Civil War casualties in Vicksburg remembered at 150-year anniversary

DES MOINES – One hundred and fifty years ago today, scores of Iowans serving in the Union Army were dug in laying siege to the Mississippi town of Vicksburg.

Two assaults, one on May 19, 1863, and another three days later, had failed in the face of heavy Confederate fire and Union casualties. A change in tactics, Union Gen. U.S. Grant decided, was warranted.

Thousands would die as the siege wore on for more than a month. When the town finally surrendered on July 4, 1863, it marked a turning point in the Civil War as the Union would maintain control of the Mississippi River from that point on.

This weekend, more than 200 Iowans, including Gov. Terry Branstad, traveled to Vicksburg to pay tribute to the Iowans who died and rededicate the Iowa State Memorial monument in honor of those who fought and died in the battle.

“It basically split the South in two,” said Jerome Thompson, state curator for Iowa historical sites. “The union controlled the Mississippi River, which was pivotal; it's how you moved troops and supplies. Now you had the eastern Confederate states split from the west.”

A monument

Iowa supplied 28 infantry regiments, two artillery batteries and two cavalry regiments for the siege. Iowans also served on the Navy transports and the gunships that bombarded the towns.

The bombardments were so fierce that town residents took to living in nearby caves to protect themselves from the shelling.

Of the 4,835 casualties from the siege, roughly 1,800 were Iowans. That includes units like the 22nd Iowa Volunteers who lost nearly nine of every 10 people in its unit during the initial charge into Vicksburg.

The Iowa State Memorial is a semi-ellipse of six Doric columns with six bronze relief panels which depict engagements in the Vicksburg Campaign. It is located in the Vicksburg National Military Park.

In the center of the ellipse is a statue of a rider on horseback carrying a flag.

The memorial was dedicated in November of 1906 but not completed until 1912.

Five years ago, a group of Iowans began raising awareness about Iowa's role in the Vicksburg campaign. They also learned the memorial in Mississippi had fallen into disrepair.

“This group of citizens contacted Senator (Dennis) Black who took it upon himself to see what he could do,” said Jeff Kaufmann a Cedar County supervisor and former state representative. “This is an interest of mine and, I think the senator knew that, so he reached out me.”

Money and a trip

Last year, Kaufmann and Black pushed for a state appropriation of $320,000 for cleaning and restoration of the Iowa monument.

They got it.

Kaufmann and Black are among the group of 200 Iowans that chartered buses to attend the official re-dedication ceremony.

Branstad, who last week said it's important to honor and recognize the sacrifice of the soldiers, made plans to tour the grounds with former Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour.

“This was a tragic era of American history, but the result was the Union was preserved and America is what it is today. We're proud and we appreciate all the sacrifices Iowans made,” he said.

Kaufmann, one of 35 people from the Cedar Valley area on the trip, said after the formal ceremony he and a small group would head to Champion Hill about 20 miles west of Vicksburg.

On May 16, 1863, Union forces routed Confederates and chased them to Vicksburg. The rout leads, ultimately, to the siege, the killings and the July 4 surrender of close to 30,000 Confederates.

Once there, they'll lay cedar sprigs on the graves of the soldiers as a symbol of both remembrance and reconciliation.

“I think this is more than a trip,” Kaufmann said. “It's a pilgrimage.”

Iowa in the Civil War

Served in the Union: 76,534

Medal of Honor recipients: 51

Infantry regiments: 40

Cavalry regiments: 8

Artillery batteries: 4

Total deaths: 13,169

-          Died of wounds: 3,450

-          Died of disease: 8,498

-          Died in prison: 515

-          Died of other causes: 706

Wounded: 8,500

Returned home without medical issue: 54,865

Source: Iowa Office of State-Federal Relations