Gettysburg's famous Little Round Top reopens after two-year rehabilitation project. This comes just in time for 161st anniversary events

Park and other officials cut the ribbon at the landmark (NPS photo)

Little Round Top, the legendary hill where Union forces fought off a furious Confederate assault on July 2, 1863, during the Battle of Gettysburg, reopened Monday afternoon after a two-year rehabilitation project that addressed problems associated with large crowds.

The news was met with enthusiasm from park fans and visitors who have been unable to hike or take a bus up to the popular site since July 2022. Park spokesman Jason Martz said Tuesday the feedback has been positive thus far.

“We know everyone has been anxious to get back to the summit, but your continued patience will still be required," Gettysburg National Military Park said on social media after the opening. "We fully anticipate the area will be very heavily visited so please work with our on-site staff. They will be strategically posted throughout the area to help get you acclimated."

The park cited erosion, overwhelmed parking areas, poor accessibility and related safety hazards, and degraded vegetation before the area was closed.

Visitors take in one of the Little Round Top markers near the summit (NPS photo)

A ceremonial ribbon-cutting was held Monday morning ahead of the reopening. The conclusion of the work comes about a week before 161^st anniversary programming.

Little Round Top traditionally is the top destination for park visitors, followed by the visitor center and museum and Devil's Den, which reopened in September 2022 after a rehabilitation effort.

“The (Little Round Top) project enhances access to a more extensive, safe, and accessible trail system that allows visitors to experience the area's monuments, cannons, and other areas of interest,” the park in southern Pennsylvania said in a news release.

“Gathering areas across the summit will better accommodate the many large groups arriving by bus. Eroded soils have been stabilized and re-vegetated. New interpretive waysides throughout the area tell the story of those who suffered, died, and memorialized the battlefield. In addition, satellite parking has been expanded and formalized in the area with access to the trail system.”

The project included significant work around monuments and trails (NPS)

Some 164 feet above the Plum Run Valley to the west, the hill became the anchor of the Union’s left flank and a focal point of Confederate attacks. The 4^th,15^{th and 47th} Alabama regiments made a series of legendary assaults against the 20^th Maine.

“The (Maine) regiment’s sudden, desperate bayonet charge blunted the Confederate assault on Little Round Top and has been credited with saving Major General George Gordon Meade’s Army of the Potomac, winning the Battle of Gettysburg and setting the South on a long, irreversible path to defeat,” according to the American Battlefield Trust.

The regiment was led by Joshua Chamberlain, and its heroics has been remembered in film and folklore.

David Duncan, president of the American Battlefield Trust, a partner in the Little Round Top project, said in a statement:

“Gettysburg veteran and Medal of Honor recipient Joshua Chamberlain (right) noted that ‘In great deeds something abides. On great fields something stays’ and there are few landscapes for which that power of place is more tangible than Little Round Top. “Now revitalized and enhanced, it stands ready to welcome this and future generations, a place where they can feel a meaningful connection to the past.”

Superintendent Kris Heister told the Picket in March improvements at Little Round Top and Devil’s Den have provided “a high-quality visitor experience and resource protection to ensure those resources are available to future generations in good condition.”

At Little Round Top, she said, traffic circulation patterns have been improved and individuals with mobility issues (whether considered handicapped or not) will now be able to visit the hill.

Breastworks have been rehabilitated, new wayside exhibits were installed, some social trails removed and others have been formalized, providing access to areas of the hill and monuments that haven't been accessible in years.

Designated bus parking has been added and gathering spaces have been formalized to reduce off-trail use and facilitate the many groups that visit, Heister said.

The cost of the Little Round Top project was $12.9 million, of which $5.2 million came from donations from the Gettysburg Foundation, National Park Foundation and the American Battlefield Trust.

Officials ask visitors to park on Sedgwick or South Confederate avenues and take one of the new trailheads to the summit. The park has provided this FAQ about parking. There are changes.

Q&A: Gettysburg's new superintendent Kris Heister on big projects, rentals, volunteers, her Civil War ancestors and a place she'd like to see more visitors

Kris Heister, Little Round Top rehabilitation, Spangler Farm (NPS photos)

Kristina “Kris” Heister, the new superintendent at Gettysburg National Military Park and Eisenhower National Historic Site, comes from a family with deep roots in Pennsylvania. Her ancestors came over from Germany in about 1732 and produced congressmen and other political leaders in the state.

Heister, who has held numerous positions with the National Park Service over a 30-plus year, was deputy superintendent at Gettysburg before the promotion.

“I have been amazed by the dedication of my colleagues, our partners and our community,” she said in a news release earlier this month. “Their collective commitment to preserving and protecting these hallowed grounds inspires me every day. I look forward to continuing to work together and maintaining an open dialogue with our partners and our community to address both the challenges and opportunities the future holds for these exceptional places.”

The Picket asked Heister about her priorities and initiatives, current and future projects and her ancestors. Many fought in the Civil War and two were at Gettysburg. The favorite Heister family meal (Chicken Divan) is a recipe Julie and David Eisenhower served for Christmas one year.

Heister this week responded to my questions by email. A few have been edited for brevity.

Q. You have held leadership posts at the park for about four-five years. During this time, did you work on specific initiatives or projects that resonated with visitors?

A. An example of a specific initiative that I led in the last four years was the leasing of historic structures for Airbnb-style rentals. This program will create a new and immersive visitor experience as well as generate revenue for the preservation of park facilities. This year, we are initiating a pilot with two structures that witnessed the battle of Gettysburg - the Slyder farmhouse and Bushman farmhouse (NPS photo, left). Both are in close proximity to special places on the battlefield, including Devil's Den and Little Round Top. For the first time, park visitors will be able to stay at these homes for between 2 and 6 days at a time. If successful, we will expand the program to two additional battlefield homes in the next 3-5 years.

Q. As the new superintendent, do you have any early ideas on initiatives or programming?

A. Currently, I am focused on existing initiatives including the reopening of Little Round Top in spring/early summer 2024, rehabilitation of the reception center at Eisenhower National Historic Site, building the Spangler Trail connecting the museum and visitor center to the Spangler Farm (owned and operated by the Gettysburg Foundation), kicking off summer interpretive programming and preparing for battle anniversary on July 1-3, 2024. Upcoming initiatives include rehabilitation of the National Cemetery and historic structures on the battlefield.

A. The news release mentions your strength in employee development and community engagement. Are you able to pinpoint specifics from the past or possible in the future on these two areas?

Q. I see many possibilities for engagement with the Gettysburg community in the future and am excited to investigate our shared goals and how we can achieve them together. One I look forward to the most is reinvigorating our volunteer program. By this summer, we will have hired a permanent volunteer coordinator -- a new position at the park. My goal is to develop a vibrant, safe, inclusive volunteer program that promotes engagement with the community (locally and nationally) through meaningful service, is focused on needed work and contributes to creation of the next generation of public land stewards.

Q. What is your favorite part of the battlefield? Is there a spot you wish more visitors knew about?

A. There are so many beautiful areas of the battlefield. My favorite place is anywhere I can experience peace and tranquility (that) allows me to both renew my spirit and contemplate the meaning and significance of what happened here. I wish more visitors knew about Eisenhower National Historic Site (above, NPS photo), which is located directly adjacent to Gettysburg National Military Park and tells the story of our 34^th president as well as having significant connections between President Eisenhower and the Gettysburg battlefield.

Q. Gettysburg has seen a lot of wear from visitors, hence the projects at Little Round Top and Devil's Den. What do you believe to be the impact of those improvements and are there other such areas in the park you would like to address?

