"All knew that this interest was, somehow, the cause of the war." Abraham Lincoln, 2nd Inaugural Address, Concerning Slavery

We took our last field trip on Friday. Early Friday morning, we all loaded the bus one final time, and headed off for a day in Washington, D.C. It was a busy day, but one full of memories we will never forget.

Our first stop was at Arlington House at Arlington National Cemetery. As we topped the heights on which the house sits we began to understand Mary Custis Lee’s obsessive mourning for her childhood home; the view was breathtaking, a panoramic view of the Potomac River, a light mist curling around the banks, with the buzzing city on the other side the Capitol building just visible on the horizon was enough to bring us all to a complete standstill. We also toured the house itself where we were given a lesson in the trials of preservation and interpretation as we witnessed the reconstruction taking place within the house. Outside the house, we walked through the Civil War portions of the Arlington National Cemetery. Stopping at the original Tomb of the Unknown Soldier proved a powerful moment, reminding us of the anonymous deaths that marked the Civil War.

After Arlington House, we toured Ford’s Theatre. A new museum graces the ground floor of the still working theatre. The museum focuses not only on the assassination, but also on Lincoln’s presidency. It was probably one of the best museums I have had the privilege to walk through this semester. One of the most powerful moments arrived as we saw the box in which Booth shot Lincoln. Observing the seating, knowing that Lincoln spent his last moments in the box, reawakened the tragedy of the assassination that had dulled with so many retellings.

Our next stop took us to the Frederick Douglass House in Anacostia. Here we pelted our guide with questions concerning the memory of Frederick Douglass throughout history. The excellent preservation of the house itself was astounding to see, especially when compared to the condition of the Arlington House. Comparing the two made us wonder who is currently winning the war for memory, the Lost Cause adherents, or the Emancipationists?

Our next two stops shared certain parallels. First, we stopped at the Lincoln monument in Lincoln Park dedicated to emancipation. The kneeling slave at Lincoln’s feet sends a message of subjugation that is disconcerting to witness, especially immediately after a tour of the Frederick Douglass House. After the Lincoln monument, we proceeded to a little remembered monument, despite its massive size. The monument to Grant, towering in front of the Capitol building was originally meant to anchor the other end of the mall, directly across from the Lincoln Memorial. Unfortunately, in the battle for memory, Grant was forgotten in favor of Lost Cause heroes. His monument goes unnoticed for the most part today.

Our final stop was at the Lincoln Memorial. We arrived after dark, and as a result, the memorial was lit up with a bright white light. The moment was one filled with meaning for all of us as we stood in front of the giant statue of the Great Emancipator. It was a climactic moment for the semester as we sensed the greatness of the man depicted before us. As we left the Memorial, we left a bit of ourselves behind, a piece of memory to be visited in the years to come as we look back on this semester.

We returned home with a bit of sadness, realizing that we will never again return to the Appleford after a day of Civil War history. It has been a wonderful semester filled with laughter, learning, and family-like bonds of friendships. It will be heartbreaking to leave at the end of the semester, but we’ll return to our home institutions with new friendships and a deeper understanding of the war as a whole. Thank you Gettysburg College!

"What General Lee's feelings were I do not know." General Grant on Lee at Appomattox Courthouse

Our last day in Richmond! We finished the military aspects of the Civil War today. As we ride home on the bus, it’s a little sad to acknowledge that our semester is drawing to a close. However, it was a wonderful day full of great interpretation.

We began our day with Jim Godburn at the High Bridge where Lee and the Confederate army retreated in April 1865 as they made their progress to Appomattox. The bridge was an impressive sight; the original pylons still stand in testament to the greatness of the bridge in the mid-1800s. Jim filled us in on the events that occurred during Lee’s retreat from Petersburg including the fall of Richmond and the Battle of Sailor’s Creek. As his presentation reached its conclusion I think we all felt a little excitement, knowing our next stop would bring us to Appomattox and Lee’s surrender.

At Appomattox, Mattea’s co-worker and friend, Bert Dunkerly gave us a tour of the town that saw Lee’s surrender. One of the most unreal moments came as we entered the McLean House whose parlor witnessed the final moments of the Confederacy. As we stood in the parlor where the surrender was signed on April 9, 1863 by Grant and Lee. I believe we all gave a small sigh, as we realized that the war was over. We have been so wrapped up in the Civil War this semester that we felt that something was coming to a close not only for the soldiers who had fought during the war, but for us as well.

Our last stop at Appomattox was on a lane at the far end of the park where the stacking of Confederate arms took place, marking the end of the Army of the Potomac. Here the infamous salute between Generals Gordon and Longstreet is said to have occurred, in some ways paving the road for the reconciliation that would in the years to come.

At the conclusion of our tour we loaded the bus once more for one last stop in Lexington. There we saw the tomb of Robert E. Lee at Washington and Lee College, in addition to the grave for Lee’s famed horse, Traveler. After Lee Washington, we stopped at the grave of Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson. The lemons scattering the ground in front of his grave stood testament to the amount of people who still remember Jackson as a heroic figure to be honored.

We finally arrived back at the Appleford at 10:30pm, exhausted and happy to be back with our Appleford family. The weeks to come will find us frantically finishing our papers and making our final field trip to Washington D.C. It’s been a great ride thus far, and we’re all excited to see how it will end.

"No quarter!" United States Colored Troops battle cry at the Crater

What a great day! We woke up in Richmond and will be going to bed in Farmville. It was a whirlwind of a day, but amazing nonetheless!

