More from Gettysburg

Hello! Sallie here,

As you know, Gettysburg is one of my favorite Civil War Battlefields to visit.  During a recent visit, I spent some time around Spangler's Spring with some Civil War Reenactors from Sykes Regulars and I thought I would share what I learned.

Here I am at Spangler's Spring.  This area of the battlefield is located at the base of Culp's Hill and was the site of some very heavy fighting during the battle.

Here I am with the commanding officer of the troops at the encampment.  He was showing me his writing desk where he would write letters and orders, review maps and compile reports.

Next I met Captain Steve Hanson.  Captain Hanson is the commander of Sykes Regulars and a very nice person.  Notice the tents behind him, this is how Civil War soldiers would have camped and slept.

Here is a close up look at Captain Hanson's tent.  You can see his sword and haversack behind me and the blanket he would sleep on inside his tent.  I'm not sure what is in the bottle, but I've heard that sometimes officers would buy whiskey.

Here you can see Captain Hanson giving orders to his troops.  He was trying to get them to "fix bayonets" where they take their bayonets from the scabbards and place them on the end of their muskets.  

Next I spent some time helping make lunch for the soldiers.  We made some ham, potatoes, and had some fresh fruit and bread for them to eat.  

Next I met one of the many park rangers who help the Gettysburg National Military Park safe and clean for the millions of annual visitors.

After a long day of hanging out with Sykes Regulars it was time for some rest.  Here I am snoozing in the shade of a tree.  My head is resting on a soldier's great coat and next to me are his haversack, cartridge box (with the US plate on it) and his bayonet scabbard. 

You can check out more photos of my visit on my Flickr Page.

There are so many places to visit and see related to the Civil War.  Do you live near a Civil War battlefield or museum?  Do you know of a teacher who teaches about the Civil War?  If so, why not Sign Up to have me come for a visit?

Until next time...