Vicksburg memorial to Missouri soldiers to be rededicated

VICKSBURG, Miss. -- A monument to Missouri's Civil War troops will be rededicated this month at the Vicksburg National Military Park after a $380,000 repair job to fix broken bronze work and cracks in the granite.

The May 27 rededication comes months before the 100th anniversary of the monument's October 1917 unveiling at the Mississippi military park, which commemorates the 47-day Siege of Vicksburg in 1863. The fighting was a decisive victory for Union Maj. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant, The Columbia Daily Tribune reported.

As one of four states that allowed slavery but didn't secede from the Union, Missouri was divided. Its Civil War monument was dedicated to men from both sides of the fighting, making it a major attraction during its unveiling at an event known as the "Peace Jubilee."

A crowd of more than 50,000 Civil War veterans attended to celebrate sectional reconciliation as the nation was mobilizing troops for World War I.

Scott Babinowich, spokesman for the military park, doesn't expect a crowd that large this time, but Memorial Day traditionally is a major day at the park.

The monument features two large bronze reliefs portraying Confederate and Union soldiers, locked in battle. The panels flank a bronze angel by sculptor Victor Holm titled "The Spirit of the Republic."

"You can really see what the Civil War was about for Missourians, with men who were friends prior to the war ... actually there on that ground killing each other," said Larry Dietzel of Columbia, who will be part of a Sons of Union Veterans contingent on hand for the ceremony.

The event will include an artillery salute by the Mississippi National Guard -- a similar salute from contemporary artillery occurred in 1917 -- and retired Brigadier Gen. Parker Hills, author of a book on Vicksburg monuments, will give the keynote address.

"This year, we are trying to do a little more, on the theme of peace through reunion," Babinowich said.

Missouri lawmakers tried twice to appropriate money for the repairs, but it never was spent. The first time, in 2015, the money came from a parks fund that could not be used outside the state. A second appropriation, made last year, became unnecessary by the time it became effective because the park obtained federal funds for the repairs.