JNPA – JNPA Blog

War Balloons? The Rise (and Descent) of the Union Army Balloon Corps

Published on August 18, 2026August 6, 2026 by JNPALeave a comment

Now here’s a new one (at least to us) – waging war from a hot air balloon. Yes, you read that right. Forget your traditional image of a colorful balloon peacefully drifting over a bucolic landscape. During the Civil War, the Union Army used hot air and hydrogen balloons to spy on Confederate positions and to direct artillery fire on the enemy.

This unique chapter of American history began in 1861 at the outset of the war, when President Abraham Lincoln commissioned a miliary aeronautics division, primarily for map making and aerial reconnaissance. Professor Thaddeus Lowe was named Chief Aeronaut of the newly created Union Army Balloon Corps. When airborne, Lowe was able to direct flag signals to gunners on the ground, helping them fire accurately at targets they could not see – a military first.

The Intrepid being inflated from gas generators for the 1862 Battle of Fair Oaks,
photo by Mathew Brady

The largest Union balloons, the Intrepid and the Union, could carry up to five people and reach elevations of 1,000 feet. This height permitted the Army a vantage point that was heretofore unavailable. The Balloon Corps constructed an additional five smaller hot air balloons outfitted for military service.

Battle of Fair Oaks, 1862 – the Intrepid is visible in the distance, print by Currier & Ives

Most balloons that ascended during the Civil War were used in the Eastern Theater. Lowe sent the first air-to-ground battlefield reconnaissance report on July 21, 1861, at the first battle at Bull Run. By late spring 1862, he had three balloons in operation and each ascended multiple times daily to track enemy movements.

Inflating the Intrepid using the smaller balloon Constitution prior to the Battle of Fair Oaks, photo by Mathew Brady

The Intrepid was the largest balloon in the Union Army inventory, inflated via hydrogen gas generators that were transported in special field wagons and sometimes cross-filled from the Constitution, a second balloon. Lowe conducted aerial reconnaissance from the Intrepid during the 1862 Battle of Fair Oaks in Virginia. He was able to spot concealed Confederate troop movements and send back reports to commanders via telegraph, alerting them to prepare for a full-scale offensive.

The Confederate Army also tried using hot air balloons during the war but was hampered by the unavailability of critical supplies needed to both build and inflate them. And ultimately, the Union Army’s balloons became increasingly unpopular with military commanders. In 1863, Lowe’s Balloon Corps was disbanded.

If you want to learn more about this curious chapter of Civil War history, be sure to attend the upcoming ranger talk at Ulysses S. Grant National Historic Site on Saturday August 29 at 10 a.m. Park Ranger Jonas will explore the use of hot air and hydrogen balloons during the war. He will also discuss Thaddeus Lowe, the eccentric scientist and architect behind the Union Army’s balloon experiment.

The program is free but please call 314-842-1867 ext. 230 for reservations.

Bringing History to life in Ste. Genevieve

Published on August 4, 2026July 28, 2026 by JNPALeave a comment

Think back to your school days. What learning experiences had the biggest impact on you, maybe even leading you to the rare “aha” moment? Chances are, it was when your teachers took you to a historic site, park, or local neighborhood to gain hands-on, real-world experiences.

Educators have a name for this: place-based learning. And what better source of influential, exciting places than our national parks, also known as “America’s largest classrooms.” When students can visit a colonial era home, explore a local stream, or investigate public art, their classroom curriculum comes to life. They’re able to make connections between their textbooks and the real world.

One national park site that’s making great strides in on-site opportunities for school groups is Ste. Genevieve National Historical Park. Park staff bring the history of Missouri to life through free educational field trips for school groups ranging from Kindergarten through 12^th grade. And new this year: a three-part program for 3^rd graders that aligns with Missouri state curriculum standards.

The park’s centuries-old homes serve as immersive classrooms rooted in the region’s strong French colonial heritage. National Park Service park rangers share stories of the Native American, African, and European people who lived in the community in the 1700s and 1800s. Students can participate in hands-on exploration of various themes including architecture, cultural land and life, migration and colonization, diverse cultures, and the village economy, helping them understand how the early communities developed. As an extra bonus, the park will incorporate French cultural elements into special programs for students studying French culture or language.

The Colonial Quest program for K through 2^nd grade students, as well as 4^th through 6^th graders, introduces them to the rich cultural history of the 18^th century colonial town. Through guided tours of French colonial homes, students can discover how families lived and worked, and will learn about the contributions of French colonists, Indigenous peoples, enslaved people, and free people of color. They also explore how these groups adapted to environmental and social challenges.

