Road trip, West Coast Spring Break

Vicksburg National Military Park

10 Comments

March 13, 2022

Map and video of today’s route (has good views of the Vicksburg Tour)

Today was another 300+ mile drive towards Dallas with the only tourist stop being Vicksburg National Military Park.

Vicksburg, MS was recognized as crucial by both the Union and the Confederacy during the Civil War and was called the “Key to the South” by Lincoln. Its Confederate garrison controlled a high point overlooking the Mississippi river and its siege and surrender to Union troops on July 4, 1863 was a significant factor in the defeat of the Confederacy.

The battlefield is now run by the National Park Service (NPS) which usually does a stellar job with its sites but, at the moment, this one is a mess. There are hundreds of monuments and memorials in the park, most of them dedicated to the Union or Confederate soldiers of a particular state for which the location is significant. There is a Visitor Center, dedicated tour route with numbered stops that have written and audio descriptions available in the NPS app, and a museum. Sounds fantastic, doesn’t it? The trouble is that about half the tour route is closed, making 8 of the 15 stops inaccessible, as is the museum. The “road closed” sign appears before reaching stop number one so they have removed the stop numbers from all locations and stops are now in random order – making the audio tour practically useless. The stops are interesting but difficult to put into context.

Missouri Memorial at VicksburgA typical stop has weapons, a descriptive sign and memorial(s). This is a Missouri Confederate memorial.

Minnesota MonummentSome of the memorials are immense, such as this one dedicated to the soldiers of Minnesota (Union, of course, since it was the newest state at the time).

The museum is dedicated to the USS Cairo, one of the first Ironclad warships ever built. After more than a 100 years in the mud at the bottom of the Yazoo River (a local tributary of the Mississippi) it has been partially restored.

USS Cairo IroncladThe ship is accessible, but not the museum to tell you about it.

Vicksburg National CemeteryThe Vicksburg National Cemetery overlooks the Yazoo River.

10 thoughts on “Vicksburg National Military Park”

  1. Very interesting to read, wish it had been better organized as you said.

    Safe travels, no bugs hopefully,
    Kusum

  3. I visits Vicksburg in 2018 during my own roadtrip. Quite moving, and so senseless. Thanks, Steve.

  4. Hi Steve, I didn’t realize you were on the road again – good stuff!! Have fun. Cathy

    1. Thanks, glad you found out. I thought you subscribed. Check your spam folder for notifications and, if they are there, add Blog@RelativeRest to your contacts.

  5. Great photography Steve. For today, I am in the Brandywine triangle in PA where the other war is memorialized! I am driving Daniel, Davids son who is here on spring break, to visit Ziggy at Penn State.
    Happy travels – I enjoy the armchair view!
    Best, Leith

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