Western Outdoor Times - Times Spent Outdoors: Priceless!

Join us for the annual historic re-enactment of an Arizona Civil War skirmish, Battle of Picacho Pass, and the New Mexico battles of Glorieta and Val Verde at "Civil War in the Southwest" at Picacho Peak State Park. The three re-enactments will take place on Saturday, March 16 and Sunday, March 17, 2013. Activities will take place from 10am to 4pm both days but gates will open at 9:30am and no further entry is allowed after 3pm.

Visitors travel from around the country to experience these authentic historic re-enactments complete with lifestyles of the soldiers in the southwest during the 1860s. More than 200 re-enactors come in from many states and will camp at Picacho Peak State Park with their Civil War camping gear. There will also be food and beverage concessions available. Please bring plenty of water, hat, lawn chair and sunscreen. Please note that pets are not permitted to this event.

Civil War battles across America have been well documented and history teachers carefully covered each battle across the East Coast, but few ever learn what was happening in the West during this time. A battle of the American Civil War was a skirmish fought near a rocky spire called Picacho Peak located between Phoenix and Tucson. The new highway followsthe old wagon route that passed Picacho in 1862.

In 1860 the New Mexico Territory, which consisted of the lands that would become the states of Arizona and New Mexico, was sparsely populated. It ranked 34th in population out of 43 states and territories with only 83,009 inhabitants. It was 37th in black populations, with just eight whom were free. When the Civil War broke out in 1861, the U.S. Government recalled the majority of its troops from the West to build the Union army for the fighting in the east. Henry Hopkins Sibley joined the Confederacy and convinced Jefferson Davis that he would raise an army in Texas and invade New Mexico territories. He proposed that mineral resources would fill the coffers of the Confederacy and fund their massive war effort.

For more information about the re-enactments, please visit AZStateParks.com or call Picacho Peak State Park at (520) 466-3183. This year the Civil War in the Southwest event is being coordinated with financial support from the Union Pacific Railroad Foundation, the Arizona State Parks Foundation and the Arizona Civil War Counsel.

Special Event Vehicle Entrance Fee is $10 per vehicle for up to 4 persons, each additional person is charged $3 each. A $3 per person entrance fee applies to pedestrians and bicyclists. There is no charge for children aged 13 and younger. The park is located off I-10, on exit 219; 60 miles south of Phoenix, and 40 miles north of Tucson.

For information about all 27 Arizona State Parks, the Trails and Off-Highway Vehicle Programs and State Historic Preservation Office call (602) 542-4174 (outside of the Phoenix metro area call toll-free (800) 285-3703), visit the website and online camping reservations at http://www.AZStateParks.com, Twitter/Facebook AZStateParks.