Look Up, Vicksburg! A Walking Tour of Vicksburg, Mississippi
By Doug Gelbert
()
About this ebook
There is no better way to see America than on foot. And there is no better way to appreciate what you are looking at than with a walking tour. Whether you are preparing for a road trip or just out to look at your own town in a new way, a downloadable walking tour from walkthetown.com is ready to explore when you are.
Each walking tour describes historical and architectural landmarks and provides pictures to help out when those pesky street addresses are missing. Every tour also includes a quick primer on identifying architectural styles seen on American streets.
Newitt Vick was a Methodist minister from Virginia who established one of the first missions in Mississippi in 1814 on land he purchased from the government about six miles east of the the current townsite. While tending to converts Vick also had an eye for business, especially as the nation’s richest cotton-growing lands were being developed around him. He bought up land around the confluence of the Yazoo and Mississippi rivers and sketched out plans for a port city. An outbreak of yellow fever claimed both Vick and his wife in 1819 but a son-in-law, John Lane took the plans, sold lots to pay Vick debts and by 1825 had launched a thriving village that was named in the minister’s honor.
Vicksburg was very quickly a bustling port town. In addition to the trade arriving across the docks there were two soap factories, sawmills, carriage and wagon works, and a hospital in town in short order. By 1860 there were five churches, four fire companies and three newspapers in town. When the Civil War erupted Vicksburg was recognized on both sides as “the Gibraltar of the Confederacy.” it took more than a year of military operations and one of the greatest strategic campaigns in American military history, culminating in a six-week siege, to drive the rebels from their fortress of a town. The Vicksburg Campaign made the career of General Ulysses S. Grant and doomed the Confederacy when General John Clifford Pemberton surrendered the town on July 4, 1863.
When the war ended the Vicksburg economy was crippled and much of its building stock damaged or destroyed. Reconstruction in the years following the war did not bring immediate relief. Even the Mississippi River turned against Vicksburg when it cut a new channel and abandoned the waterfront in 1876.
Things began to turn around for Mississippi’s largest city in the 1880s. The Yazoo and Mississippi Valley Railroad arrived in 1884, steamboats filled the Mississippi River and a streetcar system was initiated. The Mississippi River was even brought back by the United States Corps of Engineers with a diversion canal in the Yazoo River.
The boom years subsided after 1910 with the disappearance of the steamboat trade. The population in Vicksburg has changed little in the past 100 years, even as the streetscape has been altered regularly. The town grew up around Main Street but after a fire in 1839 the commercial district shifted down to Washington Street, parallel to the water. Fires visited the downtown area regularly in 1846, 2885, 1910 and 1939, consuming entire blocks. A December 5, 1953 tornado crashed through the business district taking with it numerous long-standing properties in town.
In the 1970s Vicksburg was an active player in urban renewal, pulling down hundreds of buildings. Entire blocks were lost and many buildings left standing picked up unfortunate modern facelifts. Our walking tour to seek out what remains of the character of the historic river town will start, naturally, enough, down by the water...
Read more from Doug Gelbert
Look Up, San Diego! A Walking Tour of Balboa Park Rating: 1 out of 5 stars1/5A Walking Tour of The New Orleans French Quarter Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of Williamsburg, Virginia Rating: 1 out of 5 stars1/5A Walking Tour of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of Pittsburgh's Business District Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLook Up, Tucson, Arizona! A Walking Tour of Tucson, Arizona Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of Aiken, South Carolina Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of Miami Beach, Florida Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLook Up, Savannah! A Walking Tour of Savannah, Georgia Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5A Walking Tour of Greensboro, North Carolina Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLook Up, Long Beach! A Walking Tour of Long Beach, California Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of Tampa, Florida Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLook Up, Charleston! A Walking Tour of Charleston, South Carolina: The Battery Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5A Walking Tour of St. Augustine, Florida Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLook Up, Nashville! A Walking Tour of Nashville, Tennessee Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLook Up, Chicago! A Walking Tour of The Loop (North End) Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLook Up, Oakland! A Walking Tour of Oakland, California Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of Staunton, Virginia Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of Jacksonville, Florida Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of New Bern, North Carolina Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLook Up, Phoenix, Arizona! A Walking Tour of Phoenix, Arizona Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of New York City's Upper East Side Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLook Up, Austin! A Walking Tour of Austin, Texas Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of Salisbury, North Carolina Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLook Up, Toledo! A Walking Tour of Toledo, Ohio Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of Bordentown, New Jersey Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of Georgetown, South Carolina Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5Look Up, Madison! A Walking Tour of Madison, Wisconsin Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5A Walking Tour of Meadville, Pennsylvania Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of Wilmington, North Carolina Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Related to Look Up, Vicksburg! A Walking Tour of Vicksburg, Mississippi
