History in the Deep South
The complex history and heritage of the Deep South have created a distinctly American culture that is more a state of mind than a place! The cultural diversity here is what makes it such a distinctive holiday destination. The American Revolution, the American Civil War, the abolition of slavery, and the Civil Rights movement - they all took place in America's Deep South.
Top US Civil War Places of Interest:
- Shiloh National Military Park, Tennessee: The biggest battle in the War's Mississippi Valley Campaign was fought here.
- Vicksburg National Military Park, Mississippi: Site of a 47 day siege, now a key Civil War remembrance location with 1325 historic markers and monuments.
- Fort Pillow State Historic Park, Tennessee: A highly controversial battle site, where Confederate soldiers were reportedly massacred after they had surrendered.
- Camp Nelson Civil War Park, Kentucky: Where 5400 Afican American slaves enlisted to fight.
The lower Mississippi valley was the homeland of the Choctaw, Chickasaw and Cherokee before the French, Spanish and British arrived in the 16th and 17th centuries to fight over it. The Americans finally took it in the 18th century and the defining historical event of the Deep South remains the Civil War, fought from 1861 to 1865. Although the Deep South romanticises antebellum plantation life, built on slavery, it is also the birthplace of the modern Civil Rights movement. Today, there are more African-Americans elected to public office in the South than in any other part of the nation.
Travelling through the Deep South is a history lesson in itself!
History & Heritage in Louisiana
