Day 24 - Vicksburg, Mississippi

By:  Gary and Sally Johnson - Adventure 8

Today we were in Vicksburg, Mississippi, "The Key to the South."  We had an early start planned, but had a bit of delay because our bus driver was sent to the wrong RV park.  After much scrambling by our Adventure Caravan staff, the problem was fixed and we were on our way.  Our first stop was the Vicksburg Battlefield Museum, an unusual building shaped like a gunboat to acknowledge the boats used on the Mississippi during the Civil War.  There we got our introduction to the battle of Vicksburg, including the 47-day siege that clinched a victory for the Union forces.  Over 100,000 soldiers fought in the battle, 75,000 Union and 30,000 Confederate.  Vicksburg was an important victory because it gave control of the Mississippi to the Union and split the South, and, not unimportantly, enabled upstream farmers to ship their grain more cheaply.  It has been described as the most complex campaign of the Civil War because Grant tried so many ways to conquer the city, only to be repulsed.  He finally attacked from the east but still couldn't win by fighting alone, and the siege ensued.  Vicksburg surrendered on the Fourth of July - and then the city refused to celebrate that holiday for the next 85 years!  Although the war continued for another two years after Vicksburg, the South never regained control.  Our host at the museum used a diorama of the battlefield to help explain to us what happened during the battle. 

The military park is also a cemetery.  Nearly 17,000
Union Soldiers are buried here - the Confederates
weren't allowed and are buried in the city cemetery.
Look closely and notice that some of the headstones
are very small.  These are the graves of unknown
soldiers.

Then we loaded up on the bus again and headed for Vicksburg National Military Park.  Our guide there, Myra, was excellent.  She showed us why Vicksburg was so difficult to take by normal battle methods and where military action took place, as well as explaining the various monuments to us.  Vicksburg National Military Park has 1350 monuments (busts, statues, obelisks, etc.) from 30 states commemorating the battle.  When the battle took place, there were no trees because the Confederate forces had stripped the hills around the city to make battlements and to expose the enemy.  Now, however, the area is very treed and quite beautiful, especially with the imposing monuments.

Entrance to the Vicksburg National Military Park

We visited the Illinois monument in the park.  Illinois
supplied the most soldiers for the battle - on both sides
of the conflict - 36,000 in all.

Because of the wonderful acoustics in the Illinois monument,
our guide had us sing "God Bless America."  The dome has
a hole in the center that acts as a sundial.

While in the military park, we also saw the USS Cairo, the first ship to be sunk by a torpedo.  It was raised, restored, and now resides in the park next to the military cemetery.  It was a great example of an iron-clad fighting vessel of its time. 

The USS Cairo.  Though it had about 170 souls on
board, none were lost.

The military park is also a cemetery.  Nearly 17,000 Union
soldiers are buried here - the Confederates weren't allowed
and are buried in the city cemetery.  Look closely and notice
that some of the headstones are very small.  These are the
graves of unknown solders.

Next our guide took us on a brief tour of Vicksburg.  This is an old city, established in 1819 and for many years a river city of great wealth gained from lumber and cotton.  The war and the bombardment of Vicksburg during the siege changed this.  Now the wealth of Vicksburg comes from tourists visiting the battlefield and a collection of casinos on the river.  There are still many great examples of old homes in the downtown area.  We stopped at the old Vicksburg Hotel for lunch at the Old Southern Tea Room.  There we had a great buffet lunch of southern favorites, including stuffed beignets, grits with shrimp sauce, carrot soufflé, mashed potatoes, chicken supreme, and tortellini salad, followed by brownies with ice cream for dessert.

Murals by the waterfront depicting the city's history.

We dine at the Old Southern Tea Room.

Full again, we waddled out to the bus for our ride (we should have walked!) to the Cedar Grove Mansion, voted the best antebellum home in Vicksburg.  We toured this lovely old home which has been restored to its former glory and is now an inn and restaurant.  Our guide, Kathy, told us about the Klein family who built the house and spoke about how the house was used during its 170 years.  It was a beautiful home and well worth the visit.

Cedar Grove Mansion.

Cedar Grove was hit 41 times during the
 bombardment of Vicksburg during the siege.

The ballroom, which includes a piano valued at over $1 million.

After returning to the RV park, we had an ice cream social complete with "door prizes" and "shameless marketing" for future Adventure Caravan trips.  Another full day! 

We all scream for ice cream!