Location: Dover, Tennessee Map
Area: 1,007 acres (408 ha)
Official site
Fort Donelson National Battlefield cover are of two Confederate forts Donelson and Heiman that stand overlooking Cumberland river in Dover, Tennessee. It was captured in February 1962 by Union general Ulysses S. Grant and Admiral Andrew Hull Foote which secured a major water highway necessary for victory in the Civil War. It was here that obscure and largely unknown Grant gained his nickname of "Unconditional Surrender" by his first two initials of U.S. The battle resulted in 800 killed and over 3000 wounded soldiers on both sides.
Union Army Brigadier General Ulysses S. Grant and Union Navy officer
Andrew Hull Foote managed to capture the three Confederate
fortresses, thus opening the Tennessee (river) and the Cumberland
(river) to control the Union. The commanders received national
recognition for their victories in February 1862 as they were the
first major union achievements in the American Civil War. The
capture of Fort Donelson and its garrison on the part led to the
conquest of the capital and industrial center of Tennessee,
Nashville, which remained in the hands of the Union from February
25, 1862 until the end of the war, giving effective control over
much of the State.
This event will cause a blow to the
Confederate States of America at the beginning of the conflict. The
main part of the park located in Dover (Tennessee), mainly
commemorates the battle of Fort Donelson. Fort Heiman, in the nearby
county of Calloway, was a Confederate artillery battery active
during the Battle of Fort Henry.
Brig. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant
Flag Off. Andrew Hull Foote
Brig. Gen. John B. Floyd
Brig. Gen. Gideon J. Pillow
Brig. Gen. Simon B. Buckner
Fort Donelson National Battlefield preserves much of the original battle site, including the river batteries and the eroded remains of the fort, but the area in which the Confederate States Army attacked on February 15, 1862, is largely in private hands and occupied by residential development. The Cumberland River was dammed in the 1960s; this area is currently referred to as Lake Barkley. It covers an area roughly similar to the original river while at flood stage, as it was during the battle. The Civil War Trust (a division of the American Battlefield Trust) and its partners have acquired and preserved 368 acres (1.49 km2) of the battlefield, most of which has been conveyed to the NPS and incorporated into the battlefield park.
Dover Hotel
Former headquarters of Brig. Gen. John B. Floyd and site of final surrender
Fort Donelson National Cemetery
Fort Donelson National Cemetery covers 15.34 acres (62,080 m2) and contains 670 grave sites of Union soldiers