Gettysburg groups plan free 2015 Dedication Day events
The Gettysburg Foundation is inviting history buffs to attend the following free events to celebrate the 152nd anniversary of Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address.
For more information, call 717-338-1243 or visit www.gettysburgfoundation.org
Evening at the David Wills House
When: Nov. 18, 6 to 8 p.m.
Where: 8 Lincoln Square, Gettysburg
Visit the place where President Abraham Lincoln, orator Edward Everett and numerous other dignitaries spent the evening 152 years ago on Nov. 18, 1863, when the Wills family hosted 38 guests at their home the night before the Soldiers' National Cemetery dedication ceremony.
Tour David Wills' office, where he oversaw the creation and dedication of Soldiers' National Cemetery, and the room where Lincoln finished his now immortal Gettysburg Address the night before delivering "a few appropriate remarks."
Evening at the Gettysburg Lincoln Railroad Station
When: Nov. 18, 6 to 8 p.m.
Where: 35 Carlisle St., Gettysburg
Visit this historic 1858 structure that served as a hospital during the battle of Gettysburg. The wounded and the dead were transported from Gettysburg through this station to other cities across the east after the battle.
Abraham Lincoln arrived at the station when he visited in November 1863 to deliver the Gettysburg Address.
Dedication Day ceremony
When: Nov. 19, 10 to 11:30 a.m.
Where: Soldiers' National Cemetery, Taneytown Road, Gettysburg
Parking: Lot 3 at the Gettysburg National Military Park Museum and Visitor Center, 1195 Baltimore Pike, with a shuttle going to the cemetery 8 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.
This Dedication Day Ceremony will observe the 152nd Anniversary of President Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address, with keynote speaker Garrison Keillor, host and creator of "A Prairie Home Companion," a weekly radio program heard nationwide on over 600 Public Radio stations.
The event takes place in the Soldiers' National Cemetery, located in Gettysburg between Baltimore Pike and Taneytown Road, and is sponsored by Gettysburg National Military Park, the Gettysburg Foundation, the Lincoln Fellowship of Pennsylvania and Gettysburg College.
A limited number of seats will be available to the general public, but feel free to bring lawn chairs.
In the event of severe inclement weather, this program will relocate to the Gettysburg College Union Building on West Lincoln Avenue.
Remembrance Illumination
When: Nov. 21, 5:30 to 9:30 p.m.
Where: Soldiers' National Cemetery, Taneytown Road, Gettysburg
The Gettysburg Foundation will present the 13th Annual Remembrance Illumination at the Soldiers' National Cemetery, located between Baltimore Pike and Taneytown Road.
This solemn commemoration features a luminary candle on each of the 3,512 Civil War soldier's graves. Names of the fallen soldiers will be read throughout the evening.
Enter the Cemetery through the gate at Taneytown Road or the gate at Baltimore Street.