Vicksburg Diaries

[Karen Lips]

Can you give me some sources of soldiers diaries about the siege of Vicksburg?

 

[Tin cup]

Can you give me some sources of soldiers diaries about the siege of Vicksburg?

One I saved to file:
"On June 16th we left Haines' Bluff, and marched about two miles down the Yazoo river to Snyder's Bluff, where we went into camp. Our duties here, as they had been at Haines', were standing picket, and constructing fortifications. We had the usual dress parade at sunset, but the drills were abandoned; we had more important work to do. General Joe Johnston, the Confederate commander outside of Vicksburg, was at Jackson, Mississippi, or in that immediate vicinity, and was collecting a force to move on Grant's rear, in order to compel him to raise the siege. Grant thought that if Johnston attacked, it would be from the northeast, so he established a line of defense extending southeast, from Haines' Bluff on the north to Black river on the south, and placed Gen. Sherman in command of this line. As Grant has said somewhere in his Memoirs, the country in this part of Mississippi 'stands on edge', that is to say, it consists largely of a succession of high ridges with sharp, narrow summits. Along this line of defense, the general course of these ridges was such that they were admirably adapted for defensive purposes. We went to work on the ridges with spades and mattocks, and contrasted the strongest field fortifications that I ever saw during the war. We dug away the crests, throwing the dirt to the front, made long lines of breastworks along our entire front, facing, of course, the northeast. Then at various places, on commanding points, were erected strong redoubts for artillery, floored, and revetted on the inner walls with thick and strong green lumber and timbers. On the exterior slopes of the ridges were dug three lines of trenches, or rifle pits, extending in a parallel form from near the base of the ridges almost to the summit, with intervals between the lines. All the trees and bushes in our front on the slopes of the ridges were cut down, with their tops outwards, thus forming a tangled abattis which looked as if a rabbit could hardly get through. And finally, on the inner slope of the ridges, a little below their summits, was constructed a 'covered way' that is a road dug along the sides of the ridges, and over which an army, with batteries of artillery, could have marched with perfect safety. The purpose of these covered ways was to have a safe and sheltered road right along our rear by which any position on the line could be promptly reinforced, if necessary."
The Story of a Common Soldier of Army Life in the Civil War, 1861-1865. Leander Stillwell, Dodo Press, 1920. Pp. 121-122

Kevin Dally

 

[NH Civil War Gal]

I just finished reading Richard Taylor's. He was the son of President Zachary Taylor and the brother-in-law of Jeff Davis.

You might find his book interesting. After the first few chapters, he was assigned to Western Louisiana and the New Orleans area. He was very familiar with Vicksburg. Of all the ones I've read, this one really gave the feel of the bayous, earth, trees, what the soldiers actually traversed. Including rickety steam boats (man those river boats were death traps).

He was against secession, had lots of slaves, was very wealthy until the great freeze and then he wasn't. He married a Creole lady, which was a bit different for *some* of the elites.

It is wordy in the way Victorian literature is, with lots and lots of allusions to myths and ancient military heros, but if you are up on your mythology at least, he ties it in very nicely.

He worked on his memoir, Destruction and Reconstruction: Personal Experiences of the Late War, which is one of the most credited reports of the Civil War. The book was published in April 1879.

 

[7th Mississippi Infantry]

https://civilwartalk.com/threads/38th-mississippi-infantry-siege-of-vicksburg-diary.72978/

 

[gary]

Willard Tunnard's book, A Southern Record: A History of the Third Louisiana Infantry edited by Ed Bearss is excellent.

 

[AUG]

Major Maurice Kavanaugh Simons in the 2nd Texas Infantry kept a journal throughout the Vicksburg campaign and siege. It was published in The Southwestern Historical Quarterly and can be read online here: https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth101222/m1/101/

 

[gary]

Thank you Aug351 for the link to Simons' journal.

 

[AUG]

If we count memoirs, A True Sketch of his Army Life by S. C. Beck is a good one by a soldier in the 124th Illinois Infantry. He left a great account of the siege operations in front of the Third Louisiana Redan and the battle for the crater there; also talks about his return to the Champion Hill and Vicksburg battlefields in postwar years. It can be read online here: https://archive.org/stream/truesketchofhisa00inbeck#page/n1/mode/2up

 

[7th Mississippi Infantry]

Here's another classic, although not by a soldier. . . this lady gives a civilian's experiences during the siege:

My Cave Life in Vicksburg, by Mary Ann Loughborough

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/35700/35700-h/35700-h.htm

 

[1stMS-Arty]

you also might want to check out Emma Balfour's diary.
https://www.civilwarwomenblog.com/emma-balfour/
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B007QZM1B8/?tag=civilwartalkc-20

 

[7th Mississippi Infantry]

you also might want to check out Emma Balfour's diary.
https://www.civilwarwomenblog.com/emma-balfour/
https://www.amazon.com/Mrs-Balfours-Civil-War-Diary/dp/B007QZM1B8/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1522892285&sr=1-1&keywords=Mrs.+Balfour's+Civil+War+Diary

Thanks !

