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(approximately 32,000 south and 5,000 north), the Union secured victory on July 4, 1863. Combined with the Union victory at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, the day prior, the tide of the war turned.
The Vicksburg National Military Park (VNMP) consists of the main battlefield, Vicksburg National Cemetery, Grant’s Canal and the U.S.S. Cairo Gunboat & Museum. Hundreds of monuments and markers pay homage to the various regiments, commanders and troops that fought and/or died. Much like Gettysburg, the sheer number is a bit overwhelming. A loop drive allows you to cover the acreage quickly (in your car or via NPS tour vehicle), with frequent opportunities to stop and walk among the monuments, artillery pieces and markers denoting the battle lines and troop movements. A few monuments are truly colossal, erected by states with the greatest presence in the battle (such as Illinois, whose troops comprised around 20% of the Union Army at Vicksburg).
Downtown Vicksburg also gives a good sense of the town’s historical roots and present status. Several quaint cafes, restaurants and watering holes offer a welcome return to the present after such a somber (but important) tour through the past.
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Triangulation
Leaving Vicksburg, consider a different route that takes you farther from Jackson but back to the NTP. Take US-61 to the southeast, toward the hamlet of Port Gibson. Unlike so much of the antebellum South that was ravaged during the Civil War, Port Gibson survived largely intact. It is said that after the Union victory in the Battle of Port Gibson, Gen. Grant proclaimed the town “too beautiful to burn.” Thus, many historic buildings remain, reflecting the multifaceted past of the village first settled by the French in 1729.
A brief but beautiful drive southwest of Port Gibson will get you to the Windsor Ruins. There, 23 Corinthian columns stand; all that remains of the largest Greek Revival antebellum home ever built in Mississippi. It was completed just as the war began and stood for 25 years after; fire destroyed it in 1890. However, the ruins reveal many fascinating details about the unique engineering incorporated and the construction methods employed by the enslaved laborers who built it. Upon returning to Port Gibson, get on the NTP around mile marker 40 and travel north to complete the third leg of this driving triangle.
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A portion of the original Natchez Trace, within the Rocky Springs Sec- tion of the Natchez Trace National Scenic Trail. This area is between mile markers 52 and 59 of the NTP, near the Rocky Springs townsite.
AUGUST 2024