Camp Hunter (Baxter Springs, Kansas)

Baxter Springs · Kansas · Civil War

Quick BriefCamp Hunter was established in June 1862 at what is now Baxter Springs, Kansas, a Union field camp. Named after Gen. David Hunter, it housed approximately 6,000 troops across two nearby encampments including Indian Home Guard regiments. After a brief Confederate occupation in September 1862, Camp Hunter was never occupied again.

Civil War

History & Significance

Camp Hunter was established in June 1862 by Union troops at what is now Baxter Springs, Kansas. The camp was named after General David Hunter.

Located along the south crest of the Spring Creek valley, the combined force of approximately 6,000 men was stationed across Camp Hunter and a companion camp on Little Five Mile Creek. Indian Home Guard regiments were encamped nearby, reflecting the Union's strategic use of Native American units in border defense.

The installation served dual purposes: protecting settlers from Confederate guerrilla activity and securing the military supply road connecting Fort Smith, Arkansas, to Fort Gibson in Indian Territory. In September 1862, the 31st Texas Cavalry briefly occupied the camp after Union forces abandoned it, before retreating from defeat near present-day Pittsburg, Kansas.

After the Confederate withdrawal, Camp Hunter was never reoccupied; when Union forces returned to Baxter Springs in May 1863, they established camp at a different site. The camp's brief operational life exemplified the fluid military situation on the Kansas–Missouri border during the early Civil War.