Must see Gettysburg

[brushhog]

last week, I took the 3 little hogs and the Missus down to Gettysburg and to Hershey Park for vacation. If you have any interest in the Civil War, or have served in the military, or are into history, you must visit Gettysburg. I highly reccomend hiring a liscensed guide for a battlefield tour. It was awe inspiring!! Anybody ever been there? What were your impressions? I will definitely return someday.

[bassinbob]

Been there twice. Want to go back by myself to see everything I missed. First time was with wife and daughter. I enjoyed it but they didn't. Second time was with a friend. Was more involved with her then the battlefields.

Bob

[keithdog]

I hope to go there soon. My youngest son is a JR in high school this year and wants to teach history after college. He is a civil war buff big time as am I. I think we will have a great time.

[brushhog]

if you do go, there are many free walks and talks which are a great way to orient yourself... The guide is like 45 dollars for a 2 hour tour and they get right in you car and go through the battle chronologically. It was really amazing...

[BLWeng]

I grew up about an hour from there. Been there several times. Awsome place, but i would like to go back now that i am a little older. I lived about 20mins from Hershey, and that is also a great place. Want some great small mouth fishing, go to the susquehanna river in Harrisburg, right beside hershey. Pretty awsome fishing around there also.

[Fendercaster]

I lived 45 minutes from there in Frederick, Maryland and went there frequently. I, too, am a history buff and find it very interesting and sobering, it was a nasty battle. I had a great great great grandfather who fought there on the Union side, from Michigan.
I've seen a couple reenactments, I can't imagine what it must have been like fighting in summertime heat in wool uniforms!

[brushhog]

Fender - those Michigan boys saw a ton of action there. I wonder if your relative was a member of the legendary Iron Brigade? It was mid-90's while we were there and I was roasting in shorts and a tank top... It was a fascinating place, so many stories within the story...

[Rebbasser]

BH, I may be obsessed with bass fishing, but the Civil War is my passion, and that is the battle I have studied more than any. Never been there, but before I die, good Lord willing, I want to walk up Cemetary Ridge in the footsteps of Pickett's boys.

Fender, you are right about the uniforms-that would have been tough duty.

What amazed me about that battle and really the whole war was the courage shown on both sides. To march across a mile or more of open ground up hill into the guns of the enemy like the boys in blue did at Fredericksburg and the boys in gray did at Gettysburg took a tremendous amount of courage. They knew they were marching towards almost certain death, yet they still went. You can't help but admire them.

[brushhog]

REB,
The park service has a free one hour walk with guide that follows Picketts charge from beginning to end, My favorite rebel, aside from Longstreet, actually breached the union line that day, Lo Armistead.

The most shocking thing for me was how small certain parts of the battlefield were... Little Round top, the Wheatfield, The top of Cemetary Hill all so much smaller than in my minds eye... the density of humanity and fire in these spaces must have been overwhelming and deafening... That and how truly close the South was to taking the whole field on Day Two, when you see the actual positions on the field it really is shocking. No book does it justice. Anyway I could go on for hours. Happy to answer any specific questions on what I saw or heard.

Reb, you would be glad to hear that the guides we hired presented very even handed info.

[bassthumb32]

I Drive Through Gettsyburg The City Almost On A Weekly Basis I Too Am A Civil War Buff And Love The Battefeild As Well. I Also Live Close To Antietam Which Is Also A Very Cool Place.

[MississippiBoy]

I grew up in Vicksburg, MS, and saw the military park there virtually every day. That made it kind of a common, everyday sight, so I guess I never really appreciated it until a friend of a friend came down and we went through the whole thing. Seeing it through their eyes made it much more impressive and real to me.
The Cairo ironclad is probably the coolest part, to me. It was sunk during the war, and sat in the mud of the Mississippi till the 1960's. Now it's pretty much restored and has its own museum. You can walk around on the decks, touch the cannon, and where the crew had to live. Amazing place...

[hackattack]

my school did an east coast trip and they went to hershey park...

[3dkicker]

Drainesville, Bull Run, Manassas, Fredericksburg, Plank Road, Wilderness, etc, etc. Got it all right here in my back yard. And here's the first "Smitty" or as far back as we can trace the family name.

[brushhog]

Originally Posted by 3dkicker

Drainesville, Bull Run, Manassas, Fredericksburg, Plank Road, Wilderness, etc, etc. Got it all right here in my back yard. And here's the first "Smitty" or as far back as we can trace the family name.

Kicker,

That is awesome, I'm kinda interested in tracing my family history back. Seems like something cool to share with my kids... Do you know where and with whom your relative served? That would be great to find out... I never noticed the Spotsylvania under your name, you sure are right in the middle of a lot of history!!!

[3dkicker]

He was out of Clearfield, PA. The 5th PA Reserves. There is a little written about him in Civil War text (PA History specifically). We can't find out much about before and after other than family history.

[zooker]

bush hog

i got this parked next to my boat..



here is another resident in action in tenn.



dam it is a family gatherin..


any questions??

zooker

[zooker]

i have been to gettysburg. i like perrysburg,blue ridge,gatlinburg..


for a full list of reanactments try
http:/www.civilwarcourier.com

brother floyd showing off his baby..







zooker

[WTL]

Ive been to Vicksburg, Ft Sumter, Shiloh and a few others. They are all amazing. Cairo is indeed an awesome sight, and the views in Vicksburg really show how strategically important a spot it was. The bloody pond at Shiloh though is just spooky, still.


Zook, I have a rifle very much like that. I think its a bastardized springfield with a trap door. It was found in the atic of our family home in Jonesboro Georgia, a house which had served as a hospital during the siege of Atlanta and especially when they cut the railroads to the south, forcing the fall.

[zooker]

it is an 1853 3 band enfeild rifle notice the blueing is not there..the scope -which is brass- cost more than the gun $1800..they never did have blued guns back then they were just high polished or brushed steel..

zooker

[JB]

1800 dollahs in the late 1800's? that would be like 180,000 today zooker, come on broh!

[bassfisher02]

Yeah I can only imagine how much that gun is worth, sense I have quite a nice collection of WWII guns, some getting very close to $10,000.

[FlyRod]

Originally Posted by bassfisher02

Yeah I can only imagine how much that gun is worth, sense I have quite a nice collection of WWII guns, some getting very close to $10,000.

Looking forward to our visit to your home.

Sincerely,

The Boys at ATF

[bassfisher02]

Hahaha, ok?