Windsor and The Civil War

Windsor and The Civil War. . , The American Civil War began in 1861, the same year that construction on Windsor was completed. Confederate soldiers used the mansion's cupola as an observatory to monitor the Union Navy's movements on the Mississippi River. The mansion's strategic position offered panoramic views of the area in Mississippi and across the river in Louisiana. The soldiers who resided at Windsor were frequent guests at the Daniells' table, and records show that Catherine leased some of her enslaved laborers to the Confederacy. , War efforts in the local region changed in December 1862 with the start of the Vicksburg Campaign. Despite several failed attempts, Union General Ulysses S. Grant adopted a new strategy that brought the war close to Windsor when he and his troops crossed the Mississippi River at the nearby town of Bruinsburg on April 30, 1863, The arrival of these 22,000 Union soldiers placed the Daniell family amid the conflict. General Grant established temporary headquarters at Windsor. The army confiscated the plantation's assets and burned its cotton bales. It also transformed Windsor into a field hospital, treating over 400 wounded soldiers during the Battle of Port Gibson that occurred on May 1, 1863. The family was allowed to stay at their house during this tumultuous time, and at least 17 of the enslaved men joined the United States Colored Troops. , Following the Civil War, the Daniell family regained their land and home although their wealth was diminished. With the institution of slavery abolished, many formerly enslaved people, who had known no other home but Windsor and had no other resources, stayed as tenants who worked the land in exchange for a portion of the crops. Many descendants of those once enslaved at Windsor remained nearby while others moved within Mississippi or to other states. These Black citizens built new lives through sharecropping, domestic service, land purchases, education, trades, and civic and religious participation.