Pulling Out the Big Guns

Pulling out the Big Guns

WITH A NEW MUSEUM, CHARLES PENDLETON FILLS IN THE GAPS IN VICKSBURG'S CIVIL WAR NARRATIVE

By Cheré Coen

On a quiet weekend in Vicksburg four years ago, a Civil War gun show piqued the curiosity of resident Charles Pendleton. As a Black man, he recalls the discomfort his presence invoked in other attendees and sellers. “I just wanted to buy guns,” he said. But people would approach him, saying things like, “You know, this war wasn’t about slavery.”

Fascinated by the features of the antique guns, particularly those from the Civil War era, Pendleton continued to attend these events, eventually accumulating a collection of guns he believes to be the largest in Mississippi. Along with his collection grew a deeper curiosity about their history.

He began researching the Civil War and the following Reconstruction years, studying the lives of soldiers on both sides of the conflict. He visited various Civil War museums, noting with concern the lack of information available on the role slavery played in the war, and on the lives of enslaved people at all. Then, one day, his antique dealer Hardy Katzenmeyer showed him a collection of historic pre-Civil War documents, one of which was a bill of sale for a seven-year-old child named Ella, who was sold for $350.

Reading about a child sold in 1848 and “guaranteed a slave for life” stirred something in Pendleton. He approached his church congregation in the hopes they would be inspired to support an exhibit he would curate, but there was no interest. He tried to find what happened to Ella, but hit dead ends, experiencing yet another instance of American history left untold. Looking to his now vast collection of Civil War-era guns and other artifacts, he realized that he could play a role in telling the whole story.

In the spring of 2021, Pendleton opened the Vicksburg Civil War Museum as a non profit, with a mission to educate visitors on the war, its context, and its impact—especially focusing on the contributions of African Americans during combat.

A key element of the museum are its letters of secession from each Confederate state, documents he hopes every visitor reads when they first arrive. The letters demonstrate that slavery was indisputably the main issue of the war, he said. For instance, “A Declaration of the Immediate Causes which Induce and Justify the Secession of the State of Mississippi from the Federal Union” lists the refusal of new slave states into the Union and the nullification of the fugitive slave act as reasons for Mississippi’s secession. It also rejects “negro equality, socially and politically.”

“No one can debate that this was a war that ended slavery,” Pendleton said, emphasizing the importance of having conversations about slavery’s role in the war, and its long-term effects on society. Pendleton also uses his artifacts and historical documents to showcase the African Americans who fought in the Civil War, as well as every other U.S. war. “Here, we try to highlight the military role of African Americans,” he said. “For instance, twenty-five Black men were presented the Medal of Honor during the Civil War.”

Other artifacts featured at Pendleton’s museum include a replica enslaved person’s cabin and ephemera from both Confederate and Union soldiers, including uniforms, coffee pots, and musical instruments.

Charles Pendleton pictured with exhibitions at the new Vicksburg Civil War Museum. Photo courtesy of Visit Vicksburg.

And then there is of course Pendleton’s remarkable gun and artillery shell collection, which fills up display cases throughout the museum.

Since the museum opened, Pendleton has received numerous visitors, including a steady tourist stream coming off the Mississippi River steamboats that regularly visit Vicksburg.

“We’ve had a ton of people in the museum and I can’t believe the positive feedback,” Pendleton said.

“The Vicksburg Civil War Museum has been a great addition to our Vicksburg attractions,” said Laura Beth Strickland, executive director of Vicksburg Convention and Visitors Bureau. “The museum has done an amazing job showcasing our Civil War history. . . It’s becoming a must-see attraction in downtown Vicksburg.”

The museum is located at 1123 Washington St. in the heart of downtown Vicksburg in a building that was formerly the Corner Drug Store. Hours are 9 am–6 pm daily, but Pendleton insisted that if he’s there, he will open the museum for visitors. Admission is $7 for adults, $3.50 for ages seven to twelve years old and free to ages six and younger.

vicksburgcivilwarmuseum.org