Visitor Center/Historic Site Office

The visitor center contains the historic site office and exhibits that tell the story of Lexington during the mid-19th century. Exhibits include displays about economic growth, dependence on cash crops such as hemp, reliance on slavery, and transportation such as the river trade and the Santa Fe Trail. Other displays describe the social growth of Lexington and divisions due to the Kansas Nebraska Act, border warfare and the onset of the Civil War. The story of Oliver Anderson, the builder of the house used as a hospital during the Battle of Lexington, is related throughout the exhibits. Other exhibits describe the Civil War in Missouri and the Battle of Lexington.

Explore the two major themes represented at Battle of Lexington State Historic Site: the Civil War in Missouri and the culture of the Missouri River valley. Admission to the visitor center, including its exhibits, audio-visual room and souvenir shop, is free. The visitor center opened in 1991.

Visitors can watch a 20-minute video about the Battle of Lexington, which offers an introduction and overview of the battle as told by members of the community and soldiers who fought in the battle. These different perspectives show how different groups of people were impacted by the events leading up to and during the Battle of Lexington. Copies of the movie can be purchased in the gift shop, which also has postcards, history books and Civil War-related items.