Chickamauga & Chattanooga National Military Park

09/02/2026

"Wasn't death near enough already? Wasn't there never to be any let up to this thing? Never to be God's Country for us any more? Were all the loved ones back yonder gone forever? No time for thinking now. Get to work! And we knelt to fire."

The ground that makes up Chickamauga Battlefield is among the most hallowed in the United States. We are fortunate to have places like this - landscapes where we can pause, reflect, and connect with moments of profound hardship and sacrifice.

Many who fought here wrote down their experiences, preserving memories that still resonate across these fields today. One such soldier, J. Henry Haynie of the 19th Illinois Infantry recorded his recollections of the desperate fighting on Horseshoe Ridge, and more specifically, Hill One, on September 20, 1863. Those experiences, quoted in this post, stayed with Haynie for the rest of his life.

“Bullets splash red mud — the earth had been made mire by human blood — into our faces… Bullets, fragments of shell, grape, and cannister, sing over and around… There goes a comrade down — and there's another!”

Standing in these soldiers' footsteps and reading their words creates an often indescribable connection to history. We encourage you to visit Horseshoe Ridge (Tour Stop 8), pause at the 19th Illinois monument, and read Haynie’s vivid description of the battle’s final hours.

If you’ve never experienced this kind of immersion, seek out the writings of soldiers and read them on the ground where they once stood. History takes on a powerful new dimension, and even a small glimpse of their reality becomes unforgettable.

How fortunate we are to have a place such as this.

Images: Haynie, Henry I. E. James Henry. The Nineteenth Illinois; a memoir of a regiment of volunteer infantry famous in the Civil War of fifty years ago for its drill, bravery, and distinguished services. [Chicago, M.A. Donohue & co, 1912] Pdf. https://www.loc.gov/item/13004756/.; 19th Illinois Monument on Hill One of Horseshoe Ridge. Photographed by Dale K. Benington.

08/27/2026

Get out and enjoy your national parks during National Park Week! We look forward to seeing you.

Our National Park Week countdown of our favorite National Park Service sites you may have never heard of is heading to Georgia and Tennessee.

Chickamauga & Chattanooga National Military Park preserves more than 9,000 acres of battlefields, forests, monuments and historic landscapes connected to some of the most significant fighting of the Civil War.

Established in 1890, it was America’s first national military park, and it set the stage for battlefield preservation across the country.

Today, visitors can walk the fields of Chickamauga or take in sweeping views from Lookout Mountain. History, scenery and more than a few incredible views. Put this one on your National Park Week list.

Photo by John Marshall

08/24/2026

UPDATE: Viniard-Alexander Road has re-opened to traffic. Thank you for your patience and understanding.

ATTENTION: On Tuesday, August 25, Viniard-Alexander Road, between Alexander’s Bridge Road and LaFayette Road, will be temporarily closed for most of the day to allow for the removal of a hazardous tree. If you need to travel this road, please plan ahead and use an alternate route. Thank you for your patience and understanding as the park works to ensure the safety of our visitors and employees.

08/21/2026

On August 21, 1863, the first artillery shells landed inside the city of Chattanooga, Tennessee, utterly surprising and scattering Confederate soldiers and civilians alike. The officer who ordered those shots to be fired was Captain Eli Lilly, commanding the 18th Indiana Light Artillery. Before the Civil War, Lilly worked as a druggist and had a deep fascination with chemistry. During the Chickamauga Campaign, he commanded the artillery of Colonel John T. Wilder’s “Lightning Brigade,” a role which eventually placed him squarely in the thick of the fighting along West Chickamauga Creek several weeks later on September 18, 19, and 20, 1863.

Lilly survived the battle and the war, eventually returning home and re-entering the pharmaceutical field. Under his family’s leadership, Lilly Pharmaceuticals became one of the first companies in the United States to mass‑produce penicillin, saving the lives of thousands of soldiers during World War II. It was also among the earliest producers of insulin, transforming the treatment of diabetes and improving the lives of millions.

Eli Lilly’s legacy lives on today, continuing to save lives through the medications his company develops, all of which can be traced back to a young captain who survived the carnage of the second deadliest battle of the Civil War - the Battle of Chickamauga.

