Make plans now for the Vicksburg Fall Pilgrimage

Vicksburg Fall Pilgrimage is coming up in a few weeks, so you might want to mark your calendar now, and let your out-of-town friends know that this may be the perfect time to come for a visit.

Vicksburg Pilgrimage occurs annually in the spring and fall over three weekends. 2019 Fall Pilgrimage dates are: Sept. 20-22, Sept. 26 to 28, and Oct. 4 to 6.

What is Pilgrimage? Vicksburg Pilgrimage is a dream tour of historic homes, and a community wide celebration involving museums, art galleries, restaurants and more.

“We’ve been doing this for four years,” said Vicksburg Pilgrimage organizer Kendra Reed. “Visitors will be able to view all the beautiful and old Antebellum homes and mansions around town regardless of if they are privately owned or public.”

Historic mansions and other significant historic buildings will be open for tours on specific days during Pilgrimage. Among the many tour locations is Belle of the Bends overlooking the Mississippi River,the circa 1829 McNutt House, Christ Episcopal Church, completed in 1843, and The Magnolias, once owned by the Vick family for whom Vicksburg was named.

“I think this is just a great opportunity for people to share their takes on historic sites and learn about Vicksburg history and what makes our town so fantastic,” Reed said. “They are a part of our heritage, which is one of the reasons we do it. We also do this to help boost tourism in Vicksburg.”

With support from the City of Vicksburg, the city trolley will be available with a licensed guide to shuttle you to all the available, open locations. Trolley transportation is included with all tours.

“The mayor and the city have been so gracious to donate the city trolley to us,” Reed said, adding that the trolley will allow visitors to get a city tour between Pilgrimage sites.

Because Vicksburg has a rich history, from the Civil War siege, creation of the Teddy Bear and the first bottling of Coca-Cola, you’ll want to plan your trip around your interests. Each weekend’s offering will be somewhat different.

“We have things like book signings, art and special museum tours,” Reed said. “There’s going to be a living history event at McRaven’s. We have all these different offerings to the town coming up so that people will want to view these beautiful Antebellum homes. What’s also new about this fall’s pilgrimage is that we have something called the collectors market, and this is going to run during the Old Courthouse Museum Fall Flea Market. So collectors who have old Coca-Cola bottles or teddy bears will be able to show and sell their collector’s items. That will be over in the City Auditorium on October 4th and 5th.”

Costs for the Vicksburg Pilgrimage vary depending on how many sites you’d like to visit. The shuttle is included with all tickets.

Specific tour schedules have yet to be announced, but you can find out more on the Vicksburg Pilgrimage website or on the Facebook page.

Gabrielle Terrett contributed to this report.