The Illinois River Watershed Partnership is working on a new project. Ozarks at Large’s Jack Travis reports that the conservation nonprofit has started the process of bringing the prairie back to Prairie Grove.
As of writing this, Prairie Grove Battlefield State Park is a tundra. However, under that blanket of ice and snow is one of America’s most intact Civil War battlefields. That battlefield is situated in and around a diverse grassland ecosystem split by the Illinois River. Recently, Cave Springs-based Illinois River Watershed Partnership secured a climate pollution reduction grant from the EPA to restore 800 acres of those forests, savannas, prairies, wetlands and stream banks.
“So we’re pretty much restoring everything outside of what I call park proper, which is the main use area. That will all stay the same.”
Annie Sales, director of restoration services for IRWP. She gathered park staff last week to give an overview of the project and inform their conversations with guests.
“And then all of the more natural areas we will allow to restore themselves to what they would have been pre-Civil War, pre-settlement times.”
Pre-American settlement. The Osage Nation, Indigenous to the area, would have known the battlefield and surrounding grounds primarily as a tallgrass prairie rather than the cow pastures and hayfields that occupy the space today — hence the town name, Prairie Grove. The state owns roughly 530 acres of what would have been those grasslands, and that’s what IRWP and partner agencies will be restoring.
Work has already started, too. Staff and volunteers began assessing the site and removing invasive species last year. Now, Sales says they’re waiting on the cattle leases currently operating on the land to expire at the end of this year.
“So starting in 2027 is when we will start really restoring the whole prairie back to prairie. We’re not really sure what we have underneath some of those cattle pastures, but in the field at the base of this hill where there’s different types of vegetation, you can see the broomsedge, the taller grass. That is what I would really consider a prairie remnant. It still has those intact prairie mounds you guys see. That’s what that whole landscape would have looked like before humans started plowing and cultivating those lands.”
The IRWP will work with the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission to schedule and facilitate controlled burns after tractors stop cutting grass, starting next year. Many native grasses, such as big bluestem and Indian grass, as well as numerous flowering plants, will begin to dominate — some growing taller than a person.
At that point in the overview, park Superintendent Susan Donangelo posed a question. She wanted to know how they would incorporate trails into this landscape, now shrouded by the plants.
“So on the tallgrass prairie, you’re saying that it will continue to grow, and I know it could grow well above six, eight, 10 feet. How will that look if we’re going to be building trails through there? Because you’re going to be walking through trails, but you won’t be able to see anything because you’re going to be looking at grass.”
A likely, necessary query. Bringing the public into the restored area via walking trails and stream access is central to the project. Sales says they’ll probably carve straight paths rather than winding tunnels, allowing people to see over the plants — although a tunneling, burrowed experience might be part of the fun at another heavily vegetated area. River cane thriving along the Illinois River. Several cane breaks with roots predating the park’s history dot the streambank.
“River cane is an extremely long-lived species, and it is rhizomatic, so one organism can be 200 feet long. A cane brake is a single individual, and they are extremely long-lived. We expect that the cane brakes that are out there right now are the same individuals that would have been here during the Civil War.”
Sales says they will work with the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokees and Roger Cain with the River Cane Institute to restore these cane breaks. She says the plant is culturally significant for the Cherokee and provides many uses. Furthermore, soldiers had a critical application for the cane breaks in Prairie Grove during the Civil War.
“It is likely that the reason the Battle of Prairie Grove was fought down in that valley was because of the cane breaks, because it was such an excellent way to hide from your enemy. One side would have been hiding in the cane, and it’s impossible to shoot into the cane. The battle really took place in and around those cane breaks. So we want to highlight that historical feature. It’s also ecologically significant.”
River cane filters water and is especially efficient at sequestering carbon. With the UKB, IRWP hopes to restore cane breaks along the entire riverside, making it one of the largest in Arkansas. And once completed, Sales hopes to provide park visitors with an immersive experience.
“We’ve talked with Roger about exploring trails through the cane itself to recreate that experience of what the soldiers would have felt when they were in the battle. I dream of doing tunnels where we can weave the cane into these tunnels and folks can crawl through there. It is really dense now, so it will have to be intentional, but I think there’s a lot of opportunity there.
“And with the cane, we look forward to hosting community events focused on the cane — getting the UKB out here, doing basket-weaving workshops, things like that, to engage people with the river cane. I know that in this part of the world, river cane has been seen as a nuisance species, primarily because we needed that land to graze cattle or cut hay, things like that. I would really love the opportunity to teach people about the significance of river cane, culturally and ecologically.”
Once restoration is complete, Sales says the park will become a destination for ecotourism as well as a historical point of interest. For example, her staff found quail on the property during assessments and predicts those numbers will grow after restoration — with birders following in mass.
Plus, trails will also connect to the local school district, giving students access to outdoor learning spaces and volunteer opportunities, allowing them to take ownership of the natural area’s rehabilitation. Self-admittedly, no one is more excited about the project than Park Superintendent Susan Donangelo. This whole project started as a shared dream with Sales, and wants nothing more than to bring this resource to Prairie Grove.
“We both love this place. We were out here talking one day about all the potential that this place has and how we can find ways to have more access for the public and have a more comprehensive ownership of this park. So we were just dreaming. She had an opportunity to get in on this grant. She's like, ‘I’m just going to apply. It’s a one-in-a-million shot.’ And the grant went through. So we’re really excited to see what it does.”
Donangelo says she’s tempered her expectations but remains hopeful. She’s even making the case for bringing in a bison or two to help maintain the grassland, which would have been typical for a pre-settlement prairie — though Sales has yet to find a biologist willing to pass off, yet.
You’ll soon have a chance to learn more about the restoration project and celebrate Prairie Grove Battlefield State Park in person. The second annual Picnic in the Park is scheduled for Saturday, April 25. The spring event will include dozens of local nonprofits and volunteer organizations, plus live music, food and more. IRWP staff will also be in attendance to share more about bringing the prairie back to Prairie Grove.
You can visit irwp.org for more information about the Illinois River Watershed Partnership and arkansasstateparks.com for more on Prairie Grove Battlefield State Park.
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