Ironclad Cairo

Drove from Memphis to Vicksburg, where we took a 16 mile driving tour through the Civil War National Park.  The remains of the ironclad ship “Cairo” are on exhibit there.  The ship sank in 1862 and wasn't re-discovered until 1958.  Although the ship was iron-clad, most of it was made of wood and it didn't hold up well to being raised. On display are the reassembled pieces; it was very interesting but it didn't look like keeping it outside was the best way to preserve it.

Nearby is a museum of artifacts recovered from the ship.  

The rest of the Park is wide, green fields that are full of memorials, old artillery and both Union and Confederate skirmish lines. We spent a lot of time there, walking from memorial to memorial.  Most of them are dedicated to the troops from a particular state, such as Mississippi or Illinois.  The park is very well cared for and the weather was nice for walking around.  There is a feeling of quiet respectfulness there and whole time we were in the park we talked somewhat quietly.  Loud noises seemed to be out of place here; but this place heard enough loud noises in 1863 to last it forever.

When we left there we drove on to Natchez and checked in at Howard Johnson’s for one night.  We had dinner at Cock-of-the-Walk, where they have good food, reasonable prices, and waiters who can flip a plate of cornbread 10 feet in the air and catch it on the serving skillet.