Headquarters House
Introduction
Text-to-speech Audio
Images
Replaced Front Door of Headquarters House
Outbuilding That Served as Cover for Union Troops
Walkway and Front Lawn of Headquarter House - Where Fighting Took Place
Backstory and Context
Text-to-speech Audio
Built in 1853 by Matilda and Jonas Tebbetts, the building first served as a family home. After Jonas was arrested and almost hanged for his support of the Union, the Tebbetts family left their Fayetteville home to live in Missouri. Headquarters House earned its name by serving as a headquarters for both Union and Confederate soldiers during the Civil War. Its location on what we now know as Dickson Street made it an ideal post for soldiers at the time. Prior to the Battle of Fayetteville, Headquarters House was serving as the Union Command post under Colonel M. LaRue Harrison.
On the morning of April 18, 1863, shortly after sunrise, Confederate soldiers under the command of Brigadier General W.L. Cabell began their attack on the Union soldiers housed in Headquarters House. Following the battles at Pea Ridge, Prairie Grove, and Cane Hill, the Union had a strong grip on Fayetteville and surrounding areas. For the Confederacy, this attack was an attempt to regain control. Union troops took up their positions in and around the house, using it as cover from the fire coming down on them. The house took heavy hits from bullets and cannonballs along with their shrapnel. Civilians were forced to take cover in cellars, as they too were put in the way of heavy fire.
The significance of Headquarters House and the Battle of Fayetteville has to do largely with the soldiers who fought and where the battle took place. Arkansas had supporters for both sides of the war, some for the Confederacy and some for the Union. The 1st Arkansas Cavalry of the Confederacy and the 1st Arkansas Cavalry of the Union were those two sides fighting in the Battle of Fayetteville. Many may have known soldiers fighting from each side, making the attack even harder on the civilians as well.
Today, Headquarters House is among the oldest still-standing structures in Fayetteville. It serves as not only a museum, but a reminder of the conflicts the area saw during the Civil War. Headquarters House has preserved its history almost completely, keeping even the original furniture that was present during those times. The front door, which was hit by a cannonball in the midst of battle, it still on site today. With the cannonball still encased in the wood, it is on display and yet another reminder of the all too real conflict that occured.
Sources
Cox, Dale. “The Battle of Fayetteville.” The Battle of Fayetteville - Fayetteville, Arkansas, www.exploresouthernhistory.com/battleoffayetteville.html.
“Headquarters House.” Fayetteville History, www.fayettevillehistory.org/2007/02/headquarters_ho.html.
Scott, Kim Allen. “The Civil War in a Bottle: Battle at Fayetteville, Arkansas.” Access Online Resources, libcatalog.atu.edu:2328/stable/40030943?sid=primo.