Vicksburg and Grand Gulf military parks are offering up a dose of history for the holidays.

Vicksburg National Military Park will host a symposium on the Vicksburg Troubles of 1874 leading up to the 140th anniversary on Sunday of riots in that year. Grand Gulf is offering a holiday open house with free admission Sunday.

The historical symposium will be from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Bethel AME Church, 805 Monroe St., VNMP ranger Jake Koch said.

Speakers during the symposium include Yolande Robbins of the Jacqueline House museum, Dr. Brooks Simpson of Arizona State University, Dr. Ronald L.F. Davis of California State University- Northridge, former Ole Miss professor Dr. Deidre Cooper Owens and Dr. Nicholas Lemann of Columbia University.

“The final speaker in the afternoon will be followed by a panel discussion including the speakers and park staff,” Koch said.

The Vicksburg Troubles, also called the Vicksburg Riots, happened Dec. 7, 1874 after a group of whites removed Sheriff Peter Crosby, who was black, from office.

At least 31 and as many as 300 people were killed in the racially fighting that occurred when a group of blacks prepared to march into Vicksburg and have Crosby restored to office.

A congressional inquiry into the riots found the group of whites to be at fault, though a minority of congressmen thought the black militia was in the wrong.

“What happened here in Vicksburg was a model for what would happen across the South,” said Rick Martin, chief of operations for VNMP.

Much of the slaughter occurred in what is now the military park near the hill where Confederate Lt. Gen. John C. Pemberton surrendered to Union Maj. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant on July 4, 1863 following a 47-day siege of the city.

At 1 p.m. Sunday, Koch will hold an interpretative program near the site commemorating the 140th anniversary of the riots.

Admission to the park is $8 per noncommercial vehicle.

At Grand Gulf Military Park in Claiborne County, admission will be free for a holiday open house form 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday.

“This is our gift to the community,” said Cathi Dodgen, spokeswoman for Grand Gulf Military Park.

The state-run park and museum will be decorated for the holidays, she said.

“People who haven’t had a chance to come see it will want to see the artifacts and the buildings,” Dodgen said. “It’s our opportunity to say merry Christmas.”

Grand Gulf was the site of a major Union naval attack on Confederate defenses leading up to the Siege of Vicksburg. Adm. David Dixon Porter led seven ironclads against the fortifications there to aid Grant’s crossing into Mississippi from Louisiana.

“We’re a very small state agency. Many people who come say we are a hidden gem,” Dodgen said.

Next weekend, festivities will be at the Old Court House Museum with the annual Balfour Ball. Tickets for the ball are $25 each, said Bubba Bolm, curator of the museum.

The annual Christmas ball is a re-enactment of a party held Dec. 26, 1862 at thehome of Dr. William T. and Emma Balfour at Cherry and Crawford streets.

The ball was cut short as Union gunboats were spotted on the Mississippi River approaching Vicksburg.