Situated on 385 acres of hilly terrain between the Kentucky River and Hickman Creek, Camp Nelson was established in 1863 as a Union Army supply depot on 4,000 acres. After the Union Army’s racial enlistment restrictions were lifted (1864), over 23,000 enslaved African American men journeyed to Camp Nelson to join the United States Colored Troops and receive emancipation. Within three years Camp Nelson, characterized by wood and earthen forts and artillery batteries, developed into one of the largest Civil War-era recruitment and training centers for African American troops. The Home for Colored Refugees (1865), a shelter for civilians fleeing the war, was placed adjacent to Camp Nelson, commemorated today on a seven-acre parcel west of the main site.
Located east of Danville Road, Camp Nelson is bordered along its western edge by a low stone wall with two gated openings, the southern of which serves as the main entrance. Split-rail fences run north to south, partially lining the Fort Trail. The varied topography is characterized by scattered groupings of second-growth trees (including poplar, ash, cedar, oak, maple, and elm), a steep embankment to the east that descends to Hickman Creek, and five earthen trails that traverse the grassy landscape to link the seven forts, historic structures, and several ponds and sinkholes. On the Depot Trail a boardwalk and wooden footbridge crosses the limestone-walled Spring Reservoir. Views of the vast Hickman Creek Valley landscape are interrupted by sporadic groupings of second-growth trees (including poplar, ash, and cedar).
A group of buildings near the entrance include a visitor center (2003), reconstructed barracks (2009), and the Greek Revival-style Oliver Perry House (“The White House,” 1850s), which once served as officers’ living quarters. Several outbuildings and the remains of walls and forts are scattered throughout the site.
In 2001, Camp Nelson was listed in the National Register of Historic Places, and in 2018 redesignated as the Camp Nelson National Historic Monument.