I forgot to mention Emma's diary, that's another great first person account of the siege.

 

[Ole Miss]

Tin Cup
I just finished The Story of a Common Soldier of Army Life in the Civil War, 1861-1865. Leander Stillwell last Monday. It is a great life picture of a young man growing up during the War. It has a nice description of his experience at Shiloh then the rest of his enlistment was in back water areas void of battle which he bemoaned.
Regards
David

 

[John Wayne Brady]

One I saved to file:
"On June 16th we left Haines' Bluff, and marched about two miles down the Yazoo river to Snyder's Bluff, where we went into camp. Our duties here, as they had been at Haines', were standing picket, and constructing fortifications. We had the usual dress parade at sunset, but the drills were abandoned; we had more important work to do. General Joe Johnston, the Confederate commander outside of Vicksburg, was at Jackson, Mississippi, or in that immediate vicinity, and was collecting a force to move on Grant's rear, in order to compel him to raise the siege. Grant thought that if Johnston attacked, it would be from the northeast, so he established a line of defense extending southeast, from Haines' Bluff on the north to Black river on the south, and placed Gen. Sherman in command of this line. As Grant has said somewhere in his Memoirs, the country in this part of Mississippi 'stands on edge', that is to say, it consists largely of a succession of high ridges with sharp, narrow summits. Along this line of defense, the general course of these ridges was such that they were admirably adapted for defensive purposes. We went to work on the ridges with spades and mattocks, and contrasted the strongest field fortifications that I ever saw during the war. We dug away the crests, throwing the dirt to the front, made long lines of breastworks along our entire front, facing, of course, the northeast. Then at various places, on commanding points, were erected strong redoubts for artillery, floored, and revetted on the inner walls with thick and strong green lumber and timbers. On the exterior slopes of the ridges were dug three lines of trenches, or rifle pits, extending in a parallel form from near the base of the ridges almost to the summit, with intervals between the lines. All the trees and bushes in our front on the slopes of the ridges were cut down, with their tops outwards, thus forming a tangled abattis which looked as if a rabbit could hardly get through. And finally, on the inner slope of the ridges, a little below their summits, was constructed a 'covered way' that is a road dug along the sides of the ridges, and over which an army, with batteries of artillery, could have marched with perfect safety. The purpose of these covered ways was to have a safe and sheltered road right along our rear by which any position on the line could be promptly reinforced, if necessary."
The Story of a Common Soldier of Army Life in the Civil War, 1861-1865. Leander Stillwell, Dodo Press, 1920. Pp. 121-122

Kevin Dally

What regiment was he in, please?

 

[NH Civil War Gal]

Tin Cup
I just finished The Story of a Common Soldier of Army Life in the Civil War, 1861-1865. Leander Stillwell last Monday. It is a great life picture of a young man growing up during the War. It has a nice description of his experience at Shiloh then the rest of his enlistment was in back water areas void of battle which he bemoaned.
Regards
David

I read his diary too, about 2-years-ago and really enjoyed it. I was very taken with how sick he got and in going home the rough river men would help him across the gangway without asking.

 

[Ole Miss]

Civil War Girl
I was impressed as to how mature he must have been as teenager when promoted to corporal and later sergeant.
Regards
David

 

[ekolk6988]

If you'd like, I have letters that my ancestor and one of his comrades in the 35 Iowa volunteer infantry sent during the siege as well as the campaigns preceding and following Vicksburg. I have them in pdf form if you'd like an email copy.

 

[TinCan]

Excellent reads, thank you all very much!

 

[Thorium Game Lab]

Thanks for the great links guys! This Vicksburg section of the forum is a gold mine for me

 

[Legion Para]

Willard Tunnard's book, A Southern Record: A History of the Third Louisiana Infantry edited by Ed Bearss is excellent.

A Southern Record is considered to be one of the best unit histories from the a Western theatre of operations. It is a must read and was first published in 1866. You can read it online here.

https://archive.org/details/southernrecord00tunnrich

 

[Legion Para]

Major Maurice Kavanaugh Simons in the 2nd Texas Infantry kept a journal throughout the Vicksburg campaign and siege. It was published in The Southwestern Historical Quarterly and can be read online here: https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth101222/m1/101/