Alexander, AR to Vicksburg, MS - October 21-27, 2013

Wow! What a jam-packed week this was!

Monday we woke to 51 degrees and sunshine. By 5 p.m. the weather had changed to a rain and thunder storm. It was a good day to get things done around the trailer and make plans for the remainder of the week.

Office at Cherokee Lakes

Portable Chicken Coop - John & Dawn, this one's for you!

These are walkways through the property

Water feature on the property

We connected with friend John, whom we knew from our church in Washington State, and who now lives in Little Rock. I guess it's been about 5 years since we last saw him, so we made plans to meet for dinner on Tuesday evening, and meet his wife Dawn. What a wonderful evening that was, but more on that in a few...

By Tuesday morning the rain had stopped, the sun came out, and it was a beautiful day. We decided to visit a few of the area's "must-sees" before having dinner with John and Dawn that evening. So, our first stop was at the MacArthur Park (no, not the park made famous by the song) and Museum.

The MacArthur Museum was created to interpret Arkansas' military heritage from when it was considered a territory to the present.The museum is located in the Tower Building of the historic Little Rock Arsenal. It's also the birthplace of General Douglas MacArthur. It preserves the contributions of Arkansas men and women who serve(d) in the armed forces. Its exhibits feature artifacts, photographs, weapons, documents, uniforms, as well as many other military items that portray Arkansas' military history, both at home and abroad.

General MacArthur

Afterwards, we drove to the Murray Dam Bridge and Park. Beautiful. We walked the bridge, which is the longest pedestrian and bicycle bridge in the world, designed for that purpose. Taking 8 years to complete, it connects 15 miles of trails in Little Rock and North Little Rock, and links to over 7,000 acres of park land. The bridge is elevated 90 feet above the Arkansas River, and is 14 feet wide for walking and biking. 

Center of the bridge span over the
Arkansas River

Dam and bridge

Later, after walking around the Promenade at Chenal, we met John and Dawn for dinner at an Italian bistro "BRAVO! Cucina Italiana" for a wonderful evening of talking, laughing and sharing--and getting to know Dawn. (She's a fabulous gal, and has a penchant for all things kitchen related--which is A-OK in my book! According to John she makes the ultimate sea-salt caramels...YUM!) They recently bought 50 acres about 2 hours north of Little Rock along the Buffalo River, where they plan to transfer their Texas farm (horses, burros, chickens, dogs, ducks, and whatever else they have!) We told them we'd be sure to visit if they put in an RV pad complete with  a water hookup, 50 amp power and a dump site! Was so good to be with them. and reestablish friendships.

A round-about at the Promenade

Outdoor fireplace adjacent to the restaurant

And finally...the happy couple, John and Dawn Kelly

Packing up to move to a new location/park has become rote, but there are other things that we need to attend to before we leave. There's always something in an RV. Wednesday was the day for doing just that: adhering a rubber gasket and reattaching 2 pieces of trim. Later, while I stayed at camp to catch up on emails and knit, Dick rode the motorcycle through the Arkansas countryside for about 50 miles. He didn't see much but windy roads, which was fine with him.

By 9:00 a.m. Thursday morning we had secured and packed up what remained, and hit the road heading south to Vicksburg, MS. God has blessed us with fabulous days to travel, weather-wise. Again, the sun was shining and the temperature was in the mid-70s. We made it to the RiverTown Campground in Vicksburg by 2:00 p.m., our new location for the next 5 days.

The office and laundry at RiverTown Campground

Our site at RiverTown

We had wanted to see Vicksburg last spring on our way north but ran out of time, so Friday, between laundry and shopping, we planned out what we wanted to see. There's so much! Where to begin?

Our first stop on Saturday was to The Court House Museum (circa 1858-1860). Nine rooms are available for touring in what is possibly the finest antebellum building in Vicksburg. The museum includes thousands of artifacts ranging from pre-Columbian implements to contents of ladies' wardrobes, and of course, the Civil War.

Jefferson Davis' speech to the Mississippi Legislature
in 1884.

The courtroomon the 2nd floor of the Court House

Family found after the siege at Vicksburg

The oak tree tree under which
Pemberton surrendered to Grant
(on the Road Tour through the
Vicksburg National Military Park) 

Next, we walked some of the streets around town, to see some of the old antebellum mansions still standing, many of which are now thriving bed and breakfasts, and are open to private tours only.

