The following letters precede the battle at Vicksburg and the subsequent surrender there. I have, so the sake of brevity, left out a lot of details of the battles and skirmishes, and tried to concentrate only on the actual letters.
Memphis, Tennessee Dec. 1, 1862
We have orders to be ready to leave to-morrow. One rainy night he took three rails and laid them on one, and spread a blanket with rubber over. We kill the sheep, cattle, and pigs in the woods where found.
Thos. Wilcox
Thomas was under General Sherman at this time. Not sure who “he” is.
Near Tallahatchie, Dec. 3, 1862
We are in Smith’s division. Thomas and Wilber were at Oxford. They went with Sherman’s body guard.
W.J. Wilcox
Smith would have been Union General Morgan L. Smith.
Jan 8, 1863
Vicinity of Memphis, on the Mississippi, near the mouth of the White River. We withdrew our forces from the swamp near Vicksburg New Year’s night. We brought off everything, not leaving so much as a bag of grain. The gap in our division was about 180 killed and wounded. I heard to-day that Andrew Mullen was killed. He was badly wounded and left on the field. The men that told me thought that he would have gotten over it if he had been taken care of; but he laid out one day and two nights – raining all the first night – so when they got him he was dead.
Willard Wilcox
Battle of Arkansas Post – Jan 10,11 1863
Proceeded up the Arkansas Jan 9. Late in the afternoon, they halted about three miles below the fort, and began landing for the night. At noon on the 10th we began movement toward the fort. The field artillery, numbering 45 pieces, was disposed in the intervals of Sherman’s and Morgan’s lines. The artillery opened fire, and kept it up half an hour, then ceased, and the infantry assaulted. Lindsey, of Morgan’s corps, with four guns, took position above the fort. Fort surrendered. Troops re-embarked 16th and 17th.
Moved to Young’s Point. Was engaged in the Vicksburg campaign until the surrender of Vicksburg, July 4, 1863, then moved to Jackson, Miss. After the siege and surrender of Jackson, moved to Black River, and remained in camp there until Sept. 27, when ordered to Chattanooga.
Camp on Stone River near Murfreesboro.
(unsigned)
February 1863.
It is two months since I had a letter from home. I stand ready to go into battle and endure all the hardships of war, but to be deprived of hearing from friends whom I may never see again, is asking me to become a stone. The government should take more pains to forward the mail. We expect to march as soon as the condition of the roads make it possible.
John Wilcox, with 88th Infantry.
Haines’ Bluff – 1863
Blaine’s division embarked on ten steamboats about 10:00 A>M> April 29. Proceeded to Yazoo April 30, to within easy range of enemy’s batteries. Four hours demonstration kept up. Toward evening disembarked, seemingly prepared to assault. April 31, similar movements. Dropped back to camp at Young’s Point, reaching there the night of May 1st.
Our division went up to Haines’ Bluff. I was not well enough to go.
Willard J. Wilcox
I tried to locate all their positions on a map. All of this is leading up to the Siege of Vicksburg which took place May 18 – July 4, 1863 which cost the Confederacy some 32,363 souls. It was a decisive Union victory and led to the ultimate push by General Sherman to the sea.
The population of the city I live in was around 38,000 in 2025.
Jaci Dawn 