We started our day in Hollywood Cemetery where we saw the final resting places of Confederate soldiers, George Pickett, Jefferson Davis, and Presidents Monroe and Tyler. In the Confederate section of the cemetery, we were interested by the sentiments expressed on the various headstones and monuments. The Lost Cause ideas propagated by some of the memorials reminded us that the war for the memory of the Civil War is still raging. One particular instance stands out as we look back on the day. While in the officer’s section, Caitlin found a piece of paper held against a marker for an unknown Confederate soldier. On it was written the war record for a soldier from Virginia who fought for the Confederacy. Underneath was scribbled “You are missed and not forgotten.” Such a message illustrates that the Civil War is still very much in the forefront of the minds of some of the American populace.

We continued our day at the Tredegar Ironworks. There, Dr. Norman taught us about the controversy surrounding the 2003 erection of the statue of Lincoln at Tredegar. He mentioned that protestors compared Lincoln to Attila the Hun as a conqueror in his captured country. Inside the visitor center, Dawn enjoyed seeing the full sized pontoon bridge on display on the first floor while Mattea and Caitlin wandered the Richmond exhibit on the third floor.

After a hurried lunch eaten on the run, we dashed to Petersburg for our tour with Ranger Emmanuel Dabney. Over the course of the afternoon, Emmanuel gave us a look into the lives of soldiers during the nine month siege of Petersburg. Abe in particular was excited about the earthworks within the park. In one section, the National Park Service recreated the types of fieldworks that would have been in place during the siege. The intricacies of the field works put us in mind of those that would be used during World War I.

One of the most sobering moments of the tour came at the Crater where Emmanuel interpreted the atrocities that took place during the battle on July 30, 1864. The amount and methods of violence against the United States Colored Troops during the battle were sickening. Emmanuel’s program was enlightening and gave us a closer look at one of the most atrocious moments of the 1864 campaign.

Tomorrow we’ll start our day with a tour of the High Bridge and then it’s off to Appomattox to revisit the final moments of the war, and then home to the Appleford. For now, it’s time for bed to prepare for another exciting day in Virginia.

"Ah! these are my brave Texans. I know you, and I know that you can and will keep those people back!" Robert E. Lee at the Wilderness

This morning found us on the road to Richmond as our studies enter the third year of the war. We’ll be spending the weekend in Virginia to follow the events of 1864 and 1865. Today, we started with the beginnings of the Overland Campaign at the Wilderness and Spotsylvania Court House with our guide, Jake Struhelka.

In the Wilderness, we started at Saunder’s Field where some of the first fighting took place on May 5. One of the most interesting moments during this stop came as we walked the field, following in the steps of the 140^th New York that took 50% casualties within the woods around Saunder’s Field. As we picked through the woods, the difficulties faced by each army as they attempted to maneuver became apparent. The dense undergrowth slowed us and we didn’t have to worry about being shot by enemy fire. The intact Confederate earthworks were interesting and provided tangible evidence of the ferocity of the fighting at the Wilderness.

This afternoon we continued our tour of the Overland Campaign at Spotsylvania Court House. Personally, my favorite moment of the day took place when we studied Upton’s attack on the Mule Shoe. For the first time, we encountered a moment in which the Union army broke through a reinforced Confederate line. The attack was made without Upton’s hand picked men firing a shot on the Confederates as they charged. The bravery and determination required for such an attack was astounding. The intensity of the fighting in this area was also apparent just a few hundred yards away from the Mule Shoe at the bloody angle. The remnants of Confederate and Union earthworks stand a mere six feet apart, the trenches serving as an eerie reminder of the horrors of World War I trench warfare.

We finished the day at the Massaponex Church in Fredericksburg that was used as headquarters for both armies at various points during the campaign. A famous O’Sullivan photo of Union commanders was taken from the top of the church in May 1863. The inside of the church retains several original architectural structures. However, the most interesting part of the church is on the walls in the balcony. Union and Confederate soldiers covered the walls with penciled messages of hope, pride, and revenge. While the church whitewashed over the messages following the war, parts of the graffiti have been uncovered providing yet another insight into the hearts and minds of Civil War soldiers.

After investigating the Massaponex Church, we loaded the bus and made the final leg of the journey to Richmond to settle in for the night. Tomorrow we’ll continue our battlefield experiences in Petersburg, and see the sights of Richmond including Monument Avenue and the Hollywood Cemetery. Until then, it’s time for a little rest and recuperation before continuing our own Richmond Campaign.

"Well, it is all over now. The battle is lost, and many of us are prisoners, many are dead, many wounded, bleeding and dying." George Pickett

Today John Heiser and Scott Hartwig gave us our last tour of Gettysburg. It was an exciting chance to get to know the town we’ve lived in for a semester a little bit better. The morning began with a tour of the town from John Heiser, historian at Gettysburg National Military Park. We walked with him from the Appleford up to the train station that saw President Lincoln arrive in November 1863, for the dedication of the National Cemetery at Gettysburg. It was powerful to stand in the same place where Lincoln stepped off the train while he most likely thought about the address he would give the next day. As we toured the town, John pointed out the old GAR post and the various buildings that had been used as hospitals during the battle. His tour gave us a whole new look on the town we thought we knew so well. Throughout the morning I marveled at how we are surrounded by our nation’s history while studying at Gettysburg.

John also took us on a tour of the myriad of barns that still stand on the battlefield. As he pointed out the features that marked each barn, John impressed upon us the importance of good research as a part of historic preservation. At several barns, most notably the Snyder farm, John gave us examples of preservation efforts that had gone horribly wrong even though the preservationists involved had the best of intentions. It gave us an interesting glimpse into the world of historic preservation.

