150 years ago today, four members of my family tree were taken as POW at the fall of Vicksburg.

As most native southerners, I have many names on my family tree who saw service during the Civil War. So far I have identified at least nine soldiers in my lines (both Confederate and Union) and three on Jimmy's lines.  There may be more who yet to be identified.  Four of the names I have identified fought during the siege of Vicksburg and were taken as prisoners of war at the surrender.  They were:    

Richmond J. (Jake) Peavy, Pvt. Co. K  40th AL (first husband of my great-grandmother,  Mary Frances Mundell and father of James Edward and Joseph L. Peavey)

W. A. Warner, Pvt. Co G 40th AL (husband of Frances T. “Fannie” Wiggins and brother-in-law to my grandfather, Richard W. Wiggins)

Lemuel B. Pollock, Pvt. Co A 35 MS  (GG-grandfather of my late husband, James E. Petty)

John F. Burkhalter,  Corporal Co. K 38 MS Cav  (son of my GGG-Grandfather, Elias Burkhalter)

All four of these men signed the Oath of Allegiance after which they were released.  By signing this oath, they promised not to take up arms against the United States until an exchange of prisoners had been executed.  But most of the men who signed these oaths immediately rejoined their companies to go on fighting elsewhere. Some were even taken prisoner again in other battles and send to prisoner of war camps. 

Jimmy's GG-Grandfather was one of those who was captured again.  The second time was at the battle of Resaca, GA.  He was sent to Camp Douglas, Illinois, where he remained until after the end of the war.

Back when Alise was little and before John and Anne had joined the family ranks, Jimmy and I took Alise to Vicksburg to see the military park.  It was a hot summer day much like the weather during the siege. Re-enactors were outside the visitor center in a simulated artillery post.  While we were there they fired the cannon.  Jimmy took pictures of the men resting in the little shelter from the sun, loading the cannon and firing the cannon.  We were miserably hot that day in our cool summer clothes.  I got a taste of what the heat must have been like for those soldiers as they held out from May until the city fell on July 4, 1863.