A Place of Its Own

Vicksburg, Mississippi and the surrounding region

by Sheree Bykofsky

Have you noticed as you get older that every stranger you see reminds you of someone you’ve seen before? Having visited all fifty states, I am on a continuing quest to seek out every piece of the world that doesn’t remind me of someplace else. Sam’s Club, Best Buy, Walmart—all places that I love, but passing chain after chain on the hour-long highway drive from the refreshingly laid back Jackson, Mississippi, airport to Vicksburg made me think of how little is left of authentic, unique America.

Yes, the view from Route 20 is no different from a stretch of New Jersey or Nebraska, but my destination of downtown historic Vicksburg decidedly is not. I’m not one who generally gushes over historic battlefields and Civil War memorabilia, so my invitation to sojourn in the Civil War South presented an opportunity for an awakening. And I was not disappointed. Here is a place filled with history, and it’s also just plain beautiful and a lot of fun.

Essential for an overview of this historically significant and contemporarily charming town, the first place you’ll want to visit is the Old Courthouse Museum. Architecturally important in its own right, this National Historic Landmark is an exciting show-and-tell exhibition of the Vicksburg experience. Within the collection an entire room is dedicated to Mr. Jefferson Davis, a surprisingly complex individual, once reluctant to serve as President of the Confederacy and much beloved by his slaves. History came alive for me in that room as I learned that he was released from prison after two years—despite refusing to repent and never being tried—possibly because he might have been found innocent. (Jefferson Davis argued that during his West Point education he learned that it was technically legal to secede from the Union).

Many of the elegant antebellum mansions, such as Duff Green Mansion and the Anchuca Mansion, have been transformed into worthy Bed and Breakfasts. However, one night’s stay in the inviting Cedar Grove Mansion Inn & Restaurant will turn a jaded New Yorker into a Southern belle. Being educated about the Civil War invariably requires a lot of walking and climbing, and so the abundance of jet tubs and soaking tubs at the Cedar Grove mansion are duly welcome. The Inn offers lavishly decorated period rooms surrounded by 5 acres of stroll-worthy formal gardens smattered with water fountains, gazebos, courtyards, and a swimming pool. I slept in the Grant Room where General Ulysses S. Grant REALLY, REALLY slept during the siege of Vicksburg. And make sure not to leave without snapping a photo of the original Union cannonball still embedded in the parlor wall.

The Civil War is the centerpiece of Vicksburg and even a history non-enthusiast like me couldn’t avoid enjoying the massive Vicksburg National Military Park. Starting at the visitor center and working my way through several of the 1862 campaign highlights I encountered the U.S.S. Cairo Museum where the salvaged Union ironclad gunboat—the first vessel in history to be sunk by a mine—sits on display with various naval artifacts. Known as the “art park of the world,” the park is one of the most densely monumented battlefields in the world, chock-full with beautiful statues, tablets, and bronze work.

Take the opportunity to follow in Grant’s footsteps as he took hold of the city by driving the Vicksburg Campaign Trail. The driving manual interprets the events that took place between December 24th, 1862 and July 9th, 1863 during the Final Offensive of the Vicksburg Campaign. This tour is meant for the true history buff as it includes 178 sites and a detailed itinerary that enables visitors the opportunity follow the actual minute movements of the armies.

Never fear, there’s much in Vicksburg to please those bored to death by the Civil War! Mississippi is actually second only to Las Vegas in casino space and the Mississippi River is lined with gambling riverboats. The Vicksburg waterfront alone is home to five themed casinos full of table games (of course, I played a few hands of Texas Hold ‘Em) and slot machines. I did manage to poke my head out of the casino long enough to stroll along the Vicksburg Riverfront Murals walkway that has 32 beautiful pictorial scenes. You’ll definitely want to take a picture of each one.

For a purely Southern dining experience, try the Walnut Hills restaurant, home of the best fried chicken I’ve ever tasted. I don’t normally eat the dish, but I simply had to try it because they serve the food Round Table family-style. Diners can help themselves from a lazy-Susan piled high with applesauce, coleslaw, purple hull peas, and mustard greens. Make sure you save room for dessert!

