Mileage for the day: 22
May 5 - Greg got up and went on his first run since the Boston Marathon - a 7-mile jaunt through the hills of Vicksburg battlefield. He then joined the lay-abed Jennifer and Rufus for a lovely breakfast of frittata, fruit and muffins at the B&B.
We then headed over to Vicksburg National Military Park. Watched a film on the battle where the actors, sadly, had much better beards than in Shiloh. We joined our guide for a personal driving tour of the battlefield. His Mississippi accent added a nice bit of authenticity. At the start of the battle, over 80% of the Union soldiers were from Illinois. There is a huge monument to all of the Illinois soldiers that, at the time, cost half of the state budget to erect. We found it very touching that inside the rotunda is listed the name of every single soldier from the state who participated in the battle - including musicians, wagoneers, privates, etc. (Reminded us of the Vietnam Memorial wall in DC.) Our quick review found one Nye on the list (William).
The topography of the battlefield highlights what a wise decision it was to ultimately lay siege to the city rather that continue to attack the Vicksburg fortifications. During the attacks, the casualty rate for Union soldiers was 8 for every one Confederate casualty. The Confederate forces destroyed most of the houses and cut down most of the trees around the siege line to improve their lines of sight. During the siege, the conditions inside of Vicksburg became horrific - rats were eaten by soldiers, the cats and dogs around town “disappeared,” and yellow fever and dysentery were rampant. Each day, bodies were tossed into a mass grave and then covered with dirt in preparation for the next day’s deaths. The Confederate commander, Gen. Pemberton kept waiting to be assisted by Gen. Joe Johnson, who never arrived. Pemberton surrendered the city to Grant on July 4, 1863.
We visited the Cairo (pronounced Kay-ro, like the syrup) Ironclad. It was sunk prior to the Vicksburg campaign and lay at the bottom of the Mississippi for about 100 years before it was raised. It has its original guns, iron cladding, boilers and paddle wheel. Much of the wood is also intact.
After our tour, Rufus took a nap while Greg and Jennifer toured a couple Civil War era houses. Both tours were very disappointing. The first was Duff Green Mansion that served as hospital during the siege. Lovely home but no information (now a B&B). Second was the Anchuca House, which was owned by a cousin of Jefferson Davis. Again, not much info on the house (now also a B&B) but also beautiful. Jefferson Davis gave a speech from the balcony after the war, in one of his last public appearances before his death.
Rufus joined Greg & Jennifer for a the Old Court House Museum. The building survived the War of Northern Aggression and today houses Civil War and other local historical artifacts and memorabilia. (A favorite: a bullet found in the Confederate fortifications on which a Union soldier had etched “From Grant.”) The top floor houses the original court room with a very imposing judge’s podium.
Tomorrow we’re going to swing by the battlefield again before setting off for Chattanooga.
