Lookout Mountain Battlefield Visitor Center at Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park

GENERAL INFORMATION

The Lookout Mountain Battlefield Visitor Center—the visitor center for the Chattanooga Unit of Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park—is located at the top of Lookout Mountain at 110 Point Park Road (adjacent to Park Point). Unlike the elaborate Chickamauga Battlefield Visitor Center, the Lookout Mountain Visitor Center is housed in an older building that was formally a private business, and it looks like the other shops that line the road to the top of the mountain. You can park at the metered parking spaces on the street or in the free parking lot behind the building. The parking lot is small and may fill up during the summer.

OPERATING HOURS

The Lookout Mountain Visitor Center is open every day except for Christmas and New Year’s days from 8:30 AM to 5 PM. However, always check the current opening hours on the National Park Service’s official Operating Hours and Seasons web page for the park before making travel plans.

AMENITIES

• Information desk where you can ask questions and get a park brochure and trail map
• Pay your fee to enter Point Park
• Book and souvenir store
• Small museum
• Park film

Lobby area of the Lookout Mountain Battlefield Visitor Center at Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park

PARK FILMS

Although there is no stand-alone movie theater, there are two large-screen TVs that show different park films upon request—just press a button on the wall and the film plays. One TV is located in the lobby area and shows a five minute film that highlights the points of interest in the park. The second TV is in the museum and shows a ten minute film that focuses on the Battle for Chattanooga. Both are informative and should be watched before venturing out to explore the park.

MUSEUM

The museum is mainly made up of information panels and historical photographs that explain the Battle of Chattanooga from beginning to end.

Museum exhibits at the Lookout Mountain Battlefield Visitor Center, Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park

Also featured is the The Battle Above the Clouds, a 30’ x 13’ canvas painted by James Walker in 1870. Walker originally created a Battle Above the Clouds painting in 1864 after being commissioned by the United States government. In 1870, General Joseph Hooker commissioned him to paint a larger version, and it is this version that is now on display at the Visitor Center. The painting remained in the Hooker family until being donated to the Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park in 1970.

An audio presentation explains the painting and is available on demand (push a button just as with the park films). The park film is shown on the other wall, so if you start the recording on the painting and somebody else starts the park film, it’s hard to hear either one.

The Battle Above the Clouds painting on display at the Lookout Mountain Battlefield Visitor Center, Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park

The Battle Above the Clouds painting on display at the Lookout Mountain Battlefield Visitor Center, Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park

SCHEDULING YOUR TIME

Plan to spend up to 45 minutes at the Lookout Mountain Visitor Center. This would allow you to see both park films, read all of the information in the exhibit area, and listen to the audio presentation about the Battle Above the Clouds painting.

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