Spring Travels: Vicksburg Battlefield

Now the Father of Waters goes unvexed to the sea.

-Abraham Lincoln

The fortified bluffs above the Mississippi River at Vicksburg, MS gave the Confederacy control over this vital commercial and military waterway.  Lincoln knew that to have the US again in control of the river meant that the Confederacy would be divided and and then conquered.  It was General Grant's job to take the high ground at Vicksburg from rebel control and preserve the Union.  

A big part of American History is to be found and explored at the National Military Park at the site of the battle and siege that led to the surrender of Vicksburg and elicited President's thankful quote regarding unvexing the Father of Waters.  I like history. I like honor being shown to those who have displayed bravery and ingenuity.  I love road trips.  I love the experience of pulling so many pleasant elements together.  So the Sunesons and our good friends the McCords, traveled to Mississippi for fun in late March.

We joined the McCords for dinner at their "Blue House" home in the Piney Woods of east Texas on a Tuesday night.  We would be up an out the door in the morning making for Vicksburg, Mississippi.

Unlike Gen. Grant, who risked the destruction of his entire army as he boldly maneuvered 38,000 troops across the Mississippi, telling his commanders that they would have to make due with only the food they carried since they would be cut off from their supply lines; we googled our options for a place to eat lunch once in Vicksburg.  We chose The Gumbo Pot, a good place for fried shrimp special and gumbo. 

Once fed, we had the will to forward march to the battle site for the remainder of the afternoon.

Sue checked with the ranger to see if they had any information on those who fought there, and was rewarded with a print out with some details about her Great Great Grandfather, Lewis Maris.  He was actually captured just before he could get into Vicksburg's defenses.

We drove through the arch at the entrance to the battlefield, tracing the Union lines that were in place in May of 1863.

 Artillery used in the battle was lined up in an impressive display in front of the visitor's center.

DeGueyer's Battery was dug in and pounded the rebel positions around Vicksburg for 34 days before the town was surrenedered by General Pemberton.

The monument and rotunda build by the state of Illinois looms large over the battlefield.  Illinois provided many of the Federal troops than manned the siege lines and of course Illinois is the proud home of the victorious General Grant as well as Mr. Lincoln.

Kirby was able to find the name of his ancestor, John P. McCord, cast in bronze, and listed among the Illinois cavalry and all who served from that state in Grant's campaign. 

Kirby points to the name of one of his ancestors who served in the 5th Illinois cavalry at Vicksburg

Mark at the site of the Louisiana redan, a defensive position that guarded the Jackson Road into Vicksburg

Wisconsin memorial at Vicksburg

I would say the most impressive tribute at the Vicksburg battlefield is the remains of the great Union ironclad gun boat, the USS Cairo, raised the the bottom of the river in 1963, 100 years after she was sunk by a rebel mine.  The reconstructed structure of this impressive new battleship clad in thick iron plates, impervious to cannon fire was on display near to original townsite of Vickburg.

The bow of the USS Cairo
Armed to the teeth with cannon and covered in iron plates above the waterline.
She was sunk by a mine deployed by the rebels that detonated underneath her keel.

Donna looks out from one of the gun ports on the USS Cairo

We were at the Cairo Museum when the hour struck 5 O'clock, which means it was closing time for the battlefield.  We were not quite done with our tour, so we vowed to return in the morning to finish the drive through the historic site.

In the morning we had on our list of 'must see' items, the location of the Texas brigade that stopped the breach in the Confederate line and fought hard and proud.   At the Texas memorial where a bronze Texan stood with his shirt spread open and his chest hairs cast in bronze were proudly displayed, Kirby (a native Texan) remarked; "I am sorry to admit, but the Texas memorial has got to be the tackiest site on the battlefield."  Many in our small party thought the the representative Texian soldier bore a close resemblence to Matthew McConaughey - and it was not just that he was portrayed sans shirt.

Sue and Mark at the 2nd Texas redoubt

Texas Memorial

Can I still be an honorary Texan  even if I do not have a chest full of bronze hair?

With General U.S. Grant accepting the surrender of Vickburg on July 4, 1863, the rebel cause was inevitably lost.  We headed back to the visitor's center to get directions to a place found only by following two-lane country roads that is not marked by any bronze plaques, but a place that looks large in the family history.  Next stop - if we can find it, the site of the Battle at Big Black River Bridge.