CWT Invades Vicksburg 2019 Tour - the official thread

Added to Calendar: 10/25/19, 10/26/19, 10/27/19

Will you be attending the CWT Invades Vicksburg 2019 Tour?


  • Total voters
    83
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You can add me to the list because I'd definitely be interested in seeing as much as possible of Champion's Hill! I sort of "toured" it many years ago, I believe led by the owner of the Cactus Plantation who was a member of the reenactment group Stanford's Battery during one of the then-annual reenactments there sometime in the 1980's. I particularly remember passing down a gravel road beside a falling-in ruin of an old house that was supposed to be where Rebel ladies standing on the front porch cheered on Bowen's men as they marched into the battle. (I'm sure that's gone by now.) Here's a "witness tree" beside a church that's probably gone too that I photographed during a later visit in 2007:

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Will put you on the list for Champion Hill after Raymond, James N. We will have fun!

Yeah, the dilapidated house you went by was Pemberton’s HQ on the Ratliff Road. It is no longer extant.

The only original structure left on the battlefield is the Coker House, which they have remodeled to its original structure and also have placed signage about the battle that occurred on that flank of the armies.

The Hiwatha House was removed from its site on the battlefield to Raymond about 10 years ago where it is nicely remodeled to its original and now stands.

This is kinda the running list I have for Champion Hill after the Raymond tour that Friday morning: @luinrina, @rebel brit, James N., With undecided folks being @Ole Miss, @Drew.

If this is wrong let me know.
 
I will be there Friday afternoon at 1 PM. Will we have a copy of everyone's contact info on check-in? Would be great if for example I make it a little early and can hook up with those who might not have made the Raymond tour instead of hanging around the lobby.
Regards
David
 
View attachment 296718

You can add me to the list because I'd definitely be interested in seeing as much as possible of Champion's Hill! I sort of "toured" it many years ago, I believe led by the owner of the Cactus Plantation who was a member of the reenactment group Stanford's Battery during one of the then-annual reenactments there sometime in the 1980's. I particularly remember passing down a gravel road beside a falling-in ruin of an old house that was supposed to be where Rebel ladies standing on the front porch cheered on Bowen's men as they marched into the battle. (I'm sure that's gone by now.) Here's a "witness tree" beside a church that's probably gone too that I photographed during a later visit in 2007:

View attachment 296719



The tree is still there.........I took this a few months ago.

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This is kinda the running list I have for Champion Hill after the Raymond tour that Friday morning: @luinrina, @rebel brit, James N., With undecided folks being @Ole Miss, @Drew.
I had actually been thinking of scheduling Champion Hill for Sunday afternoon, after the offical gathering is over, for those who are staying longer. That's why I was asking in post #3 if it's only relic hunting after Raymond now and, if so, whether you, Alan, were still available Sunday afternoon once everyone said goodbye. My apologies for not being clear in my previous post.

Of course, if Sunday afternoon doesn't work out for you and/or others - which would be completely understandable - Friday morning after Raymond is a good slot. Doing Champion Hill on Sunday afternoon had just been an idea of mine.
 
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I want to go, but with so much time between now and then, and a hectic schedule, I can't say for certain I can make it, but I'll plan on it, and God willing I'll be able to give a clear yes or no a little closer to it. That being said I like the idea of a tour of Champion Hill, but I also love the opportunity to go hunting at Raymond.

But I just hope I can make it out for tours, and finally putting some more faces to a lot of other names here on CWT.
 
I had actually been thinking of scheduling Champion Hill for Sunday afternoon, after the offical gathering is over, for those who are staying longer. That's why I was asking in post #3 if it's only relic hunting after Raymond now and, if so, whether you, Alan, were still available Sunday afternoon once everyone said goodbye. My apologies for not being clear in my previous post.

Of course, if Sunday afternoon doesn't work out for you and/or others - which would be completely understandable - Friday morning after Raymond is a good slot. Doing Champion Hill on Sunday afternoon had just been an idea of mine.

If you can’t go after Raymond, I will certainly try my best to get you there on Sunday. No promises, but I would hate for you to travel all this way and not get to see it. We’ll see what we can work out if Friday is a no-go for you.
 
