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<p>Dedicated in 1961, this historical marker shares the connection between the Wornall Homestead and the Battle of Westport. The homestead included 640 acres at that time and was at the center of heavy fighting on October 23, 1864. The Wornall estate became a field hospital after the battle, with both Union and Confederate soldiers receiving care. </p>

Wornall Homestead Battle of Westport Historical Marker

This 32-mile driving tour includes markers and monuments that share the history of Civil War battles in the present-day Kansas City metro from October 21st to October 23rd, 1864. The tour starts in Westport and is arranged in a manner aimed at efficiency for the user, with over two dozen markers and monuments related to the Battle of Independence, the Battle of the Big Blue, and the Battle of Westport. These battles were a vital turning point in the Civil War as they ended Sterling Price's attempt to rally Confederate forces in Missouri. In September 1864, Confederate leaders placed 12,000 men under Price to relieve pressure on Confederate forces in other theaters of the war and rally Confederate support throughout Missouri. Price and his Confederate superiors understood that winning control of Missouri would take support away from Lincoln in the upcoming Presidential Election by dashing hopes for ending the war through victory. With George McClellan calling for an end of the war through negotiation, adding another state to the Confederacy would have devastated Lincoln's electoral prospects in November. While Price's Raid had failed to achieve its ambitious goals and retreated from attempts to wrest control of St. Louis and Jefferson City, his army evaded Union forces as it moved west through Missouri. As long as Price and other Confederate armies were able to operate in ostensibly Union-controlled parts of the country, hopes for ending the war through a Union victory seemed distant. Anticipating the possibility of many more years of war, a significant number of Northern voters backed McClellan's plan for a negotiated peace with Confederate leaders. The Battle of Westport was the culmination of three days of fighting and ended with Sterling Price's army retreating from present-day Kansas City. In the days that followed, Price's army disintegrated as it made a fighting retreat into Arkansas. The result not only ended Confederate attempts to control Missouri, it bolstered Lincoln's electoral prospects. After Lincoln's victory, Ulysses S. Grant and other Union military leaders followed Lincoln's plan to end the war by defeating the Confederacy.


Wornall Homestead Battle of Westport Historical Marker

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