The Crossroads of Culture program engages 7^th through 12^th graders in a critical analysis of the town’s colonial past. Students might examine architecture as cultural expression, investigate diverse populations, or evaluate the town’s economic role in regional trade. Depending on the teacher’s requests, rangers might lead discussions on colonial government structures and how power shaped life, law, and community decision making.

Finally, there’s the park’s new 3^rd grade program, entitled Carpentry, Commerce, and Cooking: Building Blocks of a Community, which aligns with Missouri’s 3^rdgrade social studies curriculum. Students analyze how construction techniques, trade, and farming shaped the early Ste. Genevieve community. Hands-on elements during the on-site lessons reinforce how early residents adapted to social and environmental challenges.

This three-part program includes:

A pre-visit classroom activity with a park ranger, feature intriguing historical artifacts.
An interactive on-site exploration of the park’s historic homes
A post-visit lesson led by the teacher

Additional information is available on the park’s website and in the new Educator’s Guide, which JNPA helped produce. It includes details of each on-site program, as well as information on how to sign up.

An Unlikely Friendship between Two First Ladies

Published on July 21, 2026July 21, 2026 by JNPALeave a comment

On the face of it, it’s not surprising the two women became friends later in life, since their lives were remarkably similar. Still, their late-in-life friendship shocked Gilded Age America.

They were the same age, born in 1826. They were both well educated, fiercely independent, and unafraid to voice their opinions. Yet they were also devoted mothers and renowned hostesses. Despite their upbringing within slave-owning Southern families, both women were ambivalent about the institution of slavery. They married men who went on to occupy illustrious public careers during the Civil War years, resulting in their becoming First Ladies. After they were widowed, both women moved to New York City, eventually living within a few blocks of each other.

But there was one critical difference between Julia Dent Grant and Varina Howell Davis. One was married to the President of the United States, the other to the President of the Confederacy – men who personified opposing sides in the Civil War.

Wedding photograph of Jefferson and Varina Davis, 1845

When Jefferson Davis was named President of the Confederate States of America in 1861, Varina Davis became a reluctant First Lady. Although she openly supported the Confederacy, she expressed misgivings about her husband’s fitness for his new role and privately doubted that the South had the resources to win the war. Toward the end of her life, she publicly noted that the “right side won the Civil War.” She also expressed ambivalence about the institution of slavery.

After the South surrendered and the war ended, Jefferson Davis was imprisoned at Fort Monroe. Varina fought tirelessly to achieve his release, which came about two years later. When her husband died in 1889, Varina moved to New York City, finished his biography, and wrote for various newspapers.

Julia Grant had shared in the mixed fortunes of Ulysses S. Grant during the 37 years they were married – supporting him through his stint as a farmer, through his military career, his U.S. presidency, and beyond. She was by his side when Ulysses succumbed to throat cancer in 1885.

The two widows eventually met when they were in their sixties in 1893, a full 28 years after the Civil War ended. Staying at the same hotel for a West Point event, the friendship began when Julia walked to Varina’s hotel room and knocked on the door. Their cordial meeting made headlines in northern newspapers, where it was viewed as a vital step in healing the fractured nation. The reaction in the former Confederate states was considerably more muted, where many conservative White southerners considered Varina’s close association with their former wartime enemy as a betrayal.

Nevertheless, the former First Ladies became close friends and were periodically seen chatting in open carriage rides through New York City, where they lived just blocks away from each other. Even their daughters became good friends.

In 1897, Julia invited Varina to attend the dedication of the newly completed Grant’s Tomb. Varina accepted the invitation, joining more than one million people who came to pay their respects to the Commanding General of the Union Army and the nation’s 18^th President.

Varina and Julia remained close until Julia’s death in 1902 and was buried next to her husband within the New York memorial. Varina died just four years later and was laid to rest next to her husband in the Davis family plot in Richmond, Virginia.

We Welcome Two New NPS Partners

Published on July 7, 2026June 30, 2026 by JNPALeave a comment

It’s official! JNPA has proudly added two National Park Service sites in North Dakota to our portfolio of public lands partners: Theodore Roosevelt National Park and Knife River Indian Villages National Historic Site.

We are now the official nonprofit partner at both sites, supporting visitor education, interpretation, and park-approved projects that connect people with the stories, landscapes, and cultures preserved there.

Our three stores at Theodore Roosevelt National Park in Medora offer a wide range of products that honor the importance of the rugged North Dakota landscape in Roosevelt’s life and the key role that the region played in fostering the former president’s passion for the outdoors and for conservation. The 70,000 acre park includes three visitor centers, each of which features a unique shopping experience.

