Without intervention, historic sites can fall victim to the ravages of time. Such is the case with the Civil War fort remains atop Bowling Green’s Reservoir Hill.

While most people in southcentral Kentucky likely recognize the hill adjacent to downtown and its iconic water tower, many don’t know that the hill was the site of a historic fort.

When the Confederate government designated Bowling Green the Confederate state capital, it began building the fort in 1861 under the command of Brigadier Gen. Simon Bolivar Buckner and some 4,500 troops.

The Confederates retreated from Bowling Green before the fort was finished. When the Union Army occupied Bowling Green, the fort was completed and named after Charles Ferguson Smith, who served as a distinguished officer in the U.S. Army during the Mexican–American War and Civil War before dying in 1862 from dysentery.

One of the commanders who directed the fort’s completion was Col. Benjamin Harrison, who would go on to be the 23rd president of the United States.

Many of the troops and commanders stationed at Fort C. F. Smith would go on to be part of significant battles that helped shape our nation.

While remnants of the massive fort can still be discerned atop the hill, the vast majority of it is gone.

Thankfully, there is a new effort to preserve what is left of Fort C. F. Smith.

The Bowling Green-Warren County Landmark Association and Operation PRIDE are actively working to preserve what remains of the fort. On Thursday, 30 trees were planted on the hill to help fight erosion. The groups have also asked the city of Bowling Green to take numerous steps, including:

•protect the remains of the fort with a period-correct cedar split-rail fence surrounding the earthworks to prevent vehicles of various types from driving on top of the earthworks;

•educate the public through appropriate historical signs and markers;

•rename “Reservoir Hill Park” to “President Benjamin Harrison Park” or “Old Fort C. F. Smith Park” to ensure more routine recognition of the historical significance of the site;

•establish a comprehensive landscape plan to complement the protection of the fort.

The best time to take on preservation efforts is now, before even more of the fort is lost.

We applaud and encourage the effort to preserve and acknowledge this significant part of local, and national, history.