The Camden Expedition of the Arkansas Red River Campaign featured the major military activities of 1864 in Arkansas. Many battlefields, fortifications and buildings survive today to tell that story.
The Camden Expedition Scenic By-Way Steering Committee formed late in 2015 as the Arkansas Civil War Sesquicentennial concluded. The goal of the committee was to find a way in which the numerous battlefields, fortifications, buildings and other sites associated with the 1864 Camden Expedition could be marketed together to create a heritage tourism destination that would benefit economic development in southwest Arkansas.
Arkansas 92nd General Assembly's House Bill 1414 was also passed by the Arkansas Senate, then signed into law by Governor Asa Hutchinson on March 1, 2019, officially designating the "Camden Expedition Scenic Highway".
Map of the route taken during the Camden Expedition by the army of General Frederick Steele from Little Rock (Pulaski County) to Camden (Ouachita County) from March 24 through May 2, 1864. Map drawn by Lieutenant Fredrick Sommer of General Steele's engineer staff. Courtesy of the National Archives and Records Administration