A. I believe the impacts of our improvements on Little Round Top and Devil’s Den relate to providing a high-quality visitor experience and resource protection to ensure those resources are available to future generations in good condition. For example, at Little Round Top heavily eroded trails have been stabilized, circulation patterns have been improved, individuals with mobility issues (whether considered handicapped or not) will now be able to visit the hill, breastworks have been rehabilitated, new wayside exhibits are being installed, some social trails have been removed and others have been formalized, providing access to areas of the hill and monuments that haven't been accessible in years, designated bus parking has been added and gathering spaces have been formalized to reduce off-trail use and facilitate the many groups that visit. Our next large scale rehabilitation effort will focus on the National Cemetery.

40th New York Monument is in a water-prone area.Photo Craig Swain, HMdb.org

Q. Some people have been concerned about beavers forming ponds/lakes along Crawford Avenue. The park in 2019 said they are native to Plum Run and it was monitoring potential impact on Devil's Den and Little Round Top. What is the current situation with that?

A. Beavers are not new to the park and have taken up residence off and on in the Plum Run area for many years - this is a natural process. The park is managing them in accordance with NPS policy and the Cultural Landscape Report for Little Round Top, which recommends that the Plum Run riparian corridor be managed to promote species diversity while ensuring vegetation does not block key historic views from Plum Run Valley to the face of Little Round Top. The NPS has identified all historic resources within this area as well as potential impacts to those resources from the presence of beavers. We are monitoring those potential impacts and taking action as appropriate to address them. In 2023, we installed devices called "beaver deceivers" to de-water a portion of the pond that had formed due to infringement on the 40^th New York Infantry Monument and the subsequent inability of park visitors to access the monument. We will continue to monitor and take action as necessary and appropriate.

Q. The press release says you had 18 ancestors who fought for the Union. Do you know from which states some of them hailed?

A. The majority were from Pennsylvania. I have just begun to research my family this far back but it appears my family touched many facets of the war. To date, I have identified two individuals – Cyrus Heister and Washington K. Hiester who fought at the Battle of Gettysburg -- both with the Pennsylvania infantry, 93^rd  and 151^st regiments respectively. (The superintendent notes the names Heister and Hiester were sometimes used interchangeably.)

William C. Hiester (131^st regiment, Pennsylvania infantry) died at Fredericksburg at age 19. At age 18, Daniel M. Heister mustered into the 101^st regiment just in time to be captured at Plymouth, N.C., and spend the rest of the war in Andersonville prison. One family member served in the Pennsylvania Senate during the war. One was designated a mustering officer, with the rank of major, by the governor in 1863, and mustered into service eight regiments of volunteers (they assembled at an encampment called Camp Hiester in Reading. One was a judge in Dauphin County who adjudicated claims associated with damages caused by Confederates during the war.

Lastly, Dr. Joseph Hiester treated Capt. Henry W. Freedley, who commanded the 3^rd United States Infantry at the Battle of Gettysburg. (Hiester's grave at right, photo courtesy of Findagrave contributor 47099775)

Freedley was severely wounded in the leg and Hiester arrived in Gettysburg shortly after the battle to tend to him on the floor of the David Wills House (now NPS property), where Abraham Lincoln later stayed on the night of November 18, 1863, and completed writing the Gettysburg Address. Cool stuff!

Postscript: I asked Superintendent Heister about Hiester’s daughter, Maria, whom Freedley had written before and after the battle. The officer called her a friend, but was there more to the relationship? “Maybe it was a long-distance romance between two people in their 30s, one a homemaker, one a soldier,  who had known each other since childhood and she waited for him as he travelled extensively with the military -- until he broke her heart and married someone nearly 20 years her junior.” Maria apparently never married and Henry was wed just a few months before his death in 1889.

Gettysburg hopes Little Round Top will reopen before 161st anniversary events in early July. The site has undergone improvements over the past two years.

A new retaining wall is built at the 91st Pennsylvania monument (GNMP)

Gettysburg National Military Park estimates Little Round Top will reopen to the public in late spring or early summer, nearly two years after a massive rehabilitation project began, according to a park spokesman.

The popular site closed on July 26, 2022, to the disappointment of visitors who planned trips but welcomed by others who lauded the project.

The hill is where Union forces fought off a furious Confederate assault on July 2, 1863, during the three-day battle in Pennsylvania.

Park officials have said they are addressing ongoing problems at the overcrowded site. They cited erosion, overwhelmed parking areas, poor accessibility and related safety hazards, and degraded vegetation.

“This project will also enhance the visitor experience with improved interpretive signage, new accessible trail alignments, and gathering areas. These improvements will allow visitors to better immerse themselves into the historic landscape that is essential to understanding the three-day Battle of Gettysburg,” a 2022 news release said. 

A park page on the project says the aim is to “reestablish, preserve, and protect the features that make up this segment of the battlefield landscape.” 

Some 164 feet above the Plum Run Valley to the west, the hill became the anchor of the Union’s left flank and a focal point of Confederate attacks on the afternoon of July 2. The 4^th,15^{th and 47th} Alabama regiments made a series of legendary assaults against the 20^th Maine.

“The (Maine) regiment’s sudden, desperate bayonet charge blunted the Confederate assault on Little Round Top and has been credited with saving Major General George Gordon Meade’s Army of the Potomac, winning the Battle of Gettysburg and setting the South on a long, irreversible path to defeat,” according to the American Battlefield Trust.

Wednesday’s update on social media indicated Little Round Top may be open in time for 161^st anniversary programs and events in early July. The Picket reached out to park spokesman Jason Martz..

"Maybe. That is our hope, but it's too soon to speculate," Martz said in an email.

Little Round Top seen from Plum Run Valley (Library of Congress)

Little Round Top traditionally is the top destination for park visitors, he said, followed by the visitor center and museum and Devil's Den.

When asked about archaeological investigations during the work, Martz said a lot of battle material was found, including “a few unique items, but nothing that would move the needle too much one way or the other. The archaeological process is long and drawn out and final details won't be available for quite some time.”

A Dyer artillery round was found in February 2022, with park officials saying then they believe a Confederate cannon fired at Federal position and mistakenly dropped them on friendly Texas regiments trying to navigate the difficult terrain.

Martz said officials have enough details to largely close the loop on that story and will provide an update in the future.

Breaking news: Devil's Den will reopen Friday after six-month rehabilitation project, Gettysburg park officials say

The landmark in 1909, at the advent of the car era (NPS photo)

Devil’s Den, scene of fierce fighting during the July 1863 battle, will reopen on Friday after a six-month project that tackled erosion and unauthorized trails that created safety hazards, Gettysburg National Military Park announced Thursday.

“The project reestablished the features that make up this segment of the battlefield and will allow visitors to better immerse themselves into the historic landscape that is essential to understanding the three-day Battle of Gettysburg,” park said in a social media post.

The work tripled trail access to those with disabilities, increased overall greenspace by trimming some trail space and added features that will help with water runoff. Slip-resistant steps replaced uneven and worn stone steps, officials said.

“Although the area will reopen to visitors, one central area will remain fenced to allow more time for further vegetation growth. The fencing in this area will remain until native grasses have fully established. This process may take up to two growing seasons – up to 2024. In the interim, all non-native vegetation will continue to be treated within the entire project area.”

View of Devil's Den from Little Round Top (Wikipedia, Wilson44691)

The reopening comes amid similar work on Little Round Top, which closed to visitors in July. “The rehabilitation of Little Round Top will address overwhelmed parking areas, poor accessibility and related safety hazards, significant erosion, and degraded vegetation,” the park said.

After the park earlier this year announced the Devil's Den closure in a Facebook post, critics and supporters weighed in. One said the need for work at both areas has been known for years and the public will be disappointed that two landmarks would be closed at the same time. Others said people should be grateful the work is happening to perpetuate the memory of those who fought there.

Park spokesman Jason Martz told the Picket in a March email that the timing of the projects was a coincidence, but they are both meant to address problem areas.

Devil’s Den was the scene of fierce fighting on July 2, 1863, during the decisive battle. The boulder-strewn hill was the object of forces under Confederate Lt. James Longstreet. Rebels took the position and engaged in fire with Union troops on Little Round Top.

Volunteers recently assisted the park with clearing vegetation overgrowth at Devil's Den as it neared reopening. Park officials then treated stumps to prevent sprouting.

View of Devil's Den after volunteers cleared vegetation (NPS)

Devil's Den, a rocky focal point on the second day of Gettysburg, will close for 6 months as park addresses erosion and safety issues

Visitors to Devil's Den a few years after the battle (Library of Congress)

A second landmark at Gettysburg National Military Park will close for several months this year for major rehabilitation.

Park officials announced Thursday that work at Devil’s Den is expected to begin on March 21. The closure will last five to six months as crews address “significant erosion and safety issues in this highly visited area of the battlefield.”

Devil’s Den was the scene of fierce fighting on July 2, 1863, during the decisive battle. The boulder-strewn hill was the object of forces under Confederate Lt. James Longstreet. The Rebels took the position and engaged in fire with Union troops on Little Round Top.

The park said the work is needed because of the erosion along existing walkways and from unauthorized social trails that have created safety hazards.

“The scope of the project will reestablish, preserve, and protect the features that make up this segment of the battlefield landscape,” it said in a statement. “These improvements will allow visitors to better immerse themselves into the historic landscape that is essential to understanding the three-day Battle of Gettysburg.”

Crawford Avenue, Sickles Avenue and the Devil’s Den parking area will remain open as much as possible for visitor use. Adjacent battlefield locations, such as the Slaughter Pen, Devil’s Kitchen, and the Triangular Field, will all remain open. The construction contractor will occasionally need to close all road access around the area, but notices will be posted ahead of time, the park said.

View of Devil's Den from Little Round Top (Wikipedia, Wilson44691)

The announcement came about a month after the National Park Service detailed a rehabilitation project on Little Round Top, where Union forces fought off a furious Confederate assault, also on July 2.

Park officials said they are addressing ongoing problems at the overcrowded site. They cited erosion, overwhelmed parking areas, poor accessibility and related safety hazards, and degraded vegetation.

“This project will also enhance the visitor experience with improved interpretive signage, new accessible trail alignments, and gathering areas. These improvements will allow visitors to better immerse themselves into the historic landscape that is essential to understanding the three-day Battle of Gettysburg,” a news release said. 

An update this week said tree cutting was completed last month and the overall project is out for bid, with two contracts: one for overall construction and the second for revegetation of Little Round Top.

The closure of Little Round Top is expected to begin sometime between March 20 and June 21. The project will take up to 18 months to complete, officials previously said.

After the park announced the Devil's Den closure in a Facebook post, critics and supporters weighed in. One said the need for work at both areas has been known for years and the public will be disappointed that two landmarks will be closed at the same time. Others said people should be grateful the work is happening to perpetuate the memory of those who fought there.

Park spokesman Jason Martz told the Picket in an email that the timing of the projects is coincidence, but they are both meant to address problem areas.

Gettysburg's famed Little Round Top will be closed 12-18 months during project addressing erosion, parking, accessibility and more

Tree cutting this month at Little Round Top will kick off a larger rehabilitation project that will include a 12-18 month closure of the hill where Union forces fought off a furious Confederate assault, Gettysburg National Military Park announced Tuesday.

Park officials said they are addressing ongoing problems at the overcrowded site. They cited erosion, overwhelmed parking areas, poor accessibility and related safety hazards, and degraded vegetation.

Once rehabilitation efforts begin, all of Little Round Top will be closed for 12 to 18 months, the park said. Officials said Wednesday they were unable to provide details on the exact timing of the beginning of the closure, other than "later in Spring 22."

“This project will also enhance the visitor experience with improved interpretive signage, new accessible trail alignments, and gathering areas. These improvements will allow visitors to better immerse themselves into the historic landscape that is essential to understanding the three-day Battle of Gettysburg,” a news release said. 