We ate lunch at the famous Pickett’s Buffet which was an experience all to itself! As soon as lunch was over, we hiked across the road to Brian’s Barn to meet historian Scott Hartwig for a tour of Pickett’s Charge. The tour was a look at both the military and memory issues that tie our nation to the event that occurred on the third day of Gettysburg. Scott walked us out to the Virginia monument, approximately where the charge began and walked us all the way back in the same route the Confederate soldiers took on July 3. These soldiers belonged not only to Pickett’s Division, but to the divisions of Pettigrew and Trimble as well. While marching down the same path as they did almost 150 years ago showed us how difficult that march would have been for the soldiers. I was amazed that they could stay in straight battle lines in order to perform various maneuvers against the enemy.

We finished the tour at the Bloody Angle where we tried to imagine the close quarters fighting that took place on both sides of the wall. Scott urged us to look at the monuments dedicated to those regiments at the Bloody Angle and consider what such monuments symbolized and what they meant to convey to visitors to the area. Through the High Water Mark monument to the 72^nd Pennsylvania monument, we saw again the importance of memory when studying the Civil War.

It was a cold day, but a fascinating one that left us a little forlorn that we’d finished the battle of Gettysburg. But next week it’s off to Richmond for a weekend which will surely be full of great memories with wonderful friends! On to Richmond!

"It did not seem possible to withstand another shock like this now coming on. Our loss had been severe." Joshua Chamberlain

Today we continued our tour of Gettysburg by following the second day’s events with our guide John Archer. Throughout the day, John focused on the human element of the battle that can sometimes get buried under the specifics of troop movements and regimental numbers.

The most poignant moment arose as we stood in a portion of the Wheatfield. John showed us a Gardener photo that had been taken in the same area about a week after the battle. Standing in the same spot where those men had died sobered us all as we looked about the peaceful scene surrounding us. I know I at least wondered what the families of those who had died would have felt upon receiving the news of the loss of their loved one. I could not imagine the pain of receiving word that my brother, father, or friend had fallen at Gettysburg. Even more horrifying would have been seeing photographs of their dead bodies littered across a pasture like an animal without anyone to witness his last moments.

Another interesting moment came during our afternoon on Culp’s Hill. Amazingly enough, some of the breastworks used by Union soldiers during their defense of Culp’s Hill on the second day are still intact. Their use of traverse lines was intriguing and serves as another tie to the modern warfare of World War I. John once again brought the human element to the forefront as he described the fighting that took place between Union and Confederate Maryland troops. The emotional trauma that would have been added by fighting men from the same state must have been tremendous on those soldiers. Interestingly, the only Confederate monument on the field is a Maryland monument on Culp’s Hill on the Union battle lines. John noted that behind the monument in the woods was a Confederate burial site. Although the bodies were re-interred elsewhere, the dip in the ground is still visible from the path.

Our second day at Gettysburg ended once more on East Cemetery Hill as we discussed the use of artillery on the second day. At the conclusion of our tour, we returned to the Appleford with a more in-depth understanding of the second day’s battle. Next week we will finish our tour of Gettysburg with a look at the town itself and Pickett’s Charge.

"They came forward with a rush, and how our men did yell, 'Come on, Johnny, come on!'" -Lt. Col. Rufus R. Dawes, 6th Wisconson, The Iron Brigade

After following the campaigns of the Civil War throughout Virginia and Maryland, we have finally arrived at what some consider a turning point in the war: Gettysburg. We spent the day examining the field over which the first day’s battle took place. We met our guide, John Archer, on East Cemetery Hill and began the day.

The tour began at a rarely visited marker that holds greater significance than its small size would suggest. West of town on the Chambersburg Pike stands a marker to Marcellus Jones who fired the first shot of the Battle of Gettysburg on the morning of July 1, 1863. John pointed out that the marker is probably accurate in its positioning, and we looked down the road, trying to imagine the feelings of Union soldiers as they saw Confederates marching down the Chambersburg Pike toward Gettysburg.

Throughout the morning, we investigated the positions held by Buford’s, and later, Reynolds’ men on July 1^st. John took us through the woods to trace the movements of the famed Iron Brigade as they fought near Willoughby Run where Confederate Brigadier General James Archer was captured by Union troops. Incidentally, John Archer is related to this Confederate prisoner, providing us with a closer connection to the battle.

The death that occurred on the field that day provided a central theme to the tour. Near the railroad cut, John reminded us that not all of the bodies buried after the battle were found in the years immediately after the war. From time to time in the past century, bodies of Civil War soldiers have been discovered on the field due to heavy rains or construction efforts. Only a few years ago, in the late 1990’s a skeleton was found in the dirt walls alongside the railroad cut. After close study, it was determined that the skeleton belonged to a Confederate soldier who could only be identified as such only by the few buttons still on his person.

Another instance of the horrors of war awaited us after lunch near Oak Hill. Brigadier General Alfred Iverson watched in despair as his North Carolinians were mowed down by a surprise Union attack on their unsuspecting left. The men fell in heaps, the wounded unable to escape for fear of being shot. After the battle, the dead were buried in a mass grave where they had fallen. In the years following the war, a grape vineyard was grown over the ground, and its owners insisted that the grapes there grew larger than those elsewhere in the area due to the morbid fertility of the land.