Knife River Indian Villages National Historic Site in Stanton preserves the stories of the Indigenous people who built unique earthlodges along the Knife River tributary of the Missouri River for hundreds of years. The earthlodge villages were the site of the most significant Native American trading centers on the Northern Plains. JNPA will reopen the park store in the near future, enabling us to support education, interpretation, and visitor engagement at the site.

Hidatsa Village, Earth-covered Lodges, on the Knife River, Smithsonian American Art Museum, by George Catlin, 1832

“Theodore Roosevelt National Park and Knife River Indian Villages National Historic Site are extraordinary places that deserve an extraordinary level of support,” said David Grove, president and CEO of JNPA. “We are honored to partner with the National Park Service at these two remarkable North Dakota sites and look forward to investing in their futures for years to come.”

Look for additional details about these two important national park sites in future blog posts. Or better yet, plan a trip to North Dakota to see them in person!

The Legacy of Harriet Scott

Published on June 9, 2026 by JNPALeave a comment

Do you recognize the name Harriet Scott? If you can’t place her, don’t feel bad. She is usually only mentioned in connection with her more famous husband, Dred. Does that ring a bell?

The Scotts were responsible for one of the most important court cases ever heard in the U.S., and one that carried significant implications for African American rights in this country. And since this month marks the 150^th anniversary of Harriet’s death, we thought it was a good time to recall her role in history.

In the mid-19th century, Harriet and Dred Scott were an enslaved couple living in St. Louis along with their two young daughters. They had spent years living in free territory in what is now Minnesota, so they decided to sue for their freedom in the slave state of Missouri. Their original petitions, filed in 1846, took years to wend their way through the court system, and the Scotts endured years of delays and multiple appeals.

Statue of Dred and Harriet Scott outside Old Courthouse

Finally in 1857 their case reached the U.S. Supreme Court, where Chief Justice Roger Taney wrote the majority opinion. He argued that the framers of the Constitution had believed that Black people had “no rights which the white man was bound to respect.” Enslaved or free, he ruled, Black people were not citizens of the United States, so therefore had no right to bring freedom suits. The Supreme Court decision contributed to the start of the Civil War four years later, which ultimately led to freedom for the enslaved people of the United States.

Though the Scotts were devastated by the court ruling, they gained their freedom a few months later. Their owner—by then Taylor Blow—freed them on May 26, 1857. Sadly, Dred died of tuberculosis less than a year later.

Harriet Scott lived for nearly 20 more years in freedom in St. Louis, witnessing the Civil War and the end of slavery in the United States of America. She died at age 61 on June 17, 1876, and was buried in Greenwood Cemetery, one of the first Black burial grounds in the city.

Although her name is not as well known as her husband’s, Harriet Scott’s quest to seek freedom for herself and her family was equally powerful in changing the course of American history.

JNPA helped produce a short video for Gateway Arch National Park that dramatizes the Scotts’ decision to seek freedom. Click here to watch.

Listen to Your Park!

Published on May 26, 2026June 5, 2026 by JNPALeave a comment

When we visit a national park, most of us focus on what we see: a waterfall, a historic building, a field of wildflowers, a soaring monument. But what if you closed your eyes and just…listened? We bet the sounds you’d hear would make your park visit that much richer.

Now that spring is well underway and summer is upon us, there are a myriad of dazzling sounds in our partner parks just waiting to be enjoyed.

At Voyageurs National Park, you might catch the slap of a beaver’s tail, the haunting call of a loon, or the gurgle of a rushing stream.

beaver’s tail

loon call

gurgling stream

At Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site, you can listen to schoolchildren on a ranger tour learning about our nation’s early civil rights struggles.

schoolchildren

At Gateway Arch National Park, you can’t miss the loud firing of cannons and muskets when you attend the annual Battle of St. Louis commemoration.

cannons

muskets

And at Missouri National Recreational River, the squeals from children catching their first fish is guaranteed to bring smiles.

children laughing

These are the sounds that make visiting our national parks such a unique experience. They awaken the sense of awe that connects us to the splendor of nature or to a deeper understanding of our nation’s history. And as these sounds enrich our emotions and attitudes, they can help build lifelong memories of our park visits.

The National Park Service considers sounds from its parks as part of a web of natural and cultural resources that must be protected. In fact, the NPS Natural Sounds and Night Skies Division helps park staff protect their acoustic environments by reducing noise pollution and by recording and preserving their natural sounds.

