John's - Gettysburg

We had been looking forward to our visit with John and hanging out at his farmhouse which is just outside Carlisle, PA. It is used by the group Alarm Will Sound which we saw perform at Lincoln Center in July. John and his two roomies were gracious hosts. We had wonderful meals, sing-alongs, and tours of the Carlisle area and Dickinson College where John has his residency. Being around them is very stimulating. Great people!

This is the old historic farmhouse where John and his roomies are staying during the residency. It's located just outside Carlisle and is about 250 years old. On the other side of our trailer is an old garage and a huge barn. The original family graveyard is also located on the property.

Breakfast one morning out by the trailer. John's roomies from left to right - Jason, Beth, and Kate. Cindy on the steps and John.

Gettysburg is only 30 miles from Carlisle, so one day when John was practicing, Cindy and I drove down to visit the historic battlefield. We had read many books and were anxious to see the many places where the tide of the Civil War changed.

There are statues all over the battlefield, but this one of Robert E. Lee was very impressive. There was no stature of General Meade that we found (I'm sure there are some there though).

Each of the three days of battle were noted for the small little things that ended up swinging the battle in favor of the Union troops. The picture above is looking from Devil's Den up toward Little Round Top where the Union troops held off the Confederates on the second day. If they had not, the Union line would have been flanked and almost certain victory would have occured on Day 3. Imagine storming the hill from the bottom??

And this is the memorial representing the "High Water Mark" of the Confederates charge on Day 3 (Pickett's Charge). 15,000 men coming across the field from the trees in the distance, almost a mile to the Union lines and most were killed or wounded as they made it to the spot where Cindy is standing before falling back in defeat. Lee withdrew his army after this day and began a defensive struggle that ended at Appomattox.