Pennslyvania

GETTYSBURG
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Gettysburg: Pennslyvania
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Gettysburg, Pennsylvania

	Since Gettysburg is only about an hour and a half Northwest of Baltimore and D.C. (just over the Pennsylvania Border), and since we had missed it on our way down from Philadelphia, we decided to hit it as we left town. We had both been to Gettysburg when we were young (Ruthie in 8th Grade and Mike in 7th grade, both on school trips), but we did not remember very much about it.  Turns out, we’re really glad we made the effort to get there.  

Like many other national historical landmarks, Gettysburg is a National Historic Battlefield, run by the National Park Service.  Tours of the battlefield and the National Cemetery are offered by licensed guides (some are free, such as the 5pm tour of the cemetery, and some cost a nominal amount), as are short films at the visitor center, self-guided auto tours of the battlefield, and the electric map (which charts the course of the battle in different colored lights on a big map).  

	As many people know, Gettysburg was the “high water mark” for the Confederacy, and the turning point for the Union Army during the Civil War.   The battle took place over three days, from July 2 to July 4, 1863, in the tiny town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, as well as on the surrounding fields, hills and ridges.  On July 4 (interesting, eh?), 1863, the Union Army finally defeated Lee’s Confederate Army and pushed them back into Virginia.  Notwithstanding this victory, both sides paid dearly in terms of lives.  Approximately 10,000 soldiers perished in this battle, and nearly 40,000 were wounded, captured or missing.  Interestingly, only one known civilian, a Gettysburg resident, lost her life.

Following the battle, and the withdrawal of troops, thousands of men lay dead in the fields, or buried in makeshift graves (some apparently with hands and legs literally sticking out of the ground).  This sight prompted the then Governor of Pennsylvania,                      , who visited the battlefield a few weeks after its conclusion, to commission a proper burial for all the union soldiers who gave their lives in this battle.  He hired a local Gettysburg lawyer to oversee this task.  The lawyer commissioned an architect, and after some discussion, purchased the large area of land adjacent to the local cemetery, Cemetery Hill, which had served as one of the many battlefields during the war, and which was chosen, in part, to honor the soldiers where they had fallen.  

Soon after this project got under way, a number of other states in the Union contributed to the efforts, largely to ensure the proper burial for the soldiers from their states who had lost their lives in the battle.  For instance, New York, the state that lost the largest number of soldiers, contributed a large monument, among other things, which is located in the cemetery, marking the area where the soldiers from New York were buried.  Ultimately, Congress designated the cemetery a National Cemetery, and today, soldiers from a number of other American wars are buried there.  Meanwhile, after confederate troops withdrew, several confederate states made arrangements for proper burials of the near 5,000 confederate soldiers who lost their lives at Gettysburg.  Most of these soldiers are buried in Charleston, South Carolina, Raleigh, North Carolina, and Richmond, Virginia. 

It was at the official designation of the National Cemetery, in November 1863, that President Abe Lincoln had been invited, almost as a formality (it seems that no one thought a President would come to a dedication ceremony) to give a few choice remarks.  These remarks were to follow the keynote speech by Edward         , President of Harvard University, former Governor of Massachusetts, and a great orator of his time.  Edward           gave a great, but longwinded speech, that lasted about 2 hours, during which he tried to capture the Battle of Gettysburg, the spirit of those who had lost their lives during it, and the importance of that for which they had done so.  

After a short hymn following Edward             ‘s speech, a tired and war torn President Lincoln, playing second fiddle to the President of Harvard, got to his feet and gave his few, brief remarks, in an almost prayer like tone.  Approximately, 90 words and less than 2 minutes later, Lincoln had delivered his Gettysburg Address.  Apparently, the crowd was expecting something more, and greeted his words with a stunned silence.  Lincoln left the stage thinking it was a failure.  It was not until later, once people had a chance to digest the words, that their full import took hold.  Poor ol’ Honest Abe – he really didn’t catch much of a break while he was alive.  Although, as he walked off the stage, apparently Edward          told him that he “ [insert quote about capturing the spirit here in two minutes which I could not do in 2 hours].”  Obviously, the greatness of Lincoln’s words was ultimately recognized.  Later, Congress approved funds to erect a monument to the speech, a short distance from the site where Lincoln delivered his Gettysburg Address, on the grounds of the National Cemetery.  

Because it is always worth reading, we include the entire text of Gettysburg Address here:
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