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National Park Service gives $82,000 to protect Tennessee battlefields

FILE - In this Jan 1, 2002, file photo, a cannon faces the Cumberland River at Fort Donelson National Battlefield in Dover, Tenn. Under proposed changes to Tennessee’s social studies curriculum, public school students would no longer be required to be taught about the battle that first made a name for Union commander Ulysses S. Grant and led to Nashville becoming the first Confederate state capital to fall to the North. (AP Photo/The Leaf-Chronicle, Greg Williamson, File)
FILE - In this Jan 1, 2002, file photo, a cannon faces the Cumberland River at Fort Donelson National Battlefield in Dover, Tenn. Under proposed changes to Tennessee’s social studies curriculum, public school students would no longer be required to be taught about the battle that first made a name for Union commander Ulysses S. Grant and led to Nashville becoming the first Confederate state capital to fall to the North. (AP Photo/The Leaf-Chronicle, Greg Williamson, File) FILE - In this Jan 1, 2002, file photo, a cannon faces the Cumberland River at Fort Donelson National Battlefield in Dover, Tenn. Under proposed changes to Tennessee’s social studies curriculum, public school students would no longer be required to be taught about the battle that first made a name for Union commander Ulysses S. Grant and led to Nashville becoming the first Confederate state capital to fall to the North. (AP Photo/The Leaf-Chronicle, Greg Williamson, File)

By Staff Report 1 min read

The National Park service awarded more than $82,000 in grants today to protect 14 acres of battlefields in Tennessee – including a site in Chattanooga.

The money will be used to acquire portions of the Chattanooga and Wauhatchie Battlefields and the Fort Donelson Battlefield in Dover, Tenn.

“Some of the most defining moments in our nation’s history were decided by conflicts that played out on these hallowed grounds,” according to a statement from NPS Deputy Director Dan Smith. “In partnership with local communities, the Civil War Trust, and the Tennessee Historical Commission, these grants will help preserve these battlefields for future generations to reflect on the history they represent.”

The battlefields are in danger of damage or destruction due to urban and suburban development, according to a release from the National Park Service.

The Chattanooga and Wauhatchie Battlefields received $57,065 for preservation of 3.61 acres. The grants are funded through the Land and Water Conservation Fund, which uses revenue from federal oil and gas leases.