GREATEST BATTLE OF THE CIVIL WAR

After a three hour drive through some beautiful Pennsylvania countryside, we arrived at Gettysburg to see and learn more about the Civil War.

This was our first stop as we drove into town to get information and a map.



At the Visitor Center, Lincoln was taking a break under the shade of a tree.  Looks like he has his famous speech in hand.

We arrived just in time to purchase our tickets which started our tour off by viewing the Cyclorama.  This is in a round room on the second floor.

The "Battle of Gettysburg" was painted over 100 years ago by Paul Phillippoteaux with the help of l6 others.  Scenes like this are continuous around the room.  While standing in the middle of the room, you are free to move about to get a better view of the scene that is in the spot light with sound effects of the soldiers while cannons are blasting and muskets firing away.  You feel like you are there!!  It is beautifully done!!  It depicts the death and destruction of the Civil War in the area known as "The Valley of Death".  The original painting took two years to complete and the canvas weighed about 6 tons.

Next was our bus tour of the battlefield.

The red brick building was the home of David Wills, an attorney, where Lincoln was invited to spend the night before his famous speech.

 This is Soldiers National Cemetery.  Somewhere in the background by the monument is where Lincoln gave his Gettysburg Address on November l9, l983. 

This is a statue you can see at the North Carolina monument at Little Round Top.  Borgland, who is the sculptor responsible for Mount Rushmore, did this one also.  I only captured faces which were sculpted after real soldiers.

At Little Round Top, you are looking down on an area known as The Valley of Death.  Devils Den is on the left side where all the boulders are located.  The Confederates were in those rocks.  This field was left with 4000 dead and wounded.  Total casualties (killed, wounded, captured, and missing) for the three days of fighting were 23,000 for the Union army and as many as 28,000 for the Confederate army.  The houses you see were there when the war was going on.  Can you imagine a war going on in your backyard!!!

This is the Eternal Light Peace Memorial dedicated to ALL the soldiers.  1800 Civil War veterans helped dedicate this memorial to "Peace Eternal in a Nation United".

After all this we had the museum left to do.  We were tired and hungry by then.  We hurriedly went through it but didn't do it justice.  You just can not do it all in one day.

We want to give THANKS to all our servicemen and women who do their jobs keeping us safe.

Where will the road take us next......hmmmm.