Sept 30, Gettysburg

September 30

The four years of the Civil War were the bloodiest in the nation's history.  Some 620,000 soldiers and sailors died in the war--a little less than 2 percent of the population.  A loss on the same scale today would equal 6 million deaths.  Roughly 11,000 men died at the Battle of Gettysburg alone, and another 40,000 were wounded, captured or missing.  We walked the battlefield with a tour guide and
listened to him while he brought the battle to life.

Americans fought one another over three fundamental issues: the survival of the Union, the fate of slavery, and the common rights of citizenship---what it means to be an American.  The war resolved the first two issues.  The nation struggles with the third to this day.



 

34-Star United States Flag, 1861 battle flag
The 34 stars on this flag included the 11 states of the Confederacy.  The U S government never recognized
the right of the Southerns states to leave the Union, and their stars remained on the American flag throughout the war.

 

We viewed the amazing Cyclorama of  The Battle of Gettysburg by Paul Phillippoteaux which was painted in the late 1800s.
It measures roughly 377 by 42 feet--longer than a football field and as tall as a four-story building.  In an era before motion pictures or television, cycloramas brought images to life for audiences around the world.  The vast circular paintings put viewers in the middle a battle or a natural disaster.  Lighting effects on the canvas and a narrated script gave the illusion of movement.   Rocks, weapons, and other objects in front of the painting brought a sense of depth. What a masterpiece!!!

 

 

 

North Carolina Memorial sculpted by the same artist that did Mt. Rushmore.

Thirty two North Carolina Regiments were in action at Gettysburg, July 1, 2, 3, 1863. One

Confederate soldier in every four who fell here was a North Carolinian.

 

 

New York Memorial

 

 

Texas Memorial

 

 

Irish Memorial

 

 

 

Soldiers battling by slinging their guns.

 

 

Atop Little Round Top Hill

 

 

Devil's Den

 

 

 

 

Pennsylvania Memorial

 

 

Following a two-hour artillery bombardment, Lee sends some 12,000 Confederate infantry to

to try to break the Federal lines on Cemetery Ridge.  Despite a courageous effort, the attach, subsequently called "Pickett;s Charge" is repulsed with heavy losses. He lost more than 6,000 soldiers on this ridge.  Crippled by extremely

heavy casualties, Lee can no longer continue the battle.  On July 4, he begins to withdraw for Virginia.

This was the turning point of the war, a huge victory for President Lincoln's Union.