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Our online presence has moved ...

facebookThe Civil War Round Table of Western Missouri's website is no longer being updated due to staffing issues.

However, you can still follow us on our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/CWRTWM/.

Upcoming CWRTWM meetings and programs ...

 

Civil War Round Table of Western Missouri logoFind our events on our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/CWRTWM/

 

The Sultana Disaster Museum

Drawing of the SultanaThe Sultana Disaster Museum tells the story of the deadliest maritime disaster in United States history and is located at 104 Washington Street in Marion, Arkansas.  It is a very nice museum, planning to grow into a larger space to better tell the story interactively and display more of their artifacts.  A donation campaign is in its final stages for the larger space.  Visit their website to learn more about the museum and the stories from the Sultana and the crew and passengers involved.

From the museum's website (www.sultanadisastermuseum.com):

The Worst Maritime Disaster in U.S. History

In the early morning hours of April 27, 1865, the steamboat Sultana exploded into a fiery blaze on the Mississippi River, eventually drifting and sinking near the Arkansas banks. At the Sultana Disaster Museum, we tell the lost stories of the disaster and those individuals who experienced it.

Sultana Disaster Museum the SultanaThe Sultana, a Civil War-era paddle-wheel steamboat, exploded and burned on the Mississippi River on April 27, 1865. Acknowledged by Congressional Resolution as the greatest maritime disaster in United States history, nearly 1,200 of the more than 2,200 passengers and crew were killed in the explosion and fire which sank the Sultana near Marion, Arkansas, across the river from Memphis, Tennessee. Designed to carry only 376 passengers plus crew, investigations revealed a litany of corrupt practices, including kickbacks, and bribes paid to high-ranking Union officers caused the overcrowding of the boat. The disaster has been overlooked in history since it was overshadowed by the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln and the search for his murderer. Events at the end of the Civil War conspired to wipe the memory of this tragic event from our national history for over 130 years. In its magnitude, the story of the Sultana is as great as that of the more famous Titanic, and yet much more intriguing.

Rendering of the new Sultana Disaster MuseumThe Future Museum

Recently, the Sultana Historic Preservation Society, Inc. acquired the 1939 Marion School Auditorium-Gymnasium for renovation as the future home of the permanent Sultana Disaster Museum. Utilizing the talents of Haizlip Studio of Memphis, TN, a team of architects, planners, and exhibit designers will work on state-of-the-art concepts to be presented in this 17,000 square foot facility. With a more accessible location, the historic building with ceilings nearing 35 feet offers ample capacity for a new, modern, high-tech museum, that will entertain and educate visitors of all ages.  It also allows us to preserve and re-purpose one of the most historical buildings in eastern Arkansas. Rendering of the new Sultana Disaster Museum and Memorial Plaza

 

 

 

 



 

What We Do

Monthly Program/Meetings – Featuring "Speaker of the Month" or "Round Table Sessions," refreshments and socializing with others of like interests. Meetings are generally held on the second Wednesday of each month.  Check the Calendar to verify the date and location and find out about the next program topic.  Visitors are always welcome!

Board Meetings – Meetings are generally bi-monthly and held immediately following the monthly program/meetings on the second Wednesday of the month.  Members can verify the date and location by logging into this site and checking the Calendar.  Non-members can send an inquiry via the Contact Us page.  Visitors are always welcome!

The Sonny Wells Little Blue Battlefield Memorial Commission – A subsidiary Commission organized for the purpose of receiving and maintaining all real estate and monies of the Little Blue Battlefield and its memorials, setting goals, raising funds and any other purposes lawfully identified, in order to preserve the Little Blue Battlefield, located at and near the Little Blue River and U.S. Highway 24 in eastern Jackson County, Missouri.  This is the publishing arm of the organization to create historical guide books to Civil War Monuments and Memorials in Missouri, normally within a 50 mile range of Kansas City.

The Lewis-Gregg Cemetery Commission – A subsidiary Commission organized for the purpose of owning, operating, maintaining and funding the Lewis-Gregg Cemetery, located in eastern Jackson County, Missouri, which includes land and monies transferred from the Jackson County Historical Society in 2006, and for any other purposes lawfully identified, in order to preserve the Lewis-Gregg Cemetery.

Field Trips – Excursions to local history sites, first-hand learning, refreshments.

Annual Picnic – Complete with Civil War fare, when we dare.

Christmas Party – Christmas feast, celebration of Christmas past and costuming, with a potluck meal and a speaker.

Newsletter – "The Border Star" for our members, monthly calendar items, border warfare articles, national Civil War articles, information about our members and friends.  It is currently published bi-monthly.

Who We Are

Only Virginia and Tennessee had more Civil War engagements than Missouri.  The Battle of Lexington early in the war, the Battle of Lone Jack near the middle of the war and the Battle of Westport late in the war all occurred in western Missouri.  The Civil War Round Table of Western Missouri studies them and more.  Each month the Round Table meets to hear speakers present topics related to the war and local attractions.

The Civil War Round Table of Western Missouri is a 501(c)(3), non-profit, tax exempt organization, dedicated to educational purposes including the promotion and understanding of all aspects and phases of the U.S. Civil War period, especially in WESTERN MISSOURI and the "BORDER WAR" conflict and to stimulate interest in and further discussion and study of the War Between the States.

 

Re-enactors - Men, women, children, and families portraying Civil War era personalities - Both Union and Confederate.

Genealogists - Family history researchers - Many related to Civil War veterans.

Historians - Veteran and novice researchers of local and national Civil War history.

Preservationists - Interested in battlefield, cemetery, monument, artifact, and historic site preservation.

Teachers - Area high school and grade school teachers and other educators.

Authors - Published writers of both local and national Civil War history.

 

Anyone interested in Civil War history.  Meetings open to members and non-members.  COME ONE, COME ALL!