Secretary Marcheta Sparrow to Preside Over Donation of Battlefield Land to Commonwealth

PERRYVILLE, Ky., May 27 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Kentucky Tourism, Arts and Heritage Secretary Marcheta Sparrow will be the keynote speaker at a ceremony marking the transfer of 54 acres of the Perryville Battlefield from the Civil War Preservation Trust (CWPT) to the Commonwealth of Kentucky.  The land will become part of Perryville Battlefield State Historic Site.

In addition to Secretary, speakers will include CWPT chairman John L. Nau, III, and CWPT president James Lighthizer, as well as historian and author Kent Masterson Brown, who was the first chairman of the Perryville Battlefield Commission.  Additional special guests will include representatives of the state Civil War Sesquicentennial Commission, Kentucky Historical Society, Kentucky State Parks and local government officials.

Fought on October 8, 1862, the Battle of Perryville was the largest Civil War engagement fought in Kentucky, and the culmination of the Confederate Heartland Campaign.  Perryville Battlefield State Historic Site preserves and interprets approximately 600 acres of the battlefield, including a museum and visitor center.  

The news conference will begin at 1:30 p.m. on the property, along Battlefield Road, southeast of the Visitor Center, in Perryville, Ky.  Following the ceremony, historians Kent Masterson Brown and Kurt Holman will lead a walking tour of the property and Friends of Perryville Battlefield will host a reception.  Attendees should have footwear appropriate for a walking tour.

WHAT: Land transfer ceremony, public tour and reception

WHO: State Secretary of Tourism, Arts and Heritage Marcheta Sparrow, CWPT chairman John L. Nau, III, CWPT president James Lighthizer and historian Kent Masterson Brown

WHEN: Tuesday, June 1, 2010, at 1:30 p.m.

WHERE: Perryville Battlefield State Historic Site, Battlefield Road, southeast of the Visitor Center, Perryville, Ky.

With 55,000 members, CWPT is the largest nonprofit battlefield preservation organization in the United States.  Its mission is to preserve our nation's endangered Civil War battlefields and to promote appreciation of these hallowed grounds.  CWPT has preserved more than 29,000 acres of battlefield land across the nation, including 385 at Perryville.  CWPT's website is www.civilwar.org.

(For more event details, visit www.civilwar.org/perryvilletransfer.)

SOURCE Civil War Preservation Trust