Very serendipitous unplanned visit to this National Park! So happy I pulled off the road after seeing the rows of small grave markers. The museum staff are a wealth of information! They even helped me find military records of a great great grandfather. I didn't have the luxury to walk and explore the grounds, but the museum was well designed. There is a short movie that is a must see, as it is a fantastic overview. Whether your relatives fought in the North or the South, you will come away with a deeper understanding of their lives lived in this military base, that was 4000 acres in its prime
I never knew about this site and am so glad we made it. It was a recruitment station for the US Colored Troops which has an amazing history. The exhibits are very well done and the walking trails are nice as well.
Mr. Rymer FLOODED THE FLOOR, not BLUE STAR.
Blue Star has been wrongly accused by MR. Rymer of installing siding incorrectly. But what really happened was that Mr. Rymer left his Electrical Box Lid open on Natural Disaster storm night and flooded the office floor. I was contacted about a leak at the building we went to where the leak was and shut the lid, problem solved. We did not remove the old siding that was already on the building(Cedar) we only went over top of it. So if it wasn't leaking before then it still is not leaking. We did seal, flashing, caulk, etc, everything above and beyond, but we are not responsible 8 months later to shut your box lid. I asked Mr. Ryner to join me at the Better Business Bureau to mediate who is at fault, but he instead he went and wrote a bad review and hid from his responsibility. Is he speaking for Camp Nelson. I am in the process of seeking legal counsel to keep Mr. Ryner from accusations with out legal remedies.
If you wanted it Managed better you should not have hired a Paving Company from New Jersey.
Do not pass this National Monument up when visiting KY. It is one of the cleanest with some of the most well-educated staff members I’ve ever been to! So beautiful, tranquil and educational. The accommodating staff made our visit very lovely and welcoming. Low key, peaceful and well cared for. A+++ and highly recommend!
We enjoyed our visit very much! The visitor center was great! Cute gift shop with a nice little museum inside. My daughter's earned their junior ranger badges, and the ranger was super nice and very helpful. They have several buildings outside to check out as well. It was very hot so we didn't do any trails but they have a good amount of them. The ranger even told us the best ones to take to have shade or not be too long of hikes in the heat. The restrooms were very nice as well.
Awesome place to visit!!! The staff are so nice and can answer anything you can possibly think of asking them! Plus they have the junior ranger program and my boys were sworn in by the rangers and had an absolute blast!!!
Entrance here is free and there is a museum that gives some great background and context. You don't need to know anything to come in and learn something.
There are quite a few trails here throughout the fields. Almost all of it is just mowed grass.
It's a very pretty spot to stop and walk around regardless of your enjoyment of the history.
This national monument is a must-visit! The museum is small but packed with great information and super interesting exhibits. The historic barracks is especially informative and a great way to learn about a part of history you might not know about. There are also nice walking paths and the grounds are gorgeous and well-maintained.
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Camp Nelson is a nice National Monument with a lot of history to be learned from the wonderful Park Rangers or the many buildings, artifacts, and informational signs throughout the large property. The "White House" is currently closed to visitors, but every other building was open when I visited. It's a nice and free thing to do if you're in the area.
Another extremely well maintained National Park Service property. The house and visitor center were closed during my visit but the 400+ acre park and grounds are still accessible. I'm guessing about 6 miles of trails if you catch the nature center trail at the rear of the park, I did. Storyboards, bench seating and picnic tables about the property. Bathrooms at the visitor center. Small parking lot, not suitable for larger rigs and RVs. I had 2 bars of Verizon 4G LTE Roaming throughout the property.
Went here for the BARK Ranger Program. It was so much fun. The Rangers are super nice and helpful with such positive attitudes. The grounds are gorgeous and it's fun to lean about the area. Was only about to do about a mile of the trails because it was getting a bit warm for the dogs. Will definitely go back to explore more the grounds next time we are in the area.
Really nicely done NPS, the history is crazy get out there and enjoy the NPS. It's our history, learn by it , enjoy the stories you thought you knew, but realized history is awesome.
Historically significant. Tells an important, undertold part of the story of Black freedom. Don't miss that. There is also an unbelievable engineering feat documented. The grounds were peaceful and full of beautiful meadow birds.
It is a very nice piece of history. The rangers working there were very informative and helpful. It has roughly 4 miles of hiking, mostly in open fields with information signs throughout. Also includes a very nice museum with a 17 minute video.
