When was gettysburg made a national park

This kind of artwork surrounds the people looking at it. The painting shows the final attack in the Battle of Gettysburg: Pickett's Charge. George Pickett was a Confederate general. On July 3, , he led a charge against stronger Union forces. It was a disaster for the Confederate soldiers. French artist Paul Phillippoteaux and a team of 20 artists created the painting in the s. Phillippoteaux and his team visited the battlefield. It took more than one year for the huge painting to be complete.

The cyclorama is meters long and almost 13 meters tall. It has long been one of the most popular parts of the Gettysburg experience. But by the s, the painting was in poor condition. Experts warned that if the Cyclorama was not repaired, the painting could be lost. A restoration project began in The painting was cleaned and separated into its 14 parts, and later moved into the new center.

There, the original canvas was sewn onto new cloth made in China. Park service officials say China was one of the few countries able to produce cloth in the sizes needed. Then each part was hung and sewn together. A team of cyclorama experts from Poland worked on the project in Gettysburg. The repair work of the Gettysburg Cyclorama marked one of the largest art conservation effort ever in North America.

This story was written by Nancy Steinbach. Caty Weaver was the editor. Have you read the Gettysburg Address? Have you visited Gettysburg? What did you think about it? Please leave a Comment, and post on our Facebook page , thanks! Load more comments. Your Gettysburg Visit Begins Here. Go Prepared. Schedule your battlefield tour with a Licensed Battlefield Guide and step onto hallowed ground. Go prepared. Include our exhibits, tours and events as part of your Gettysburg visit.

Set the Scene. Feel the Fury. Share the Journey. Learn More. Dining Options. Collections A look at some of the items in our collection related to the Battle of Gettysburg. Fought over the first three days of July , the Battle of Gettysburg was one of the most crucial battles of the Civil War.

The fate of the nation literally hung in the balance that summer of when General Robert E. Lee, commanding the "Army of Northern Virginia", led his army north into Maryland and Pennsylvania, bringing the war directly into northern territory.

The Union "Army of the Potomac", commanded by Major General George Gordon Meade, met the Confederate invasion near the Pennsylvania crossroads town of Gettysburg,and what began as a chance encounter quickly turned into a desperate, ferocious battle.

Despite initial Confederate successes, the battle turned against Lee on July 3rd, and with few options remaining, he ordered his army to return to Virginia.

The Union victory at the Battle of Gettysburg, sometimes referred to as the "High Water Mark of the Rebellion" resulted not only in Lee's retreat to Virginia, but an end to the hopes of the Confederate States of America for independence. The battle brought devastation to the residents of Gettysburg.

Every farm field or garden was a graveyard. Churches, public buildings and even private homes were hospitals, filled with wounded soldiers. The Union medical staff that remained were strained to treat so many wounded scattered about the county.

To meet the demand, Camp Letterman General Hospital was established east of Gettysburg where all of the wounded were eventually taken to before transport to permanent hospitals in Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington.