Today in History:

Crossroads of the Confederacy

Crossroads of the Confederacy


When it came to fighting in the Mississippi Hills, the Confederate Army may have been outgunned, but it was the Union Army that got outfoxed by the Confederates repeatedly.  P.G.T. Beauregard sneaked his men out of
Corinth in the dark of night to evade capture; in the light of early morning, Earl Van Dorn and his men sneaked up on Grant's forces at Holly Springs to devastate Union supplies.  There was plenty of hard fighting especially where two vital railroads converged and two armies clashed in almost record numbers, with the period between the Battle of Shiloh and the Siege of Corinth in 1862 seeing the largest-ever amassing of troops in the Western Hemisphere.

Nathan Bedford Forrest helped make his reputation in a decisive late-war victory at Brice's Crossroads, while U.S. Grant made a blunder nearly fatal to his command when he stretched his army from Holly Springs to Oxford and beyond.

In short, expect a tour with all the belles and whistles, beginning with the seductive wiles of this antebellum beauty:


DAY
ONE — HOLLY SPRINGS:
It was the invitation to a ball that helped do in Grant's troops here-the previous evening's festivities left them slumbering happily, so that when Van Dorn's raiders galloped in, 1500 Union troops were captured in no time at all.  

Van Dorn Raid Driving Tour
104 E. Gholson * 662.252.2515
www.visithollysprings.com

Walter Place Estate, Cottages, and Gardens
330 W. Chulahoma Ave. * 662.252.2515
www.walterplace.com

DAY ONEOXFORD:
A town steeped in history,
Oxford is also a great place to soak up Southern culture at its finest.  Don’t miss the University of Mississippi Campus where you’ll find a c. 1889 home which features three stained glass windows depict a mustering of the Greys, students from the University of Mississippi who fought valiantly during the Civil War.

Ventress Hall
University of Mississippi Campus
800.758.9177

Confederate Cemetery
Behind Tad Smith Coliseum
800.758.9177

DAY TWO — TUPELO/BALDWYN:
The Tupelo/Baldwyn area saw a lot of late-war action with Nathan Bedford Forrest's determined but ultimately unsuccessful bid to take down
Sherman's rail supplies.  It was a rare failure for these parts.  Generally speaking, this area is known for its notable successes-even the Confederate general himself enjoyed a legend-cementing upset victory here at Brice's Crossroads.  

Brice's Crossroads National Battlefield Site
607 Grisham St. * 800.305.7417
www.bricescrossroads.com

Tupelo National Battlefield
Hwy
6 * 800.305.7417
www.nps.gov/natr

DAY TWO — CORINTH:
Highly prized as a junction for the Mobile & Ohio and Memphis & Charleston railroads, Corinth, the "Crossroads of the Confederacy," was besieged and seized, but only after the battle of Shiloh was fought over it.  Tradition here runs as deep as the nation's largest and best preserved example of military earthworks which still line the landscape. 

Corinth Civil War Interpretive Center
501 W.
Linden * 731.689.5696
www.nps.gov/shil

Corinth Contraband Camp
North Parkway
St. * 800.748.9048
www.corinth.net

Battery F & Civil War Earthworks
Davis St.
* 800.748.9048
www.corinth.net

Corinth National Cemetery
Horton St.
* 800.748.9048
www.corinth.net

ADD A DAY: COLUMBUS
Columbus was home to Confederate General Stephen D. Lee, who ordered the first shot at Fort Sumter- the man who, in effect, started the Civil War.  Yet it was also the women of
Columbus who, in their way, brought an end to the war, showing a grace in their treatment of the graves of war dead that set a new standard, and eventually led to new holiday for the entire nation.

Friendship Cemetery
4th St. South * 800.327.2686
www.columbus-ms.org

Lee Home/Museum
316 Seventh Street North
800.920.3533 * www.columbus-ms.org

Twelve Gables
220 3rd Street South
1.800.327.2686 * www.columbus-ms.org

Annual Pilgrimage
March/April
1.800.327.2686 * www.columbus-ms.org