Postcard from Gettysburg - On Hallowed Ground

It was a Memorial Day weekend a few years ago, and I found myself in Gettysburg, PA, the location of the most famous battle of the American Civil War. I spent two days here after spending the previous day at Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville, VA, a few hours south of here.

This is significant because in a 6 month period of time in 1863, three very significant battles with different outcomes took place at these three locations.

In the two Virginia battles, Robert E Lee's forces, vastly outnumbered, inflicted two serious losses on the Army of the Potomac that gave the Confederacy a strong air of invincibility. Partially because of this, Lee convinced the Confederate President to let him invade the north to take the war out of Virginia.

In July of 1863, over a three day period, a terrible and massive battle took place here in Gettysburg. It may have been the arrogance of the Confederate troops and their leadership that helped bring about their eventual defeat here in what was the first really major victory for the Union Army in the Eastern war. It was definitely the turning point. In the first two days of battle, the South nearly overcame the North, but just couldn't quite pull it off. On the third and final day of the battle, Lee gambled everything on a charge across open fields in the center of the Union lines and lost over 15,000 men. He was forced to retreat back to Virginia.

The battle at Gettysburg had over 55,000 casualties on both sides. Today, it is hallowed ground and when you walk the hills and fields of Gettysburg, you can feel the emotions of this place. I was up early one morning and walked the ground where Lee's troops waited to make their final charge on that third day. There was a morning ground fog, giving the place a very eerie feeling. I could almost feel the ghosts of rebel troops all around me.

Later, standing at the stone wall on the other side of that field, I could envision what the Union troops saw when they looked across the field to see thousands of Confederate troops marching toward them. I was reminded that some years after the war, surviving Union and Confederate troops staged a reenactment of Picket's Charge, without weapons, of course. As the Confederate troops approached this wall, the Union troops, overcome with emotion, jumped over the wall to embrace their Southern brothers. It had suddenly hit them what what a slaughter they had brought about that terrible day.

Today, the legacy of the Civil War is carried on by re-enactors. They wear authentic uniforms and carry weapons of the period. When they put on their clothes, they become troops or officers of that era and stay in character the entire time. This photograph shows a group of Union re-enactors who camped for three days near Union Army headquarter. They would put on demonstrations during the day including inspections, marching and firing of weapons. I used a sepia tone to give a greater air of authenticity.