Site of the most famous two-minute speech in U.S. history, and of the bloody Civil War battle that marked the high tide of Confederate fortunes, Gettysburg National Military Park surrounds the town of Gettysburg, protecting the scenes of the struggle as they were July 1–3, 1863, when 50,000 of the 165,000 combatants were killed or wounded. Over a thousand monuments mark the various historic sites around the 6,000 acres of rolling green pasture that form the park. Take advantages of tape-recorded tours ($10–20) or park-approved Battlefield Guides (about $40 per car), who will take you along a well-marked route past such places as Little Round Top, The Angle, and Cemetery Ridge, site of fabled Pickett’s Charge.
Most of the guided tours start and finish at the visitors center (daily; free; 717/334-1124) on Taneytown Road a mile south of town, where an extensive museum puts the battle into context and displays a huge array of period weaponry. You can learn more by watching the battle unfold on the Electric Map ($4), which looks a lot like a boxing ring. Unfortunately, the famous circular Cyclorama, a 26- by 356-foot painting that accurately portrays the events of the final day’s battles, is undergoing restoration and won’t be seen again until 2007. Across the road, the Gettysburg National Cemetery is the place where President Abraham Lincoln delivered his famous address on November 19, 1863.
