Vicksburg National Military Park Presents Program on Connections between Port Hudson and Vicksburg

Date: July 30, 2013
Contact: Kerry Jones, 601-636-7395

On Saturday August 10, 2013, from 10:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m., Vicksburg National Military Park Ranger Kerry Jones, will give a presentation at the Port Hudson State Historic Site, LA, on the significance of the battle and siege of Port Hudson and its inner connections with the Vicksburg Campaign. Admission to the State Historic Site is $4.00 for adults, while children 12 and under and seniors 62 and over are free.

This critical campaign in East Baton Rouge Parish and East Feliciana Parish from May 21-July 9, 1863, served as one of the most important and strategic campaigns of the Civil War. Principal commanders, Union Major General Nathaniel P. Banks, commanding the XIX Corps, and Confederate Major General Franklin Gardner, commanding the Army of the Gulf, dueled for control of both the Mississippi and Red Rivers.

In cooperation with Major General Ulysses S. Grant's offensive against Vicksburg, Maj. Gen. Banks's army moved against the Confederate stronghold at Port Hudson, LA, located approximately 300 river miles from Vicksburg on the Mississippi River. On May 27, after their frontal assaults were repulsed, the Federals settled into a siege which lasted for 48 days, the longest in U.S. military history. Banks renewed his assaults on June 14, but was successfully repelled by the Confederate defenders. On July 9, 1863, after hearing of the fall of Vicksburg and realizing the futility of continuing to fight, the Confederate garrison of Port Hudson surrendered, opening the Mississippi River to Union navigation from its source to New Orleans.

This presentation is part of Vicksburg National Military Park's Sesquicentennial outreach effort, 'Along the Campaign Trail,' which includes programs conducted by a dedicated team of interpreters during a year-long effort to bring the story of the Campaign and Siege of Vicksburg not only to park visitors, but to schools, libraries, museums, and civic organizations throughout the region.

Additional information regarding Vicksburg National Military Park programs can be found on the park's website at www.nps.gov/vick or calling 601-636-0583.