Recording sounds at Rocky Mountain National Park

Scientists at national parks across the country have set up microphones to record sounds throughout park systems. The recordings are then transferred to the PARC Listening Lab, where Penn State students listen to, analyze and inventory the sounds heard. Once sounds are analyzed, the findings are sent back to officials at respective parks and used to inform management decisions about how best to protect natural quiet.

Azteca dancers at Tumacácori National Historical Park

And of course a healthy soundscape is not limited to the sounds of nature. Cultural and historic sounds are important components of many national park units. The sound of a cannon shot echoing across a Civil War battlefield or the hypnotic drumbeat of a sacred tribal dance brings the past into the present and elicits a sense of connection to our ancestors. Managers at cultural and historic parks strive to preserve an acoustic setting that is consistent with the resources and values being protected.

So the next time you visit a national park, be sure to listen for the sounds all around you. And to help inspire you as you read this, close your eyes, sit back, and enjoy this soothing 12-minute soundtrack that will transport you to parks across the country.

Mni Ówe Sni: Honoring an Indigenous Site

Published on May 12, 2026May 18, 2026 by JNPALeave a comment

It is a 29-acre prairie and oak savanna graced with a freshwater spring that flows year-round. And it is also steeped in thousands of years of history, of both Indigenous people and European/American settlers. And now the area has a new name that honors its complex heritage.

This verdant landscape at Mississippi National River and Recreation Area holds both natural beauty and generations of meaning. It has been known to many locals as Coldwater Spring, but has recently been renamed Mni Ówe Sni, honoring the site’s longstanding spiritual significance to the Dakota and other Indigenous people.

Stereoscope image of Winnebago people, 1863

Mni Ówe Sni has been a place of peace, healing, and gathering for many Indigenous nations including the Dakota, Anishinaabe, Ho-Chunk, and others for thousands of years. Because of its proximity to the confluence of the Mississippi and Minnesota Rivers, the site served as a neutral place where various tribes could trade, camp, and move freely. And it continues to be an active and vital part of Dakota life even today.

View of Fort Snelling c. 1850 by Edward K. Thomas

More recently, the area lured European explorers and setters looking to expand the fur trade. After explorer Zebulon Pike secured 100,000 acres of land from the local Dakota chiefs in 1805, the U.S. government established a military reservation there. Soldiers erected a permanent stone fort – Fort Snelling – making use of the abundant fresh water from the spring. Following the closing of the fort after World War II, the site was turned over to the U.S. Bureau of Mines as its Twin Cities Research Center, where mining research was carried out for over 40 years. The Bureau of Mines closed in 1995 and the campus was abandoned.

The site was eventually transferred to the National Park Service in 2010. NPS officials collaborated with local Tribes, other agencies, non-profits, and volunteers to begin restoring native plants communities, re-introducing tallgrass prairie, oak savanna, bur oak-pin oak woodland, and other forestlands.

Then in 2023, the early cultural heritage of Coldwater Spring came full circle. It was officially designated a Traditional Cultural Place named Mni Ówe Sni and listed in the National Register of Historic Places. As the park noted in a 2023 Facebook post:

NPS now manages portions of the Mni Ówe Sni area in partnership and collaboration with these and 18 additional Tribes.

Plant Like Grant?

Published on April 23, 2026April 14, 2026 by JNPALeave a comment

Say the name Ulysses S. Grant to most people, and they’ll likely mention his role as a U.S. president or as a renowned Civil War general or maybe as a force behind the 15^th Amendment (banning racial discrimination in voting). What probably won’t come to mind is Grant as a farmer.

When Grant abandoned his early military career in 1854, he returned to White Haven, the suburban St. Louis estate he shared with his wife Julia and their young children. He had decided to try his hand at farming the 80 acres he was given as a wedding present, part of the 850-acre plantation belonging to his father-in-law, Fredrick Dent. In a letter to a fellow soldier that year, he wrote:

“Whoever hears of me in ten years, will hear of a well-to-do Missouri farmer.”

With the help of enslaved laborers, Grant initially cultivated fruit and vegetable crops only on his 80 acres. He also built a cabin on his land, which he dubbed Hardscrabble. But when Col. Dent moved to the city several years later, Grant took full control of day-to-day farming operations on the entire plantation.

Grant’s initial forays into farming were filled with optimism. In 1856, he wrote to his father, Jesse R. Grant, with updates on his farm operations, as well as a request for a loan of “about $500.00 for a year at 10 percent [interest].”

