From Vicksburg to Nashville

But, we couldn't do such a journey without stopping at a Civil War site now, could we?

I'm getting ahead of myself though. After venturing round the battlefield of Vicksburg, the next day we went into the town of Vicksburg itself, to have a look at the Vicksburg Courthouse Museum. The Courthouse was completed in 1860, and barely three years later, found itself at the centre of the Union siege of Vicksburg. The Confederates were using it as a signal station, as due to its height, it overlooked all the surrounding countryside. This naturally made it a target for Union artillery. To stop the Union from reducing their historic building to rubble, the Confederate keptUnion prisoners of war in the Courthouse, and as a result, deterred the Union from levelling the building. Once Vicksburg surrendered, the Union marched into the town and hauled down the Confederate flag flying over the town, and raised the Stars and Bars.

Nowadays the Courthouse is a museum, chock full of historic exhibits and memorabilia. There is some great civil war relics, as well as period furniture, clothing, toys and books. Undoubtedly though, the best part of the visit was the fact that the curator, who was called "Bubba" (I'm not kidding) allowed us a very special privilege. He took my Dad and I up to the bell tower, which is off limits to the public. The view afforded from here was fantastic. We felt very fortunate, since we were able to stand on one of the most historic Civil War locations in America.

After leaving Vicksburg, we wound our way through Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas and Tennessee, before finding our way to the battlefield at Shiloh, on the Tennessee River.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Shiloh

Check this link out for the full story of the battle.

I found Shiloh an easier battlefield to follow than Vicksburg - the terrain around Vicksburg is quite hilly, and devoid of open ground in a lot of places. It's difficult to picture where the opposing lines were in many place. While Shiloh is quite heavily wooded in many places, the terrain is a lot flatter, with a large number of clearings. It's easy to see how the battle would have unfolded - and in many places it seems unchanged from the days of April 1862. Walking through the location known as the Hornet's Nest, I could almost hear the artillery shells whistling overhead, and the bullets impacting against the trees. It's an excellent place to visit.

Once again, my trusty Canon has been at work, and I have a small sample of photos to show you. Trust me, there'll be the mother of all slideshows when I get back. I'll lay some beer on to keep you entertained though, don't worry.


This is Dad and I at Pittsburgh Landing, overlooking the Tennessee River. This was the site of Ulysses S Grant's headquarters, and it was at this point that the troops of General Buell were ferried across the river to reinforce Grant's battered army and drive the Confederates back on the 2nd day of battle.


This photo provides a small sample of the terrain confronting the Confederate troops assaulting the Hornet's Nest. Behind me, the clearing stretches for about half a mile, giving the Union troops dug in behind the wooden rail fence and in the trees ample opportunity to punish the oncoming Rebels.



After numerous attempts to take the Hornet's Nest by infantry assault, the Confederates decided to blast the Union into submission. 62 Confederate cannon were assembled on this location and fired unceasingly at the Federal positions. This is but a small sample of the kind of firepower the Rebels unleashed.


This area of water is known as the Bloody Pond. During the battle, many wounded soldiers from both sides, thirsty from the smoke and heat, crawled or staggered down to the water to drink. Many died in this location, and as a result, for days afterwards, the water was tainted red with their blood.


A memorial to General Albert Johnston, the Confederate Army Commander at Shiloh. This point marks the spot where he was wounded, while down to the right, in a riverbed there is a small plaque erected in the location that he died. As a full general, he remains the highest ranking US Officer ever killed in battle.


This is a burial mound, one of five in the park. After the battle, due to the large number of casualties and the intense heat of spring, the Union burial efforts were both overwhelmed, and driven urgency to bury the dead as quickly as possible. As a result, all dead, both Union and Confederate were buried in mass graves. After the war, the Union dead were relocated to a national cemetery built at Shiloh, but the Confederate dead remained in the trenches where they were buried initially. This is the largest of the trenches - it is estimated some 700 Rebs were interred here. It is an official war grave - the Confederate flag, not the Union flag flies above the site.


As you might have guessed, this is not a Civil War relic. No doubt Grant would have put it to good use though, if he had possessed one. While I'm not sure what type of helicopter this is, it is from Vietnam, and packs a fairly formidable arsenal of weaponry. Found this on the side of the road near Savannah, Tennessee.


Like I said before, I'm currently in Nashville - Dad and I stopped earlier than usual today, in order to take some time out to rest. He hasn't been the best lately - a persistent chest cough and a headache have slowed him down a bit. However, he's fairly confident that an afternoon nap and an early night should have him back on the road again in short order. At this stage we're heading in the direction of Chattanooga tomorrow, and after that, probably onto Atlanta, Georgia. But we'll see. Expect more in the next couple of days.