This was a wonderful place to visit and ponder the sacrifices made by those who paved the way for all of us Americans. It is a sentiment I often reflect upon as I travel to different NPS sites.
Camp Nelson is an amazing monument as it chronicles the best and worst of our American story. In turning out women, children, and families from their homes here we see the cowardice and hatred stemming from racism. We also see the heroism of formerly enslaved men risking their lives and futures for the cause of freedom.
One thing not to miss is the trail the meanders around the former camp. Be sure to take the path into the woods. It was unbelievably peaceful and thought-provoking to walk along the footpaths of those who were here. You also end up in the National Cemetery which is humbling in and of itself.
No NPS site is too rural or out of the way to pass up learning more about our storied past and the very real people that sacrificed so much for our often taken granted for modern life.
For a moving visit to an NPS site, this is it. The history of East Tennessee refugees and formerly enslaved enlistees and their families is told well, and it is fascinating to learn how the natural geography made this an excellent location to stage the United States operation to retake East Tenneessee. The rangers are among some of the most friendly I have encountered, and that is really saying something because I have had great NPS experiences across many parks. Well worth your visiting time - they also carry and excellent selection of books in the gift shop (I picked up two new ones!).
Camp Nelson, Bob, Emily and Milly
So much history here, and the promise of freedom serves. Inlisting US military, Blackman opportunities, ring the chains of bondage in a fight for the civil rights many signed up and joined, and then they were able to bring their families as well to live, get jobs as well as a education. THE HIKE IS GOOD,so is the history.
I WOULD RECOMMEND
Ranger Steve is the best!
We visited on a Monday morning and we did not do our research properly and didn't realize the visitor center was only open Wednesday to Sunday until memorial day. They do have passport stamp outside the vistor center thank goodness so we could stamp our passport books. We were traveling between new river gorge NP and mammoth cave NP.
Now the cool part was when the kids were working on their junior ranger books (we printed out at home) on the front porch of the visitor center when ranger Steve opened the door to greet us. He apparently had a meeting that morning and saw us just sitting out there. He offered to let us come in quickly to get some more stamps like junior ranger and offered us more different junior ranger books and even talked with us and thenkids for awhile. He also presented the kids with junior ranger badges.
Apparently the park store had just opened in jan 2023 and the logi desgin for the park is amazing. See photos in review.
We hiked a few of the trails and saw the earth works. It was sad everything was stilled closed like the white house. At least the barracks you could see through the windows. They had a large oversized portapotty outside in the paekibg lit too. There was alot of hiking possible here and the grounds are very well maintained. Even without paved trails you could see the trails based on their mowing patterns. Great place to get out and do some hiking or going for a nice walk. It was relatively flat. It was sad we couldn't watch the video and learn more of the history but there are plaques everywhere in the fields that you can read as well.
If you're passing through i would definitely recommend a visit. Staff and facilities were great. Just make sure you viait when the visitor center is open.
Fairly new national park. The ranger was really friendly and helpful. Their museum was well laid out with lots of interesting artifacts. It was raining while we were there, so we didn’t get to check out the walking trails. There are a few miles of flat, paved trails that are dog friendly.
Very nice National Park near Lexington. Miles of walking trails through empty fields that were Camp Nelson. Good signage to interpret the forts that protected the camp. A lot of history on those grounds.
Super nice historical site with very clean, new facilities. Watched the video and listened to the audio tour while walking and enjoyed learning about the camp.
Great national monument park! I learned so much after walking around the museum and seeing everything that occurred in this area! I definitely recommend visiting at least once!
Very nice little museum. Informative with a little video. Dry friendly rangers to fill you in on what’s what. The whole area is loaded with history. Just down the road from a national cemetery. Free and a worth while visit.
A gorgeous place to spend a quiet evening, there are miles of pleasant trails winding through the rolling hills, interesting historical markers, and access to bathrooms. Though the visitor center is closed, the trails are open during daylight hours and are gentle enough for the most inexperienced hikers.
It's a very interesting place! New National Park which is very exciting. The chapter of American history which is really fascinating, it highlights a story which is often overlooked. Please come and learn about Nelson, African American Refugees and Union enlisted soldiers.
The staff is fantastic.
I visited my blood family, as well as my military family. I volunteered with Wreaths Across America, qnd it was everything that I thought it would be.
We placed each wreath, and thanked our past military heroes, for their service.
It was such an honor, to he among some of my heroes......
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