Before ending our day at the Union held Cemetery Hill, John took us into town. He reminded us that the battle was also fought on the streets of Gettysburg itself. He pointed out the difficulties of such street fighting, and the challenges that Ewell faced on the evening of July 1. Although many criticize Ewell for not pressing his attack on the evening of the 1^st, Archer argued that such an attack would not only have been impracticable, but also devastating to his forces. With that in mind, we ended our tour of the first day with the Union soldiers on East Cemetery Hill warily watching the campfires of the Confederates appearing across the ridges they had held earlier that morning.

Next time, we’ll begin once more on East Cemetery Hill to join the armies in their second day of hard fighting at Gettysburg.

"Death, wounds, and appalling destruction everywhere." -Lt. Frederick L. Hitchcock, 132nd PA Infantry

Our day began at dawn. Well, maybe not dawn, but 7:00 am felt pretty early on Friday. The drive to Fredericksburg, Virginia was probably one of the quietest we’ve had so far. But as we unloaded the bus, we were all excitement as we were honored to meet our guide for Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville, staff historian Donald Pfanz.

We began our tour at the breathtakingly picturesque Chatham, the headquarters of Edwin Sumner and a hospital for the wounded during the Battle of Fredericksburg. The front of the house overlooks the scenic Rappahannock, the river dividing the Union and Confederate armies in November and December 1862. As Donald explained Burnside’s struggles throughout the campaign and his attempts to cross the river, we studied the difficult nature of the terrain encountered by the Union troops. The troubles faced by Union soldiers seemed almost insurmountable, adding to the drama of the battle. It was difficult to imagine the amount of suffering that took place on the beautiful grounds of Chatham as it was covered with the wounded and dying during the battle.

Throughout the course of the morning, we traveled across both sides of the Confederate line. We started on the Confederate right, where Jackson and his men held the line against the assaults of Meade’s men. However, at the famous Marye’s Heights on the Confederate left the futility of the battle made itself known. Standing behind the stonewall defended by Confederate troops, it was difficult to imagine a better defensive position. On Marye’s Heights, we also saw the memorial to young Confederate Sergeant Richard Kirkland, better known as the Angel of Marye’s Heights. After the intense fighting of the Heights had slightly died off, Kirkland requested permission to take water to the wounded Union soldiers who cried out in pain and fear across the wall. After he was refused permission on account of the danger involved, Kirkland took it upon himself to cross the wall. Once the Union soldiers saw what he was doing, the intermittent firing stopped and a cheer went up among the Union soldiers. Sergeant Kirkland lost his life at Chickamauga the next year.

The second half of our day was spent on the Chancellorsville battlefield, the site of what some call Lee’s greatest victory. The battlefield terrain here also proved difficult to maneuver. The overgrown Wilderness area, where another campaign would take place in 1864, posed serious problems to soldiers fighting there, and seeing the ground first hand made these difficulties evident.

Through the afternoon, we followed General Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson’s final days. We stopped at the clearing where Jackson and Lee had their famed final meeting, and the wooded area where Jackson was shot by his own men in the confusion of twilight. Here, we found ourselves once more face to face with the memorialization of Jackson. In 1880, a group of men placed an unmarked boulder to honor Jackson’s memory near the site of his injury. Later, another more formal memorial was placed to honor Jackson. Both monuments indicate the level of ardor reserved for Jackson within the Southern mythology.

We spent a beautiful day on the battlefields of Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville thanks to the interpretive skills of our guide Donald Pfanz. Before heading back to the Appleford we stopped to eat at Perkins, complete with a full discussion of the sights of the day. After a long bus ride home, we arrived back in Gettysburg at 10:30pm, ready for some rest and relaxation. The rest was greatly needed to get us ready for a battle near and dear to each of us: Gettysburg.

“After a long debate, it was decided to retire and fall back towards Sharpsburg.” -John Bell Hood

The mist hung ominously in the air as we drove cautiously toward the Maryland border. We traveled south once more to tour the Antietam battlefield and learn more about the bloodiest single day in American history.

Fortunately, the mist burned off by the time we reached the battlefield where we would spend the day studying the terrain under the tutelage of our guide Dennis Frye. Throughout the day it was interesting to note the dramatic changes in terrain after only a few dozen steps. The reality of these terrain changes helped us more fully comprehend and appreciate the difficulties faced by soldiers on both sides during the battle. Dennis encouraged us to “let the ground speak to us,” to give us a more active role in understanding the battle.

For me, the most meaningful part of the tour came in the late afternoon as we walked down the Sunken Road, hauntingly referred to as Bloody Lane. Standing at the bottom of the lane forced home the realities of the difficulties faced by Confederate soldiers on September 17, 1862. When positioned in the deepest section of the road, it is impossible to see over one of the embankments, over the other only with great difficulty. The lane would have been a good defense but only as long as the Confederates could hold off advancing troops, after which point it easily became a death trap. Dennis also led us to the section of the road depicted in Alexander Gardner’s famous picture of the Confederate dead awaiting burial. It was a sobering moment as our feet crunched over the rough road where so many men spent their final moments of life.

The horror present in Bloody Lane and the rest of the Antietam battlefield still maintains a hold on the American imagination and memory. We saw an example of this hold as we made our way down the Sunken Road. On our right, under the shade of a tree rested a makeshift memorial left by some well-meaning tourist. A stuffed pink teddy bear sat at the base of the tree with a typed note reading “In Remembrance of all that died here.” The homemade memorial reminded us that the Civil War still holds a sacred, almost mythological place in American memory.

