Camp Milton Historic Preserve

During the Civil War, Florida served as a critical agricultural and transportation region for Confederates, acting as a large supplier of cattle, salt, and other goods. In order to protect North Florida, Camp Milton was constructed in 1864, after Federal defeat at the Battle of Olustee, by Confederate General Pierre Gustave Toutant Beauregard, a specialist in defensive fortifications. The camp was named after Florida’s Civil War Governor John Milton, and consisted of a construction of earthwork and wooden fortifications. Beauregard began building along three miles of the western bank of McGirts Creek from February to March of that year, with soldiers and enslaved men constructing large wooden defenses. Because the camp was made of earth and wood, rather than brick, it took several weeks to complete, rather than years.

Aside from protecting an agricultural region, the camp was also meant to prevent western Union advances from Jacksonville toward the supply center and railhead along Old Plank Road and the Florida, Atlantic, and Gulf Central Railroad (FA&GC) toward Baldwin. Early in 1864, Camp Milton housed around 6,000 Confederate infantry, 1,500 cavalry troops, and 430 field pieces. It was considered the largest encampment of Confederate forces in Florida, and was one of the largest fortifications erected in the state during the Civil War. Although no major battles were fought at the camp, several skirmishes occurred in the vicinity before Confederate forces sent many men back to their original posts in Georgia and South Carolina.

In the summer of 1864, after only a small force was left at Camp Milton, 2,500 Union soldiers occupied the site, forcing outnumbered Confederates to withdraw. Union forces destroyed most of the camp, burning log stockades and leveling the earthworks, before heading back to Jacksonville. After their departure, Confederates once again occupied the camp.

After the war, the 124-acre camp was almost turned into a dump, until in 1973, a portion of the remaining earthworks was discovered and efforts began to purchase and protect the property. In 1981, the State of Florida purchased the land and later leased it to the city, which then acquired more acreage through the Preservation Project of Jacksonville. A 1992 archeological investigation of the site concluded that “Camp Milton may be one of the most significant sites associated with the Civil War in Florida and state-wide, if not national, significance.” That significance has been acknowledged by organizations such as the Bureau of Historic Preservation and Florida Department of Archives and Historic Resource Management. In the summer of 2006, a major development project was completed, and the new preserve was opened to the public in September of that year.

Today, the site has been developed into a midpoint trailhead for the Jacksonville Baldwin Rail Trail and is part of the Timucuan rail Partnership. Managed by the City of Jacksonville, the camp provides educational programs and markers, displays Civil War artifacts, has a large historical reenactment field, and has access to an existing historic railroad line.

1. Florida Civil War Heritage Trail, Department of State. Accessed October 18th 2020. https://dos.myflorida.com/media/32357/civilwarheritagetrail.pdf.
2. Camp Milton Historic Preserve, City of Jacksonville. Accessed October 18th 2020. https://www.coj.net/departments/parks-and-recreation/recreation-and-community-programming/parks/camp-milton-historic-preserve.
3. Camp Milton Historic Preserve, American Battlefield Trust. Accessed October 18th 2020. https://www.battlefields.org/visit/heritage-sites/camp-milton-historic-preserve.
4. CAMP MILTON HISTORIC PRESERVE JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA, Explore Southern History. Accessed October 18th 2020. https://www.exploresouthernhistory.com/campmilton.html.
5. Word, Ron. CAMP MILTON HOLDS CIVIL WAR HISTORY, Tampa Bay. September 21st 2009. Accessed October 18th 2020. https://www.tampabay.com/archive/2009/09/20/camp-milton-holds-civil-war-history/.
6. Camp Milton Historic Preserve, Metro Jacksonville. March 31st 2009. Accessed October 18th 2020. https://www.metrojacksonville.com/article/2009-mar-camp-milton-historic-preserve.