Battle of Island Mound State Historic Site

The Battle of Island Mound State Historic Site is located in a rural area of Bates County, Missouri. The site was established in 2012 to preserve the site of the American Civil War battle that took place in 1862 between Union forces, mainly the 1st Regiment Kansas Volunteer Infantry (Colored) with supporting elements of the 5th Regiment Kansas Volunteer Cavalry, and Confederate guerrillas along with elements of the pro-Confederate Missouri State Guard. The battle was significant as the first time African-American troops engaged white troops in the Civil War.

The site
The historic site is located approximately eight miles southwest of Butler, Missouri a short distance off State Highway K. The forty acre site is near, but not precisely on, the battle location, which is located on private property one-half mile to the south. Instead it encompasses much of the Toothman homestead, which was commandeered by the Union troops, fortified with temporary breastworks and christened "Fort Africa". The site today offers visitors hiking and picnic opportunities and is strictly a "day use" facility open from sunrise to sunset. A central kiosk provides information about the battle and is adjacent to a .6 mile looping trail. Visitors will find the "Courage Monument" and several interpretive panels at various points along the trail. A picnic shelter, which can accommodate up to fifty, toilet facility, and drinking fountain are located near the kiosk. The site and the battle itself were largely forgotten in the post-bellum period. However with the approach of the American Civil War sesquicentennial interest was rekindled and land was acquired by the state of Missouri in order to preserve as much of the site as possible. Dedication ceremonies were held for the site on October 26–27, 2012, nearly 150 years to the day of the battle. In May, 2013 the site was accepted into the National Park Service "National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom", a series of locations deemed to be significant to African-American heritage and the Underground Railroad.

The battle
During the Battle of Island Mound (aka "Battle of Fort Toothman" or "Fort Africa") on October 28–29, 1862 the Union 1st Kansas Colored Volunteers—composed of former Arkansas and Missouri slaves—and a scouting element from the 5th Kansas Volunteer Cavalry engaged a numerically superior force of Confederate guerrillas and recent Missouri State Guard recruits led by Vard Cockrell and Bill Truman, a relative of President Harry S. Truman. The Union forces crossed into Missouri on a mission to clear Confederate guerrillas from an area known as "Hog Island". However finding themselves outnumbered, the Union troops commandeered and fortified the homestead of Confederate guerrilla Enoch John Toothman and a one-day siege ensued. After several volleys of gunfire and a cavalry charge the Confederates withdrew from the area on October 29. Casualties were relatively light; Union losses were seven enlisted men and one officer killed, Confederate losses estimated at perhaps over thirty. What made the clash significant was the amount of press coverage it received nationwide, being the first time African-American troops engaged Confederate forces during the Civil War. Reports of the battle provided encouragement to other African-American units that were forming across the northern states and petitioning the Union government for their right to fight.