As many farmers can relate to, Grant faced numerous obstacles during his farming venture despite his best efforts. Persistent droughts, illness, a failing economy, and unseasonable frosts took their toll on the White Haven harvests, and he began to fear he would no longer be able to support his family. He resorted to selling firewood to help make ends meet.

Having received no response to his first letter, Grant sent his father an even more desperate plea for money about six weeks later:

It’s believed that Jesse Grant never loaned his son money. By the fall of 1858, Ulysses began making plans to sell off his farming equipment and he eventually moved his family to the city of St. Louis.

To learn more about Grant’s experiences as a would-be farmer, join Ranger Blake this Sunday April 26 at 1:00 p.m. for Plant Like Grant! Farming at White Haven, a lecture at the park. The program is free but call 314-842-1867 ext. 230 for reservations.

A Vestige of the Untamed West

Published on April 14, 2026April 14, 2026 by JNPALeave a comment

If you’re looking to step back to a time when the American landscape was untouched and wild, head to southeast South Dakota. There you’ll find a remarkable parcel of land that was recently added to Missouri National Recreational River: a 676-acre property on James River Island, downstream from Yankton, South Dakota.

The $1.6 million purchase protects the largest private tract on the island, enhancing public recreational access for boating, hiking, and hunting within the park. The National Park Service has worked for decades to acquire the property from a private landowner. The acquisition was a joint effort between NPS and the National Park Trust, with funding support from the National Park Foundation.

James River Island displays remarkable natural and historic vestiges of the untamed, natural Missouri River habitat. The island is home to old-growth cottonwood forests and native prairie, both of which are rapidly disappearing across the region. It provides vital nesting habitat for federally endangered species, including the least tern and the piping plover.

In addition to the unique habitat, the property also carries historic significance. Lewis and Clark’s Corps of Discovery noted the confluence of the James River and surrounding channel islands in their journals when the expedition passed through the area on August 27th, 1804, and again on September 2nd, 1806.

Under NPS stewardship, the island will remain undeveloped, offering low-impact recreational activities such as hunting, fishing, camping, boating, and paddling, while ensuring the land’s ecological integrity is maintained. Access to the island is only by boat (kayak, canoe, or motorboat).

Located in southeast South Dakota and northeast Nebraska, the Missouri National Recreational River protects over 100 free-flowing miles of the Missouri River and several of its tributaries. Enjoy this short introductory video about the park, or dive even deeper on its YouTube channel.

Oh, To Be a Woman in Early Ste. Geneviève

Published on March 31, 2026April 14, 2026 by JNPALeave a comment

When the United States government purchased the Louisiana Territory from France in 1803, it doubled the size of our nation. It also brought a significant cultural, political, and legal shift for the residents who had previously lived under French rule. Few of these changes were more significant than those affecting women.

Women’s rights in the small Missouri town of Ste. Geneviève were quite a bit different before the French Colonial village became part of the United States. French customary law had granted women a considerable amount of economic independence. For one thing, French inheritance laws did not discriminate against a widow, who would receive half of the estate when her husband died. The other half would be split evenly among her heirs – regardless of gender – and if there were no heirs, the wife received everything.

French law also allowed women to buy and sell property and to enter contracts in their own names. They could manage households, farms, and businesses, often having influential control over estates. Women could lend or borrow money, marry or separate, bring a lawsuit or be sued, engage in commerce, and even use their maiden names. A husband could not dispose of his wife’s property without her consent.

It’s difficult to know how many women in colonial Ste. Geneviève played active roles in property transactions and legal matters, since few were educated enough to leave written records of their daily decisions and achievements. Most women were consumed by the labor-intensive work of sustaining a frontier settlement as they managed households and participated in religious life.

However, most of their legal rights ended in 1804 when the Louisiana Purchase was finalized and Ste. Geneviève became an American village, subject to a system based on English common law. Married women were stripped of their independent legal existence, merging their rights with their husbands. They could no longer own property, sign contracts or bring lawsuits. A husband now owned his wife’s personal property, wages, and real estate, and held sole rights to their children.

Women in Ste. Genevieve slowly adapted to these changes, of course. They continued to be active participants in churches, schools, courts, and many businesses. They were also primarily responsible for keeping the town’s French traditions alive, like the annual La Guiannée (New Year’s Eve singing tradition).

Over time, of course, women’s rights throughout America slowly progressed from a limited legal status to constitutional equality in many areas, driven first by the women’s suffrage movement then by legislative gains addressing workplace discrimination, voting rights, reproductive rights, and economic autonomy.