Vicksburg National Military Park, entered on the eastern edge of US 80, adjoins Vicksburg on two sides and covers more than 1700 acres. The military operations of the Vicksburg siege in 1863 can be visualized and understood by following a 16-mile trail marked by signs. Union and Confederate avenues paralleled actual battle lines.
More than 1260 memorials, monuments, statues, tables, bronze portraits and markers honor the officers and enlisted men who participated in the Vicksburg campaign. The USS Cairo Museum, a Civil War class ironclad gunboat, exhibits personal possessions of the sailors and weaponry and is open year-round. Museum facilities include visitor information and a picnic area. A year-round Visitor Center is located off I20 at Clay Street which features historic exhibits and displays as well as summer season living history demonstrations. Guided tours of the park are available.