Fort Donelson National Battlefield, a unit of the National Park Service, commemorates the Battle of Fort Donelson, which occurred in February of 1862. The battle proved to be the first major victory for the Union in the American Civil War. Significant features of the battlefield are preserved for future generations, including impressive earthworks, the river batteries, which provide one of the most incredible views of any Civil War site, and the Dover Hotel, where Confederate Brigadier General Simon B. Buckner surrendered Fort Donelson and its garrison to Brigadier General Ulysses S. Grant.
