Civil War–dated ALS signed “U. S. Grant, Maj. Gen.,” one page, 5 x 8, February 27, 1863. Letter to General James B. McPherson. In full: “Come down here as soon as you can. Order before starting that the work of cutting down all the timbers in the channel of Bayou Baxter be prosecuted with all dispatch. I want to have the water let into Lake Providence before there is much fall.” In fine condition.
Written during the Vicksburg Campaign, this letter specifically concerns the Lake Providence Expedition of Grant’s Bayou Operations. Hoping to construct and use alternative waterways to position troops within striking distance of Vicksburg, Grant put McPherson in charge of building a canal from the Mississippi River to Lake Providence. They built levees to hold back water while digging, and at this stage the canal ditches were essentially complete and levees ready to be blown to flood them. The levees were destroyed about a week after Grant wrote this letter, but the depth of the water was still not sufficient for large vessels to transport masses of troops. Despite its underwhelming result, the Lake Providence Expedition was the only one of Grant’s Bayou Operations to successfully bypass the Vicksburg defenses. Pre-certified PSA/DNA.
This item is Pre-Certified by PSA/DNA
Buy a third-party letter of authenticity for
$100.00
*This item has been pre-certified by a trusted third-party authentication service, and by placing a bid on this item, you agree to accept the opinion of this authentication service. If you wish to have an opinion rendered by a different authenticator of your choosing, you must do so prior to your placing of any bid. RR Auction is not responsible for differing opinions submitted 30 days after the date of the sale.
We use cookies on this site to improve your experience. By using this site, you accept our use of cookies. To learn more, please see our Privacy Policy.
