May 19th, 2021 … Summer of Fun continues!

Today was our “free day” in Gettysburg and some of us decided to visit the Gettysburg National Military Park Museum & Visitor Center. After we purchased our tickets to the film and cyclorama, we had time to browse the Gettysburg Museum of the American Civil War.

The Gettysburg Museum of the American Civil War, features items from one of the largest collections of Civil War relics in the world. It boasts 22,000 square feet of exhibit space, the museum features relics of the Battle of Gettysburg and personalities who served in the Civil War. Shackles, swords, bullet-pierced furniture, rare artifacts and interactive stories, journey back through the events and issues surrounding the Civil War and the Battle of Gettysburg. Inter-active exhibits, and multi-media presentations that cover the conflict from beginning to end as well as describe the Battle of Gettysburg and its terrible aftermath.

The film, called “A New Birth of Freedom,” is played inside two theaters to allow time for cleaning between showings. The scene depicts pictures of three soldiers who fought in the battle. The 20-minute film is narrated by award winning actor Morgan Freeman. The film helped orient us to the battle and Gettysburg's place in the American Civil War.

After the film, we headed up the escalator to the Cyclorama painting wraps around the room with a diorama is at its base. Before feature films. Before IMAX. Before virtual reality. There was the cyclorama. The cyclorama comes alive and allows you to sense Pickett’s Charge all around you in the light and sound show of the iconic Gettysburg Cyclorama.

The must-see entertainment of the 1880s, cycloramas were the blockbuster movies of their time. Often depicting epic battles or historical places, the enormous, paintings-in-the-round transported viewers into the middle of the fray; surrounding them with a 360-degree, hand-painted canvases.

French artist Paul Philippoteaux took brush to canvas and created the Battle of Gettysburg Cyclorama painting. He spent months on the battlefield researching the battle with veterans, a battlefield guide and a photographer. It took Philippoteaux and a team of assistants more than a year to complete the painting.

The result is a breathtaking canvas that measures 377 feet in circumference and 42 feet high. Longer than a football field and as tall as a four-story structure, the Gettysburg Cyclorama oil painting, along with light and sound effects, immerses you in the fury of Pickett’s Charge during the third day of the Battle of Gettysburg.

The painting survived years of exhibition, multiple moves, vandalism, fire, cuts and neglect before finding a home in Gettysburg in 1913. Purchased by the National Park Service in 1942, the painting underwent multiple restoration efforts–including a multimillion-dollar restoration from 2004-08–and now hangs as the centerpiece of the cyclorama building at the Museum & Visitor Center. With its landscaped foreground and dramatic sound and lighting effects, the Battle of Gettysburg still creates the three-dimensional illusion of being in the midst of the battle. And nearly 140 years later, it still is a must see, part of your visit to Gettysburg.

After the show is over, take time to appreciate the art. The Battle of Gettysburg painting is the largest oil-on-canvas painting in North America and is among the last cyclorama paintings in existence.

We enjoyed a group dinner at the Farnworth House. It was named in honor of Brigadier General Elon John Farnsworth, who led an ill-fated charge after the failure of Pickett's charge, claiming the lives of Farnsworth and 65 of his men.

The original part of the house was built in 1810, followed by the brick structure in 1833. The house sheltered Confederate sharpshooters during the three-day conflict. 

One of whom it is believed to have accidentally shot 20 year-old Mary Virginia "Jennie"  Wade, the only civilian who died during the battle. More than 100 bullet holes pock the walls. Following the battle, the house served as a hospital.

The Lincoln procession passed the Farnsworth House on November 19, 1863, on the way to the National Cemetery where he delivered the famous Gettysburg Address. 

Harvey Sweney, the owner of the house during the battle, composed a letter to his brother, penning the most insightful and powerful account ever written on the subject.

The Farnsworth House is the only Civil War period dining experience in Gettysburg. Period fare served by period dressed servers in historic inn with over 100 bullet holes in exterior south wall. Some specialties include apple bourbon pork chops, spoon bread and pumpkin fritters.

The Farnsworth house opened just to serve our group. While we ate, we enjoyed the company of our fellow caravanners! 

After dinner we were transported back in time with the conversation of a Union soldier from the period and all of his insight about the ravages of war.

