Charmed, I'm Sure

I have been to Grand Gulf multiple times.  The last time was three years before I even considered writing a book.   But regardless of how many times you visit a place, it seems you always learn something or notice things that had eluded your attention previously.  Or your research yields new information that has connections to artifacts or locations already familiar to you.  Such revelations then render the milieu of that space fresh and exciting.  Almost like an awakening. This certainly happened during this latest visit to Grand Gulf.   A port on the Mississippi River, it was named for a whirlpool and incorporated in 1833.              

 

During the Civil War, it served as a Confederate bastion to protect against Grant's early attempts to cross the river from the western side and gain a foothold in Mississippi from which he could threaten Vicksburg, which Lincoln considered to be the key to Federal success.  The city. along with Port Hudson, were the last strongholds on the river and were, thus, hindering the Federals from controlling the Mississippi River in its entirety.

Two forts protected Grand Gulf:  Forts Ward and Cobun.  The former was named after Colonel William Ward who was decapitated during the shelling by Federal gunboats in April 1863.  The Federals silenced the guns of Fort Ward and then concentrated their efforts on Cobun, which proved to be more formidable.  Not wanting to run the guns and risk his troop transports, Grant elected to move his troops inland.....but into Louisiana.  He marched them past Grand Gulf and crossed at Bruinsburg to the south.

 

 

Then, he moved to Port Gibson and clashed with the Confederates there and defeated them on May 1st, 1863.   This rendered Grand Gulf untenable to the Confederates, and they abandoned the town to the Federals who used it as a base.

Grand Gulf is a ghost town today and had been transformed into a state park with lots of history and camping to offer guests.   The museum contains a variety of artifacts spanning multiple time periods.  For example, there is a letter from George Washington.  And then there is a Mastadon bone.  Mark is particularly fascinated with the Maynard tape primer.  Located on the 400-park grounds are restored buildings, an observation tower, earthworks, picnic facilities, and RV hookups.  Here are a few photos of the forts, including the remnants of the magazine at Fort Wade, part of which was constructed from the town jail.

Part of the town jail used in construction of the magazine at Fort Ward

Fort Cobun

Rifle pits in front of Fort Cobun.  At the edge is a sheer drop to the river.

Of course, I am always looking for connections to women soldiers, and there multiple at Grand Gulf.  First, Fort Cobun was manned by portions of Cockrell's Missouri brigade.  There was at least one woman who served in this brigade, but the precise unit is not documented.  So it is unknown whether she was involved in the action here.

But beyond this, Grand Gulf State Park is the home of the remains of the Charm, a steamboat that had connections to women soldiers which I discussed in my book, Behind the Rifle.  The Charm was 165 feet long with a 26-foot floor and 5½ feet depth of hold. She had two 25-foot paddle wheels with 7-foot buckets.  Part of her opulent amenities  included a chandelier and silverware.    She was a sidewheeler built in Cincinnati in 1860 for trade on the Mississippi and Yazoo Rivers.  When the war came, she continued transporting cargo but also carried soldiers.  

 Her first home port was Vicksburg and that is where, in December 1862, a newspaper editor documented the arrival of Confederate prisoners captured in Kentucky. ("Fun" fact: in my book when I first introduced this account, I mistakenly listed the date as 1863.  Later in the same paragraph, I did have the correct year, 1862.  It escaped several individuals' editing efforts, including mine.  Ugh).    The prisoners had originally been taken from Louisville to Cairo, Illinois and then moved via the transport City of Madison down the Mississippi River to Vicksburg, which was the exchange point in the Western theater (City Point was the location used in the East).  These Confederate POW's were then loaded on to the Charm to be taken to any number of camps in the vicinity to await formal exchange.  

 One prisoner who stood out to the editor above all others was a woman.  He never named her, but based on the details he shared, it is apparent he had observed Mary Ann Clark.  He presented the story of a dutiful wife following her husband who was killed at Perryville.  She then took up his rifle, joined the ranks, and was wounded and captured.  As I explained in my book, this story - which is based on her own testimony - is not true.  Women sometimes relayed false information in order to garner sympathy from a strict and unforgiving Victorian society who would spurn them for dressing as a man and serving in the army.  This was the case with Mary Ann Clark.  She did indeed serve in the army, but not with a husband.  And she was captured, brought to Vicksburg on the Charm,  and exchanged.

You can read more about this prisoner exchange in my book or [HERE] in a previous detailed blog post. 

But the story of the Charm as it relates to women soldiers of the Civil War doesn't end with Mary Ann Clark.  Five months later, the transport, along with the Paul Jones and Dot were burned by retreating Confederates in order to keep them out of the hands of the Federals who were pursuing their foes across the Big Black River following the battle there in May 1863.  One woman soldier who was present was the aforementioned female fighter serving in Cockrell's Missouri brigade.   Another lost her life during the short engagement.  

While the final resting place of this woman soldier is unknown, the skeleton of the Charm was discovered in 1962 in the vicinity of Bovina.

 

http://battleofchampionhill.org/vignettes/page-1b.htm

 

What does the Charm have to do with Grand Gulf, given that her watery grave was forty miles away?  The museum contains parts of her, including her paddle wheel.

 

Inside the museum, you will find other artifacts from the Charm.

Visitors who are Civil War geeks will also see relics from a more recognizable vessel:  the Federal gunboat, Cairo.

 

 

You may know the story of noted historian and former superintendent of Vicksburg National Military Park, Ed Bearss, finding the Cairo.  The gunboat is a prominent and popular exhibit at the park.  But you may not realize that it was Mr. Bearss wife, Margie, who established the museum at Grand Gulf.  And that is why relics and fragments of not only the Charm but other Civil War vessels are at this obscure storehouse in a former town along the Mississippi River.

Margie Bearss' scrapbook containing photographs and fascinating information of her work and that of her husband and others in locating and documenting these Confederate transports is fascinating. Particularly striking to Civil War nerds are photos of a young Ed Bearss on location of his discoveries. You can find the scrapbook [HERE].  Click [HERE] and you can also hear a recording of Margie describing what it was like to gaze upon the remains of the Charm.

I hope you will visit "charming" Grand Gulf State Park and enjoy all that it has to offer, including these small, obscure connections to women soldiers of the Civil War.