The Gettysburg Story
GETTYSBURG. Just the name of this little farming town, located in South Central Pennsylvania, is enough to stir the emotions and set the imaginations of millions of people, around the world, to running wild. You see, Gettysburg is more than a town,it's the stuff that legends are made of. A quiet little farming town with a few Carriage Shops and a Shoe factory prior to July 1, 1863, is now the object of vast pilgrimages of Civil War History buffs because of what took place here 140 years ago.
The two vast armies met here quite by accident. Although there was a shoe factory here at that time, and the Confederate troops had desperate need for shoes, that is not why they were here. The "Great War Machine" as the Confederate Army was called, because they had been winning most all of the great battles prior to Gettysburg, had come in from the North while the Northern Army...the Union...came in from the South. The Confederates got here first. When they came into town they gave the local folks two choices...get out of town or get down into thier cellars and stay there. The locals, for the most part, had heard the rumors about how the "Rebs" would "rob & pillage a house once they got inside" and so decided to stay. For the next 72 hours these people were holed up, captives, in thier own cellars while outright battle raged in the streets and fields over thier heads. For 72 hours Cannon shot and cannister shells tore apart thier homes, minneballs shredded thier personal belongings and, when it was all over...they left.
What took place here over three hot days in July changed the lives of the people who lived here forever.Life would never again be the same. Children grew up literally overnight. Adults aged before your eyes. What those people witnessed was so intense that it was absorbed into the very earth upon which they stood. The blood of more than 51,000 men and boys, mostly boys, was also absorbed by that earth thus hallowing the soil of Gettysburg for all eternity. The average age of the fighting soldier here at Gettysburg was just 19 Years old. What a price those tens of thousands paid here. What a price the citizenry of this small town paid here. The total population, when everyone was here,( and everyone was not here) was only 2,400. Those 2,400 people were saddled with the humongous task of caring for the wounded, locating and burying the dead. Over 51,000 of them. They were also burdened with the horrendous odor of death. Try to immagine, if you can. It was summer. The fourth of July, 1863. It was unbearably hot. The odor was so intense the people had to dip thier handkerchiefs in Vanilla and Peppermint oil and cover thier faces just so they could breathe without gagging. The task was so formidable that months later, in November, when President Abraham Lincoln came to town to dedicate the Cemetery the local citizens were still engaged in the labor of finding and burying the dead. Such is the devastating reality of War.
Virtually every house that was here at the time of the Battle, that is still here today, is said to be haunted. According to "The Ghosts Of Gettysburg" Author, Mark Nesbitt, Gettysburg is, acre for acre, the most haunted place in America. Experts attribute that to the fact that thousands of young men, 15 - 17 - 19, have been tragically and traumatically ripped from life through the ravages we've come to know as The American Civil War. According to the experts, at the point of death the spirit has two options, it can "follow the light" or it can "stay behind to take care of any un-finished business". If it chooses to stay behind the spirit can become trapped in a never world in-between where it can face an eternity to take care of that unfinished business. Some can accomplish their task by simply appearing to a later generation of theirs others never get that opportunity. Folks say they can still see the spirits of those long gone wondering aimlessly about the streets and in the fields surrounding the town of Gettysburg, even to this very day. Oh, they don't mean you any harm. They're just "Taking care of business", that's all.
As Mark Nesbitt can readily tell you, there are many stories of the "Ghosts of Gettysburg". He, alone, has compiled five volumes of books on the subject and is working on a sixth. The great popularity of the subject here is given testimony by the growing number of Ghost Walks that are available here at Gettysburg. The "Old Timer", in our Dinner Theater Program, relates a number of Ghost Stories in his Talk with the folks and he discusses the topic of what it must have been like to have been a citizen of the town in July of 1863 and shortly thereafter. The Medium in our seance relates a Ghost Story or two during his presentation, as well.
Gettysburg not only played a crucial role in the Great American Civil War, as a turning point in the struggle, but it also left an indelible mark on the hearts and souls of those who lived here. Though the horrible stench of death no longer lingers here the vivid memories of what took place here during those three days in July come alive again and again with the annual re-enactment of the Battle of Gettysburg as thousands of men and boys re-create the horriffic story "LIVE" in front of thousands of spectators on these very grounds. This year, 2003, we mark the 140th Anniversary of that event and another which took place in November, 1863 in which the Speaker felt folks "would little note, nor long remember" . I think he misscalled that one a bit, don't you? Mr. Lincoln, folks did take note and will never forget the events that took place here in Historic Gettysburg, Pa.