It was an eye-opening tour that took us to gorily famous areas of the battlefield. The Cornfield (absent of any corn), the Dunker (or Dunkard) Church, Bloody Lane, and Burnside’s Bridge: we saw them all in the course of the day. We marveled at the beauty of the field while trying to wrap our minds around the utter destruction and carnage that had marked Antietam following the battle.

We finished the day with a stop at Nutter’s Ice Cream Parlor in Sharpsburg as we slowly brought ourselves back to the 21^st century. The ride home was filled with discussion of the motives behind many of the attacks during the battle of Antietam, and the barely contained excitement for the showers we would take once we arrived back at the Appleford. It had been a hot day, but one that we will surely remember for years to come. Next, we continue our battlefield journey to Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville, Virginia where Lee made some of his most daring maneuvers during the War.

"A little hill can make a big difference." -Jim Burgess, Manassas National Battlefield Park

With an encouraging, “On to Richmond!” from Dr. Norman, we loaded the van at 7:30 a.m., headed for Manassas, Virginia. Our guide, Jim Burgess, met us at the Visitor Center and started our tour at Blackburn’s Ford where the first skirmish at Manassas took place. After a short stop and a quick look at the remains of the original road used by the Confederacy during the battle, we made our way to the famous Stone Bridge.

While most of the original bridge was destroyed in 1862 by the Confederates, the retaining wall of the bridge remains today. At that spot on July 21, 1861, Confederate Colonel Nathan “Shanks” Evans held his position against Tyler’s Union troops before learning of the attack on the unprotected Confederate left. Evans, the unsung hero of the battle, turned his forces and secured the left with a single brigade while facing the two divisions of Hunter and Heinztleman. Crossing the Stone Bridge gave us a sense of what types of obstacles faced the Union troops that morning.

However, my favorite moment of the tour came after lunch as we trekked through the woods to Sudley Springs Ford where Heintzleman and Hunter crossed into Confederate territory. At this point in the tour, Burgess allowed us to cross the ford just as the Union soldiers had done in 1862. Four of us eagerly made the attempt, envisioning the challenges of crossing the ford weighed down by military gear and weaponry. We then proceeded down the creek bed to continue the historical experience.

As we toured, Burgess retold several stories associated with the battle. Two stories in particular resonated throughout the rest of the day. The first concerned the fate of Major Sullivan Ballou, whose letter to his wife Sarah was made famous by Ken Burns’ Civil War documentary. Ballou was killed in action at Manassas and buried near the battlefield. Nearly a year later, Ballou’s grave was exhumed by Georgians who then burned Ballou’s remains in revenge for the losses they had suffered at the hands of the Rhode Islanders during First Manassas. This vindictive desecration left a sick feeling in my stomach as I remembered the loving words Ballou had written to his wife only a week prior to his death. The anecdote served to impress upon us the horrors and atrocities that emanated from the war, a reminder of the terrible powers of human beings to inflict pain on one another.

However, the day also contained stories of hope within the midst of war’s hell. We trudged past a pile of rocks that marked the former spot of the Benson family home on Christian Hill. During the battle, the Bensons found it their Christian duty to assist the wounded Union soldiers down the hill from their home, despite the fact that they themselves were loyal to the Confederacy. While giving aid, they found Union soldier James Rice who had been left for dead. The Bensons took the soldier to their own home and nursed him back to health. After the war, Rice returned to the Benson home, offering to repay their kindness through a monetary gift. The Bensons refused, claiming they had only done their duty. At Rice’s insistence, the Bensons relented by telling Rice that their church needed to be rebuilt and the congregation didn’t yet have the $1,000 necessary for the endeavor. Rice then went to his home state of Massachusetts and through a tireless effort raised over $1,100 for the Benson’s church. This story, when set next to the tragic Ballou incident, revealed that while some of the most deplorable aspects of human nature can come to the surface during war, the noblest aspects can also find space to grow.

The day ended on Henry Hill where the final phase of the battle was fought in the late afternoon on July 21. Today, a monument to Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson presides over the field. The monument itself does not resemble the ragged, thin General Jackson, but rather a steroid addicted Herculean figure upon an overly muscled horse. The monument is a prime example of the way memory has influenced the preservation of the Civil War. Today, Jackson is seen as an almost god-like hero to be worshipped, instead of the eccentric VMI professor who inspired hatred among his own students. It was a fascinating end to an interesting day.

We drove back to the Appleford that evening feeling as though we had just taken the first step in an incredible journey to follow the path of the Civil War that tore our nation apart. We will continue our journey next week to the battlefield that saw the bloodiest single day in American history: Antietam, Maryland.

"In firing his gun, John Brown has merely told what time of day it is. It is high noon." -William Lloyd Garrison

With bleary eyes and intermittent yawns, we loaded the Gettysburg Sprinter with Dr. Norman at eight a.m., settling in for the short ride to our first battlefield of the semester. We drove past the now familiar fields of Gettysburg towards Maryland with excitement dulled only slightly by the early hour. We would begin our day at the near end of the war in 1864 at Monocacy Junction. We would finish it at Harper’s Ferry where some argue, the opening shots of the Civil War were fired.

We made our first stop of the day at Monocacy, Maryland to meet with our guide Gail Stephens. Her passion for the battlefield and those who fought in the area on July 9, 1864, was evident as she led us across the fields opposite the Best House. She proceeded to explain Confederate Jubal Early’s plan to destroy the Baltimore Ohio Railroad at Monocacy in order to threaten Washington D.C. by cutting it off from the Western Front. Union Major General Lew Wallace determined to hold his position at Monocacy to keep Early and the Confederates from marching on Washington.