However, Lilly's success should bring us pause and cause us to ask ourselves how many cures, discoveries, or breakthroughs never came to be because their potential creators were lost to war? What might the world look like today if every bright mind had lived long enough to share its gifts?

Image: D.M. Spurgin & Son, photographer. Major Eli Lilly of Co. E, 21st Indiana Infantry Regiment, 18th Indiana Light Artillery Battery, and 9th Indiana Cavalry Regiment in uniform / D.M. Spurgin & Son, photographers, Green Castle, Ind. United States, None. [Green castle, ind.: d.m. spurgin & son, between 1861 and 1865] Photograph. https://www.loc.gov/item/2018652645/.

08/19/2026

On August 19, 1890, the Congress of the United States saw fit to establish the first national military park in the country, “For the purpose of preserving and suitably marking for historical and professional military study, the fields of some of the most remarkable maneuvers and most brilliant fighting in the War of the Rebellion…”

Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park was indeed that park. The veterans of the Chattanooga Campaign began to “suitably mark” the battlefield starting in 1893, and today there are over 1,500 commemorative features across different units of the park. In September 1895, the park itself was dedicated over the three-day anniversary of the battle.

Today, Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park honor the soldiers of both sides and the veterans who wanted to preserve the hallowed grounds upon which they once fought. Today, it is a place that reminds us that the freedom we have has come at the greatest of sacrifice.

08/17/2026

On Wednesday, August 19, between 3:30 pm and 6:30 pm ET, McFarland Gap Road, from Park City Road to White Road, will be temporarily closed in Chickamauga Battlefield while crews replace a guardrail damaged during a recent storm. If you plan to travel this route, please allow extra time and consider an alternate way around the closure.

Thank you for your patience and understanding as we work to enhance safety and improve the visitor experience throughout the park.

Send a message to learn more

08/13/2026

Tomorrow morning, August 14, park mowing crews will temporarily close West Brotherton Road, between LaFayette Road and Alexander’s Bridge Road, from 7–9 am ET. Once mowing in this area is complete, the road will reopen. Crews will then close East Brotherton Road, between Alexander’s Bridge Road and Jay’s Mill Road, from 9–11 am ET. East Brotherton Road will reopen once mowing operations conclude.

Thank you for your understanding as we work to enhance the visitor experience throughout the park.

Send a message to learn more

08/12/2026

Have you recently hiked a trail and noticed how powdery the soil gets during these hot summer days? If so, you are experiencing similar conditions soldiers endured during the opening weeks of the 1863 Chickamauga Campaign, when every step kicked up clouds of dust.

Lieutenant Joshua K. Galloway of the 28th Alabama Infantry captured his own dusty experience in a letter to his wife on September 6, 1863:

“The weather is very dry and the road exceedingly dusty. I got just enough in my nose and lungs the other day to make a brick… After a little march we all look like a parcel… cats. You can hardly tell one man from another; everybody’s hair, whiskers, skin and clothes are the same color.”

Dry roads didn’t just make marching uncomfortable, they shaped how soldiers moved, how fast they traveled, and even how visible they were to the enemy.

If you haven’t found yourself on a dusty trail lately, you may still have felt some of the same modern discomforts, such as hauling hay on a sweltering day or working outdoors when the heat makes everything cling to your skin. Experiences like these can help us better understand, even in a small way, what Union and Confederate soldiers endured as they marched and fought through brutal conditions during the Battle of Chickamauga.

Can you relate to any of these experiences, and if so, how?

Image: Close up of reddish, dusty dirt. NPS Photo

08/11/2026

Beginning August 12, Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park will temporarily close Glenn‑Viniard Road between LaFayette Road and Wilder Road to support construction work in Chickamauga Battlefield. During this period, all public traffic will be prohibited on the closed portion of the road. The park expects the project to be completed by early September 2026.

A temporary detour will be implemented to maintain visitor access to the designated battlefield tour routes.

Thank you for understanding as we continue to work to improve visitor safety and enhance the overall visitor experience within the park.