I will be there Friday afternoon at 1 PM. Will we have a copy of everyone's contact info on check-in? Would be great if for example I make it a little early and can hook up with those who might not have made the Raymond tour instead of hanging around the lobby.
Regards
David

I will be at the hotel Friday to make sure folks know where the CWT War Room is and we will have hand outs with complete info. We will ALL be meeting in the War Room at 1:00 pm for the kickoff and leave for the Old Courthouse museum and the Confederate Soldiers Rest which is our schedule for Friday afternoon Oct. 25th 2019. The Early Group to Raymond will be leaving early Friday morning and leaving Raymond to return to the hotel at 12:15 in order to be back by 1:00pm.
 
It will be good to see you again and I am planning a Friday night side trip to see the boats on the Miss River.:D

On the hotel website, I tried to get them to setup 2 direct links. One if checking in on the 24th and another for the 25th and they couldn't do it and I tried but it would always reverted back to the original page for that day.

How long are you going to stay? as I will more than likely spend a few days after, digging at Big Black with my hunting buddy.

I'd like to arrive on Thursday and how long I can stay will depend on what's going on in the world at that time. I'd like to stay as long as possible - this has been on my Bucket List for a long time!
 
Great. Then we can do the night time Miss River Boat trip on Thursday and Friday night:cold:
 
If you can’t go after Raymond, I will certainly try my best to get you there on Sunday. No promises, but I would hate for you to travel all this way and not get to see it. We’ll see what we can work out if Friday is a no-go for you.
@alan polk , @luinrina
We too are thinking we would prefer Sunday if it could be arranged as we would really like to do both the Relic Hunt and Champion Hill and would have a hard time choosing between the two.
 
Great. Then we can do the night time Miss River Boat trip on Thursday and Friday night:cold:
You can count me OUT of anything having to do with the so-called "boats" - ever since the Sprague was torched by arsonists there hasn't been anything worthwhile on the Mississippi/Yazoo Canal at Vicksburg! I hope to spend the evenings visiting with some of the members over a leisurely dinner.
 
Well, if everyone who is available for Friday morning are going to be here Sunday as well, maybe we should consider moving the Raymond and Champion Hill tour to Sunday. That will open up plenty of time to concentrate solely on a morning / early afternoon relic hunt (which I would like to do as well) and time for a more expansive tour of Grant’s interior Campaign on Sunday.

This is merely a suggestion that would have to pass muster with the planning committee, but it’s looking as if that might the best way to resolve it. So maybe we can discuss it for its advantages or disadvantages. Thoughts?
 
That would be a great alternative and would give more time on Sunday. The only reason we setup Friday afternoon at the courthouse and soldiers rest was they are close together and the courthouse museum doesn't open till 1:30 on Sunday.
 
You can count me OUT of anything having to do with the so-called "boats" - ever since the Sprague was torched by arsonists there hasn't been anything worthwhile on the Mississippi/Yazoo Canal at Vicksburg! I hope to spend the evenings visiting with some of the members over a leisurely dinner.

That is the same thing I was thinking. Get together around a table with some friends.:D These boats never the the dock.
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That is the same thing I was thinking. Get together around a table with some friends.:D These boats never the the dock.
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None of those look like any "friends" I'd want to have - especially the shyster at left! And unless it's the Battleship Texas, Cruiser Olympia, or some other military static display I want any boats or ships I go aboard to actually sail.
 
Thats one thing I LOVE about CWT, We all come from diverse backgrounds, ages, etc but we can still all come together for our common interest The War Against Northern Aggression or aka The Civil War.
 
The idea of Raymond on Sunday afternoon is great, since I could go!!!
Regards
David

Here is another beauty awaiting attention from us in October!
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The idea of Raymond on Sunday afternoon is great, since I could go!!!
Regards
David

Here is another beauty awaiting attention from us in October!
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Hopefully the planning committee can huddle up and give us their opinion. It seems like moving it to Sunday is what is wanted. I’ve got a potential pheasant hunt in South Dakota around those dates that my friends and family are presently planning and it would be good for me to be able to sink dates into concrete if possible.
 
Sunrise in Raymond on 10/25 is 7:13am. Imagine being here at sunrise on 10/25. These views are looking west. Imagine being at the other end of that row of cannons looking east as the sun comes up on 10/25. That's Picture Of The Month right there. :D
Bobby, are the cannons on private property or freely accessible any time?
 
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