Battle of Westport at Rockwell Lane

Rockwell Lane and Sunset Dr. (in island), Kansas City, Missouri
Placed 1965  (date on marker is 1964)        
A large single-post mounted marker, possibly the first post marker that Native Sons erected. It is a different design than after 1990.

Text from Sign

[Native Sons KCMO logo]

BATTLE OF WESTPORT
UNION FLANKING MOVEMENT
HERE JUST BEFORE NOON ON SUNDAY, OCTOBER
23, 1864, MAJOR GENERAL SAMUEL RYAN CURTIS,
COMMANDING THE FEDERAL ARMY OF THE BORDER,
BEGAN HIS FLANKING MOVEMENT OF BRIGADIER
GENERAL JOSEPH ORVILLE SHELBY’S DIVISION OF
THE CONFEDERATE ARMY OF MISSOURI.   WHILE
THE UNION ARMY WAS ENGAGED IN HEAVY FIGHTING
JUST EAST OF HERE, GENERAL CURTIS LED THE
11TH KANSAS CAVALRY UP A TWISTING, WOODED
DEFILE TO A POSITION ON THE LEFT AND REAR
OF GENERAL SHELBY’S LINES.   THE BATTERY, FIRING
DOWN THE CONFEDERATE LINES, CAUSED SHELBY
TO PULL BACK FROM THE HEIGHTS SOUTH OF
BRUSH CREEK, SEVERELY WEAKENING THE
CONFEDERATE POSITION.
GEORGE THOMAN, A FARMER LIVING JUST SOUTH
OF WESTPORT POINTED OUT THE DEFILE TO
GENERAL CURTIS AND SERVED AS GUIDE.
SUNSET DRIVE FOLLOWS THE WALL OF THE OLD DEFILE.

ERECTED OCTOBER 23, 1964 BY
NATIVE SONS OF KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI