#gettysburg

Judgmental Dark-eyed Junco Gettysburg, Pa. 3/3/25

On July 2, 1863, Colonel Joshua Chamberlain lead his men of the 20th Maine on a bayonet charge down the slopes of little round top, during the battle of Gettysburg. He would later be awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions that day.

Well, traffic cost us an additional 90 mins but we’re here. Our hotel used to be a school. It’s frickin beautiful! Sixx claimed the second queen bed and the boy claimed the sitting area with the pull out couch, tv, fridge and he can even close the door on us. Butthead. There’s a pub in the basement but it’s not open tonight. We will be taking advantage of that this week though!

Oh and the cornerstone is in our room. Pretty cool.

COL. JOSHUA LAWRENCE CHAMBERLAIN & LT. THOMAS CHAMBERLAIN

played by JEFF DANIELS and C. THOMAS HOWELL in Gettysbrug (1993) and Gods & Generals (2003)

During the Battle of Gettysburg, the 20th Maine regiment (a volunteer regiment with the two Chamberlain brothers) was stationed on Little Round Top hill at the extreme left of the Union line. After about 3–4 hours of defending the position, the 20th Maine completely ran out of ammunition. At the sight of Rebels forming again for another push, Lawrence ordered to respond by charging downhill with only fixed bayonets. The heroic charge surprised and scattered the Confederates, ending the attack and the attempt to flank its position. Had the 20th Maine retreated from the hill, the entire Union line would have been flanked, endangering other regiments in the vicinity and the outcome of the whole Battle.

Lawrence was wounded in the foot by a bullet. Thomas was unhurt. As a result of their valiant defense of the hill, the Chamberlain brothers, Lawrence especially, and the 20th Maine gained a great reputation and are the subject of many publications & stories.

original caption

Battlefield Tour

President Kennedy, right, and his wife Jacqueline, are escorted by Jacob M. Sheads, a battlefield guide as they tour the Gettysburg battlefield. In background is the North Carolina monument. Kennedy flew by helicopter from Camp David to Gettysburg to view the battlefield.

On Memorial Day in 1963, Vice President Johnson gave one of the best speeches of his life -- and, in my opinion, one of the best speeches about civil rights ever given by a President or Vice President. It was almost a preview of his legendary "We Shall Overcome" speech on the Voting Rights Act before Congress in 1965.

"As we maintain the vigil of peace, we must remember that justice if a vigil, too -- a vigil we must keep in our own streets and schools and among the lives of all our people -- so that those who died here on their native soil shall not have died in vain.

One hundred years ago, the slave was freed.

One hundred years later, the Negro remains in bondage to the color of his skin.

The Negro today asks justice.

We do not answer him -- we do not answer those who lie beneath this soil -- when we reply to the Negro by asking, 'Patience.'

It is empty to plead that the solution to the dilemmas of the present rests on the hands of the clock. The solution is in our hands. Unless we are willing to yield up our destiny of greatness among the civilizations of history, Americans -- white and Negro together -- must be about the business of resolving the challenge which confronts us now.

Our nation found its soul in honor on these fields of Gettysburg one hundred years ago. We must not lose that soul in dishonor now on the fields of hate...

...In this hour, it is not our respective races which are at stake -- it is our nation. Let those who care for their country come forward, North and South, white and Negro, to lead the way through this moment of challenge and decision.

The Negro says, 'Now.' Others say, 'Never.' The voice of responsible Americans -- the voice of those who died here and the great man who spoke here -- their voices say, 'Together.' There is no other way.