Lee's Retreat      (NEW)

    One of the often overlooked and less studied phases of the Gettysburg Campaign has been the Confederate Army's retreat to Virginia after the 3-day battle and the ensuing pursuit by the Union Army.  Fortunately, that began to change after the publishing in April of 2005 of Kent Masterson Brown's comprehensive and distinguished book, "Retreat from Gettysburg: Lee, Logistics, and the Pennsylvania Campaign" (see my "Books Worth Reading" page).

    I am pleased to report that another excellent book on this topic has recently been published and is entitled "One Continuous Fight: The Retreat from Gettysburg and the Pursuit of Lee's Army of Northern Virginia, July 4-14, 1863."  Written by Eric J. Wittenberg, J. David Petruzzi, and Michael F. Nugent, the book is, in my opinion, a "must read" and will be a classic along the lines of Kent Masterson Brown's work.

    In addition, personalized tours covering the retreat and pursuit can also be arranged.  For more information on this new book and the tours, go to http://www.gettysburgretreat.com .

    Also, there is now a specific website dealing with one of the larger military actions that occurred during the retreat and pursuit, the Battle of Monterey Pass.  Created by Emmitsburg area Civil War historian John H. Miller, this new and highly informative website is definitely worth a visit and can be found at http://www.emmitsburg.net/montereypass .  

 

The civilian experience 

    During the time of the battle, Gettysburg was a town of roughly 2,400 people, many of whom suffered innumerable and extreme hardships even long after the last soldier departed.  Within recent years, public interest has increased in learning about the "civilian experience" with the publication of books like "Days of Uncertainty and Dread: The Ordeal Endured by the Citizens at Gettysburg" and "Days of Darkness: the Gettysburg Civilians" (see my "Books Worth Reading" page).  In addition, the number of tour programs devoted to this particular aspect of the battle have also grown.  According to the Gettysburg Convention and Visitors Bureau webpage http://www.gettysburg.travel/visitor_tours.asp , there are now at least five tours or museums devoted entirely or largely to the civilian population during the 1860's.

    For instance, there is a 90-minute long, self-guided walking tour sponsored jointly by the Gettysburg Convention and Visitors Bureau and Main Street Gettysburg: 

     Free copies of the brochure are available from the Gettysburg Convention and Visitors Bureau Information Center located at 104 Carlisle Street, or they can be mailed to you upon request.  For more information about the tour or to request copies of the brochure, call 1-800-337-5015 or you can visit the webpage at http://www.gettysburg.travel/visitor_member_detail.asp?contact_id=106&list=Tours .

    There is also a 90-minute guided walking tour available through Main Street Gettysburg that begins at the Gettysburg Hotel, which is located on the northwest corner of the square.  Evening tours are also available, but reservations are required.  For more information about the tour, call (717) 339-6161 or visit the webpage at http://gettysburgpa.org/guidedtour.htm .

The African American experience

    Most Gettysburg buffs know or learn about Abraham Brian (some accounts and records have it spelled as Bryan or Brien), a free black man whose 12-acre farmstead on Cemetery Ridge was severely damaged during Pickett's Charge on July 3.  However, I would bet that very few people know about, let alone visit, Lincoln Cemetery, the small cemetery established in 1867 where he and approximately thirty veterans of the United Stated Colored Troops from the Civil War are buried.  I visited Gettysburg during last year's "Remembrance Week" and was fortunate to be there for the annual ceremonies: 

    Lincoln Cemetery, located along Lincoln Lane and Long Lane, is only a few blocks southwest of the square.  There was a nice webpage (http://www.civilwaralbum.com/misc5/lincoln_cemetery1.htm) with photographs, but it appears to have been temporarily removed.

    Including Abraham Brian, there were approximately 185 blacks who resided in Gettysburg and the surrounding area as listed in the 1860 census.  Many were former slaves who had escaped to the North through the Underground Railroad, and some of them (some reports indicate as many as 50) were captured by Confederate troops and taken back to Virginia.  Many blacks did flee to other towns and cities, including Harrisburg and Philadelphia, but some were unable to do so for one reason or the other, especially those who were physically unable to do so.  To read more about the African American community in Gettysburg and Adams County and many individual experiences during this time period, I can heartily recommend a superb study by Peter C. Vermilyea, a history teacher and also a graduate of Gettysburg College, at http://www.gdg.org/Gettysburg%20Magazine/gburgafrican.html .  There is also a book available (which I have not yet read) that came out in 2005 and which is entitled "African Americans and the Gettysburg Campaign", written by James M. Paradis and published by Scarecrow Press.

    There is now an Underground Railroad tour of Adams County which lasts roughly 3 hours, and proceeds from the tours are donated to historic preservation.  For more information on this relatively new tour, go to either http://www.gettysburghistories.com or http://www.freedomliesnorth.org , or call (717) 528-8553.  

    Oh, I almost forgot to mention at least one newspaper account (the New York Herald on July 11, 1863) reported that seven fully armed black soldiers were among the thousands of Confederates who were captured at Gettysburg.  Interesting, wouldn't you say ? 

Ghosts

    Beginning in 1991, when former Park Ranger Mark Nesbitt published his first book about ghost stories and haunted places of Gettysburg and the battlefield, there has been a dramatic increase in public interest and fascination about this "spooky" topic.  In fact, Mr. Nesbitt has written a series of six books on this subject and has operated the "The Ghosts of Gettysburg Candlelight Walking Tours" since 1994, which was the first such walking tour in Gettysburg --- today, I think there are no less than ten such "walking tours" in operation !!!  I have met Mr. Nesbitt, who claims to be a true skeptic, and have read all six of his books, which are well written, thought provoking and entertaining all at the same time.  I have also taken one of his tours, so if ghosts are your thing, you may want to visit his website at http://www.ghostsofgettysburg.com . 

    For a partial list of other ghost tours, go to http://www.gettysburg.travel/visitor_tours.asp ; for a brief but interesting overview on the entire subject of ghosts on the battlefield and surrounding area, visit the webpage at http://www.pocketglass.com/travel-vacation/article6116.htm . 

The new visitor center

    The new official visitor center, which is a joint public-private partnership between the National Park Service and the Gettysburg Foundation, opened on April 14, 2008:                                 

Located near Hunt Avenue between the Baltimore Pike and the Taneytown Road, and a relatively short distance southeast of the current visitor center located on Cemetery Hill, the facility will be the new home of the famous "Cyclorama" painting depicting Pickett's Charge by the French artist Paul Philippoteaux.  The painting is still undergoing extensive restoration, but will tentatively be once again open to the public in September of 2008.  The current visitor center and the Cyclorama building are scheduled for demolition by 2010 as a part of the ongoing effort by the National Park Service to restore the battlefield as much as possible to its 1863 appearance.  To learn more about the new visitor center and museum and the restoration of the "Cyclorama" painting, visit the website which is located at http://www.gettysburgfoundation.org .  The website of the new visitor center and museum is located at http://www.ahl-gettysburg.com .