July 20, 1956

Congress enacted legislation to accept a 5,000-acre donation from the state of Arkansas to establish what became the Pea Ridge National Military Park. In 1958, under the umbrella of the Benton County Historical Society, Mrs. W. W. Vaught of Fayetteville (Washington County) proposed the formation of the Pea Ridge Memorial Association. The association was approved in 1961 to hold yearly memorial services on each anniversary of the Battle of Pea Ridge. The other purpose of the group was to install historic markers on sites closely connected with the maneuvers of both armies before and after the battle. The park was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on October 15, 1966.