The two vast armies met here quite by accident. Although there was a shoe factory here at that time, and the Confederate troops had desperate need for shoes, that is not why they were here. The "Great War Machine" as the Confederate Army was called, because they had been winning most all of the great battles prior to Gettysburg, had come in from the North while the Northern Army...the Union...came in from the South. The Confederates got here first. When they came into town they gave the local folks two choices...get out of town or get down into thier cellars and stay there. The locals, for the most part, had heard the rumors about how the "Rebs" would "rob & pillage a house once they got inside" and so decided to stay. For the next 72 hours these people were holed up, captives, in thier own cellars while outright battle raged in the streets and fields over thier heads. For 72 hours Cannon shot and cannister shells tore apart thier homes, minneballs shredded thier personal belongings and, when it was all over...they left.
What took place here over three hot days in July changed the lives of the people who lived here forever.Life would never again be the same. Children grew up literally overnight. Adults aged before your eyes. What those people witnessed was so intense that it was absorbed into the very earth upon which they stood. The blood of more than 51,000 men and boys, mostly boys, was also absorbed by that earth thus hallowing the soil of Gettysburg for all eternity. The average age of the fighting soldier here at Gettysburg was just 19 Years old. What a price those tens of thousands paid here. What a price the citizenry of this small town paid here. The total population, when everyone was here,( and everyone was not here) was only 2,400. Those 2,400 people were saddled with the humongous task of caring for the wounded, locating and burying the dead. Over 51,000 of them. They were also burdened with the horrendous odor of death. Try to immagine, if you can. It was summer. The fourth of July, 1863. It was unbearably hot. The odor was so intense the people had to dip thier handkerchiefs in Vanilla and Peppermint oil and cover thier faces just so they could breathe without gagging. The task was so formidable that months later, in November, when President Abraham Lincoln came to town to dedicate the Cemetery the local citizens were still engaged in the labor of finding and burying the dead. Such is the devastating reality of War.
Virtually every house that was here at the time of the Battle, that is still here today, is said to be haunted. According to "The Ghosts Of Gettysburg" Author, Mark Nesbitt, Gettysburg is, acre for acre, the most haunted place in America. Experts attribute that to the fact that thousands of young men, 15 - 17 - 19, have been tragically and traumatically ripped from life through the ravages we've come to know as The American Civil War. According to the experts, at the point of death the spirit has two options, it can "follow the light" or it can "stay behind to take care of any un-finished business". If it chooses to stay behind the spirit can become trapped in a never world in-between where it can face an eternity to take care of that unfinished business. Some can accomplish their task by simply appearing to a later generation of theirs others never get that opportunity. Folks say they can still see the spirits of those long gone wondering aimlessly about the streets and in the fields surrounding the town of Gettysburg, even to this very day. Oh, they don't mean you any harm. They're just "Taking care of business", that's all.
As Mark Nesbitt can readily tell you, there are many stories of the "Ghosts of Gettysburg". He, alone, has compiled five volumes of books on the subject and is working on a sixth. The great popularity of the subject here is given testimony by the growing number of Ghost Walks that are available here at Gettysburg. The "Old Timer", in our Dinner Theater Program, relates a number of Ghost Stories in his Talk with the folks and he discusses the topic of what it must have been like to have been a citizen of the town in July of 1863 and shortly thereafter. The Medium in our seance relates a Ghost Story or two during his presentation, as well.
Gettysburg not only played a crucial role in the Great American Civil War, as a turning point in the struggle, but it also left an indelible mark on the hearts and souls of those who lived here. Though the horrible stench of death no longer lingers here the vivid memories of what took place here during those three days in July come alive again and again with the annual re-enactment of the Battle of Gettysburg as thousands of men and boys re-create the horriffic story "LIVE" in front of thousands of spectators on these very grounds. This year, 2003, we mark the 140th Anniversary of that event and another which took place in November, 1863 in which the Speaker felt folks "would little note, nor long remember" . I think he misscalled that one a bit, don't you? Mr. Lincoln, folks did take note and will never forget the events that took place here in Historic Gettysburg, Pa.
Looking toward Little Round Top from The Valley of Death