Pea Ridge Campaign Facts

December 28, 1861–July 12, 1862

Key facts about the Pea Ridge Campaign.

Map of the Pea Ridge Campaign

During the six-month-long Pea Ridge Campaign, the Union Army of the Southwest marched over 700 miles of rough terrain in Missouri and Arkansas, sometimes with minimal rations during often inclement weather. [National Park Service]

Date:

  • December 28, 1861–July 12, 1862

Location:

  • Southwest Missouri, Northwest Arkansas

Timeline of the Pea Ridge Campaign

These are the main battles and events of the Pea Ridge Campaign in order.

  • December 28, 1862: Union Brigadier General Samuel R. Curtis launched the Pea Ridge Campaign by dispatching a cavalry expedition toward Brigadier General Sterling Price’s headquarters at Springfield, Missouri.
  • February 12, 1862: Skirmish at Pearson’s Creek
  • February 13, 1862: Brigadier General Samuel R. Curtis’ Army of the Southwest occupied Springfield, Missouri
  • February 17, 1862: Battle Of Dunagin’s Farm (Aka Action At Sugar Creek, Action At Little Sugar Creek)
  • February 19, 1862: Rebels abandon Cross Hollows
  • March 6–8, 1862: Battle Of Pea Ridge
  • April 1862: Rebels abandon Arkansas
  • May 2, 1862: Action At Batesville
  • May 19, 1862: Battle Of Whitney’s Lane
  • July 7, 1862: Action At Hill’s Plantation (Aka Battle Of Cotton Plant)
  • July 12, 1862: Curtis occupied Helena, Arkansas ending the Pea Ridge Campaign

Principal Union commanders:

  • Brigadier General Samuel R. Curtis
  • Brigadier General Franz Sigel

Principal Confederate commanders:

Union forces engaged:

  • Army of the Southwest

Confederate forces engaged:

Number of Union soldiers engaged:

  • Roughly 10,500

Number of Confederate soldiers engaged:

  • Roughly 16,000

Estimated Union casualties:

  • 1,400+ casualties (killed, wounded, and missing/captured)

Estimated Confederate casualties:

  • 2,000+ (killed, wounded, and missing/captured)

Result:

  • Union victory

Impact of the Pea Ridge Campaign:

  • The Pea Ridge Campaign cemented Union control of Missouri after 1862.
  • The Union’s victorious Pea Ridge Campaign contributed to the fall of Vicksburg and cemented Union control of the Mississippi River in 1863.
  • The Union’s victorious Pea Ridge Campaign enabled federal forces to erect Fort Curtis, which served as an important staging area for the Vicksburg Campaign, a training ground for United States Colored Troops, and a safe haven for escaped slaves in Arkansas.