At the heighth of its use in 1865, Camp Nelson encompassed roughly 4,000 acres, organized around an 800 acre core, including more than 300 outlying buildings and tents that housed a quartermaster commissary depot, ordnance depot, recruitment center, prison and hospital.
In addition, eighteen earthen forts or batteries, primarily built by Blacks ringed the camp for protection. The camp was also home to stables and corrals, a bakery and a steam-driven waterworks that could pump water up 470 feet from the Kentucky River tp a 500,000 gallon reservoir.
However, its location proved to be poor as a supply depot because of lack of transportstion, so Gen. William T. Sherman decided to also turn it into a training camp for incoming black soldiers of the United States Colored Troops (USCT).
Because of the supplies, it was also a possible target of Nathan Bedford Forrest.
Some 3,000 impressed black workers were stationed at Camp Nelson by 1863, performing critical supply jobs as well as fortifying the camp and construction of railroads and the 300 buildings of the post.
And, then the USCT training camp was set up, and eventually some 23,000 black soldiers trained there, making it the second largest training center for them.
--Old Secesh
