Day 6 in Dixie: Warren Co Courthouse and Natchez Mississippi

Well, we have now logged about 1100 miles on the road in total, and we're still smilin'.  Long but good day today.  We spent most of it on route 61 in Mississippi and Louisiana, going along the Mississippi river (sort of, more on that below).  I've been extremely impressed with roads around here (Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana).  Nobody's on them but they're well maintained and many are 4-lane, which means you can really roll.  We've gotten around very easily (perhaps jinxing us now!!!!!)

We started in Vicksburg, checking out of the Duff Green Manor and going to the Warren County Courthouse on our way out of town.  This is the old courthouse in Vicksburg, that was a central point in the siege - the confederate flag flying a-top giving hope to the besieged.  The building escaped bombing because they kept Union prisoners on the top floor.  It's now a museum, run by two "quintessential" old southern gentlemen (think of Shelby Foote from Ken Burns' "Civil War") who were loaded with information and willing to impart it.  One of them told me about all the flags of the Confederacy, and why they kept changing them:
-The First National looked too much like the Union Flag
-The Second National looked too much like a surrender flag
-they stuck with the Third National, but also used what we think of as the "Confederate" flag as their battle flag.
-they also had another, called the Bonnie Blue, with a white star on a blue background.  I actually forget the whole story about it.  I was thinking that any state that wanted to celebrate their old southern heritage should use the Bonnie Blue instead of the battle flag to avoid controversy.  To me, that confederate flag has about the same connotation as a swastika.  Maybe it shouldn't, but it does.  One problem, Bonnie Blue looks like the flag of Somalia.

Lots of interesting exhibits, including a whole room on Jefferson Davis, who lived much of his life not far from Vicksburg.  He's everywhere in the South.  Interesting guy.  Other stuff in the museum included:  teddy bears and tea cups.

I also found out that "Dixie" came from the "Dix" printed on the back of a Louisiana ten dollar bill before the war.

We then headed due south along the river.  Rather, we tried to stay along the river but it's impossible along the Mississippi.  You rarely see it.  Why?  Because it loops and loops and loops and loops, and the land between the loops is often soggy and uncertain.  There aren't that many bridges across it, Vicksburg being one and the next one to the south being Natchez, 70 miles away.  Those are spots that are raised significantly above the river.  Anyway, Natchez was our destination for lunch.  We spent some time in between hunting for things - like the river, as well as the Windsor Ruins, an old manor of which only the pillars remain.

When we finally got to Natchez, man were we hungry.  Zeus be praised for an un-planned BBQ stop, at the Pig Out Inn.  We definitely were not impressed with the quality of the ribs (a little dry and stringy) but they hit the spot.  I liked the mixed bean salad - somewhat spicy.  Also, it's good to have a clear "last place" in our search.  At the moment, my personal ranking is:
-Letha's (Hattiesburg MS)
-Jim n' Nick's (just North of Montgomery AL)
-Big Fatty's (WRJ Vermont, just have to put that on the list)
-Pig Out Inn (Natchez MS)

I feel I'm missing a place.  It'll come to me.

We took off from Natchez and drove to Vacherie LA.  More on that later!

Warren County Courthouse.

Flags of the confederacy.  From front to back:  Bonnie Blue, Third National, Second National, First National, Battle flag.

First National Confederate flag (front) and Battle flag (back)

Second National Confederate flag (front)

Third National Confederate flag

Exhibit in the Warren Co Courthouse of blacks who served for Confederacy.

Teddy Roosevelt had his encounter with a bear about 20 miles north of Vburg, leading to the Teddy Bear.

Original Teddy Bear.

There must have been 1000 tea cups in that court house.  This is just a fraction.

More tea cups!  I like the square one.

Explanation of the Sultana disaster.  This was a river boat that was supposed to take former Union prisoners at "Castle Morgan" (Cahawba, AL) up the Mississippi and home.  It was over-loaded and poorly maintained and blew up en route, killing many who had survived the horrors of the prisoner camp.  One of them was one of Maddy's ancestral uncles!  Sorry I don't have a photo of an awesome mural painted about this on the levee in Vicksburg.  I thought I took a photo but it's not there.  Maddy has a photo.

Mississippi river south of Vicksburg, with one of several casinos

In Natchez before lunch.  We are hungry and in a goofy mood.

the Pig Out Inn, Natchez MS.  Not the best BBQ, but even bad BBQ's still pretty good BBQ.  We liked the sign too.

Natchez post-lunch.  Much more sedate!