After touring the railway junction held by Lieutenant Davis and the Maryland and Vermont attachments, we made our way to the Thomas Farm where most of the fighting took place. The experience of standing on the same terrain as the legends Early and Wallace was truly moving. Because of Wallace’s stand at Monocacy, the Confederates lost an important day to move on Washington, ultimately leading to Early’s retreat to the Shenandoah Valley on the 12th of July. Wallace may have lost the battle, but he saved Washington that day.

Interestingly enough, the Thomas Farm is still standing as it did during the battle. Gail informed us that the Park Service is currently working on restoring the Thomas Farm in order to enhance the visitor experience at Monocacy. Visiting after the restoration is complete will be fascinating.

As we returned to the Visitor Center, we passed the Best House where, in September 1862, cigars wrapped in Lee’s plans for Antietam were found by Union soldiers and sent to D.H. Hill. This fact reminded us that the Civil War wasn’t merely a barrage of single episodic battles, but rather a continuous drama with overlapping events and places.

We left Gail Stephens and the end of the war for Dennis Frye and the beginning of the war at Harper’s Ferry around noon. After a delicious lunch in Bolivar Heights, we made our way down to Harper’s Ferry to retrace John Brown’s steps during his raid in October 1859. We stood overlooking three states (West Virginia, Virginia, and Maryland) as Dennis challenged our previous assumptions about Brown and his motives for his raid. His narrative style created an experience unlike any other as we set ourselves in John Brown’s world to understand his motives and hopes for the future of slavery and America. We sat in the Engine House as Dennis recounted the tense moments leading up to Brown’s capture and the end of the raid. The silence of the room following the retelling left us all with the eerie feeling of touching an event that had happened over 150 years ago.

The ride home was filled with excited discussion interspersed with “Take Me Home Country Road” as we crossed back into Virginia and Maryland. We returned to the Appleford with a deeper knowledge of the battle at Monocacy, and a deeper appreciation of John Brown’s actions in 1859. We’ve made it through the opening scene of the war at Harper’s Ferry; it’s time to see the first action in Manassas Junction, Virginia. On to Manassas!

"I consider it an honor to tell the stories of men like my great-great grandfather who fought on this hallowed ground...." -Andy Blair

One of the most thrilling and exciting experiences that I have had in my life, was the opportunity to be a part of The Gettysburg Semester program at Gettysburg College. Through the many rewards that this experience offered me, perhaps one of the greatest was being able to work at Antietam National Battlefield. I knew that when offered an opportunity to take part in an internship; my first choice was to help out the wonderful Rangers and Volunteers who help to maintain this pristine battlefield and its history. It was my hope as I went into the program, to help preserve the stories and legacies of the men who fought at the Battle of Antietam, like my great-great grandfather Sgt. Neill T. Arnold of Company H in the 46^th North Carolina Regiment. The over twenty-three thousand soldiers, who were killed, wounded, or missing from both sides, following the Battle of Antietam is just staggering. As well as the work done by both men and women from the surrounding communities who following the battle, took care of the wounded and buried the fallen soldiers, it is important that their legacy should also be remembered. I learned a great deal about the Battle of Antietam from my experience working there, through talking with the Rangers and other Volunteers, I came to a greater understanding of what the Battle of Antietam means to our national history and I consider it an honor to tell the stories of men like my great-great grandfather who fought on this hallowed ground.

This experience of working at Antietam National Battlefield was one of the true joys of being a part of the Gettysburg Semester. I had the great privilege of living on the Gettysburg National Battlefield everyday for several months, and then being able to go and work at Antietam National Battlefield almost every weekend and sometimes during the regular week made the experience that much more rewarding. I usually worked every Sunday afternoon, and would make my trip down to Sharpsburg around mid-day following church at the Prince of Peace Episcopal Church in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. I found the drive beautiful and relaxing, especially being able to drive through the Catoctin National Forrest, and in particular I was lucky to see the beautiful mountains and scenery covered in blankets of snow, which is something a young man from Tennessee is not always fortunate to see. My days usually consisted of working behind the Visitor Center Desk, helping the everyday visitors from across the United States and around the World with their visit to Antietam. I would point out the best ways to tour the Battlefield in however much time the visitor had, reminding them to make sure and see the Dunker Church, the Cornfield, the Sunken Road, and Burnside’s Bridge. I would go over the park map, a brief history of the battle, and show them the museum, as well as when the next documentary would be starting or when there was a Ranger led program. I was also able to travel out on the battlefield and take part in the Battlefield Ambassadors program. Which most volunteers have the opportunity to do as a way to help the visitor know a little more about a particular area of the battlefield and the action that occurred there on September 17, 1862. In my case that included the West Woods, where my great-great grandfather and the 46^th North Carolina Regiment fought.

