A Chain of Thunder

In May of 1863, Union Gen. Maj. Ulysses S. Grant and his Army of the Tennessee successfully crossed the Mississippi river and forced the remaining quarter of Lt. Gen. John C. Pemberton's Confederate Army to retreat to the city of Vicksburg, burning the bridges over the Big Black River in its path. After sustaining heavy casualties in two failed assaults against the Confederates, Union morale was low and soldiers were losing confidence. Grant reluctantly decided to siege the city, trapping Confederate soldiers and citizens alike inside a ring of Federal entrenchments. Six weeks later, the starving and destitute Confederates finally surrendered, yielding command of the Mississippi River to the Union forces on July 4th - Independence Day - and marking a critical turning point in the Civil War.