Photo of the Day

Gen. Grant writes to his father

On this day in 1863, Gen. Grant is laying siege to Vicksburg, the vital Confederate transportation hub on the Mississippi River.

Vicksburg in 1862.

Grant’s letter:

“All I can say is that I am well.

“I have the enemy closely hemmed in all round.

“My position is naturally strong and fortified against an attack from outside.

Trenches excavated by Union troops in the Vicksburg bluffs during the siege.

“I have been so strongly reinforced that [Confederate Gen.] Johnston will have to come with a mighty host to drive me away.

A large Confederate gun used to defend the city.

“I do not look upon the fall of Vicksburg as in the least doubtful.

“If, however, I could have carried the place on the 22nd of last month, I could by this time have made a campaign that would have made the State of Mississippi almost safe for a solitary horseman to ride over.

Vicksburg commercial street during the war.

“As it is, the enemy have a large army in it, and the season has so far advanced that water will be difficult to find for an army marching, besides the dust and heat that must be encountered.

The hotel, shown in 1876, served as a Confederate hospital during the siege.

“The fall of Vicksburg now will only result in the opening of the Mississippi River [to Union forces] and demoralization of the enemy.

The Warren County jail, center, which housed captive Union soldiers before the fall of the city.

“I intended more from it.

“I did my best, however, and looking back can see no blunder committed.”

ULYSSES.

Steamboats docked at Vicksburg in 1866.

Vicksburg will surrender to Grant in two-and-one-half weeks, at 10:00 o’clock in the morning on July 4, 1863.

Union soldiers fly the American flag at the Warren County Courthouse, in Vicksburg, after the siege.

The end of the forty-seven-day siege will give Union forces control of the Mississippi River and split the Confederacy in two.

Captured Confederate ordnance.

Vicksburg’s surrender will come one day after Union forces in Gettysburg repel Pickett’s Charge, inflicting devastating casualties on the third and final day of the battle and forcing a Confederate retreat south.

Lincoln will be jubilant at the double victory.

Grant’s first inauguration, March 4, 1869.

In five-and-one-half years, Grant will become president.

Jesse Root Grant (1794 - 1873).

And his father, ever the strong, behind-the-scenes force who pushed and prodded, will stand nearby as he takes the oath of office.

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I’ll see you on Monday.

— Brenda