Gettysburg College is a private four-year
liberal arts collegeLiberal arts colleges in the United States are undergraduate institutions of higher education in the United States. The Encyclopædia Britannica Concise offers the following definition of the liberal arts as a "college or university curriculum aimed at imparting general knowledge and developing...
founded in 1832, in
Gettysburg, PennsylvaniaGettysburg is a borough in and the county seat of Adams County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 7,490 at the 2000 census.Although known primarily as an attraction because of its proximity to the Gettysburg Battlefield, site of the Battle of Gettysburg, the borough is also known for...
, adjacent to the famous
battlefieldThe Gettysburg Battlefield was the site of the Battle of Gettysburg, fought July 1–3, 1863, in and around the borough of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, the county seat of Adams County, which had approximately 2,400 residents at the time. It is now the site of two Federally owned and administered...
. Its athletic teams are nicknamed the Bullets. Gettysburg College has about 2,600 students, with roughly equal numbers of men and women. Gettysburg students come from 40 states and 35 countries.
The college is the home of
The Gettysburg ReviewThe Gettysburg Review is a quarterly literary magazine featuring short stories, poetry, essays and reviews. Work appearing in the magazine often is reprinted in "best-of" anthologies and receives awards....
, a literary magazine.
History
Founding and early roots
Gettysburg College was founded in 1832 as a sister institution for the
Lutheran Theological SeminaryThe Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, is affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and is a member of the Washington Theological Consortium....
. Both owe their inception to
Thaddeus StevensThaddeus Stevens , of Pennsylvania, was a Republican leader and one of the most powerful members of the United States House of Representatives...
, a Radical Republican and
abolitionistAbolitionism was a movement to end the slave trade and emancipate slaves in western Europe and the Americas. The slave system aroused little protest until the 18th century, when rationalist thinkers of the Enlightenment criticized it for violating the rights of man, and Quaker and other evangelical...
from Gettysburg. The college's original name was Pennsylvania College; it was founded by
Samuel Simon SchmuckerSamuel Simon Schmucker was a German-American Lutheran pastor and theologian. He was integral to the founding of the Lutheran church body known as the General Synod, as well as the oldest continuously-operating Lutheran seminary and college in North America .Later in his career, Schmucker became a...
. Seven years after Gettysburg College was first founded, it established a medical school, which was located in
PhiladelphiaPhiladelphia is the largest city in Pennsylvania and the sixth-most-populous city in the United States.In 2008, the population of the city proper was estimated to be over 1.4 million, while the metropolitan area's population of 5.8 million made it the country's fifth-largest...
. The college was forced to close the medical school in 1861, when southern students withdrew, leaving it without adequate revenue.
Battle of Gettysburg
In June 1863, southern Pennsylvania was invaded by
ConfederateThe Confederate States Army was the army of the Confederate States of America during its brief existence from 1861 to 1865. It was established in two phases with provisional and permanent organizations, which existed concurrently....
forces during the
Gettysburg CampaignThe Gettysburg Campaign was a series of battles fought in June and July 1863, during the American Civil War. After his victory in the Battle of Chancellorsville, Confederate General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia moved north for offensive operations in Maryland and Pennsylvania. The...
. Many local
militiaThe term militia is commonly used today to refer to a military force composed of ordinary citizens to provide defense, emergency law enforcement, or paramilitary service, in times of emergency without being paid a regular salary or committed to a fixed term of service. It is a polyseme with...
forces sprung up around the area between
ChambersburgChambersburg is a borough in the South Central region of Pennsylvania, United States. It is miles north of Maryland and the Mason-Dixon line and southwest of Harrisburg in the Cumberland Valley, which is part of the Great Appalachian Valley. Chambersburg is the county seat of Franklin County...
and
PhiladelphiaPhiladelphia is the largest city in Pennsylvania and the sixth-most-populous city in the United States.In 2008, the population of the city proper was estimated to be over 1.4 million, while the metropolitan area's population of 5.8 million made it the country's fifth-largest...
to face the oncoming foe.
