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History
Construction began in
the summer of 1858 on what was then to be a new Court House for
Warren County. The family of Newitt Vick, founder of Vicksburg,
donated one of the highest hills in town for the location of the
building. The contractors were the Weldon Brothers of Rodney,
Mississippi, who used 100 highly skilled slave artisans to make the
brick and erect
the
building. The building was completed in 1860 at a cost of
$100,000. The building stands as an architectural gem and was named
one of the 20 most outstanding courthouses in America by the
American Institute of Architects. Four porticos, supported by
30-foot Ionic columns, flank the entrances. The courtroom on the
second floor features a cast iron judge’s dais and railings, and an
intricate iron stairway connects the first and second floors.
Original iron doors and shutters remain on the building.
Jefferson Davis, a local planter,
launched his political career on the site. Several years later,
the ironclad Arkansas battled its way through the Federal fleet to
safety as Confederate Generals Stephan D. Lee, Earl Van Dorn and
John C. Breckinridge observed from the building’s cupola. During the
War, the building was the target of much Union shelling, but
suffered only one major hit. It was here on July 4, 1863 that the
Stars and Bars were lowered and the Stars and Stripes were raised as
General U S Grant reviewed his victorious army.
After surviving Union shelling and
years of neglect, the building was again in danger. With the
construction of a new Warren County Court House in 1939, the
building stood practically vacant and there was talk of its
demolition. The
museum’s
founder, Mrs. Eva Whitaker Davis, realized the significance of the
building and established the Vicksburg and Warren County Historical
Society for the purpose of preserving the structure. In 1947, Davis
was elected president of the society, and with the help of a few
volunteers began cleaning the building and collecting artifacts for
a proposed museum. On June 3, 1948 the museum opened its doors.
Mrs. Davis continued to grow the Society and its museum on a
volunteer basis for many years. A grateful public added the name
Eva W. Davis Memorial to that of the building for her dedicated
service. The building was named a National Historic Landmark in
1968, and is still operated and maintained by the Vicksburg and
Warren County Historical Society.
The collection has grown over the
years to thousands of artifacts representing Vicksburg history from
pre-Columbian times through World War II. The collection of civil
war artifacts is one of the largest in the state, and the museum as
a whole is consistently ranked as one of the most significant in the
region. The research library is a wealth of information on the area
and its history, and provides an important genealogical tool for
researchers whose ancestors either lived or passed through
Vicksburg.
The museum is a
non- profit organization. The building and grounds are maintained
through admissions, fundraisers, a gift shop, and the generous
donations of patrons |
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