BLOG 5 -- GETTYSBURG NATIONAL MILITARY PARK

THE BATTLE OF GETTYSBURG--

On July 1, 2, 3 of 1863, over 165,600 men of the massive armies of the North and the South came together at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania for the climactic battle of the Civil War!  Note the impressive painting of the battle action at Railroad Cut by artist Dale Gallon.  

The Union side had 93,921 men on the field while the South had 71,699 men.  General George G. Meade was in command of the Union forces with General Robert E. Lee commanding the Confederate forces. Gettysburg is infamous for the largest number of casualties in the Civil War.   Casualties, meaning killed, wounded, captured or missing, were over 51,000 including 7863 men killed in action—a truly ghastly number for a 3 day battle! *  23,000 casualties on the Union side and 28,000 on the Confederate side!  In addition at the end of the battle, the small town of Gettysburg was nearly in ruin with wounded and dying men from both sides being tended in virtually all the buildings and homes of the town. Many dead still lay on the battlefield with farmers and townspeople burying as many as they could. Over 3000 horses were killed in the battle and later were burned, with the great stench causing sickness to the townspeople.

Gettysburg train station where Lincoln arrived

4-1/2 months after the battle on November 19, 1863 President Abraham Lincoln took the train to Gettysburg to give a “few appropriate remarks” at the dedication of the Soldiers' National Cemetery, a 17 acre plot where 3500 Union soldiers were to be buried along with 3320 Confederate soldiers, who at the end of the Civil War 1-3/4 years later,were later moved to cemeteries in the South, primarily to Hollywood Cemetery in Richmond, VA.  The audience has been estimated at 15,000-20,000 people including a number of Gettysburg veterans. The principal speaker that day was Edward Everett, the noted orator from the state of Massachusetts, who gave a “well-received” two hour speech. It was  followed by President Lincoln's 272 word Gettysburg Address that lasted two minutes!  The President's speech was so short, Lincoln's audience was stunned and showed little reaction, leading Lincoln to think he had failed. But he had not!  Most schoolchildren learn Lincoln's Gettysburg Address while Everett's speech is virtually unknown.  Everett himself wrote to Lincoln the next day “I should be glad, if I could flatter myself, if I came as near to the central idea of the occasion, in two hours, as you did in two minutes.**  Lincoln's speech set the tone for the country to heal after the devastating Civil War.

The Gettysburg National Military Park is 5000 acres or approximately 9 square miles.  The historical battlefield was 11,500 acres so there are ongoing public and private efforts to acquire more of this sacred ground before encroaching development.  
There are 466 battle monuments and 367 tablets in the park to memorialize many of the units that fought for both the North and South. There were 631 cannon on the battlefield during the battle; a large number remain, placed along the 24 mile Auto Tour Route. Gettysburg was the 4^th Civil War Battlefield to become a National Park.

The largest Battlefield memorial is the incredible Pennsylvania state memorial 110 feet tall crowned by the Goddess of Victory and Peace.  Statues of 5 Pennsylvania Union Generals including Commanding General George G. Meade line the perimeter in addition to Pennsylvania wartime Governor Andrew Curtin and President Abraham Lincoln. 90 bronze tablets list all 34,500 Pennsylvania soldiers who served during the Civil War.

Our RV in front of Vermont Memorial

Following are several images we made on the Battlefield.  Most are impressive unit memorials but there are also shots of cannon, fences, farmhouses and barns. 

The hopeful Eternal Light Peace Memorial was dedicated by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1938 “To Peace Eternal in a United Nation” on the battle's 75^th Anniversary! 

Eternal Light Peace Memorial

Barns and Cannons

6th New York Cavalry Memorial with bronze battlefield scene

11th Pennsylvania Infantry Memorial and plaque of casualty numbers

Memorial to the Grand Army of the Republic                             11th Mississippi Infantry Regiment Memorial

Up on Seminary Ridge, the Lutheran Seminary was in session during the Gettysburg battle and many of its buildings have memorial tablets.  The Seminary's main building at that time, Schmucker Hall, was turned into a major field hospital during July through September 1863 treating over 600 Union and Confederate soldiers.  It is now the Seminary Ridge Museum of the Gettysburg battle. 

Seminary Church                                                  Schmucker Hall

 

Civil War era mansion on Seminary Campus

One of my favorite memorials is the North Carolina Memorial sculpted by Gutzon Borglum, the sculptor of Mount Rushmore National Memorial. Several tablets tell the story.  North Carolina had 125,000 men fighting for the Confederacy and 25% of them were killed during the War.

North Carolina Memorial and tablet

View of the battlefield towards town from North Carolina memorial

The Virginia Memorial honors its soldiers and the Confederacy's commanding general, General Robert E. Lee, astride his favorite horse, Traveler.  Lee watched Pickett's Charge near here

on July 3, 1863. 

Virginia to Her Sons at Gettysburg Memorial                                    Gen.Robt.E.Lee on Traveler

 

The Louisiana State Memorial is also moving with a dead soldier at its base and a soaring figure above symbolizing the “Spirit of the Confederacy.”

The Visitor Center Museum offers many exhibits of battlefield artifacts, an optional movie “A New Birth of Freedom” and the optional Cyclorama bringing to life with a light and sound show the 377 foot painting of Pickett's Charge.  Park Rangers conduct numerous free programs throughout the Park and you can even hire a Licensed Battlefield Guide to ride along with you through the Battlefield.

The 24 mile Auto Tour has 16 major stops but many more are possible,depending on your state origin and interests.  Lin's father's side of the family all come from North Carolina and Virginia (Confederate) while his mother's side were all from New York (Union) accounting for his interest in the Civil War.

Gettysburg is a fascinating place to visit but sad also from the brother killing brother aspect of our Civil War. The Battlefield today at sunset with its many open spaces, forests and rocky hills, farmhouses and barns is actually beautiful and peaceful, in contrast with the carnage that occurred here 152 years ago!

Our next blog will take you to Gettysburg's other national treasure, the Eisenhower National Historic Site, the farm and home of President and General Dwight D. Eisenhower and his wife Mamie. In addition, a short tour of the Lincoln Train Museum, also in Gettysburg, where President Lincoln, portrayed by skilled character actor, Jim Getty, takes you through U.S. history on Lincoln's funeral train back to Springfield, IL.

*Busey and Martin, Regimental Strengths and Losses at Gettysburg 2005

**National Park Service Gettysburg National Military Park visitor brochure