Chapter 18 – Mississippi

Vicksburg – Civil War Battlefield; Coca-Cola Museum

"Welcome to Vicksburg, Mississippi," Tali read the sign along I-20 to her siblings as Tony drove towards the city. The three- and one-half-hour drive from New Orleans had been almost all on interstate highways, making it rather boring for the kids. They were glad to have their tablets to play games, watch videos, or look at the information Ziva had downloaded about the newest destination.

Anthony glanced up from the game he was playing, "Yeah, more Civil War stuff from what Ima put on our tablets. This battle was a key one for both sides, according to the history lesson page. I guess we'll see more monuments, and stuff…"

"There's a boat too, I think," LJ added what he remembered.

Beth snickered at her little brother, "It said that the 'ironclad' vessel USS Cairo was a gunboat. Sorta like a submarine, I think."

"You are correct," Ziva turned towards the rear seats. "An ironclad is similar to a submarine in some ways. It is low in the water, and the visible part is protected by metal; unlike a submarine, the ironclads could not go under the water completely. The website says it was the first ship or boat in history to be sunk by a torpedo or mine. There were other famous ironclads during the Civil War. The two you may know from school are…"

"The Monitor and the Merrimack!" Anthony called out. "We learned about them in social studies this past school year. Grandpa said that the two ironclads were the first battle ever between that type of ship. The Merrimack was destroyed and the Monitor sank off the North Carolina coast but some of it was recovered when Abba was a kid."

Rivka had been quietly listening to the conversation. "Why are we going to all these Civil War places? Aren't there other places we could go?"

"The American Civil War is a part of the history of this country. It is the only war fought on US soil since the United States was formed. Many of the sights we have seen are monuments and memorials to those who fought for either side and the beliefs that were held at the time. The National Park Service has made many of these places into National Parks to preserve the history and heritage," Tony explained to his brood.

He followed the signs for the Visitors Center for Vicksburg National Military Park as the others observed the new sights along the roadway.

"Welcome to the Park," the ranger at the entrance gate handed Tony a map of the driving tour for the park and his permit for the park, which was good for seven days. "If you are here tomorrow, we have a reenactment of part of the Battle of Vicksburg starting at nine in the morning."

"Thanks," Tony took the items and handed the map to Ziva. Under his breath he muttered, "If I never see another reenactment, that's perfectly fine with me." Distant memories were shoved back into the cobwebs in his head. He did not need to remember his one and only reenactment.

"What's a re-… re-en… re-en-act-… thingy?" LJ couldn't quite remember the word the ranger told his Abba.

Ziva looked to Tony; he shrugged and sighed. "Abba can tell you more than I can."

"People get dressed in period costume, in this case, most likely in Civil War uniforms for both the US and the Confederate States. They have weapons, tools, equipment, and conditions similar to what the Union and Confederate soldiers faced in the actual Siege and Battle of Vicksburg. The people act out the scenes from the war, including battles, injured soldiers, living in the encampments, and eating food similar to what the soldiers had back then. Men, women, and kids can participate. I did when I was about LJ's age with my father…" Tony trailed off, not sure he wanted to give any more information. He'd already told more than he planned.

"COOL! What did you do, Abba?" Beth, Rivka, and LJ were immediately interested to learn more since their father had actually been to a reenactment.

Tony gritted his teeth, and silently cursed himself. 'La'azazel!' He looked to his wife for her to bail him out of the predicament. She grinned and slowly shook her head to the negative.

"You got yourself into this one," she reminded her husband as he parked the van by the Visitors' Center.

He turned towards his family, "You gotta swear this goes no further than this van." The kids all solemnly nodded, knowing full well that they would tell their cousins once back at home. "I was the one who lugged the bucket that served as a sanitary station…"

"Huh?" Anthony frowned and looked at his Ima.

"I was the poo-boy," Tony grimaced as he blurted it out. "Now, I do NOT want to hear any more about this; okay?"

Inside the Visitors' Center, the family viewed a short film about the park and some of the history of the area. Most of the tour for the park was the driving tour that is self-guided from the park maps. They viewed many of the monuments, historic markers, and formations that were recreated to show the layout of the battlefield.

On the north side of the park, the USS Cairo Visitors' Center, Museum, and the actual restored gunboat were the favorite attraction for all. They learned about the construction of the Cairo, its six sister ships which patrolled the Mississippi River, and the demise of the vessel. Exhibits also showed how the remains were located and raised from the riverbed after about one hundred years of being buried in the silt of the riverbed. Items and artifacts recovered from the ship were on display in the Museum. Since the crew barely had time to get themselves to safety as the boat sank in twelve minutes from the time it was hit and damaged, almost all of the personal items were left behind. The relics give insight into the life on the gunboat as it cruised the river.

The portions of the restored USS Cairo showed the plated sides, the cannons, the chimneys, and the riggings are all displayed for visitors to explore the ironclad gunboat. The remains are set on a concrete base to help preserve the structure. The total length of the vessel is one hundred seventy-five feet; it had a crew of two hundred fifty-one men. Top speed was six knots. Steam, generated in the five boilers, powered the engines which turned the paddle wheel. These iron boilers were built to hold tons of water and steam under pressure.

Inside the hull, the damage that was inflicted and subsequently caused the sinking of the vessel can be viewed.

As the family exited the boat, Tony's stomach growled loud enough for all to hear.

"I'm hungry too, Ima!" Anthony grinned. "When are we going to eat lunch?"

After a meal at a local restaurant, Ziva used the onboard GPS to head to the Biedenharn Coca-Cola Museum in downtown Vicksburg. The building was a candy and confectionary company that also had a soda fountain. Joseph Biedenharn bought the syrup from Asa Candler to sell Coca-Cola flavored soda water at his soda counter, along with several other flavored soda waters. In 1894, Biedenharn came up with the idea of selling bottled Coca-Cola flavored soda water to his rural customers and hence became the first bottler of Coca Cola.

The family browsed the museum with its information about the history of the popular soft drink, the bottling process used by Joe Biedenharn, restored company offices, and a replica soda counter. In the museum store, they got to try some of the flavored soda water.

LJ took a sip of the sarsaparilla flavor and crinkled up his nose. Ziva laughed at his face.

"It is an acquired taste, motek."

"Do you like it?"

"Not really," Ziva tried not to think about the taste she remembered sampling at about the same age.

"I think I'll stick with the Coke fountain drink and my Coke float," Riv didn't even want to try any of the flavors.

LJ agreed, "My ice cream is much better tasting!" He shoved a spoonful in his mouth and grinned at his family.

Once settled into their hotel, the DiNozzos planned where to have dinner and a walk along the riverfront to see the historic murals on display. The pleasant summer night allowed the family to view all of the murals depicting various historic events and places in and around the city of Vicksburg and the Mississippi River.

"Where are we going tomorrow?" Tali asked Ziva as the family strolled the riverfront area.

Ziva replied to all of her children, "We shall head to Tennessee in the morning. There are a lot of places we could visit, but this trip we will focus on Chattanooga. From there we will drive the entire length of the Blue Ridge Parkway to head back into Virginia and then home."