Saving Kansas City's Battlefield

Saving Kansas City's Battlefield. . , "To stand on a Civil War battlefield is to stand on holy ground, consecrated by American bravery and blood." , Support Battlefield Restoration and Interpretation, The Monnett Battle of Westport Fund in 2008 launched the Saving Kansas City's Battlefield Initiative, striving to recover a landscape which evokes the historic event associated with this Hallowed Ground. The initiative so far has resulted in the recovery of 250 acres of the Battle of Westport, the largest battle fought west of the Mississippi River. The Saving initiative is the nation's most ambitious ongoing effort at battlefield preservation, requiring substantial donations for further land acquisition and removal of structures from the site., The purpose of preserving Civil War battlefield sites is passing the understanding on to succeeding generations of Americans--at these historic places our country was born and shaped. These landscapes represent an irreplaceable part of our heritage and incredible educational resources. The preserved battlefield site is a tangible outdoor classroom for the continuing connection between generations of Americans, assuring that our heritage is not lost and will inspire future generations yet unborn., Many have accepted our invitation to join this preservation effort with their donations including the William T. Kemper Foundation's gift of $75,000. They have recognized the importance of joining us in this major educational endeavor, preserving an earlier time - so that future generations of students of history can see how this hallowed ground looked at the time of the battle. Please join us in this effort with your talents and treasure by using the QR code portal., History of Preservation , In 1923, the Mayor and City Council of Kansas City adopted ordinances encouraging the preservation and marking of the sites associated with the Battle of Westport along Brush Creek in the Country Club District and along the Blue River at the Byram's Ford Crossing., Efforts to create a National Military Park at Loose Park and at Byram's Ford were pursued in 1926 in the United States Congress. Unfortunately, the Great Depression overwhelmed these efforts., In 1975, members of the Civil War Round Table of Kansas City banded together to form the non-profit Monnett Battle of Westport Fund, named in honor of the late Dr. Howard Monnett, the author of Action Before Westport. The Monnett Fund raised $25,000.00 in contributions to purchase and place markers along a 32-mile auto tour of the sites of the Battle of Westport., In 1983, Commerce Bank donated to the Monnett Fund separate tracts totaling 50 acres within the site of the battlefield at Byram's Ford. The Monnett Fund later led a successful effort to place tracts of the Byram's Ford Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places in 1989., With the Association for the Preservation of Civil War Sites, a predecessor to the present Civil War Preservation Trust, the Fund raised over $40,000.00 in 1992 to acquire another critical 80 acres containing parts of the National Register site. Commerce Bank in 1995 donated another three-acre tract of the battlefield to the Monnett Fund., Between 1995 and 2002, the Monnett Fund transferred its battlefield tracts to the Kansas City Parks Department for development and maintenance as the Big Blue Battlefield., In 2010 the William T. Kemper Trust and other donors provided over $110,000 for part of the purchase of a warehouse property on the battlefield., In 2012, the Kansas City Land Bank donated another warehouse tract to the Monnett Fund for inclusion in the Big Blue Battlefield after the site's reclamation to green space., In 2020 and 2021, the Monnett Fund with support from Freedom's Frontier National Heritage Area installed new historical markers on the Big Blue Battlefield and updated the Battle of Westport Auto tour., (sidebar) , Byram's Ford Historic District , The Byram's Ford Historic District was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1989. The sites of the district are directly associated with an event making a significant contribution to the broad patterns of American history, namely: it was upon these sites that an important juncture within the Civil War Battle of Westport (October 22-23, 1864) took place. The area of significance is MILITARY history: as well as being the largest battle of this war west of the Mississippi the battle represented the last major Union victory in the Trans-Mississippi West and signaled the end of organized Confederate military operations in the State of Missouri. Eighty days after the Confederate defeat at Westport, the Missouri State Convention abolished slavery in Missouri and Governor Thomas C. Fletcher issued an Ordinance Abolishing Slavery in Missouri on January 11, 1865.