It was the hot summer of 1968. My parents decided to take a family vacation to Pennsylvania, a state I had never visited. We packed our suitcases in my Dad's cream-colored Ford Falcon and headed across Ohio through Wheeling WV and into the Keystone State. After hours of driving, we stopped at Chambersburg's Travelodge for the night. I could barely sleep, knowing that tomorrow I would see fabled Gettysburg for the first time! Vision of statues and monuments danced in my head, and I had prepared for this almost spiritual experience by reading and re-reading all my copies of Civil War Times Illustrated and every ACW book in the local East Fultonham, Ohio, branch of John McIntyre Library.

In the morning, Dad drove eastward from Chambersburg across South Mountain and approached Gettysburg in the early morning fog. My heart leaped...

Posted in Gettysburg battlefield One-tank road trips

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Historian Tim Smith of the Adams County Historical Society will be the guest speaker at this month's CWRT meeting in York.

Background post: 2008 speaker schedule - York CWRT

The monthly meeting of the York Civil War Round Table will feature author, historian, and Licensed Battlefield Guide Timothy H. Smith as the special guest speaker. He is speaking on his latest book, Farms at Gettysburg: The Fields of Battle: Selected Images From the Adams County Historical Society. Tim has a PowerPoint presentation, and he will interject, when appropriate, information about the Gettysburg civilians.

The meeting will be Wednesday evening, July 16, 2008, at 7:00 p.m. in the auditorium of the York County Heritage Trust's headquarters at 250 E. Market Street in downtown York. Parking and admission are free. Why not come and hear one of the most entertaining and knowledgeable Civil War experts in the region?

Posted in Books Civilians Gettysburg Campaign Gettysburg battlefield York CWRT

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Bonfires are ablaze on the 145th anniversary of the burning of the Columbia-Wrightsville Bridge. The piers are the original ones from the covered bridge of Civil War days. Photos courtesy of Michael J. Belgie Sr. of Fire & Ice Photography. Used by written permission. Contact him to purchase this or other photographs.

Perhaps the most spectacular fire in the history of York and Lancaster counties was the June 28, 1863, blaze that fully consumed the world's largest covered bridge -- the venerable structure that had spanned the Susquehanna River between Wrightsville and Columbia. Union high command had ordered part of the bridge destroyed to prevent the Confederates from crossing the river (which was too swollen from recent rains to be forded, and the bridge was the only viable crossing between Harrisburg and Maryland). Attempts to blow up a single span failed, and the Pennsylvania militia resorted to Plan B - burn a section. The winds shifted, and the old bridge acted as a wind tunnel, carrying the flames eastward for six hours until the entire thing had collapsed as a smoldering wreckage into the river.

Posted in Civilians Gettysburg battlefield Wrightsville

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Several descendants of Michigan Brigade soldiers and other interested persons donated money to acquire a small piece of land at Hunterstown and erect one of the country's newest Civil War monuments. This marble slab and bronze relief is dedicated to Brig. Gen. George Armstrong Custer, who led the Michigan Brigade (the "Michigan Wolverines") into action at Hunterstown against the troops of Wade Hampton III of the Confederate cavalry during the Gettysburg Campaign.

Posted in Civil War people Gettysburg battlefield One-tank road trips Preservation efforts Yankees

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Veteran National Park Service Ranger and author Troy Harman speaks to an enthusiastic crowd during his outstanding battlewalk of the seldom visited, seldom discussed fight on Brinkerhoff's Ridge along Hanover Road (Route 116) between the main Gettysburg Battlefield and East Cavalry Field.

Posted in Gettysburg Campaign Gettysburg battlefield One-tank road trips Yankees

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Huge crowds attended today's first two battlewalks on this the 145th anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg. National Park Service Ranger Eric Campbell leads a two-hour walking tour of Cemetery Ridge examining the actions and movements of Union Maj. Gen. Winfield S. Hancock during the second day of the battle.

Posted in Gettysburg Campaign Gettysburg battlefield One-tank road trips Yankees

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The Charge
Photo by Thomas M. Mingus. Copyright 2008. All rights reserved.