Related ebooks
A Walking Tour of Utica, New York Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of Millville, New Jersey Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of Warwick, Rhode Island Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of Newburgh, New York Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of Brooklyn's Williamsburg Section Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of Wilson, North Carolina Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of New Brunswick, New Jersey Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of Madison, New Jersey Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of Westerly, Rhode Island Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of Poughkeepsie, New York Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of Greenwich, Connecticut Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of Wellsboro, Pennsylvania Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of Winchester, Virginia Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of Leesburg, Virginia Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of Johnstown, Pennsylvania Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of Pocomoke City, Maryland Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of Walterboro, South Carolina Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLook Up, Madison! A Walking Tour of Madison, Wisconsin Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5A Walking Tour of Waterbury, Connecticut Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of Fall River, Massachusetts Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLook Up, Milwaukee! A Walking Tour of Milwaukee, Wisconsin Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of Wakefield, Rhode Island Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSpring City and Royersford Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of Old Saybrook, Connecticut Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of Wethersfield, Connecticut Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of Conway, South Carolina Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of Bridgeton, New Jersey Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of Winnsboro, South Carolina Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Walking Tour of Anderson, South Carolina Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Special Interest Travel For You
Escape the Wolf: A SEAL Operative’s Guide to Situational Awareness, Threat Identification, a Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5A Field Guide to Mushrooms of the Carolinas Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Lost Art of Running: A Journey to Rediscover the Forgotten Essence of Human Movement Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Lonely Planet The Solo Travel Handbook Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World with Kids 2023 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMicroadventures: Local Discoveries for Great Escapes Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Walt Disney World Hacks: 350+ Park Secrets for Making the Most of Your Walt Disney World Vacation Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe 12-Hour Walk: Invest One Day, Conquer Your Mind, and Unlock Your Best Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Lonely Planet Mexico Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Frommer's Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHistoric Haunts of Savannah Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Dishoom: The first ever cookbook from the much-loved Indian restaurant Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Unofficial Disney Parks Drink Recipe Book: From LeFou's Brew to the Jedi Mind Trick, 100+ Magical Disney-Inspired Drinks Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Haunted October: 31 Seriously Scary Ghost Stories Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5It's Kind of a Cute Story Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge: Traveler's Guide to Batuu Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Arthur: The Dog who Crossed the Jungle to Find a Home Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/550 Great American Places: Essential Historic Sites Across the U.S. Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Voyage Long and Strange: Rediscovering the New World Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Lost in the Jungle: A Harrowing True Story of Adventure and Survival Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Country Cooking of Ireland Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Nashville Eats: Hot Chicken, Buttermilk Biscuits, and 100 More Southern Recipes from Music City Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Dead Mountain: The Untold True Story of the Dyatlov Pass Incident Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Ghosts of Salem: Haunts of the Witch City Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Reviews for Look Up, Vicksburg! A Walking Tour of Vicksburg, Mississippi
0 ratings0 reviews
Book preview
Look Up, Vicksburg! A Walking Tour of Vicksburg, Mississippi - Doug Gelbert
Look Up, Vicksburg! A Walking Tour of Vicksburg, Missis
a walking tour in the Look Up, America series from walkthetown.com
by Doug Gelbert
published by Cruden Bay Books at Smashwords
Copyright 2013 by Cruden Bay Books
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system without permission in writing from the Publisher.
Newitt Vick was a Methodist minister from Virginia who established one of the first missions in Mississippi in 1814 on land he purchased from the government about six miles east of the the current townsite. While tending to converts Vick also had an eye for business, especially as the nation’s richest cotton-growing lands were being developed around him. He bought up land around the confluence of the Yazoo and Mississippi rivers and sketched out plans for a port city. An outbreak of yellow fever claimed both Vick and his wife in 1819 but a son-in-law, John Lane took the plans, sold lots to pay Vick debts and by 1825 had launched a thriving village that was named in the minister’s honor.
Vicksburg was very quickly a bustling port town. In addition to the trade arriving across the docks there were two soap factories, sawmills, carriage and wagon works, and a hospital in town in short order. By 1860 there were five churches, four fire companies and three newspapers in