Gettysburg Landscape: Cultural Landscapes Inventory, Gettysburg National Military Park

NPS Northeast Regional Office

Gettysburg National Military Park is the site of the renowned Battle of Gettysburg - the last Confederate invasion of the North during the Civil War, which occurred on July 1-3, 1863. It is also the site where President Abraham Lincoln delivered the Gettysburg Address on November 19, 1863. Significant sites on the battlefield began to be preserved almost immediately after the 1863 battle, and the park came under federal ownership in 1895. Administered by the National Park Service since 1933, the park now incorporates 5,989 acres of land across which the battle, its aftermath, and commemoration occurred. Much of the park’s open land and fields lie between two low ridges: Seminary Ridge, held by the South, and Cemetery Ridge, held by the North. The central part of the battle terrain is usually described as shaped like a fishhook: Cemetery Ridge forms the long shank of it. Curving back on the hook, just southeast of the borough, is Culp’s Hill, and at the southern end is a series of hills called the Round Tops. The area encompasses a predominantly open agricultural area of rolling hills, scattered woodlots, and groupings of farmsteads that are remnants of a 19th century south-central Pennsylvania farming community. Farm structures, fields, and woodlots are dominant features on the landscape that evoke the rural character of the district. An extensive circulation system loops throughout the park. Conceived by the early organizers of the park, this system is referred to as the Memorial Avenue System. Most of the road construction was completed between 1895 and 1905. The alignment of the avenues marks the defensive positions of both armies and helps to connect different areas of the battlefield together. Alongside the avenues, monuments have been erected by veterans’ groups to mark important battle positions. The federal government also systematically marked the remaining troop positions with a series of markers and tablets. The Gettysburg Landscape is significant for its association with the Civil War; for its association with several significant persons including Abraham Lincoln, Robert E. Lee, George Meade, Daniel Sickles, John Bachelder, John Nicholson, David McConaughy, Emmor Bradley Cope, and William Saunders; for designed landscape elements relating to the commemoration of the battlefield; and for remaining Civil War research questions that can be answered through archeological investigations. In the larger scheme of the Civil War, the Battle of Gettysburg has national significance for its impact upon the Confederate war strategy and for its role in the ultimate preservation of the Union. For many Americans, the fields and woods surrounding the small town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, represent much of the meaning of the Civil War. This is due in part to the immensity and impact of the battle fought there on July 1, 2, and 3, 1863. By carrying the war into Union territory, the South believed that a victory over the Union Army of the Potomac would garner needed supplies, destroy the Northern will to continue the war, and bring European recognition of the Confederacy. Confederate President Jefferson Davis agreed with this proposal by his most noteworthy field commander—General Robert E. Lee. Thus was set in motion an invasion into the North that had the possibility of ending the war with a major strategic Confederate victory. However, the subsequent Southern loss at Gettysburg at the hands of the Army of the Potomac (commanded by Major General George G. Meade), forced the Confederates to adopt a defensive strategy against invading United States forces, a strategy that ultimately led to attrition and defeat. Although the Battle of Gettysburg did not conclude the Civil War, the three-day struggle on the ridges and valleys in and around the small agricultural village brought it world attention and a lasting notoriety.

Gettysburg Landscape: Cultural Landscapes Inventory, Gettysburg National Military Park

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