The Mississippi River is 2,552 miles long, according to the National Park Service, and along that stretch  is a lot of rich history, unique cultures and interesting people.

Jon Wilkman is documenting the river, along with the history, culture and people associated with it. Wilkman arrived in Vicksburg Thursday evening.

“I’m in the process of doing what I often do, it’s a mixture of personal fun and professional fun, which is what my career has been,” he said. “What I do for living is what I love doing period, which is essentially exploring stories, recording them and sharing them.”

Wilkman said he decided years ago he would make the trek from the start of the Mississippi River to the bottom.

“I’ve been meeting people and taking film and stills and studying the history,” he said. “When it’s all done I’ll turn it into a documentary — maybe an hour or so.”

Wilkman began his trip June 2 at Lake Itaska, Minn., and he will finish June 25 in New Orleans.

“Along the way I’ve been meeting people and talking and taking pictures,” he said. “The cliché is true, this is the heartland of America in so many ways: historically, environmentally and economically.”

The Mississippi River runs through the core of American history, Wilkman said.

“There are so many sections of the river, and each of the sections of the river are involved in different stories and different periods of time and different parts of the culture of America,” he said. “I’ve always been very interested in music, so of course the story of jazz and blues and rock and roll is all connected. Then in the north there’s a whole literary tradition that’s connected with Mark Twain and Sinclair Lewis and others.”

Wilkman said he’s been to some of the major cities on the Mississippi River, but never Vicksburg and many of the other connecting cities, which he describes as the fun part of his adventure.

“I’m going to do that standard historical sites with a civil war emphasis, particularly as it connects to the river,” he said.

“Vicksburg is an important trading center which made it important during the civil war.”

Wilkman said he is staying at the historical Cedar Grove Mansion, which he said was luxurious and loaded with history.

“I drove through the downtown to get there, and I was quite surprised at how beautiful that is,” he said.

“I think it’s very connected to the tourist trade, but often so many cities along the Mississippi that have not done well.”

Wilkman said he’s been in some cities that were once booming that are now almost abandoned, offering Cairo, Ill. as an example.

“It’s interesting to see how cities because of the agricultural base and the manufacturing base have changed so much are trying to adapt their economies,” he said. “Certain ones can do it with tourism, and you see elements of that here. Vicksburg seems to be quite vibrant.”

Wilkman has been making documentaries for 50 years, and he formerly worked for CBS News under Walter Cronkite. Wilkman has produced films for PBS and HBO, and also written several books.