Some other rewarding experiences were being able to help the visitors with any questions that they might have, and if they had an ancestor who fought at the Battle of Antietam, then I was able to provide for them a history of their ancestor’s unit, and show them where on the battlefield they fought, one-hundred and forty-seven years ago. I also enjoyed meeting all of the visitors, especially young children and would help them to become Junior Rangers. One of the greatest parts about working with the visitors, was you never knew who you were going to meet or see, from visitors across the United States and the world, to Ed Bearss and James McPherson, two leading Civil War Historians. I was rewarded each and every day that I was at Antietam National Battlefield, and in particular, I was fortunate to be a small part of two great events that occur at the battlefield each year. One being the Annual Battle Anniversary led Ranger program, which occurs each year on September 17, and begins early in the morning at seven o’clock in the Cornfield and ends in the late afternoon at the National Cemetery. It was truly a rewarding day and one that I got to share with my fellow companions from the Gettysburg Semester, as we walked all across the battlefield re-tracing the events that occurred on those fields one-hundred and forty-seven years ago. Another great experience, was being able to help with the Annual Remembrance Day Illumination, which occurs usually the first weekend of December as hundreds of volunteers from across the country come to place over twenty-three thousand luminaries across the battlefield to remember the brave soldiers of both the Union and Confederacy who were killed, wounded, or missing during the epic Battle of Antietam. That particular day was one in which snow kept falling throughout the day, as the volunteers worked hard to set out all of the luminaries, and even though the snow prevented some of them from being lighted, the symbol of sacrifice that they represented will never be forgotten.

All in all, my time spent as a member of the Gettysburg Semester Program, was truly one of the most rewarding experiences of my life. I learned so much from Dr. Guelzo, as well as all of the staff in the Civil War Era Studies Department and History Department at Gettysburg College that I will be able to carry the knowledge that I have gained from them for the rest of my life. I also had the fortune of meeting some wonderful new friends as part of the Gettysburg Semester, especially the eight of us semester students from around the country, Mrs. Cathy Bain, Mr. John Rudy and all of the other Gettysburg students and staff who I had the fortune of meeting. My time at the battlefield was one of the true highlights of my semester at Gettysburg College, and I cannot thank enough the extraordinary staff of Rangers and Volunteers at Antietam National Battlefield, who I had the privilege of coming into contact with and learning a great deal from. The experience of working at the battlefield was something that I will keep close to me forever and I hope that I was able in a small way to bring the stories of the men who fought there and what they went through to life, for our democracy was never more tested in one day than at the Battle of Antietam.

"Although this project was tedious... it has been incredibly rewarding and honed my skills of analytical research" - Annie Powers

Over the course of this semester, I worked in the Gettysburg National Military Park with John Heiser. I began in my first few weeks with cataloguing back-issues of Gettysburg Magazine, primarily those from 2006. Very quickly, however, John gave me a new – and more exciting – responsibility: researching Union and Confederate staff officers at the Battle of Gettysburg. Using the Official Records, rosters, books, and other references materials from the park, I compiled a list of each Union and Confederate staff officer at Gettysburg with information about their position there and the units to which they had originally belonged.

Although this project was tedious and involved a meticulous eye, it has been incredibly rewarding and honed my skills of analytical research. Before coming to Gettysburg for the semester, I had little experience with research in the field of military history, so working at the Park library has allowed me to dive into it headfirst – and really learn how to tackle and interpret available sources. I can safely say that the research I did at the Park will help me with any future encounters I may have with military history research, and it certainly allowed me to broaden my horizons. (I’ve never been much for military history, but digging into the lives of some of these men has definitely been a treat.) It may sound a bit dull, but I really did enjoy the experience (and even got to sit in on some Park staff meetings!) – and would recommend it to absolutely anyone interested in Civil War history.

"...a great opportunity for me to gain valuable experience directly related to my career goals." - Jacob Dinkelaker

As part of the Gettysburg Semester, I had the opportunity to do many great things while I was living in Gettysburg. These “experiences” included the Friday battlefield trips, a visit to Mister Ed’s Elephant Museum (A Gettysburg institution since 1975), exploring all areas of the battlefield, and the best of all, interning at Gettysburg National Military Park in interpretation. Working in interpretation this fall was a change of pace from working in Museum Services, as I had previously done.

During the summer, I was fortunate to be able to work under Greg Goodell and Paul Shevchuk as a seasonal for Museum Services, a job that I was made aware of thanks to Cathy Bain and the Civil War Era Studies office at Gettysburg College. While working in the museum, one of my first projects was re-housing many of the artifacts that were previously on display in the old Gettysburg Visitor Center. These artifacts had been packed away for the move to the new Visitor center; it was part of my duties to unpack them, and help Paul Shevchuck assign them new locations in the collection storage. The other seasonals and I also started several other projects. We processed hundreds of photos from the 125^th Anniversary events to present day photos taken by maintenance personnel, documenting what they were working on. We assigned each picture a number continuing the record keeping done by previous employees, and housed the pictures in archival folders and boxes for protection. Another project we tackled was reorganizing the relic collection by discoverer.

Although I had a great time working in Museum Services, I realized that it was not something I wanted to pursue as a career. Working with so much of our country’s history, I found myself wanting to share it with the public, and share with people my passion for history. I was able to do that in the fall, switching departments at the park, when I began my internship in interpretation under Scott Hartwig, supervisory historian. I had several responsibilities as part of my internship. One of my primary duties was staffing the visitor center information desk. Here I answered visitor’s questions, and provided information on how to explore the park and see the sights. I also developed and presented two interpretive programs on different areas of the park. My first program was on the Soldier’s National Cemetery, and the soldiers buried there. I tried to focus my program on the memory of the soldiers, and preservation of the park itself. My second program was on Day 3, specifically on Pickett’s Charge. For my program, I started with Meade’s headquarters, and developed the program to talk about the charge and ended with the horrific results of the attack. My direct supervisor, Angie Atkinson, was a big help as a sounding board for ideas for my programs, in addition to being full of advice on all things concerning the National Park Service and employment with them.

