Camp Ford Historic Site and Park

Camp Ford was the largest Confederate Prisoner of War Camp west of Mississippi River during the American Civil War. Between August 1863 and May 1865, it held over 5,400 prisoners from every Union state with the exception of Delaware and Vermont. After intensive archaeological investigation, the remarkably intact site is now an interpretive historic park with permanent covenants. Interpretive tools are available at the site, including a roofed kiosk with ten informational panels and a walking trail with ten informational tablets. Also on site is the cabin of Lt. Col. J.B. Leake, 20^th Iowa, which has been reconstructed from two detailed drawings found in his diary. Nearby is the Smith County Historical Society’s Museum and Archives Collection at the Tyler Carnegie Library Building. Information and resources related to Camp Ford are available there.