The Coker House and the Battle of Champion Hill

The Coker House and the Battle of Champion Hill. . The Coker House is the only remaining structure on grounds where the pivotal Battle of Champion Hill was fought on May 16, 1863. Located on the southern margin of the battlefield, the house sustained fire from both Union and Confederate artillery as the battle lines shifted throughout the day., This house, like others in the area, served as a field hospital after the battle., Artillery Duel , Artillery was positioned in front of this house much of the day. In the morning, Confederate artillery along Cotton Ridge (the name of the subtle high ground where you are standing) held off Union soldiers advancing from the east. Late in the afternoon, the Confederate battery withdrew and a Union battery took its place, aiming at the new Confederate position on the next ridge to the west. , The artillery duel directed to and from the Coker House was peripheral to the main Battle of Champion Hill, centered two miles north. However, at the end of the battle, the engagement here became critical as it provided cover for the Confederate army's withdrawal., "...for over an hour we loaded our guns and killed each other as fast as we could. , "I've been in ... greater battles than Champion Hill, but only once did I see two lines of blue and gray stand close together and fire into each other's faces for an hour and a half.” , Capt. Sam Byers, 5th Iowa Infantry, "One cannon shot went straight through the house... In the room nearest the battery was a piano, standing diagonally across the room, with a corner jut in the right place in the path of the ball. Of course it was knocked off, but the tones were all left... " , Sgt. Thomas B. Marshall, 83d Ohio Infantry, [Captions] , Top right: (below) Illustration of the Battle of Champion Hill and (left) illustration of the action at Bakers Creek, Harper's Weekly. , Bottom left: Theo Davis, journalist/artist for Harper's Weekly, saved these sketches (above right) and published them thirty years after the war. , Bottom right: Portions of General Grant's army moved west toward Vicksburg along the Raymond-Edwards road, which passes in front of the Coker House.