Gettysburg National Military Park
Gettysburg National Military Park
DESTINATIONS
Gettysburg, Pennsylvania "FOUR SCORE AND SEVEN YEARS ago our fathers brought forth on this continent a new nation conceived in liberty . . ." The words ring as powerfully today as they did on November 19, 1863, when President Abraham Lincoln delivered his historic Gettysburg Address. Visit the site of that famous speech, and of the tide-turning Civil War battle that preceded it, and you'll instantly be transformed into a history buff. Such is the appeal of the Gettysburg National Military Park and Cemetery.
It was at Gettysburg. July 1-3. 1 863, that the Army of the Poto mac. commanded by General George Meade, repelled the attacks of the Army of Northern Virginia under General Robert E. Lee in the bloodiest battle ever fought on these shores. When the smoke cleared, approximately 50,000 Americans were dead, wounded or missing.
Today, Gettysburg, located about 30 miles west of York in southcentral Pennsylvania, is a sleepy town with a thriving tourism business. A visiting motorcyclist following the auto tour—marked with signs pointing the w'ay over 1 8 miles of mostly tree-shaded lanes crisscrossing battlefields—can follow the flow of the savage, three-day battle that marked the beginning of the end for the Confederacy. Walking tours also are available.
For a glimpse of the events that shaped modern-day America, Gettysburg is not to be missed.
— Brian Catterson
Information Gettysburg National Military Park P.O. Box 1080 Gettysburg, PA 17325 717/334-1124 Visitor center open 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., battlefields open 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.