The Anchuca Mansion had a humble beginning in 1830 as a wood-framed pioneer home, but was completed in 1847 to the beautiful structure of Greek revival it is today. The balcony was where Jefferson Davis greeted neighbors and friends while visiting his brother Joseph E. Davis in 1869. His brother died here in 1870.

Another mansion we saw was the Duff Green Mansion (circa 1856). This lovely 3-story mansion, constructed by skilled slave labor, was used as a hospital for both Confederate and Union soldiers during the Civil War.

Another home was the George Washington Ball House (circa 1822), which is a frontier home located in the oldest neighborhood in Vicksburg. Built and owned by George Washington Bell, a distant cousin of President George Washington, the home was unrecognizable, obscured by additions and neglect, with its history virtually untold for nearly a century until it was fully restored in 2004.

We passed Christ Episcopal Church on our walk. The church was one of the first buildings built for public assembly in Vicksburg, and despite shelling during the siege of Vicksburg, daily services were conducted. The church was damaged by Union gunboats explosive shelling from the river, and the rectory was so badly damaged that it had to be torn down and rebuilt around 1873. Many of the original furnishings are still in use in the weekly worship services.

Our next stop was the Old Depot Museum, located in downtown Vicksburg, near the Yazoo River, which flows into the Mississippi. The museum houses over 250 ship models, with exhibits for tow boats and river boats, gunboat collections and US Navy vessels named for people and places along the Mississippi. Also featured are model railroads with railroading artifacts. At the museum was a diarama of the entire battlefield of Vicksburg, with all the Union and Confederate positions depicted. Displayed throughout the museum are 40 original paintings of war on the river. 

Next to the Museum is a display of 32 hand painted murals depicting the history of Vicksburg, on the floodwall separating the river from downtown. One can peek into the history of Vicksburg, including President Theodore Roosevelt's bear hunt, the Siege of Vicksburg, the Flood of 1927, the tornado of 1953, and the National Military Park, to name just a few.

.

Then we headed to the Lower Mississippi River Museum and Riverfront Interpretive Site, that offers a glimpse into what life was like along the river--its risks and benefits. It also contains the history and timeline of the Corps of Engineers. The museum offers an orientation theater and an assortment of interactive and educational displays.

By this time it was well past lunchtime, so we headed across the street to Rusty's Riverfront Grill. Dick had a grilled chicken sandwich and onion rings, while I feasted on a shrimp po' boy. YUM!

Adjacent to the museum is the Motor Vessel Mississippi VI, open for tours to give one the feel for life aboard the boat through interactive displays, including a boat simulator in the pilothouse (which was really cool!). 

A scale model of the Mississippi River between Greenville and Nathez is located along Levee Street, which holds about 2" to 5"  of water to represent normal and flood stages of the river.

Do you know where the first bottle of Coca-Cola was bottled? Vicksburg! The Biedenham Coca-Cola Museum is a restored 1890 building where Coca-Cola was first bottled anywhere in the world, in 1894. The museum contains Coca-Cola memorabilia, reproduction bottling works, a 1900 soda fountain and restored 1890 candy store. We learned that the change in the taste of Coke is due to the move from using cane sugar to corn syrup. Wish they'd go back to cane sugar!

We were exhausted after this long day of sight-seeing, so we headed home to rest up for tomorrow--another day of exploring: The Vicksburg National Military Park.

Sunday dawned with a 30% chance of rain. We hoped it would hold off until we were done for the day! It did, thankfully.

The experience of visiting this historic place is almost indescribable. We started the tour with a 20-minute film which recounts the entire campaign, siege, and defense of Vicksburg in 1863. There are over 1,340 monuments, markers and plaques on the self-guided 16-mile tour road, with a restored Union gunboat (the USS Cairo) and the National Cemetery halfway through the tour.

Reconstructed forts and trenches evoke memories of the 47-day siege that ended in the surrender of the city. Victory here and at Port Hudson gave the United States control of the Mississippi River.

Site under this oak tree where Pemberton surrendered. 

General Grant top his horse, in the location where
his headquarters was located.

General Pemberton

The Shirley House was owned by James and Adeline Shirley and is the only wartime structure remaining inside Vicksburg National Military Park, and was referred to as the 'white house' by Federal soldiers during the siege.

On May 18, 1863, as the Confederate rear guard fell back into the Vicksburg defenses, soldiers were ordered to burn all the houses in front of their works. The Shirley barns and outbuildings were quickly burned to the ground, but the soldier assigned to destroy the house was shot before he could apply the torch.