If you have a particular favorite Civil War photograph and would like to share it with other Cannonball readers, please send me an e-mail with a digital copy of that photograph, as well as giving me written permission to use that photo in this blog. Photos can be of battlefields, reenactors, sunsets at Gettysburg, monuments, buildings, or anything else that is photogenic and is directly related to this general area's Civil War history. Send them in, and I will publish them over the next few weeks!!

All entries become eligible for a drawing for an autographed copy of my book Flames Beyond Gettysburg: The Gordon Expedition when it gets in print.

Posted in Gettysburg battlefield Miscellaneous York County sites

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Dennis Morris's museum-quality miniature layout of a portion of the Battle of Gettysburg

Here is a link to my other blog, which I maintain for a wargaming society that Debi and I formed several years ago. It depicts what I consider to be a museum-quality miniature diorama depiction of the Confederate attacks on Devil's Den and the Rose Farm at Gettysburg, actions that are well within walking distance from the York CWRT's adopted 102nd Pennsylvania and 62nd New York's monuments. The actions shown in this outstanding miniature layout predated the advance of the 102nd and 62nd.

What do you think? Very impressive work from the master modeller, Dennis Morris, don't you agree?

Posted in Gettysburg Campaign Gettysburg battlefield Miscellaneous

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The 102nd Pennsylvania was among the Union reinforcements that helped clear the "Valley of Death" late on July 2.

The York Civil War Round Table is sponsoring a National Park Service-sanctioned battlefield clean-up activity on Saturday morning, May 3, 2008. To further entice folks to turn out, in the early afternoon, there will be a free battle walk and tour of East Cemetery Hill led by Scott Mingus, who has written a new book covering the topic. There is no charge for either activity, and the public is welcome to participate, although a free-will donation is suggested to the York CWRT to help defray expenses for the speakers at future monthly meetings. Volunteers for the Adopt-a-Position work day need to bring gloves and clippers.

Meet at 10 a.m. at the monuments to the 102nd Pennsylvania / 62nd New York on the John Weikert / Althoff Farm Lane, just northeast of the Wheatfield Road intersection with Crawford Avenue (near Houck's Ridge / Devil's Den). Lunch is on your own. Then, at 1:00 p.m., meet at the Evergreen Cemetery Gatehouse for the 90-minute battle walk, which will involve only modest walking.

Posted in Gettysburg Campaign Gettysburg battlefield Local ACW events One-tank road trips York CWRT

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Wargamer and Gettysburg buff Billy Ray Wagenseller greets author Scott L. Mingus, Sr. at the 4/19/08 book signing during the History Meets the Arts spring festival. Photo by Curt Daniels taken at the Gettysburg Gift Center.

Gettysburg annually holds a spring festival known as History Meets the Arts, a celebration of historical art, music, literary accomplishments, and other arts. Artists such as Dale Gallon, John Paul Strain, Keith Rocco, and many others were present yesterday, and attendance throughout the town was exceptional. The combination of glorious weather, some big-name artists, the first weekend for the new Visitors Center, and good advertising helped boost attendance versus last year’s wind-blown freeze-fest.

Maryland author Bradley Gottfried and I signed books together in the afternoon. He is quite a gentleman and a very nice guy, not to mention an extremely talented cartographer and writer. His latest book is entitled The Artillery of Gettysburg, and seemed to be selling well, along with his other titles such as The Maps of Gettysburg. I sold quite of few of my three books, and thoroughly enjoyed the conversations with Brad and with many of my friends who stopped by. Brad also agreed to come speak to the York CWRT sometime in 2009; more details to come when next year's schedule comes out.

HMTA continues today in Gettysburg. A French & Indian War reeenactor camp site replete with a small fort are highlights of the main display at the Fire Hall, as well as the impressive array of original painting by a host of talented F&I artists. There is no admission charge for this annual event.

Posted in Books Gettysburg battlefield Local ACW events One-tank road trips

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