chickamauga and chattanooga national military park

Visited for only a few hours because my wife doesn't "do" history. Needed much more time. The visitor center has a great film to get the overview, (and some good displays, described better by other reviewers). But I wanted to get out to the driving tour of the actual battlefield ! And I was suitably impressed. The audio tour was very helpful (I used the cell-phone option; they also have a longer version available for purchase at the gift shop). Seeing the actual terrain of the battle helps bring it to life. I walked some of it, as time permitted, and that was well worth the effort. A sad but impressive piece of history.

My husband and I arrived only to be told that the visitors' center was going to close in two hours due to the weather. We had time to watch the well-done video and explore some of the museum. We were able to purchase some items from the bookstore. The clerk, a retired park ranger, was a wealth of information. The battlefield was also closing due to the weather. We plan on returning.

We thoroughly enjoyed our day at the Military Park. The museum is extremely well done - the video was excellent. My husband particularly enjoyed the rifle collection - at least a thousand rifles going back 300 years! We did the driving tour and got out of the car to see specific monuments. Worked well for us on a cold November day.

If you want to soak up some Civil War history, this is the place for you. If you have an hour or two, there is the wonderful 24 minute movie at the visitor center and a driving tour. However, if you have the time, the battlefield is marked with all kinds of monuments, markers and placards detailing everything that happened during the Battle of Chickamagua for the interested person. I would love to return when I have more time.

This is probably the best Battlefield Park I have visited behind Gettysburg. Even though this park is a little bit out of the way from Chattanooga, it is well worth the stop. i wish we had a lot more time to spend here but due to travel time and lack of Daylight in mid-January. There are so many monuments to see and the movie about the battle at the visitor center is so informantive. If you are into U.S. history or Civil War history come to Chickamauga.

This is an awesome military park. Very pretty, nice statues, nice visitor center, enjoyed it tremendously. Wonderful place for a picnic.

We really enjoyed the museum center and the movie to get a feel for the battle then headed out to a self guided tour of the battlefield. Very interesting. Lots to see and learn. From there we went to the little town of Chickamauga. Not much there, we could have skipped it. A couple of restaurants in the area but not too much.

I have recently started visiting Civil War battlefields and have found no better way to enhance the experience than to hire a guide. Richard Manion of White Star Battlefield Tours is a history professor who took myself and a friend on a 4 hour tour of the Chickamauga Battlefield today, and it was a great experience. We had done some reading about the battle but many questions remained for us concerning the finer points of the battle. Richard began by having us view the 15 minute film at the Visitor Center and then spent more time leading us around the exhibits and giving us a base of information before beginning the tour. We then took a driving tour, making numerous stops along the way, of the battlefield, which is the largest park of all of the Civil War sites. Richard is a most knowledgeable individual and was able to answer all of our questions, as well as put the pieces of the puzzle of this 3 day battle together for us. I have done the self guided tour in the past and it doesn't compare to having Richard guide the tour. Prior to the tour, Richard gave us the option of him driving our vehicle or accompanying him in his and taking his Border Collie "Brody" along for the ride. Being dog lovers, we opted to take the tour with Brody and he was the perfect companion. Final word, Richard's rates were quite reasonable and so worth it!

Prior to our cruise in Decmber, we drove to Chickamauga Battlefield. We are from central Illinois, and there was a monument dedicated to the Newton Lighting Brigade from Illinois. Also, I knew we had a relative who fought and died at Lookout Mountain, so we visited the battlefield early in the morning, and proceeded to the park services building. They typed in my last name, and I found out I had 5 relatives fight there. Also, one of them had my first name. Enough about family. What is unique about the battlefield is the road through splits the North and South sides of the fields and ridges. Also, monuments are placed for each divisions place in the battle, so you can really tell where everyone was. If you are in Chattanooga, it's worth the look.

U S Grant demonstrated why he was one of the Nation's most successful Generals by finding a way to a victory. The battle site was really the beginning of the end for the Confederacy. The park is well positioned - the graphics of very well done - and the story is readable by all. Regardless of your thoughts of North / South - this is one of the many excellent parks crated and maintained by the National Park Service. This Park is easy to reach, right off I-75 just South of Chattanooga ... and really worth the hour of more time investment.

The park service has really been working hard to clean up the ground. It is a beautiful park to explore on foot, on a bike or in the car.

The sprawling Chickamauga Battlefield/Military Park is a rich gem of history. Whether you're a Civil War buff or just passing through the area and want to have a taste of local history, don't miss it! My husband and I recently took a private tour with Rick Manion of White Star Battlefiedl Tours (423-240-2439). I wanted a more personal perspective because my great-great grandfather was a Confederate Cavalryman, and I wanted to get a better understanding of where he would have fought during the battle. Rick was able to show us exactly where his regiment was fought and provided me with additional resources regarding his regiment's role. I would highly recommend the "private" tour as Rick has scholar's knowledge regarding all that transpired over the course of those bloody days in 1863.

Highly recommend this excursion to one of the bloodiest battle fields in the civil war. Very moving, and excellent directions to 8 sites as you drive by the monuments to all those who died on both sides of the war.

One of the major battles of the Civil War took place at Chickamauga and nearby Lookout Mountain. We took the auto tour route around the battlefield and stopped in the park museum. It is a sobering experience to be able to stand on the same soil where so many American's lost their lives, whether they were Confederate or Union, they were all Americans.

My husband and I visited the battlefield after running the marathon through the park(which was great). We hired Richard Manion with white Star battlefield tours to guide us as the battle was kind of confusing to me and he was great. Gave a good overview of what led up to battle and the battle itself. Had a lot of interesting stories as well. He was very nice and easy to talk to and was patient with all my questions! We will definitely hire him again when we come back. The battlefield is large and since it was 2 days of fighting you will need to prepare for spending 5-6 hours and preferrably even 2 days to really tour it right.