The National Park at Vicksburg is not one that you'd walk around to see. After stopping in the visitor center to see the film, your car and your cell phone are the best way to see how the Union Army won this battle for this critical spot on the Mississippi River. This was one of the turning points in the Civil War coming as it did with the defeat of Lee's troops at Gettysburg. The Vicksburg battle showed off Grant's tenacity to not give up.
Read more here about this battle.
The road takes you from behind the Union lines all the way around then behind the Confederate lines. It's a 16 mile tour.
The Union troops here were from all over. There are monuments commemorating the sacrifices of men from Minnesota,
Michigan, Kansas,
New York, Illinois, Indiana,
Rhode Island, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania,
New Hampshire, Massachusetts, West Virginia, Ohio.
The terrain is very hilly from all the digging both sides did to gain territory and avoid the shelling.
Look closely at the top of this hill. The blue sign is the Union line and the red sign the Confederate. They were in hailing distance near the end.
From the South the states represented here were Tennessee,
Mississippi,
Arkansas, Alabama,
Missouri,
Louisiana,
Texas, Georgia.
Kentucky had a Confederate and a Union Memorial.
If you are in Vicksburg, MS you need to stop at this Park - an important part of US history.
