Camp Ford Camp Ford was a prisoner of war camp near Tyler , Texas , during the American Civil War . It was the largest Confederate - run prison west of the Mississippi River . History . Established in the spring of 1862 as a training camp for new Confederate recruits , the camp was named for Col . John Salmon Ford , a Texas Ranger and the Superintendent of Conscripts for the State of Texas . The first Union prisoners to arrive at camp Ford in August 1863 included officers captured in Brashear City Louisiana in June , and included naval personnel captured when the ' Queen Of The West ' and the ' Diana ' were seized by the Union Navy . The captives were initially held in the open , but a panic ensued in November 1863 when 800 new prisoners threatened a mass breakout . A military stockade enclosing was soon erected . With over 2 , 000 new prisoners taken in Louisiana on April 8 and 9 1864 , at the battles of Mansfield , and Pleasant Hill , the stockade was quadrupled in size . With more prisoners captured in Arkansas , the prison ' s population peaked at about 5 , 000 in July 1864 . The population was reduced by exchanges in July and October 1864 , and again in February 1865 . The last 1 , 761 prisoners were exchanged on May 22 , 1865 . During the course of the war , the total number of prisoners who passed through the camp was slightly more than 5 , 500 . About 327 prisoners died in captivity , giving the camp a mortality rate of 5 . 9 % , one of the lowest of any Civil War prison . The deceased prisoners were reinterred to the Alexandria National Cemetery ( Alexandria , Louisiana ) at Pineville , Louisiana , in 1867 . KATE STONE ' S ACCOUNTS OF CAMP FORD Other contemporary references to Camp Ford may be found in the diary of Kate Stone , a young Louisiana refugee who lived near Tyler during the Civil War . On Nov . 13 , 1863 , Kate refers to Camp Ford as the " Yankee Camp . " She relates that " [ a ] number of the prisoners escaped the other day , and the townspeople are very apprehensive of their burning the town . They put out guards every night , and they take turns in guarding the prisoners . One of the prisoners was shot yesterday for disobedience of orders . He died in a few hours . " Kate makes a passing reference to the Fort on May 7 , 1864 , noting that more prisoners are on the way . On June 14 , 1864 she includes the following remarks in her entry : " Anna and Dr . Meagher returned a few days ago . He is stationed here now in charge of the Yankee prisoners . The prisoners are in a most pitiable condition , perfectly destitute . Some have only a blanket to wear and others only one garment . There is much sickness and death among them and the authorities are powerless to get clothes for them . No clothes or blankets to be bought . " In her other entries , Kate describes the struggles that she and her family faced in procuring food and clothing for themselves ; certainly the Camp was no different . Yet it is possible that Col . Duganne , whose description of Camp Ford is cited above , sent a young lady in the Tyler community some popular novels , which Kate borrowed . On May 18 , 1864 Kate mentions the incident cited above , where the County sheriff and two relatives were hanged as " Jayhawkers " . She does not mention the harrowing details , torture , or burnings recounted in the previous source , but does go on in the same entry to note the deaths of some Yankee prisoners " which is not strange as they are so dreadfully crowded and have the roughest fare . But we cannot help them . They should have stayed in their own bountiful country instead of coming down here to kill and destroy . " Historic Park . The original site of the Camp stockade is now a public historic park , owned by Smith County , Texas , and managed by the Smith County Historical Society , a 501 ( c ) ( 3 ) non - profit organization founded in 1959 by individuals and business firms dedicated to discovering , collecting and preserving data , records and other items relating to the history of Smith County . The park contains a kiosk , paved trail , interpretive signage , a cabin reconstruction , and a picnic area . The park is located on US Highway 271 . 7 miles north of Loop 323 in Tyler , Texas . The geographical coordinates are : 32°23 ' 44 . 13 " N - 95°16 ' 7 . 28 " W