At this place: Mississippi State Memorial

VICKSBURG, Miss. (VDN) — The Mississippi State Memorial in Vicksburg National Military Park was the first monument dedicated by a Southern state in the park. It was unveiled on Nov. 13, 1909, in a ceremony led by then-Gov. F.E. Noel and accepted by Blewett Lee.

The 76-foot granite obelisk, designed by architect R.H. Hunt, was built at a cost of $32,000 (over $1 million in 2025 dollars) using stone from Mount Airy, North Carolina. Bronze reliefs were added in 1912 by sculptor Frederick C. Triebel and fabricated in Rome, Italy. The bronze work depicts Mississippi troops during the Siege of Vicksburg, including an artillery crew, a color guard, and a battle scene. The Greek muse of history, Clio, is seated at the front of the monument.

The Old Court House Museum maintains an extensive archive of historic photographs from Vicksburg and Warren County. Prints are available for purchase by contacting the museum directly.

Starting in 2022, Chris Bolm began to take images from the Old Court House Museum‘s photo collections and pinpoint their current locations and replicate the shot. Bolm named the series “Then and Now.”