Fort Defiance

4 ½ STARS!
While it’s a little disappointing there is no «real» fort to explore, this interpretive center is awesome! It is so well done, clean, engaging and has beautiful views with a gently meandering paved trail to walk on. The employee who was there when we visited was very nice.
If you follow the signs leading from the road it will take you to a culdesac (different from the one mentioned later in my review) that you can see the Interpretive Center from but not get to the parking lot. Your GPS will be more accurate to follow.
Their restroom was beautiful and very clean. It had a baby changing station and paper towels. It smelled nicely but the odor was very strong. Too strong for those Se sitivd to strong fragrances. Outside of the bathroom is a garbage can to throw away the paper towel you used to open the door. Way to keep it sanitary, Fort Defiance!
There is a short video you can watch in the theater room. It is very engaging, even my barely 4 year old (who is known for her distractable personality) was watching it intently. The video is done in a sort of first person account/​interview style that is really great. It really helps you imagine what it was like for all different sorts of people during the Civil War: men and women, slave and free, Confederate and Union.
In the Interpretive Center there are several large glass panels with images of a homemaker, slave, merchant, Confederate soldier, Yankee soldier, etc. When you stand in front of them a sensor is triggered which plays an audio of that persons eyewitness account. For. some reason these terrified my 6 year old daughter, but everyone else loved them. The only bad thing is that some of the audio (soldier) is louder than other’s (merchant). Sometimes if you stand in front of one, its adjacent counterpart also gets triggered and plays. This can make it difficult to hear and focus on the one you are trying to listen to. The concept, however, is brilliant!
There are large maps on the wall and exhibits showing what was important to their way of life here during that period. They have an enormous glass panel inscribed with the Emancipation Proclamation and examples of the types of shot they used in the cannons. There was also a small replica of the ships used during the war.
It is a great place to take your children if you homeschool and would like to take a field trip to go along with your history lesson. I think the video style and glass panel «interviews» are especially good for those who gravitate towards the Charlotte Mason method.
There is a table of items for sale. They have some really good books, even two different coloring books of soldier’s uniforms that are geared toward boys. That was different and nice, especially because my 7 year old son is really into the Revolutionary and Civil Wars and loves to color. Stocking stuffer!
We loved the hiking path. It was really nice and easy for the whole family (and stroller) because it is paved. It looked like there was a way to go up toward the fort foundation but it was not paved. It was drizzling and we didn’t want to walk in the leaves and mud, so we decided to check that out next time we visit. Be careful when looking at the map for the trail. It seems to show that there is a way to cross the river. We followed it all the way to what seems like a culdesac. Then we continued to follow the trail down and it just ends next to the busy highway, making this Mama very nervous! Instead of taking the trail all the way back we just walked through the culdesac (kinda ghetto) and back to the parking lot.
In the parking lot we saw paper birch trees! Those are our favorite and we didn’t think they could grow here, so that made up for the confusing map and lack of trail markings. :)
Fort Defiance, please PLEASE have some clearly marked signs made along the trail letting visitors know where the trail leads since it is not a loop. Thank you! :)
There are lots of picnic tables and places to throw down a blanket and enjoy the park. It really is beautiful. We loved the huge shade trees and that many were labeled. (Except we did see one Sugar Maple that was mislabeled.) No playground, but we didn’t miss it. If you need a way to give your kids some exercise while there, make them run up the hill toward the Interpretive Center and then roll back down. (You may need to catch them at the bottom! It’s steep.)
This place could so easily be 5 stars if they just would mark the trail, make the sensors for the talking glass panels a little less sensitive and adjust their volume. We are really excited to go back again in the future! 5 hanks for such a wonderful experience!

Great trails, beautiful grounds, and an awesome view of Downtown Clarksville. And it’s free!
The museum is great, but has its issues. Walking through it you are bombarded with voice recordings that are based on sensors. It’s poorly designed, needs a change. The front door of the museum is also not the front door you use. You’ll know this because of the taped paper design telling you so. ;)

Beautiful walk through history. Nice paved walkway. Great way to spend the afternoon. The information center is clean and has lots brochures and artifacts inside. Great place for a quiet picnic or to take pictures.

Sunday, June 1^st, Tony, Noël and I was driving around Clarksville checking out some lovely old Victorian Homes on Madison Street. We were making our way over to Route 79 Flea Market, while going there I noticed the sign about Fort Defiance. so once we were finished at the flea market I made the turn out the side road to the Park.
Once there, it is easy to locate. The parking lot is very nice with plenty of room. There is a visitors center but it doesn’t open until 1pm on Sundays so we just walked around the park. There was lots of signs to read and check out. There is also a few cannons, a few benches to sit on and a couple of picnic tables but NO Grills or Playground equipment.
There is also some hiking trails that are paved and wounds out along the ridge to view the river with a lovely overlook of the city of Clarksville. There is also some hiking trails around the Earthworks of the original fort. It is well marked with plenty of signs to keep you off the Earthworks. The trees are really well marked and there are quite a few Black Cherry Trees there…
The grass along the earthworks was still rather high, and sort of worried me about snakes. they need to cut this really badly.
The park is FREE to enjoy which is always a plus in my book. I enjoyed the park and we ended up spending about 45 minutes there. I would go again and Highly recommend this to you and your family. Very informative and interesting park. We learned that General Stonewall Jackson was an unknown soldier while fighting at this battle here at this fort… before he became a leader for the UNION troops. I never knew that!!!

Me, my mother, and step father came upon this place just driving around Clarksville. We had no idea it was here.
We all really enjoyed the scenery and walking around to read the signs. We are always going to forts and more historical places and I’d have to say even though the grass was kinda High, I enjoyed walking out in the area where the fort once was. Since it was a Sunday we didn’t get to go into the guest center, because it does not open til 1. But we over all enjoyed the park we’d definitely will come back.

I’m always one to enjoy a hike, a view and history. Not often does that happen at the same time. The museum for fort defiance was small but was well furnished and informative. There was nothing left of the actual fort besides the large raised earthen walls where it once stood and the relics in the museum. Perched on an immense hill over looking the 100ft ling Red River the view and scenery from Fort Defiance is wonderful. There is a well made nature trail that winds around the hill and for the more adventurous like myself and my brother there are some very rugged trails off the beaten path that lead down to the river. Between the wonderful view, the small but quint museum, the nature paths (rugged or man made), the wild walnut and pecan trees and the remains of the ironic Fort Defiance this is one of the best attractions Clarksville has to offer.

As a bit of a history nerd, this was a fun place to spend an afternoon. The staff was knowledgable, and answered all my questions. It’s such a beautiful place, it’s easy to imagine what it must have looked like during the war.

My girlfriend is always looking to be more active when she comes to visit since the majority of our activities involve knives and forks and a nice hike was a way to burn off calories from all the eating. Fort Defiance was an actually fort with the earthworks from the garrison there still around and a clear view into Clarksville. The trail though is a little confusing, the map seems to show that you can walk down all the way down to the river and cross it at some point but there doesn’t seem to be a way to do that.
The visitor’s site is nice and new and the volunteer there is informative and helpful and actually, a little too eager to get you to stay and look at the exhibits. It’s a little sad that the visitor center has been built with a lot of care and attention when not too many people come out there. Clarksville should definitely put more focus on it. If only so that knowledgeable, eager man can to talk to more people

I always bring visitors here to get a little bit of local history and some exercise. The museum is free, and has the best gallery design I’ve seen locally (the stuff I think about…) The guy who works there can answer any question you have about the Civil War, and is always happy to talk to visitors. There is a nice walking trail and plenty of historical postings throughout the old fort site.