The Southern icon Forrest Gump said, “life is like a box of chocolates.” Similarly, the surrounding small towns of Port Gibson and Raymond are each a delicious and surprising confection in the box of Vicksburg’s tourist delights. (Winston Groom himself, the author of Forrest Gump, was taken with the area when he wrote his book, Vicksburg 1863).

In Port Gibson, spend the afternoon exploring the 450-acre Grand Gulf Military Park and the once opulent Windsor Castle, now the Ruins of Windsor after suffering from a neglected cigarette butt which burned the house to the ground in 1890. If you’re familiar with Elizabeth Taylor’s 1957 film Raintree County, you’ll recognize its haunting collection of stately Corinthian columns.

If you have any daylight left, consider visiting the First Presbyterian Church of Port Gibson, where a golden “hand pointing to Heaven” tops the steeple rather than a traditional cross. The area is also rich in Jewish heritage. Some significant sites include the Gemiluth Chassed Synagogue—ironically located on Church Street—and Cedar Hill Cemetery in Vicksburg.

Raymond is a blink-of-an-eye town with heaps of local pride, St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, and the Hinds County Courthouse, one of the oldest courthouses in continual operation in America. A true Mayberry, U.S.A. you might encounter the friendly mayor of Raymond, Isla Tullos, dining with other town officials, and based on my friendly encounter, there’s a good chance she will ask you to join them.

As Abraham Lincoln put it, Vicksburg was “the key” in the Civil War, a key the Union needed to possess safely in their pocket before they could bring the war to a close.  Well, Vicksburg is our key, too.  Our key to America, a place filled with unique and gorgeous destinations and one-of-a-kind experiences, a place for us to treasure and explore.  We owe it to all those who have come before us to admire and support places that are so uniquely themselves, they cannot be confused with anyplace else.  There’s no time like the present.  There’s no place like Vicksburg.

Vicksburg Guide

Vicksburg’s Old Court House Museum
1008 Cherry Street
Vicksburg, MS, 39183
601.636.0741
www.oldcourthouse.org
Open Monday through Saturday 8:30-4:30; Sunday 1:30-4:30
Admission Charged

Cedar Grove Mansion
2300 Washington Street
Vicksburg, MS 39180
1.800.862.1300
www.cedargroveinn.com

Grand Gulf Military Monument
12006 Grand Gulf Road
Port Gibson, MS 39150
601.437.5911
Open 7 days a week 8-5
www.grandgulfpark.state.ms.us

Windsor Plantation
Located 12 miles from Port Gibson on Mississippi Highway 552
http://www.nps.gov/vick/forteachers/upload/Windsor-2.pdf

First Presbyterian Church
P.O. Box 517
Port Gibson, MS 39150
610.437.5428
http://fpcportgibson.com

Vicksburg National Military Park
3201 Clay Street
Vicksburg, MS 39183-3495
601.636.0583
www.nps.gov/vick

Hinds County Courthouse
127 W. Main Street
Raymond, MS 39154

St. Mark’s Episcopal Church
205 W. Main Street
Raymond, MS 39154
http://www.friendsofraymond.org/articles/pilgrimage_09.htm

Walnut Hills
1214 Adams Street
Vicksburg, Mississippi 39180
601.638.4910
http://www.walnuthillsms.net/

Vicksburg Riverfront Murals
On the floodwall on Levee Street
Vicksburg, MS 39183

Duff Green Mansion
1114 First East St
Vicksburg, MS 39183-2515
(601) 636-6968
www.duffgreenmansion.com/

Anchuca Mansion
1010 First East St
Vicksburg, MS 39183-2513
(601) 661-0111
www.anchucamansion.com/

Gemiluth Chassed Synagogue
Corner of Walnut Street and Church Street
Port Gibson, MS
http://www.msje.org/history/archive/ms/HistoryofGemiluthChassed.htm

Cedar Hill Cemetery
326 Lovers Lane
Vicksburg, MS
601.634.4513

Vicksburg Bed and Breakfast Association
www.VicksburgBedandBreakfast.com

Vicksburg Tourism Website
http://www.visitvicksburg.com/

Groom, Winston.  Vicksburg 1863. 
New York: Vintage Books, 2009.
ISBN: 978-0-307-27677-3