A park page on the project says the aim is to “reestablish, preserve, and protect the features that make up this segment of the battlefield landscape.” 

Little Round Top seen from Plum Run Valley (Library of Congress)

Little Round Top and Sykes Avenue will be closed Feb. 9-11 and Feb. 14-16 for the cutting of up to 63 trees along both sides of the road. The park says the removal is necessary for the project.

The work is happening now so as not to interfere with the nesting and breeding of northern long-eared and Indiana bats that may roost in the area. “Both species of bat are on the federal endangered species list and the select tree cutting project must be completed before their anticipated arrival in early spring when nesting activities typically begin.”

Little Round Top is the location of some of the most famous fighting of the battle

Rising 164 feet above the Plum Run Valley to the west, the boulder-strewn hill became the anchor of the Union’s left flank and a focal point of Confederate attacks on the afternoon of July 2, 1863.  The 4^th,15^{th and 47th} Alabama regiments made a series of legendary assaults against the 20^th Maine, led by Col. Joshua Chamberlain (right).    

“The (Maine) regiment’s sudden, desperate bayonet charge blunted the Confederate assault on Little Round Top and has been credited with saving Major General George Gordon Meade’s Army of the Potomac, winning the Battle of Gettysburg and setting the South on a long, irreversible path to defeat,” according to the American BattlefieldTrust. 

Maine's official state ballad honors the 20th Maine and the bad-ass color bearer who rallied them at Little Round Top

A song told from the point of a view of a color bearer who rallied a regiment that famously saved the Union’s left at Gettysburg has been designated the official state ballad of Maine.

The Portland folk band The Ghost of Paul Revere performed “Ballad of the 20^th Maine” on Friday during bill-signing ceremonies led by Gov. Janet Mills.

Sgt. Andrew J. Tozier of the 20^th’s Company I received the Medal of Honor in 1898, 35 years after the battle. His citation reads: “At the crisis of the engagement this soldier, a color bearer, stood alone in an advanced position, the regiment having been borne back, and defended his colors with musket and ammunition picked up at his feet.”

The song lyrics include this verse:

If we should die today, dream a dream of heaven 
Take your northern heart with you to the grave 
Be proud and true you are a union soldier 
Stand fast, ye are the boys of Maine

On July 2, 1863, the 15^th Alabama made its way to Little Round Top and made a series of legendary assaults against the 20^th Maine, led by Col. Joshua Chamberlain.

The family of Andrew J. Tozier; his son is second from right, top (Wikipedia)

Tozier, 25, was with the 2^nd Maine Infantry, and been wounded and made prisoner in 1862. He returned to service and eventually was transferred to the 20^th Maine.

The 2nd Maine was pressed into service with Chamberlain’s unit at Gettysburg. That’s because the unit had been disbanded and those who were not able to go home did not want to fly under another flag.

Chamberlain

According to the American Battlefield Trust: “Color sergeant was a dangerous but coveted position in Civil War regiments, generally manned by the bravest soldier in the unit. As the 20th Maine’s center began to break and give ground in the face of the Alabama regiments’ onslaught, Tozier stood firm, remaining upright as Southern bullets buzzed and snapped in the air around him. Tozier’s personal gallantry in defending the 20th Maine’s colors became the regimental rallying point for Companies D, E and F to retake the center. Were it not for Tozier’s heroic stand, the 20th Maine would likely have been beaten at that decisive point in the battle.”

The Trust article said a desperate bayonet charge that followed blunted the Confederate assault on Little Round Top and saved the Army of the Potomac, which went on to win the battle and the war.

The Ghost of Paul Revere performed its song during the ceremony. The lyrics include these verses:

Well, our western flank was missing 
As the Confederates pushed on 
And we fought them tooth and nail 
Our ammunition all but gone 
Alone I stood with colors 
Flying proud and true 
For to let my northern brothers know 
the battle was not through 

Then appeared our lion roaring bayonets 
Charging down the mountain with what soldiers we had left 
We were steadfast as Katahdin, hard as winters rain 
Take that rebel yell with you to hell 
We are the 20th Maine 

The ballad was written by band member Griffin Sherry because he’s a history buff and has interest in the 20^th Maine, according to the Press-Telegram newspaper. Tozier died in 1910 at age 72.