Private Albert D.J. Cashier was stationed in this vicinity with the 95th Illinois Infantry. Cashier served in the army for 3 years and participated in several major engagements. Almost 50 years after the war, Albert was injured in an accident and was rushed to a hospital where doctors discovered that he was a she. Albert Cashier, whose real name was Jennie Hodgers, disguised herself as a man in 1862 and went off to fight in Mr. Lincoln's Army.

The Illinois State Memorial has 47 steps, one for every day Vicksburg was besieged.

Names of all men from Illinois, involved in the war
are listed here in the rotunda of this memorial. 

There is so much to share that I'm having a difficult time deciding where to stop. I hope you'll visit this historical site to experience it yourself.

The USS Cairo was one of seven ships in the city class, named in honor of towns along the upper Mississippi and Ohio Rivers. These powerful "ironclads" each mounted 13 big guns, with Northern hopes of regaining control of the lower Mississippi River and split the Confederacy in two. The USS Cairo was destined to see only limited action in May and June, but her most significant action came six months later when she kept a rendezvous with destiny. Part of a small flotilla, she traveled up the Yazoo River, north of Vicksburg, to clear the channel of underwater mines. Disaster struck when she was rocked by two explosions which tore gaping holes in the ship's hull. She sank in 12 minutes, and was the first ship in history to be sunk by an electronically detonated torpedo. Miraculously, there were no casualties. Forgotten in her watery grave, she was covered by a shroud of silt and sand, thus preserving priceless artifacts. Her resting place was discovered in 1956, and was finally raised in 1964 to reveal her treasure of weapons, munitions, an array of naval stores, and personal gear of the sailors who served on board. The original cannons, iron plates, paddlewheels, and much of the original wood has been used in this memorial. The museum houses much of the artifacts recovered.

Ironclads like the USS Cairo were equipped with 13 heavy cannon, each requiring a crew of 6 men to position and fire each cannon. Interlocking 2 ½” thick iron plates covered 12-25” thick white oak planks which protected the pilothouse and sloping casements from enemy fire. Cairo’s 15’ wide paddlewheel is made up of five 22-foot diameter web-like arms and circles that form the spokes of the wheel. The paddles were probably wood planks that could be easily replaced if damaged. The wheelhouse enclosed the paddlewheel and was not protected by armor, as was the rest of the ship, making it vulnerable to cannon fire from high riverbanks and batteries atop forts along the river.

Cairo’s engines and boilers are among the oldest and best surviving examples of steam-driven propulsion systems. A long drum on top of the boilers collected the steam and delivered it to the engines. The boilers were heated with over 2,000 pounds of coal per hour. Hot gases from the fire flowed through tubes running the length of each boiler, turning water inside each boiler to steam. The steam drove 2 large pistons, one on either side of the engine compartments, which then pushed 2 oscillating arms that turned the paddlewheel.  At full steam the engines could move the 888-ton Cairo gunboat about 9 miles per hour.

Nearly half the crew aboard the USS Cairo was immigrants, from France, Denmark, Russia, Germany, England, Ireland and the Caribbean. They were farmers, teachers and butchers, most with no sailing experience at all. 

The National Cemetery covers 116 acres, and holds the remains of 18,244 Civil War Union solders, a number unmatched by any other national cemetery. Only 5,290 of the soldiers are identified, as designated by upright gravestones; the remainder (12,9540) are unknown, as indicated by small blocks of stone. Confederate dead, approximately 5,000 soldiers, from the Vicksburg campaign are buried in the Cedar Hill Cemetery, of which 1,600 are identified.

Vicksburg National Cemetery has been closed to burials since 1961, with the exception of those individuals whose reservations for interment had been validated prior to that time.

On the way home we stopped at a little Caribbean-themed, funky and eclectic shack. They sell a little of everything, from handmade furniture, arts and crafts, plants and produce. Oh, they also sell home-made bread, pies, cookies, local honey, sorghum, ribbon cane syrups, and homemade jams, jellies and something called "Mississippi Fever" (don't know what that is...?). We bought a loaf of rye-pumperknickle bread, a basket of locally raised tomatoes and a huge container of shrimp gumbo. YUM!

Whew! Did I say the week was jam-packed?

Hope this finds you well, and you, too, will one day explore some of the places we're visiting.

This comes to you with hugs 'n' love.

Dick and Gail