Above: This row of cannons is on the Yankee end of Pickett's Charge.
In Gettysburg PA, there are tour buses everywhere, and why not? The Civil War was an important event in our country's history. Visitors come from around the world to see the site of its biggest battle.
I was at the Gettysburg National Military Park yesterday. They offered a two-hour guided tour by bus, a movie with a cinematron or a tour of the museum. Which would you do? Why all three of course. They called it the Value Pack.
The battle was fought the first three days of July in 1863. Lincoln came on in November to dedicate the area as a park and cemetery. He came by train. No, he didn't write the Gettysburg address on the train on the back of an envelope. He wrote it in the White House before he came and shared it with cabinet members to get their feedback.
Across from the train station, there's a restaurant named Lincoln's Cafe, but he didn't eat there. It had too many Booths.
Above: The average age of a Civil War soldier was 22. They came from 33 states and all walks of life. Image shot from the Museum at the Gettysburg National Park.
Above: The Civil War artillery didn't shoot rifled cannons, designed to knock down fortifications. They,instead, used cannons filled with one big ball made up of shrapnel that would spread out when shot. They were designed to kill soldiers.
Above: When I think about the North, I think of President Lincoln. When I think of the South, I don't think about Jefferson Davis, but rather Robert E. Lee. These images are from the movie at the park.
Above: More than 2 million visitors come to Gettysburg each year to tour the battlefield and the museum. Some have their photo taken with this image of Abraham Lincoln.
Images by MOJO and taken with my Canon (Nos. 1, 3 and 5) and with my P&S.
Tourist! But fortunately, not an Ugly American. Well, in that last shot, Lincoln might have been the handsome one... :)
ReplyDeleteI was there as a kid. The big thing was a cheesy diorama of the battle field where they had little lights that'd advance and retreat. We stood in a balcony around it. I guess there have been some advances since I was there.
Organized mayhem, those tour buses.
ReplyDeleteThe link is to the Martin Co.. They make guitars and other stringed instruments. Their calendar of events put them within your reach; otherwise the site link is interesting of itself. They have streaming music channels.
http://www.martinguitar.com/
"Across from the train station, there's a restaurant named Lincoln's Cafe, but he didn't eat there. It had too many Booths.
ReplyDeleteUgh. That one's so bad it hurts! :)
Ken - I'm pretty sure that diorama is still there, but modernized. One of my first bids (didn't get the job) when I started my company was for the update - they were planning on projecting video of the battle down on the diorama so you could see how the action progressed. Did you get to see it mojo? Did they do anything with it?
ReplyDeleteAs it turns out, I'll be bidding the same company for the first time in 11 years for a couple other jobs. I'll have to tell yakshi if I get the children's museum in Dubai :)
That booth joke was classic Mojo, didn't know you had it in you! The word for it is witzelsucht (look it up!)
The light show in the diorama was quite good. It made you think you actually were right there on the battlefield. Yes, it was as you described.
ReplyDeleteAh well, too bad my company didn't hook that one, but I've done plenty of fun stuff since. I'll have to stop by there sometime, pass it a lot on my way to my mother in laws but always seem to be rushing too much to take a peek.
ReplyDeleteLooks like there's a mini series coming out on Gettysburg soon. Dont know anything about it, but it looks like Ridley Scott is involved, so at least it will look beautiful.