View from Little Round Top, with statue of Brig. Gen. Gouverneur Warren (NPS)

Maine already has a separate state song and state march. Apparently, not all legislators favored the selection, according to reports, with two Republican lawmakers saying the song may be unfair to the Confederate cause.

“Music transcends the bounds of time, distance, language, and culture to bring people together,” Mills said of the state ballad. “The ‘Ballad of the 20th Maine’ does just that by reminding us of our proud heritage, the role our great state has played in the history of our nation, and to be forever grateful to those who served and saved our country.”

This post has been updated to correct errors on Tozier's birthplace and the family photo.

Prescribed burn at Gettysburg to cover area of Confederate advance on Little Round Top, doomed Federal cavalry charge

Phase 1 of the prescribed fire was this one in April 2018 (NPS)

A field crossed by the 15^th Alabama as it made its way toward Little Round Top, where it made a series of legendary assaults against the 20^th Maine, will be part of an upcoming 117-acre prescribed burn at Gettysburg National Military Park.

The fire, on portions of land between Slyder Lane and South Confederate Avenue, will occur some time this month, on a day that meets proper weather conditions.

Prescribed fires are among the tools that national parks at Civil War sites use “to maintain the conditions of the battlefield as experienced by the soldiers who fought here,” and to control invasive species, reduce fire hazards and maintain wildlife habitat.

Park historian John Heiser told the Picket that the land was in agriculture use in 1863 and open, with few trees or bushes. “We know there were burials on the Slyder Farm, most being from Benning's and Law's Brigades, around or near the buildings and removed between 1871-1872.”

Area of planned prescribed fire (NPS)

Heiser gave a description of the historical significance of the burn area in an email:

“The bulk of the area is the historic John Slyder farm and the adjoining farm of Michael Bushman. Both were first occupied by the 2nd US Sharp Shooters, deployed to cover the front of the Union Third Corps, which had moved out from Cemetery Ridge around 1 p.m. of July 2, 1863. The Sharp Shooters contested the advance of both Law's and Robertson's brigades from Hood's Division on July 2 before withdrawing to Big Round Top and beyond. The burn area was subsequently crossed over by Law's Alabama Brigade, including the 15th and 4th Alabama Regiments, that would both advance up the side of Big Round Top before descending into the saddle between it and Little Round Top to do battle with Vincent's Federal brigade.”

View from Little Round Top shows burn area in far left distance (NPS)

The 4^th, 15^th and 47^th Alabama are remembered for their attacks against the 20^th Maine, led by Col. Joshua Chamberlain, on the end of the Federal army’s left flank.

“The (Maine) regiment’s sudden, desperate bayonet charge blunted the Confederate assault on Little Round Top and has been credited with saving Major General George Gordon Meade’s Army of the Potomac, winning the Battle of Gettysburg and setting the South on a long, irreversible path to defeat,” according to the American Battlefield Trust.

Slyder farm barn and building (NPS)

Heiser said the burn area also figured on the afternoon of next day, July 3, as the scene of Union Brig. Gen. Elon Farnsworth’s charge, which came after Pickett’s Charge. Farnsworth was ordered under protest to make a controversial attack against a large contingent of Confederate infantry.

“Leading the 1st West Virginia Cavalry and 1st Vermont Cavalry of his brigade, Farnsworth charged into the pasture south of the Bushman farm buildings. The 1st WV was repulsed by the 9th Georgia Infantry positioned on the southern extension of Seminary Ridge, but the Vermonters rode on, one battalion racing north into the rear of Hood's line and the other battalion under Farnsworth veered east and north where they ran into Robertson's Texans posted along the western base of Big Round Top.

