The Gettysburg Museum and Visitor Center is a
Gettysburg National Military Park
The Gettysburg National Military Park protects and interprets the landscape of the 1863 Battle of Gettysburg during the American Civil War. Located in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, the park is managed by the National Park Service. The GNMP propert ...
facility, with a museum about the
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...
, the 1884
Gettysburg Cyclorama
''The Battle of Gettysburg'', also known as the Gettysburg Cyclorama, is a cyclorama painting by the French artist Paul Philippoteaux depicting Pickett's Charge, the climactic Confederate attack on the Union forces during the Battle of Gettysburg ...
, and the tour center for licensed Battlefield Guides and for buses to see the
Gettysburg Battlefield
The Gettysburg Battlefield is the area of the July 1–3, 1863, military engagements of the Battle of Gettysburg within and around the borough of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Locations of military engagements extend from the site of the first shot ...
and
Eisenhower National Historic Site
Eisenhower National Historic Site preserves the home and farm of Dwight D. Eisenhower, the 34th President of the United States, and its surrounding property of . It is located in Cumberland Township, Adams County, Pennsylvania, just outside ...
.
The museum displays artifacts including cannon, firearms, and uniforms, and includes an exhibit gallery and theater. Additional facilities are a "computer resource room",
[ a bookstore with gifts, and a restaurant.
]
History
One of the first Gettysburg museums displayed the J Albertus Danner collection of artifacts in 1881. In 1894 the Gettysburg Cyclorama
''The Battle of Gettysburg'', also known as the Gettysburg Cyclorama, is a cyclorama painting by the French artist Paul Philippoteaux depicting Pickett's Charge, the climactic Confederate attack on the Union forces during the Battle of Gettysburg ...
was displayed in a tent at The Angle
The Angle (Bloody Angle colloq.) is a Gettysburg Battlefield area which includes the 1863 Copse of Trees used as the target landmark for Pickett's Charge, the 1892 monument that marks the high-water mark of the Confederacy, a rock wall, and seve ...
Groundbreaking for a building on Cemetery Hill
Cemetery Hill is a landform on the Gettysburg Battlefield that was the scene of fighting each day of the Battle of Gettysburg (July 1–3, 1863). The northernmost part of the Army of the Potomac defensive " fish-hook" line, the hill is gently ...
occurred in 1912.
The 1888–1964 Round Top Museum The Round Top Museum was a Gettysburg Battlefield visitor attraction established by John H. Rosensteel in 1888 on the north foot of Little Round Top near the Round Top Station and northeast of the Wheatfield Road and Grand Central Avenue (now Sedg ...
, and the 1921–2008 Gettysburg National Museum were both acquired by the National Park Service
The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propertie ...
after the 1963 battle anniversary. During the post-WWII increase of tourism, Mission 66
Mission 66 was a United States National Park Service ten-year program that was intended to dramatically expand Park Service visitor services by 1966, in time for the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the Park Service.
When the National P ...
improvements for the NPS 50th anniversary included the construction of the modernist Cyclorama Building at Gettysburg
The Cyclorama Building at Gettysburg was a historic modernist concrete and glass Mission 66 building dedicated November 19, 1962 by the National Park Service (NPS) to serve as a Gettysburg Battlefield visitor center, to exhibit the 1883 Paul P ...
, designed by Richard Neutra
Richard Joseph Neutra ( ; April 8, 1892 – April 16, 1970) was an Austrian-American architect. Living and building for the majority of his career in Southern California, he came to be considered a prominent and important modernist architect.
He ...
, as the first NPS visitor center for the battlefield. It opened in 1962. Plans in 1973 for a projected tourist increase included an Oak Ridge visitor center and an Eisenhower Parkway on the west. Neither was built, nor was an Appalachian Trail
The Appalachian Trail (also called the A.T.), is a hiking trail in the Eastern United States, extending almost between Springer Mountain in Georgia and Mount Katahdin in Maine, and passing through 14 states.Gailey, Chris (2006)"Appalachian Tr ...
spur to the battlefield considered in 1982.
The Gettysburg National Museum became the visitor center in 1974. There were technology and sewer improvements in 1995.technology and sewer improvements
/ref> The building was demolished in 2008, after the new Gettysburg Museum and Visitor Center was completed. The new building now displays the restored Gettysburg Cyclorama
''The Battle of Gettysburg'', also known as the Gettysburg Cyclorama, is a cyclorama painting by the French artist Paul Philippoteaux depicting Pickett's Charge, the climactic Confederate attack on the Union forces during the Battle of Gettysburg ...
. The landmark 1962 Cyclorama Building Cyclorama Building may refer to:
* Cyclorama Building (Boston), built in 1884 in Boston, Massachusetts
* Atlanta Cyclorama & Civil War Museum, built in 1885 in Atlanta, Georgia
*Cyclorama Building at Gettysburg
The Cyclorama Building at Gettysb ...
by Neutra was destroyed in February 2013.
Images
Image:15 23 0261 gettysburg address.jpg, Display of the Gettysburg Address
The Gettysburg Address is a Public speaking, speech that President of the United States, U.S. President Abraham Lincoln delivered during the American Civil War at the dedication of the Gettysburg National Cemetery, Soldiers' National Cemetery, ...
Image:Gettysburg2.JPG, Displays in the new gift shop.
References
*For references regarding the Background for tourist services, use the hyperlinks to the sub-pages (e.g., Gettysburg Battlefield
The Gettysburg Battlefield is the area of the July 1–3, 1863, military engagements of the Battle of Gettysburg within and around the borough of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Locations of military engagements extend from the site of the first shot ...
) to see specific citations.
External links
Gettysburg National Military Park Museum & Visitor Center (Gettysburg Foundation)
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American Civil War museums in Pennsylvania
Gettysburg National Military Park
History museums in Pennsylvania
Museums in Adams County, Pennsylvania
National Park Service visitor centers
Museums established in 2008
2008 establishments in Pennsylvania