When John Pemberton arrived in Mississippi on Oct. 9, 1862, he established his headquarters in the capital city of Jackson and assumed command of the Department of Mississippi and East Louisiana. His new command covered all of the Magnolia State and that part of Louisiana east of the Mississippi River. His chief objective was defense of the two river bastions at Vicksburg and Port Hudson, La., that was located just north of Baton Rouge. Defense of these cities was vital to the South as it enabled the Confederacy to maintain control over a 200-mile stretch of the Mississippi River and connection to the states of the far South, while continuing to deny use of the river by Northern shipping.

The failure of the U.S. Navy to capture Vicksburg that summer had convinced both Union and Confederate high commands that if Vicksburg was going to fall it would be at the hands of a massive, combined land and naval effort. The river batteries that had thwarted Farragut’s warships were powerful, indeed formidable. But all the land approaches to Vicksburg were open. The decision was made to construct a line of defense to guard the city’s landward approaches and control the roads and railroad access to Vicksburg.

The responsibility for design and construction of these fortifications was entrusted to young Maj. Samuel Lockett, chief engineer of the Army of Vicksburg. Lockett, a graduate of West Point, Class of 1859 in which he stood second, was a highly skilled and well-trained engineer who set about his task with vigor. Reconnoitering through the hills and hollows around Vicksburg, Lockett quickly realized that the city was naturally defensible. Due to a series of sharp, narrow ridges fronted and backed by deep, steep ravines, Vicksburg was a natural fortress that he would make even stronger by the construction of earthen fortifications.

The new departmental commander was pleased to learn that Lockett was already busy supervising the garrison and approximately 5,000 slaves pressed into service in construction of the city’s defenses. The line as completed consisted of nine major forts connected by a continuous line of trenches and rifle pits. The line formed a huge crescent, or backward C, around Vicksburg, the flanks of which line rested on the Mississippi River above and below town. It ultimately would be manned by a garrison of 30,000 troops and mount 172 big guns. Vicksburg soon became known as the “Gibraltar of the Confederacy” and posed the major obstacle to Union domination of the great river.

As Southern soldiers and slaves labored on the fortifications of Vicksburg, civil authorities also took measures to safeguard and provide for the populace as the residents of the Hill City were already feeling the economic impact of war. Although goods were still abundant, they were rising rapidly in price. Unemployment also climbed. The Benevolent Society was formed by caring citizens who operated a “Free Market” to feed the families of the poor and unemployed. The Ladies Hospital Association, sewing clubs and an array of other organizations were formed to meet the specific needs of the people in Vicksburg and the soldiers who were stationed in and around the city. The use of homespun clothing and food substitutes was a clearer sign of the war’s economic impact on the residents of Vicksburg who unified to face the perils of war.

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Terrence J. Winschel is a former historian for the Vicksburg National Military Park.