette Palmer.

FIGURE 161. Asphalt path and typical wayside exhibit

running along the northern edge of Curtain Wall No. 2.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

National Park Service 129

FIGURE 165. Wood bench between Lunette Palmer and

Curtain Wall No. 2.

FIGURE 166. Cannon and wayside exhibit. Cannon is

pointed in the direction of the Rutherford County

courthouse.

sugarberry, black walnut, and black cherry

(Prunus serotina). These trees are generally small,

although a few are larger than twelve inches

diameter at breast height. The shade provided by

these trees is a welcome addition for visitors

(Fig. 158). Lunette Thomas has been cleared of

trees and has a more open character.

Portions of the earthworks exhibit damage from

erosion and animal burrows (Figs. 159 and 160);

however, they are generally in good condition. It

is not currently known to what degree the animal

burrows have affected the root system of plants

growing on the earthworks.

Visitors traverse the site along a six-tenths-mile

network of asphalt paths and Trex recycled

lumber boardwalks (Figs. 161 and 162). The

asphalt paths direct visitors around the

earthworks in a series of loops, while the

boardwalks provide opportunities for getting

closer to the earthworks and prevent the public

from touching or walking on the fortifications

(Fig. 163). The asphalt trails and recycled material

boardwalks are in good condition. In addition to

the social trails leading to Lytle Creek, social

trails also cross the landscape between the NPS

path and the recently-installed greenway trail,

both located between the northern edge of the

earthworks and Lytle Creek (Fig. 164).

Small-scale features associated with the site

include wood benches (Fig. 165) and one

recycled plastic bench along the boardwalk at

FIGURE 164. Social trail near the eastern end of Curtain

Wall No. 2 that connects the NPS trail with the parallel

Greenway Trail.

FIGURE 167. Present-day view from cannon location to

Murfreesboro.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

130 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield

Lunette Palmer; wooden worm fencing; wayside

exhibits; small, brown, wooden signs reminding

visitors to stay off of the earthworks or denoting

revegetation areas; one replica cannon; and

wooden posts marking the northern boundary of

NPS land. All of these features are in good

condition. The cannon is not in an original

artillery position, but was placed here to allow

visitors to sight down the tube toward the

courthouse (Figs. 166 and 167). During the Civil

War, at least three cannon were trained on the

courthouse from Fortress Rosecrans; the

courthouse cupola is not visible from the fort at

present.

Comparative Analysis

The Curtain Wall and Lunettes character area

continues to retain evidence of the features and

characteristics established after the Battle of

Stones River by the Union Army to maintain

control of two river crossings and a large supply

depot. Although the earthen fortification is only

partially represented and has lost some of its

height and breadth, exterior cladding, interior

structures, rifle pits, abatis, and circulation

routes, the earthen remains are generally wellpreserved from the Civil War. There are no

features representative of the early park

development period associated with the site.

There are, however, later NPS access and

interpretive features, such as waysides, benches,

trails, and boardwalks that post-date the period

of significance. The landscape in and around the

fortification has been altered to a great degree, to

now include woodland and grass cover, a golf

course, and other twentieth century

development.

During the Fortress Rosecrans-specific period

(1863–1865), the curtain wall and lunettes were

part of an immense supply depot—the largest

enclosed earthwork constructed during the Civil

War. Construction of the fortress resulted in the

deforestation of large swaths of the surrounding

area to place abatis, secure building materials

and firewood, and establish a field of fire. The

land surrounding the fortress likely looked as if it

were part of a battle, with burned and cut tree

stumps and little vegetation. The earthen walls of

the fortification were highly erodible, and had to

be maintained throughout the war. Within the

fortress there were numerous buildings,

110. Ibid., 44.

including blockhouses, sawmills, and various

depots and warehouses, none of which survive.

The surrounding region is much changed, with

commercial, residential, and light industrial

development both altering the physical context

of the landscape and breaking the once

continuous fortress into discontiguous parcels.

Old Fort Park, which fronts the curtain wall and

lunettes, has helped to protect the parcel’s setting

to a degree. Long views from Lunette Palmer

across the golf course continue to give an idea of

the breadth of the field of fire.

Evaluation of Integrity

The CLR team concurs with the integrity

assessment included in the Stones River National

Battlefield Historic Resource Study, which notes

“Although most of Fortress Rosecrans is now

gone, the elements that remain are substantial

enough to convey the fort’s massiveness as well

as its purpose and significance.”110

EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

132 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield

* The following abbreviations are used: C-F = Contributing to the Fortress Rosecrans Period, 1863–1865; NC = NonContributing; U = Undetermined.

Table 6. Fortress Rosecrans Curtain Wall No. 2 and Lunettes Landscape Features

CLR# Landscape Feature Condition Signif.* Date Comment

N-5 Wetlands Good U unknown Some invasives present

N-9 Sinkhole with metal grate Good U 1994/? Grate placed over sinkhole to protect

protective covering and visitors in 1994; fencing a later addition

worm rail fencing

C-21 Parking lot Good NC 1990s (?)

C-22 Boardwalk Good NC 1990s (?)

