Federal lawmakers have pushed legislation forward to give the Vicksburg National Military Park a facelift.
On Wednesday, the U.S. Senate passed the Vicksburg National Military Park Boundary Modification Act. The legislation, sponsored by Sen. Roger Wicker, serves to transfer land from the National Park Service to the state of Mississippi to build a new state-of-the-art interactive interpretive center on the park’s grounds.
The Vicksburg National Military Park preserves the site of the Battle of Vicksburg, which is known for being a key turning point in the Civil War. The battlefield is the most visited historical attraction in Mississippi with more than half a million annual visitors. The park includes over 1,300 monuments and markers, 20 miles of original and reconstructed trenches, the Vicksburg National Cemetery, and more.
On the flip side, the park has outdated structures, including the visitor’s center, prompting Wicker to use his role in Congress to take action.
“Tourists from across the country are visiting Mississippi to learn about the history of the Civil War. Preserving and sharing Vicksburg’s past will help increase tourism in our state,” Wicker said. “This land for the new interpretive center would play a key role in the efforts to modernize the park and ensure that future generations can enjoy, and learn, from these stories.”
Now that the bill has made it through the Senate, it will head to the House of Representatives for consideration.