History Gem

General Winfield Scott initiated the "Anaconda Plan" during the Civil War. The Union Army intended to control the Mississippi River and remove Vicksburg from the battle by changing the course of the Mississippi River. The plan failed and Vicksburg held on, until the starvation became so severe that the men holding the area could no longer hold on. There weren't even any rats or bugs left in the town when the men finally surrendered.

Lake Providence, Louisiana came into existence because of the "Anaconda Plan." Port Hudson held on even longer than Vicksburg, defending the men and women of that lower Mississippi River region from a war that raged totally out of control. The existing history of the events are crystal clear to those whose grandparents were only one generation removed from Civil War veterans.