C-23 Asphalt trails Good NC 1990s (?)

C-24 Social trails Fair NC 1990s (?) Bare earth is susceptible to erosion,

may impact adjacent lands

Ve-20 Native plantings in parking lot Good NC 1990s (?)

Ve-21 Trees on earthworks Fair NC unknown Larger than 12 inches dbh trees pose

windthrow/toppling hazard

Ve-22 Native grass groundcover Good NC 1990s (?)

S-14 Lunette Palmer Fair C-F 1863 Erosion, animal burrows, large trees

on slopes

S-15 Curtain Wall No. 2 Fair C-F 1863 Erosion, animal burrows, large trees

on slopes

S-16 Lunette Thomas Good C-F 1863

V-15 Views to golf course and Good NC 1970s

athletic complex

V-16 View to smokestack Fair U 20th c. Viewshed thinning may allow views of

Rutherford County courthouse

V-17 View to access road Good NC 1990s (?)

SS-16 Worm rail fencing Good NC 1990s (?)

SS-23 Vertical wayside exhibit Good NC 2005

SS-31 Benches Good NC 1990s (?)

SS-32 Wayside exhibits Good NC 1990s (?)

SS-33 Small wooden signs Good NC 1990s (?)

SS-34 Cannon Good NC 1990s (?)

SS-35 Boundary fence posts Good NC 1990s (?)

SS-38 Park sign Good NC 1990s (?)

Missing Features

Barracks, warehouses located within Fortress Rosecrans

Evidence of former magazine exists near Lunette Palmer

Half of Lunette Thomas
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

National Park Service 133

Fortress Rosecrans:

Redoubt Brannan

Redoubt Brannan, like Curtain Wall No. 2 and

the Lunettes, is one of the last remaining

portions of the earthworks that comprised the

larger Fortress Rosecrans structure. It was the

last of four redoubts constructed within the

fortress (Refer to Fig. 177). The redoubt occupies

approximately seven acres near where West

College Street passes over Stones River, and is

located north of the Curtain Wall and Lunettes

character area. During the Civil War, the redoubt

occupied a key observation and protective

position, with views of the railroad, river, and the

Nashville Pike as they entered and ran through

the fortress.

Landscape Features

Supporting the lunettes and curtain walls

within Fortress Rosecrans were four

redoubts meant to provide the last line of

defense if the lunettes were breached. The

redoubts were named Schofield, Brannan, T.J.

Wood, and Johnson. Each was a rectangular

earthwork containing artillery, a powder

magazine, and a wooden cruciform

blockhouse. Every redoubt was constructed

on a hill and all were within 350 feet of the

railroad. In addition, Redoubt Brannan was

built astride the Nashville Pike and was the

guardian of the wood-trussed rail and road

bridges.111

Redoubt Brannan is representative of many Civil

War era redoubts; when constructed, Redoubt

Brannan was a rectangular-shaped earthen berm

1,980 feet by 1,320 feet in size and between 10 and

20 feet tall. The earthen berm, or parapet wall,

was fronted by a forward trench or ditch. The

fortification included a sally port, or entrance, on

the northwest side, a blockhouse in the center,

and ramps and artillery platforms along the

interior (LCS ID 007035).

The remains of Redoubt Brannan sit high on a

bluff above Stones River; this position affords

views to the river and the railroad bridge over the

river to the west. Today, it also affords views to

commercial and residential development to the

south and east (Figs. 169, 170, and 171). The

remnants of the cross-shaped blockhouse

FIGURE 169. View from Redoubt Brannan path to Stones

River, looking west.

FIGURE 171. View from Redoubt Brannan to nearby

commercial development, looking north.

FIGURE 170. View from Redoubt Brannan to railroad

bridge, looking southwest.

111. Ibid., 37.
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

134 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield

FIGURE 172. Asphalt parking lot.

FIGURE 173. Recycled wood and plastic boardwalk leading

into the redoubt.

FIGURE 174. Concrete sidewalk which leads over Stones

River along West College Street and to Redoubt Brannan.

foundation are still visible inside of the redoubt.

Other features that survive of the original

structure include the parapet wall, forward

trench, ramps, and artillery platforms. The

fortification remnant is generally in good

condition.

The NPS has constructed a small asphalt parking

lot southeast of the earthwork (Fig. 172). The

parking lot is in good condition. As with the

Curtain Wall No. 2 and Lunettes character area,

the NPS has installed native ornamental

plantings including aromatic sumac, shrubby St.

John’s wort, little bluestem, false blue indigo,

Tennessee purple coneflower, and glade phlox

(Phlox bifida). Native plantings in the parking lot

area are in good condition. Visitors leave the

parking lot and access the interior of the redoubt

by following an asphalt and gravel path which

becomes a recycled wood and plastic boardwalk

(Fig. 173). The asphalt and gravel path is in fair

condition due to the loose gravel, which is a

slipping hazard. This boardwalk enters through

the former sally port, turns southward, and ends;

visitors return via the same route. The boardwalk

is in good condition. A secondary means of

access is available for people walking the

greenway north from the Curtain Wall and

Lunettes. Visitors walk up a short, paved

connector trail from the greenway to a parking

lot adjacent to Old Nashville Highway. After

crossing the road, visitors then follow a sidewalk

along a vehicular bridge to reach the site

(Fig. 174).

