Fun A Visit to GETTYSBURG

High Plains Drifter

The Drifter
VIP
Has anyone ever been there?
Where do you go?
What's fun to do around town?
Ghost tours?
Any advice?


Talking about doing a possible family trip down there this summer around the first week of July. Mainly to see the reactors, battles, and enjoy history. Talking about even hitting up Hershey, Pennsylvania.
 

chainsaw_metal1

Member: Rank 8
I still haven't been, but it's on my list of places I'd love to visit. I don't know about what there is in town to do, but I have heard that the tours of the battlefield are great. And if you're lucky, you'll get to see some ghosts. If you do end up going, post some pics.
 

High Plains Drifter

The Drifter
VIP
Here you go @chainsaw_metal1 this some of the fun we had, not everything is listed.

The road trip down was a interesting one. We seen a crane get took out by a semi, a semi with a smoking engine, and the van was hit by a semis gatorback on the passenger door.

I’m a history buff, and I knew a lot about the Civil War. I was in for a major wake up call on this trip. Everything I knew to a degree went out the window. First, when we are taught about this in school. You're taught to think it was just one battlefield, field, in just one area. This battle took place in a 26 mile area, around, and in town. All the buildings in town were used as hospitals homes, barns, & tents. I went into some of the area’s like a blank slate, not knowing what areas were all that haunted. I knew of mainly of Devil's Den, and that was it.
Around 8:30ish or 9pm we hit the auto around town which has 16 sites to see. The first area we hit was The Wheatfield. I took photo’s of as many monuments as I could before it got to dark to read. I took a photo and was like “Holy sh*t I caught a orb”. That’s when I started feeling a bit weird, off, and cold. This wasn’t the normal walk thru a cold spot feeling. It was very warm out so don’t say this is because it was cold out. It’s hard to explain but I’ll try. I would be walking, hit a spot, and all of a sudden just go cold, feel dreary, sadness, and this weird alert feeling. When I would feel this I would take a photo. When I took a photo before this feeling nothing showed up on the camera, just darkness. When I felt off, I was catching orbs like crazy. It wasn’t lighting bugs because they gave off a bright glow, and were easy to tell the difference. In the Wheatfield I caught quite a lot of orbs. Now, what I didn’t know was the Wheatfield or Bloody Wheatfield was one of the bloodiest battles around 20,000 died in the area. I don’t if what I was feeling was from the battle or what. There is a feeling or presence in this area, and it’s pretty strong if you get to sense it.

The next stop was Devil's Den. I didn’t really know too much about the rock layout at night.. I have seen that famous picture of the dead soldier, but nothing about the way this place looks like. I knew of what happened battle, bodies, and it was supposedly haunted. Pictures doesn’t do this location justice in its height, and size. It was pitch black out! I didn’t know how high up I was, or even how close I was to any drop offs. I was at Devil's Den using the light on my camcorder, and using my other camera to again catch orbs in the area. I’m walking around the cracks looking down into them, watching a frog hop around, and keeping watch for snakes. I’m following paths of others, the stairs, and the rock paths they have. I was shooting photo’s in, and around the rocks, paths, trees, cannon, monument, Sharpshooters Spot, and field. This place had tons of orbs all around it. There was a small foot bridge that lead into a field near the parking lot. I didn’t follow that path. I even caught a few orbs flying around the footbridge near the parking lot. At the Den I did not feel what I felt at the Wheatfield. It wasn’t dreary, or really cold, but a you're being watched feeling in some areas. Around 2,000 soldiers died at this battle site, but again it was to eerie. I wasn’t going to crawl around and explore the cracks, I knew what was put down there. I had to much respect, and wasn’t going down in there.

The next day July 1st we drove the auto tour, and seen all 16 areas in the daylight. The Wheatfield, and Devil's Den looked different during the day. The Den was pretty scary since now I could see all the areas I was walking, climbing on, the night before. Now, I could really take it all in the size, height, and vastness around there. I could stand on the rocks, and look at Big Round Top. I stood there getting ready to take a photo, heard something, and looked down to the cracks near me. I was watching rude ass tourists climbing around the cracks. Where years earlier there were the dead bodies of soldiers piled up in the cracks, and left. Only to be pulled out in pieces, and given a quick burial. They didn’t care if it was all the right parts, just as long as they got a complete body. This is the reason why many believe there are so many spirits here. The tourists were showing no respect for the memory of the dead, and the site. The rock face was scarred up from people craving in there name, and initials. I have mixed feeling about this place it’s a death site to so many that fought, and died here. The other side is it’s a historic location, people need to see it, and experience it. I just feel in a way that the rock crack should be roped off to a degree. Then again you know if you want to go, where there were bodies rotting at one time, and piss off the dead then go ahead.

