Saturday, August 21, 2010

Vicksburg Views

Vicksburg, Mississippi: all I can say at this time of the year is “It is NOT a dry heat”. There was so much dew this morning that it looked like it had rained during the night(at least it did to us Arizonans). We decided to head out early to see the Vicksburg National Military Park and the USS Cairo. The battlefield has 1330 monuments that are spread over the 16 mile drive in the park.


In my humble opinion, the Illinois monument in the picture below is the best one in the park. It's very impressive in size and the gold eagle is a stark contrast to the white marble of the building.

Inside, Jerry, Sandy and Sherry check out the ceiling and walls. Even if we talked softly in here, our voices kept echoing.

The tunnel below marks Thayer’s approach, and was started on around May 30, 1863. During the siege of Vicksburg it was just a 6 foot deep trench covered with bundles of cane. It has since been bricked in to preserve the tunnel.

Gary, Sherry, Don and Gary take time to pose for pictures. Gary is goofing off, but I took the picture anyway.

This is what happens when Gary gets behind the camera! Everything gets a bit goofy and off kilter. And no, we have not had anything to drink! It is just a bunch of silly old seniors having a good time together. Maybe the heat and humidity have finally gotten to us.

Below is the USS Cairo, the ironclad ship that hit a mine in the river and sunk in 12 minutes. It was left in the Mississippi silt for over 100 years, until recovered in 1964. She was restored, and her final resting place is in the National Military Park here.

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