When Grant Got to Vicksburg

The first wave of Union troops
Died down by Graveyard Road
They came from Missouri proud to wear the Federal blue
But when the day was done the tragedy was clear
The boys who shot them down came from Missouri too

Chorus...
Some wore blue and some word gray
And most were young and green
Some lied about their age and claimed to be eighteen
Mothers from Missouri weren't sure
Which side they should blame
When Grant Got to Vicksburg both sides bled the same

To try to save the Union flank the Generals made a plan
For forty days and forty nights they laid siege to the town
But when the food ran out the South refused to yield
Cause they knew those Generals
Had burned Jackson to the ground

Chorus

Brother fighting brother and a nation torn in half
Only fools refuse to learn
From the lessons of the past

Chorus

Dan Modlin/ASCAP (Gold in the Strings Music/ASCAP)