Happening today: Mississippi State Monument re-dedication

Monday, Nov. 11, 2019, at 2:30 p.m., the State of Mississippi and the Friends of Vicksburg National Military Park and Campaign will re-dedicate the Mississippi State Monument in the Vicksburg National Military Park.

Speakers at the event will be Jim Woodrick, deputy state historic preservation officer, state Sen. Briggs Hopson III and William Justice, superintendent of the Vicksburg National Military Park.

The event is free to the public, and will feature ceremonial firings of a Civil War-era 12-pound Napoleon cannon. Visitors should budget 15 minutes to drive from the park visitor center to the monument, located along Confederate Avenue within the military park.

Earlier this year, the National Park Service’s Historic Preservation Training Center completed an extensive restoration and repair project that included masonry repairs, testing of the monument’s lightning suppression system, and a thorough cleaning. Funds for the $75,000 project were donated by the State of Mississippi and championed by the Friends of Vicksburg National Military Park and Campaign.

Mississippi Monument dedication in 1909.

The Mississippi State Monument was originally dedicated on Nov. 12, 1909, and honors the sacrifice of Mississippi’s 32 infantry units, 17 artillery units and 37 cavalry units that served in the Confederate Armies during the 1863 Vicksburg Campaign of the Civil War. The monument was designed by R.H. Hunt of Chattanooga, TN and constructed at a of cost $32,000.