Join Dr. Heidi Amelia- Anne Weber as she leads this round table discussion.  Part of the original Anaconda Plan incorporated dividing the Confederacy in two.  Essential to that plan was the Union securing control of the Mississippi River.  Although attempts were made to secure Vicksburg, the initial ones were failures.  Control of Vicksburg was significant to both the Union and the Confederacy.  It was, as Jefferson Davis proclaimed, “the nailhead that held the South’s two halves together.”  Following the costly success of Shiloh, Major General Ulysses Grant began his movement into Mississippi and the assault at Vicksburg.  Having failed in the preliminary attempts, the last option was a siege, one that would ultimately result in victory.

Dr. Heidi Amelia-Anne Weber holds the rank of full professor of military history/history at SUNY: Orange. Heidi earned her Ph.D. in 19th Century American History from Kent State University.  She has published chapters and made contributions in the World of Antebellum America: A Daily Life Encyclopedia, The Handbook of Military Administration, The Encyclopedia of the Reconstruction Era, The Encyclopedia of Gettysburg, and the upcoming The Campaign for Atlanta & Sherman's March to the Sea. In addition, she has published articles in America’s Civil War and other publications. In 2017, Dr. Weber was awarded the SUNY: Orange President’s Award for Excellence in Teaching and the New York Chancellor’s Award for Teaching Excellence. Dr. Weber was also selected as a Service Academy Interview Screener for Senator Cory Booker. Heidi also is a member of Field Force for the United States Military Academy.