Confederate Message in a Bottle Deciphered 147 Years Later
The siege at the Battle of Vicksburg, in Mississippi, was a crucial victory for Union forces, and catastrophic defeat for the Confederates. On the day of the battle, one Confederate general sent a coded message in a bottle to Lt. Gen. John C. Pemberton, who was under siege in Vicksburg. The message was never received, and before this year, it had never been deciphered. Catherine Wright, collections manager at The Museum of the Confederacy, took on the challenge of deciphering the message. Confirmed by two cryptographers, the message reads, in part: ?You can expect no help from this side of the river.?
The story you just read is available to read for free because thousands of listeners and readers like you generously support our nonprofit newsroom. Every day, the reporters and producers at The World are hard at work bringing you human-centered news from across the globe. But we can’t do it without you: We need your support to ensure we can continue this work for another year.
When you make a gift of $10 or more a month, we’ll invite you to a virtual behind-the-scenes tour of our newsroom to thank you for being with The World.