Historians and Civil War buffs will roll back the clock 150 years and examine the key turning points of 1863 at a forum slated for Saturday at Fort Snelling.
Two bloody years of battles hadn't clarified the nation's future in 1863, and the First Minnesota and other Union soldiers from the state would play decisive roles from Vicksburg to Gettysburg.
Among the experts scheduled for the Civil War Symposium is Terry Winschel, a retired historian at the Vicksburg National Military Park. The forum opens with registration at 8:30 a.m. and runs through the afternoon. It's free, but advance registration is recommended, with limited seating.
Other topics to be addressed include Minnesotans at Chickamauga and a report from the state's Civil War commemorative task force.
The symposium will be held at the Fort Snelling History Center, at the junction of Hwys. 5 and 55 one mile east of Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport.
CURT BROWN
@stribcbrown
