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Gettysburg National Military Park, Pennsylvania

NPCA REGION: Mid-Atlantic Regional Office

Acreage: 5,990.39

Category: National Military Park

Date Established: 02/11/1895

More Info: http://www.nps.gov/gett

In the summer of 1863, the farming community of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, became the site of the bloodiest battle in the Civil War. The fierce fighting left 51,000 casualties in its wake, turning farm fields into graveyards and churches into hospitals. The battlefield's first visitors were thousands of relatives searching for dead and wounded soldiers.

The preservation of the battlefield and the establishment of Gettysburg National Cemetery are a testament to the resolve of Gettysburg residents to not only rebuild their town but also to honor the fallen. Today, visitors who come to learn more about the battle can tour the battlefield and see more than 1,400 monuments and markers, or choose to walk with a ranger through Gettysburg National Cemetery.

Over the years, Gettysburg has continued to be a treasured and popular destination. As a result, the park has faced continuous threats from commercial development. At the end of the 19th century, developers built railroads and tourist facilities at the edge of sacred battlefield lands, but many of these inholdings were eventually sold to the government and removed.

NPS is currently engaged in an ambitious program to restore the battlefield grounds to the way they looked in 1863. This will allow visitors to understand how small features of the landscape, such as fences and orchards, played a large role in both the battle's outcome and the life and death of individual soldiers.

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Comments

Some sad news from Gettysburg today--one of the "witness trees" (a tree that was there during the battle) was damaged by a storm and will probably be cut down. The tree is a honey locust tree that has stood as a silent sentinel on Cemetery Hill as a witness to the battle and also Lincoln's famous speech (it is located only 150 feet from where he spoke). Each time one of these trees is lost, we lose another connection to the past.

Submitted by TraceyM at: August 11, 2008

Gettysburg has a new visitors center! I had a sneak peak in April 2007 and it is a HUGE improvement. The new visitors center offers more space, improved facilities, a vastly improved museum, and a new home for the fully restored Cyclorama. The new location was selected because no part of the battle was fought here, so it is not hollowed ground. It is also on a low spot, which means it is not visible from the main battlefield. And it is environmentally friendly building with a Silver LEEDS rating. A good thing since over two million visitors a year are expected. Even if you have been to the park, it is well worth a repeat visit. (The visitors center is now open, but note that the Cyclorama is not open to the public until the grand opening, set for September 26th, 2008.)

Submitted by Felicia at NPCA at: May 6, 2008