Chickasaw Bayou: Preserving the First Battle of the Vicksburg Campaign

In the winter of 1862, all eyes were on Vicksburg, Mississippi. The Confederate stronghold controlled the Mississippi River, and capturing it was key to the Union plan to seize the river and split the Confederacy in two.

The bluffs at Chickasaw Bayou as seen from the Union position, from Battles and Leaders of the Civil War, volume 3 (1887).

The battle

• December 26, 1862: Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman leads an amphibious expedition, landing Union troops on the Yazoo River near Chickasaw Bayou, just north of Vicksburg.
• His men meet a strong Confederate defense — entrenched infantry and artillery on the bluffs of Walnut Hills.
• Three days later, unable to break through, the Union army withdraws.

Why it mattered

Chickasaw Bayou was the first direct attack of the Vicksburg campaign. It ended in defeat, but it shaped Sherman's later approach to attacking well-fortified positions — lessons that contributed to the capture of Vicksburg on July 4, 1863, and to later Union victories at Chattanooga and Kennesaw Mountain.

Preserving the ground

The parcel adds to 12 acres already protected by conservation easements in this small part of the Chickasaw Bayou battlefield.

The American Battlefield Protection Program's land acquisition grants help partners buy and preserve threatened Revolutionary War, War of 1812 and Civil War battlefields. It also offers preservation planning grants for any site of armed conflict on American soil, plus newer restoration and interpretation grants — supporting community-led stewardship by states, tribes and localities.

Sources

Based on "Lessons Learned at Chickasaw Bayou," American Battlefield Protection Program, National Park Service; a work of the United States government in the public domain.