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The Fall of Vicksburg

Vicksburg Daily Citizen
Vicksburg Daily Citizen
Newspaper printed on wallpaper,
July 2, 1863
Rare Book & Special Collections Division
(46A.4)

Vickburg, Mississippi, like many of the other southern cities suffered acutely from the ravages of the Civil War. The city was under siege from May 22 until July 4, 1863, and faced a daily barrage of gunfire from Union forces under U.S. Grant. Utilizing whatever resources were at hand, the Vicksburg Daily Citizen printed this issue on the back of wallpaper. The defiant spirit is still in evidence on July 2 as the paper reads: "The Yankee Generalissimo surnamed Grant has expressed his intention of dining in Vicksburg on the Fourth of July. . . . Ulysses must get into the city before he dines in it." Vicksburg surrendered two days later.

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