Less than an hour later we pulled into the Gettysburg National Park, one of the country's most famous historical places to be sure, although as Mannie reminded us, Antietam is perhaps the most pristine of the Civil War battlefields.
Anyway, Mannie had heard through the ranger grapevine that lots of environmental changes were underway in Gettysburg and we were eager to discover the truth of the rumor.
Rumor in this case turned out to be fact. We noted major clearing projects underway near the Peace memorial as well as between Big Round Top and the Devil's Den (photo below):
Our first stop was at the Peace Memorial where Mannie explained a few of the finer points of being a Civil War cannoneer. As he was talking two guys standing nearby overhead his comments and one stepped over to ask a few questions. Well if you know Mannie you know he is the consummate teacher. We also stopped at the Devil's Den, and then the Peach Orchard, near the spot where the Third Michigan Infantry was engaged on July 2, 1863, and which is in the process of being replanted apparently. As you can see from the clip we also stopped at the newly renovated Pennsylvania monument. You can now climb to the top for a superb view of this section of the battlefield.
We paid our respects to James "Old Pete" Longstreet before leaving the park and heading home. Not before stopping at one of the nearby toy soldier stores so Mannie could pick up his birthday present (compliments of Virginia Rose), a selection of Union and Confederate toy soldiers for his collection.
The four of us got back in the car and left Gettysburg behind as we headed back south to the Mason Dixon line and Boonsboro, Maryland. Mannie fixed one of his world-famous pizzas that evening and we slept like babies that night.
What a day, huh?
Ciao,
Steve
Oh, and Mannie eyed this relic near the Peace Memorial which Virginia kindly points out for us:
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