July 2nd We hit the town checked out some of the tents, people talking, and even a yard sale. The one thing that hit us the most in town was there was a smell of something dead in two areas of town. I mean it was real bad, and looked to see if there was a dead mouse, or animal in the road. Nothing, and the thing that took us back on the smell of death is no one around us stopped, and commented on it. Still don't know what is was, even after the sale we walked in the alley were one of the smells came from, nothing. I learned about a new submarine called the Alligator which I never heard about. Checked out the doctor and his tools. Heard from a wife and all her sewing tools back then. There was a lady who told us all about the war coming into the town, all the buildings being used as hospitals. The biggest tent hospital which was across the street from what is Wally-World. Gettysburg has so much going on around town the week of the battle, that it's overwhelming. The camp we stayed at around 9am or 10 am you would hear the reenactors blowing off the cannons in the morning hours during battles. They were at one of the farms they used for the movie Gettysburg.

The night before we left July 2nd/3rd we drove around yet once again. My sister and brother in law had the windows down, so they could snap off pictures. The kids had a movie on so that's all I could hear, that and the baby snoring next to me. My sister and my brother in law go did you hear that whistle? Didn't hear it. It happened again, didn't hear it. Then they heard twice a weird yell or howl. Didn't hear it cause of the sounds in the back of the van. We were near the Plum Run area for all of this. I opened the door and looked around, nothing but in the woods near us branches were breaking. I didn't see nothing, but I had a feeling better to leave. We drove up the road a bit, and my sister was talking to me and pointing off to the left. My brother in law goes, back the van up, then go forward, then flash the lights high and low. We laughed and humoured him. Asked him why and he goes something white walked near woods on the right side. We got out of there that fast. Driving around now with 3 sleeping kids, and instead of hitting the camp. My sister goes let's go to Sach's Bridge, off we went. There were reactors walking around there, a ghost group near the dam. I snapped off a few pics in the bridge, trying to catch the bat hiding in the beams. We walked out of the bridge, and headed to the dam area took some pics, found a orb in one. We walked near the ghost group trying to get a spirit named Robert on the ghost box. I looked at my sister and goes should we tell them the orb was on the other side. My sister just goes knock it off, and we headed back to camp. The next day was tear down, and we had a long drive back home. My sister wanted to go back to the bridge, but Sachs was next to the re enactors and on the 3rd they would be doing the full on battle. Me and my brother in law talked about how bad the traffic would be. We spent at least 4 days total in Gettysburg. We knew the roads pretty good, and how to get around town.

BTW
My brother in law doesn't believe in anything, but Gettysburg scared him a little. I found a old youtube video of real CSA soldiers doing the rebel yell. My sister and him both go that's the sound they heard.

If you do go to Gettysburg do what I did go on July 1st, 2nd, and 3rd that days of the actual battle. There is something there, can't explain it, but you'll feel it.

Devil's Den as seen from Round Top
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Round Top as seen from Devil's Den
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So many monuments
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The Wheatfield
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Devil's Den
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Sach's Bridge
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chainsaw_metal1

Member: Rank 8
Wow. Such a great story, HPD. I would love to visit it, not only because I, too, am a big history buff, and have studied the Civil War to a great extent, but because it is such a hallowed spot. Knowing that so many men lost their lives in those few days, and that you know that some of those fighting were most likely fighting family, just makes it that much more a sad story. Great pictures, too, man. That's just creepy, the feeling you describe at the Bloody Wheatfield. All this just makes me want to visit that much more. Thanks for sharing, this was awesome!
 

Doctor Omega

Member: Rank 10
Thanks for the great story and info, HPD! :emoji_alien:

Here's a trailer from the 1993 movie and it's 2003 prequel, GODS & GENERALS

Gettysburg is a 1993 American epic war film written and directed by Ronald F. Maxwell, adapted from the historical novel The Killer Angels (1974) by Michael Shaara, about the Battle of Gettysburg during the American Civil War.

The film stars Tom Berenger, Jeff Daniels, and Martin Sheen; its score was composed by Randy Edelman.

The film Gods and Generals is an adaptation of the 1996 novel of the same name by Jeffrey Shaara and was filmed as a prequel to Maxwell's Gettysburg.

Production

The producers originally pitched the project to ABC in 1991, as a TV miniseries.

ABC initially agreed to back the project, but when a miniseries about George Armstrong Custer, Son of the Morning Star (1991), got low ratings, ABC pulled out.

Shortly thereafter, media mogul Ted Turner picked it up, and the film went into production.

For the first time, the National Park Service allowed the motion picture industry to recreate and film battle scenes directly on the Gettysburg Battlefield, including scenes of Devil's Den and Little Round Top.

However, much of the movie was shot at a nearby Adams County farm.

Thousands of Civil War reenactors from across the country volunteered their time to come to Gettysburg to participate in the massive battle scenes.

The score was composed by Randy Edelman.





 

High Plains Drifter

The Drifter
VIP
When they do the reenactments at the one farm. They have the public park across the street next to the red barn they used in the movie as a hospital. Pretty much the whole town and area is one big movie set in a way. Glad they were given permission to shoot on location at the real battle sites.
 
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