Latta House, Prairie Grove Battlefield State Park

The Latta House was moved to Prairie Grove Battlefield State Park in 1958 in order to prevent its demolition. The park was established in 1908 on the site of the December 7, 1862, Battle of Prairie Grove, the last major Civil War engagement in northwest Arkansas, which secured the region for the Union. Originally located twelve miles southwest, the two-story log house was the home of John and Jane Latta, who came to Arkansas from South Carolina in 1834 with two slaves, known only as Dan and Ben, who did most of the masonry work and interior cabinetry for the house; they also worked on other houses in Evansville. This building’s frame was raised by other workers. The stones of the original foundation were moved with the house, but the roof of western red cedar shakes is a replacement for what is believed to have been the original material. The front and rear porches also are replacements, and each is sheltered by a roof overhang supported on five wooden columns. Each porch has two entrance doors to the house. The house has exterior end chimneys. Two bedrooms on the upper floor are reached by an L-shaped staircase that can be closed off from the lower floor by a wooden door. While many houses at the time had a separate kitchen building, here the kitchen was in the basement. Latta’s barn and springhouse were moved with the house. The park also offers a visitor center, museum, and walking trails through the battlefield.