Pending Legislation Would Protect Hallowed Ground at Gettysburg, Petersburg, and Vicksburg
Gettysburg | Petersburg | Vicksburg
Gettysburg National Military Park
HR 1335; S. 1897
Preserve the Legacy of Abraham Lincoln
Steven Spielberg’s Lincoln effectively captures the greatness of our 16th president. You can help honor his legacy by helping protect the places connected to him. The Lincoln Train Station, located in downtown Gettysburg, is where Lincoln arrived the night before delivering his most famous speech: the Gettysburg Address. Now, the Gettysburg Foundation and the Borough of Gettysburg are hoping to donate this beautifully-restored building to the Gettysburg National Military Park. Please ask your congressional representatives to pass S. 1897 and H.R. 1335, legislation that would permit the donation of the Lincoln Train Station to Gettysburg National Military Park.
Fought over three days in July of 1863, the Battle of Gettysburg resulted in the largest number of casualties of any battle in the entire Civil War. The battle was the result of a Confederate push into Union-controlled Pennsylvania, but the Confederates were defeated and their plan of bringing the war to the doorsteps of the Union was abandoned. Considered a “turning point” in the Civil War, the Battle of Gettysburg resulted in more than 50,000 casualties.
H.R. 1335, introduced by U.S. Representative Todd Platts (PA-19) would expand the boundary of Gettysburg National Military Park in Pennsylvania to include two tracts of historic land—the Gettysburg Train Station, and 45 acres along Plum Run at the eastern base of Big Round Top. The Gettysburg Train Station served as a field hospital during the Battle of Gettysburg, transporting 15,000 wounded soldiers after the battle. On November 18, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln arrived here by train to deliver the Gettysburg Address.
The Lincoln Train Station and Plum Run are set to be donated to the Park Service by the Gettysburg Foundation. The Train Station will be operated in a partnership between the NPS and the Borough of Gettysburg, and act as a downtown visitor orientation center for Gettysburg NMP. As the 150th anniversary of the Gettysburg Address approaches, let's seize this opportunity to permanently protect the Lincoln Train Station!
For more information about the National Parks Conservation Association’s advocacy to protect these and other Civil War sites, please contact:
- Pamela Goddard, Chesapeake and Virginia Program Manager, 202.604.3781, or email: pgoddard@npca.org
- Emily Jones, Senior Program Manager, 865.335.4666, or email: ejones@npca.org
- Alan Spears, Legislative Representative, 202.454.3384, or email: aspears@npca.org
- Cinda Waldbuesser, Senior Pennsylvania Program Manager, 215.327.2529, or email: cwaldbuesser@npca.org
- Nicholas Lund, Civil War Associate, 202.454.3319, or email: nlund@npca.org
Gettysburg | Petersburg | Vicksburg
Learn more about Civil War resources at National Parks.