I had a great time during my internship, working for the National Park Service in interpretation. I really enjoyed working at Gettysburg National Military Park, and it is something that I am pursuing as a career. My internship this fall was a great opportunity for me to gain valuable experience directly related to my career goals, one of which is to obtain a job as a park ranger. My internship was probably the most rewarding experience I had during the semester, and it has helped me immensely as I continue my journey learning not only about history and the civil war, but historical interpretation as well.

"At the Society, I learned many of the most important responsibilities of a public historian." -Zachery Fry

An internship at the Adams County Historical Society, located in historic Schmucker Hall on the Lutheran Theological Seminary Campus, was always the most attractive opportunity for me when considering a work experience in The Gettysburg Semester. The Society boasts a relatively new Battle of Gettysburg Research Room, which is a remarkable resource for any stage of research on the campaign. The staff at the Society is impeccably knowledgeable and helpful, particularly Director Wayne Motts and Collections Manager Benjamin Neely. These gentlemen and others on the staff and volunteer force were always willing to help in their own well-informed ways.

At the Society, I learned many of the most important responsibilities of a public historian. My main interest during the internship lay with the Battle of Gettysburg and Union soldiers during the Civil War. My first project, therefore, was to scan and make searchable thousands of newspaper articles concerning the battle, the veterans, and the battlefield of Gettysburg from about 1880 to 1970. In doing this I learned countless fascinating details about the battle and enjoyed a staggering array of facts and anecdotes about the field of Gettysburg. One of the most engaging articles included a map from the men of the 1st Massachusetts Infantry, Brig. Gen. Joseph Carr’s brigade, detailing where every soldier in the regiment fell in the fields east of the Emmitsburg Road on July 2, 1863. This gave me a new appreciation for the battlefield which I might not otherwise have gained but through working at the Society. It was during this process of uploading newspaper articles that fellow Ohioan Wayne Motts took me on a fascinating tour of the George Spangler Farm, the Eleventh Corps field hospital where Brig. Gen. Lewis Armistead died.

My second project, which claimed the bulk of the semester, was to create finding aids for the numerous boxes of files pertaining to Corporal Skelly Post 9 of the Grand Army of the Republic in Gettysburg. Thus I became familiar with all the Union veterans who lived in Adams County through seeing their applications and names on the ledger books. Particularly rewarding was seeing the applications of two Medal of Honor recipients – John F. Chase of the 5th Maine Battery and Daniel P. Reigle of the 87th Pennsylvania Infantry. The most fascinating of all the G.A.R. records were the Post Historian’s Interviews, a collection of documents inquiring of local veterans about their experiences in the war; these included standard service information, but also more personal questions pertaining to the veterans’ most vivid memories and who their closest comrades were. These documents will be absolutely invaluable to anyone researching ancestors or local Civil War history.

Schmucker Hall is a uniquely historic building in Gettysburg, operating during and after the battle as an observation post for both armies, a signal station, and one of the largest permanent hospitals in the area. Working in the meeting room on the first floor, I discovered halfway through the semester that the door I had been sitting near for so many weeks was actually the same one through which the battered men of the 151st Pennsylvania carried Lt. Col. George McFarland after that officer had been seriously wounded in the chaotic fighting in front of the Seminary on July 1, 1863. Perhaps the pinnacle of experiencing this history came on my last day at the Society when Ben Neely rewarded my diligent work with a rare ascent to the cupola to observe the town and the battlefield.

The Adams County Historical Society provided me with the experience that should come with any internship during The Gettysburg Semester, but it also gave me many fond personal memories of my time spent in Gettysburg. From the fascinating newspaper clippings, to the personal stories in the G.A.R. records, to Thursday evenings in the Battle of Gettysburg Research Room with good semester friends and stellar research company, the internship was an experience of which I shall always be particularly proud.

"Moments like this made me realize that I was making a difference." -Samantha Smith

"Upon arrival to the Gettysburg Semester, I was not scheduled to be an intern at the Gettysburg National Military Park. However, I soon decided that it would be advantageous and became one of three interns working with Paul Shevchuk, the Museum Specialist and Greg Goodell, the Chief of Museum Services.

"The first day proved intimidating. I found myself consumed by thousands of artifacts in the archival room, and all of these historical "beings" contained stories for me to hear. The intimidation did not last long because my goal as an intern was to help and preserve the past for future generations. Preservation became my fuel for action and education. Cataloging relics proved to be intriguing, for my eyes became accustomed to the sight of artillery shell but not the sight of poker chips or padlocks. These relics were great pieces of conversation.

"Curious about the numerous arrow heads I found, I asked Paul for more details. He explained to me the history behind the object and how it pertained to the archival collection at the Gettysburg National Military Park. Moments like this made me realize that I was making a difference. The arrowhead aided in the explanation of history due to my curiosity. As an intern, I aided in the preservation of this object’s history and allowed for future generations to be curious. Although, I must say I was constantly surprised my own curiosity, as it occurred when I least expected it.

"One day while working with the photographs, I came across a picture of the seasonal staff from 1970. I am not quite sure what made me instantly fall in love with the snapshot, but I did nonetheless. I felt like I was a part of something greater than myself. Almost 40 years ago, individuals like me where doing what I was doing at the moment- history. I was preserving it and they were too, and in 2009, I was preserving their actions of preservation. History, like that photograph is timeless, and my internship allowed me to preserve their immortal existence (both the photograph and history).

"I am ever thankful for my experience, too often I have underestimated the stories objects have to tell, but because of my archival internship, that mistake will never be made again."

-Samantha Smith, Gettysburg Semester 2009