Today is sadly going to be my last day of traveling. I’ll be sleeping in my own bed tonight. To start my last day, I went to Vicksburg National Military Park. The town of Vicksburg was very important to both the North and the South. Whoever controlled Vicksburg controlled the lower half of the Mississippi River. While the South held it, they could move supplies and hold the Confederacy together. If the North controlled it, the Southern states of Texas, Arkansas, and most of Louisiana would be cut off. In October 1862, the Union turned its attention to capturing Vicksburg in order to control all of the Mississippi River. They tried different attacks, but eventually realized that only a siege would be successful. In the Spring of 1863, they start surrounding the town. As the months pass, there were several battles as the Union army kept getting closer and closer to the city. The formal siege began on May 18 and lasted until July 4 when Vicksburg officially surrendered.
My next stop as I got close to the boarder was Emerald Mound. Emerald Mound is the second-largest Mississippian Period ceremonial mound in the U.S., surpassed by only Monk’s Mound in Cahokia. It was built and used between the years 1200 C.E. and 1730 C.E. It is 35 feet high and covers 8 acres. Archaeologists believe the mounds were the setting for elaborate civic processions, ceremonial dances, and religious rituals. It is still used by the local Native Americans in ceremonies today.
Next, I crossed over the border into Louisiana to go to Natchez National Historical Park. The park is made up of 3 sites: Melrose, William Johnson House, and Fort Rosalie. Melrose I have actually been to before but they had reduced hours due to covid so I couldn’t go there. And the William Johnson was known as the “Barber of Natchez” so I wasn’t very interested in him. I decided to go to Fort Rosalie, but there really wasn’t much to see. When I talked to the lady at the visitor center, she told me they were in a legal battle for years over the land. That finally ended at the end of 2019, and before construction or anything could be done covid hit and it halted everything.
As I drove to the first mound, you could barely see the ridges. The central construction consists of 6 rows of concentric ridges. The ridges form a C-shape divided into sections by 4 aisles. It is thought that the ridges served as foundations for dwellings but little evidence of this has been found.
After I finished my driving tour I decided to drive home. It was about a 5 hour drive, so it took a while, but I arrived home at about 10pm so at least I could sleep in my own bed for the night and not pay for another hotel room. Since I arrived late, I’ll have to return my rental car tomorrow. I had an amazing 3-week adventure and though I’m glad to be home I can’t wait for my next one.
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June 2022
AuthorThese are details from my adventures around the world. |