After dinner, a few of us headed back into town for a Ghost Walk Tour. Gettysburg is one of the most haunted locations in the United States, plagued by almost 150 years of intense paranormal activity. The hauntings in Gettysburg are the stuff of legends and widely known throughout the rest of the country. This little town was the site of the bloodiest and arguably most important battle in the Civil War, which turned the tide in favor of Union forces. 

However, both sides of the battle took enormous losses, and it’s estimated that anywhere between 46,000 and 51,000 men were wounded, killed or went missing during the three-day battle. The Battle of Gettysburg was one of the most gruesome chapters in United States history, and there’s no doubt that the little town that was used as a staging grounds for such bloodshed has been irrevocably marked by darkness.

Our first stop was the two witness trees in the park, where we met our tour guide. What is a Witness Tree? It is a tree that is old enough to have “witnessed” the Battle of Gettysburg, July 1-3, 1863. The Sycamore that stands is near “Unity Park,” a small memorial space on Lefever Street. The tree is marked with a plaque at its base.

The Jennie Wade House occupies a unique place in Gettysburg’s history. Jennie Wade was a 20-year-old seamstress living in Gettysburg around the time of the battle. Her sister had given birth just a few days before the fighting broke out, and Jennie came to stay at her sister’s house—both because it was considered to be on the safer end of town, away from the fighting, and to help take care of the newborn baby. Historical records tell us that on the morning of July 2, 1863, Jennie was downstairs making bread for the family when a stray Confederate bullet came through two separate doors and hit her in the back, piercing her heart and killing her. Her family wrapped her body in a quilt and carried her to the basement of the home where she lay until the fighting ceased. Jennie was the only civilian to die in the entirety of the Battle of Gettysburg. Her family buried her temporarily in the front yard of the house before moving her to a cemetery almost half a year later, and then to another cemetery some years after that. The sudden, violent manner of her death and the multiple disturbances to her grave are believed to have contributed to the hauntings at the Jennie Wade House, and many visitors to the site have reported being pushed, scratched, and pinched by an unseen force.

The Farnsworth House Inn is a historic building that played a key role in the battle of Gettysburg. On the third day of the battle, Union soldiers stormed the house and killed many of the Confederate snipers who had been posted in the attack to pick off soldiers on the nearby Cemetery Hill. The confrontation led to the deaths of many of the snipers stationed inside the house. 

As you might expect, many of these soldiers were young men who were not even close to being ready to meet their end making them ideal candidates for lingering spirits. It is no surprise then that many of the apparitions reported here are believed to be soldiers. One of the most common paranormal events that has been reported at The Farnsworth House Inn is that when the property is quiet and the attic is empty, the sound of a Jew’s harp concert filters down from the attic believed to be played by the spirit of a young soldier who refuses to abandon his post even so many years after his death.

Matilda J. “Tillie” Pierce was born in 1848 in Gettysburg. She was 15 years old when the Battle of Gettysburg was fought in July of 1863. She watched the Union army march through town, and at the urging of her family, Tillie and some friends left the town and went to what they thought would be a safe farmhouse. Jacob Weikert’s farmhouse was located at the base of Little Round Top. During the battle, Tillie provided water and food to the soldiers and assisted the surgeons and nurses caring for the wounded. On July 7, 1863, she went back to her home. She said, “The whole landscape had been changed and I felt as though we were in a strange and blighted land.” 

She continued to help care for the wounded after the battle. Twenty-five years later, she wrote a book about her experiences during that time. “At Gettysburg, Or What A Girl Saw And Heard Of The Battle.” The Tillie Pierce House Inn is named for the famous young lady who lived here during the battle. Built in 1829, though the Tillie Pierce House Inn joins the best of both the antebellum past and modern convenience.  Guests at Tillie Pierce House Inn frequently tell stories of waking up in their room after feeling a figure sitting on the edge of their bed staring at them. Others tell of hearing strange noises and footsteps from an otherwise empty attic while the apparition of soldiers have been seen wandering the halls.

We found a house with a cannon ball still in the wall. Of course, when it hit the house it did more damage than just lodging in the wall. But the homeowner, saved the dud and put it into the bricks, when he had the damage fixed.

The walk was just as much history as it was ghost. But, we enjoyed it just the same!

#TwoLaneAdventures