Volume_29_Issue_2

20 Volume 29, Issue 2 Preservation & Progress F riends of G ettysburg U pcoming P rograms F OR MORE INFORMATION AND TO REGISTER FOR UPCOMING F RIENDS OF G ETTYSBURG EVENTS , VISI T WWW . GETTYSBURGFOUNDATION . ORG OR CALL 717.339.2148. July 14: Encounters with History – The Fight on the First Day at the THREE Railroad Cuts with Licensed Battlefield Guide Guillermo Bosch PLEASE CHOOSE FROM EITHER THE MORNING OR AFTERNOON SESSION. This is a half-day outdoor program. The program will take place from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. OR 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. and includes a moderate walking program and bus tour. Most students and casual learners of the battle of Gettysburg are aware of the railroad cut over McPherson’s Ridge, and the struggle between Union and Confederate forces around it on the morning of the first day of battle. But were you aware that there are actually THREE cuts on the then-unfinished railroad west of town and that all three cuts saw fighting around and over them during the first day? Please join us for a tour of the THREE cuts and description of the fighting around them during July 1st, 1863. We will walk over some rough grassy ground for approximately 1½ miles overall, with some slight hills; please wear appropriate clothing and shoes. August 18: Encounters with History – “Someday it will just stop, and I will be on the other shore.”: O.O. Howard and Gettysburg with Licensed Battlefield Guide Chuck Burkell PLEASE CHOOSE FROM EITHER THE MORNING OR AFTERNOON SESSION. This is a half-day outdoor program. The program will take place from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. OR 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. and includes an easy walking program and bus tour. Many historians argue that the Army of the Potomac’s victory at Gettysburg is at least partially attributed to Major General and XI Corps Commander Otis Oliver Howard. Others find him, and his life of service, to be that of incompetence. Howard’s early life, his army experiences of over four decades, and roles within reconstruction will be discussed with a special focus on Howard’s post war perspectives of the battle and his return visits to Gettysburg. This session will offer an examination of a complicated man to more fully understand his life, the era, and applications to the present. September 22: Encounters with History – The Rebel Attack that Almost Broke the Back of the Union Army with National Park Service Ranger Chuck Teague This is a full-day indoor and outdoor program. A lecture will be held from 9:00 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. in the Ford Education Center in the Gettysburg National Military Park Museum and Visitor Center, followed by a moderate to strenuous walking tour of 2–3 miles over some uneven ground from 10:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. A boxed lunch will be provided on the field. Southern accounts spoke of the July 2nd action by the Georgians of Wright’s Brigade as very successful, carrying the Federal position, driving the enemy from their entrenchments, gaining the very crest of Cemetery Ridge. Federal accounts, however, are mixed, some claiming the assault was of no account or easily thwarted. Yet other Northern perspectives describe the Rebels as overwhelming them, piercing the Federal line, well-nigh cutting the Army of the Potomac in two. What really did happen? This program will consider dozens of first-person accounts, various early histories and maps, and a close examination of the terrain in an effort to sort out the truth. October 27: Encounters with History - The Midnight Fight at Monterey Pass with Licensed Battlefield Guide Chris Army This is a full-day indoor and outdoor program. A lecture will be held from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. in the Ford Education Center in the Gettysburg National Military Park Museum and Visitor Center, followed by an hour lunch on your own and then a bus trip to see some of the sites associated with the Confederate Retreat route. Once the fighting ended on July 3rd, 1863, George Meade and the Union Army went from a defensive position to a maneuver of pursuit in an attempt to catch Lee’s Confederates before they could cross back over the Potomac River. This program will examine the logistics, decisions and battle actions of the pursuit. Moderate walking at some of the sites.