Gen. Farnsworth

“The two battalions of the regiment met and reformed along the Slyder lane (the northern edge of the burn area) and from there headed south to return to the relative safety of Bushman's Hill, from where the charge had begun, but Farnworth's group ran into a hornet's nest on the edge of Big Round Top and the troopers scattered. Farnsworth was killed on the west side of the hill where the monument to the 1st Vermont Cavalry stands today. The refugees from his column made their way back across this field and rejoined the other battalion in the woods south of Bushman's Hill, where they rallied. “

On the day of the prescribed fire, South Confederate Avenue will be closed, said park spokesman Jason Martz. “A combination of lawn sprinklers, hoses, mowed lines, and fire engines will be used to create a buffer and fire break to protect monuments and other cultural resources in the burn area.”

Martz said crews had hoped to burn the entire 215-acre site in April 2018, but were only able to do the northern half before it persistently rained. "This year's planned prescribed fire is a continuation of last year's efforts and will complete what we started, with Mother Nature's help, of course."

At Gettysburg: Archaeologists will survey parts of Little Round Top, George Spangler farm

Little Round Top (NPS photo)

George Spangler farm (Courtesy of Gettysburg Foundation)

A National Park Service archaeological team at Gettysburg will survey Little Round Top’s western slope and the George Spangler farm to ensure historic features are protected during two projects.

The Little Round Top metal detector survey – taking place over the next several days – is in preparation of a 52-acre prescribed burn at Gettysburg National Military Park. The fire aims to reduce woody vegetation and maintain open fields and meadows.

The goal is to build on previous studies from Western states where the effects of fire on battlefields have been studied, the park said. Data will help the park protect archaeological resources.

Volunteers on the team will catalog each recovered item. Locations will be entered into a GIS system.

“Location is the critical element of battlefield archaeology that enables us to expand our understanding of a battle. When the project is complete and the map is compiled, the distribution of artifacts can show fields of fire, areas of engagement, and unit positions,” the park said in a news release. “All artifacts recovered during the project will be analyzed in a lab and returned to Gettysburg National Military Park.”

Historic view of Little Round Top (Library of Congress)

Little Round Top is the location of some of the most famous fighting of the battle. Rising 164 feet above the Plum Run Valley to the west, Little Round Top became the anchor of the Union’s left flank and a focal point of Confederate attacks on the afternoon of July 2, 1863.

Katie Lawhon, senior adviser at the Pennsylvania park, told the Picket that a cultural landscape report identifies two major historical time periods that are most likely to have archaeological deposits within the Little Round Top area: the pre-colonial period and the Battle of Gettysburg.

“An analysis of the topography of 52 pre-colonial archaeological sites in Adams County indicated that the landscape settings most associated with recorded archaeological sites included stream benches, lower hill slopes, floodplains, middle slopes and terraces that were located close to flowing water,” she said. Some parts of Little Round Top may have archaeological “potential,” despite disturbance from an electric railroad more than a century ago.

The team also will work at the George Spangler Farm Civil War Field Hospital site, where the Gettysburg Foundation is re-establishing an orchard. Officials want to protect archaeological resources at that part of the farm, which will open to visitors on June 9 for the summer season. The barn and smokehouse have been restored.

Well in Spangler summer kitchen (courtesy of Gettysburg Foundation)

Cindy Small, chief marketing officer with the foundation, told the Picket that an archaeologist has been on the site three times.

“In 2013, we were digging under the floor of the summer kitchen and we found an old well that we didn’t know existed. In 2014, we dug the basement of the house to supply fire suppression to the barn and we didn’t find anything. We also dug a trench from the house to the electric substation and nothing was found,” she said.

The Spangler farm was transformed “into a place of chaos and crisis” as the property was converted to a field hospital for the 2^nd Division of the Union 11^th Corps. It later became the main hospital for all units.

Confederate Brig. Gen. Lewis A. Armistead, who fell while leading troops during Pickett’s Charge, died of his wounds on July 5, 1863, in the farm’s summer kitchen.

The park reminds visitors they are not allowed to use metal detectors within its boundaries.