Redoubt Brannan is maintained under native,

warm-season grass cover, including broomsedge,

big bluestem (Andropogon gerardii), little

bluestem, side-oats gramma-grass (Bouteloua

curtipendula), Indian grass, and switch grass

(Fig. 175). The grass cover is generally in good

condition. There are just a few mature trees

growing on the earthwork, and the redoubt is

generally open in character. The slopes leading

down to the river, however, are vegetated with

trees, shrubs, and groundcovers such as grasses

and forbs. This vegetation is in fair condition due

to the presence of invasive alien plants.

Views to the railroad track and bridge were

available from the redoubt during April 2006

fieldwork. It is likely that these views are not as

apparent when the deciduous plants are in leaf.

There are few small-scale features within this
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

National Park Service 135

FIGURE 175. Interior view of Redoubt Brannan and

earthwork vegetation.

FIGURE 176. NPS entrance sign and gate pillar.

112. Ibid.

113. Ibid., 44.

site. They include wayside exhibits, stone entry

gate pillars, and a park entry sign consisting of a

stone pillar and foundation supporting a wood

park sign (Fig. 176). These features are generally

in good condition.

Comparative Analysis

The Redoubt Brannan character area continues

to retain evidence of the features and

characteristics established after the Battle of

Stones River by the Union Army to maintain

control of river crossings and a large supply

depot. Although the earthen fortification is only

partially represented, and has lost some of its

height and breadth, exterior cladding, rifle pits,

abatis, and circulation routes, the earthen

remains are generally well-preserved from the

Civil War period. There are no features

representative of the early park development

period associated with the site. There are,

however, later NPS access and interpretive

features, such as waysides, signs, stone entry gate

pillars, trails, and boardwalks that post-date the

period of significance. The landscape in and

around the fortification has been altered to a

great degree, to now include twentieth century

commercial development to the north, east, and

northwest.

Between 1863 and 1865, Redoubt Brannan—like

Curtain Wall No.2 and Lunettes Thomas and

Palmer—was part of the extensive system of

earthworks collectively known as Fortress

Rosecrans. Redoubt Brannan was constructed

on a hill, within 350 feet of the railroad, and

astride the Nashville Pike; Redoubt Brannan was

therefore the “guardian of the wood trussed rail

and road bridges.”112 Given its strategic position,

Redoubt Brannan had good views of the

railroad, river, and the Nashville Pike bridge.

Within the redoubt were artillery, a powder

magazine, and a wooden, cruciform blockhouse,

none of which survive.

At present, the surviving earthen parapet, dry

ditches, ramps, and platforms of the redoubt

remain in relatively good condition. The redoubt

retains many of its original views, particularly to

the railroad and vehicular bridges and river.

Views to the river, however, are somewhat

obscured by understory vegetation. Views to the

commercial development to the north, east, and

across the river to the northwest are intrusive

and incompatible with the character of the site.

Evaluation of Integrity

The CLR team concurs with the assessment of

integrity found in the Stones River National

Battlefield Historic Resource Study: “Although

most of Fortress Rosecrans is now gone, the

elements that remain are substantial enough to

convey the fort’s massiveness as well as its

purpose and significance.”113 In addition, the CLR

team agrees that “the setting of Redoubt Brannan
EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

136 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield

has been somewhat compromised by adjacent

commercial construction.”114 The character area’s

assessment of integrity is bolstered by the

retention of views to the railroad bridge and the

redoubt’s continued relationship to the river and

West College Street bridge.

* The following abbreviations are used: C-F = Contributing to the Fortress Rosecrans Period, 1863–1865; NC = NonContributing; U = Undetermined.

Table 7. Fortress Rosecrans Redoubt Brannan Landscape Features

CLR# Landscape Feature Condition Signif.* Date Comment

C-25 Parking lot Good NC 1990s Clogged drainage grate

C-26 Asphalt-gravel path Fair NC 1990s Loose gravel causing slipping hazard

and may not be universally accessible

C-27 Boardwalk Good NC 1990s

Ve-23 Native grass groundcover Good NC 1990s

Ve-24 Vegetation on slope to river Fair U 1990s

Ve-25 Native plantings in parking lot Good NC 1990s

S-17 Redoubt Brannan Good C-F 1863

V-18 Views to development Fair NC 20th c. The high berm of the redoubt blocks

some of the incompatible views

V-19 Views to the river Fair C-F by 1863 Understory vegetation may block

historic viewsheds to the river

V-20 Views to the railroad tracks Good C-F by 1863

SS-19 Small wood sign Good NC 1990s

SS-36 Wayside exhibit Good NC 1990s

SS-37 Stone entry gate pillars Good NC 1931 (?)

SS-38 Park sign Good NC 1990s

Missing Features

Powder magazine

Wooden blockhouse

114. Ibid.

EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

138 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield



EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ANALYSIS

144 Cultural Landscape Report: Stones River National Battlefield