Among these units was Gettysburg's 26th Pennsylvania Emergency Militia Regiment (PEMR). Composed mostly of students from the College and Seminary, the 26th PEMR was mustered into service on June 22, 1863. Four days later, the students would see combat just north of town, skirmishing with troops of Confederate
divisionA division is a large military unit or formation usually consisting of between ten to thirty thousand soldiers. In most armies, a division is composed of several regiments or brigades, and in turn several divisions make up a corps...
commander
Jubal A. EarlyJubal Anderson Early was a lawyer and Confederate general in the American Civil War. He served under Stonewall Jackson and then Robert E. Lee for almost the entire war, rising from regimental command to lieutenant general and the command of an infantry corps in the Army of Northern Virginia...
. Neither side suffered heavy casualties, although about one hundred of the militiamen were captured.
During the
Battle of GettysburgThe Battle of Gettysburg , fought in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, as part of the Gettysburg Campaign, was the battle with the largest number of casualties in the American Civil War and is often described as the war's turning point. Union Maj. Gen. George Gordon Meade's Army of...
,
Pennsylvania HallPennsylvania Hall, also known as Old Dorm, is the central administrative building of Gettysburg College. Constructed in 1838, it is the college's oldest building. During the Battle of Gettysburg in July 1863, Pennsylvania Hall was used as a hospital for wounded troops of the Union and Confederate...
, or Old Dorm, was used as both a
signal corpsThe United States Army Signal Corps develops, tests, provides, and manages communications and information systems support for the command and control of combined arms forces. It was founded in 1860 by United States Army Major Albert J. Myer, a physician by training, and has had an important role...
station and
field hospitalA field hospital is a large mobile medical unit that temporarily takes care of casualties on-site before they can be safely transported to more permanent hospital facilities...
. Penn Hall is an interesting anomaly in the battle. Due to the geographic position it held, it was used by both Confederate and
UnionThe Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...
troops during the battle for signal work and surgery.
On November 19, 1863, College President
Henry Louis BaugherHenry Louis Baugher was an American Lutheran clergyman and academic. He was President of Gettysburg College from 1850 until 1868.-Background:...
gave the benediction at the ceremony opening the National Soldiers’ Cemetery at Gettysburg; speaking after
Abraham LincolnAbraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through its greatest internal crisis, the American Civil War, preserving the Union and ending slavery...
. Henry Baugher was the president of Gettysburg College from 1850 until his death in 1868.
Relationship with the Eisenhowers
Early in his military career,
Dwight D. EisenhowerDwight David "Ike" Eisenhower was a five-star general in the United States Army and the 34th President of the United States, from 1953 until 1961. During the Second World War, he served as Supreme Commander of the Allied forces in Europe, with responsibility for planning and supervising the...
and his wife,
MamieMamie Geneva Doud-Eisenhower was the wife of President Dwight D. Eisenhower, and First Lady of the United States from 1953 to 1961.-Early life:...
, lived in a house in Gettysburg that was near the college. Both were fond of the town, so they decided, after World War II, to retire to a working farm adjacent to the battlefield. It was here that President Eisenhower recuperated from his 1955 heart attack.
While living in Gettysburg, Eisenhower became involved with Gettysburg College. He served on the Gettysburg College
Board of TrusteesTrustee is a legal term for a holder of property on behalf of a beneficiary. A trust can be set up either to benefit particular persons, or for any charitable purposes : typical examples are a will trust for the testator's children and family, a pension trust , and a charitable trust...
, and he was given an office by the college, which he used when writing his memoirs. Today, Eisenhower’s old office is named Eisenhower House” and houses Gettysburg College’s office of admissions.
http://www.higheredjobs.com/InstitutionProfile.cfm?ProfileID=15666 Meanwhile, Eisenhower’s grandson,
DavidDwight David Eisenhower II is an American author, public policy fellow, and namesake of the U.S. Presidential retreat, Camp David. He is the grandson of the 34th President of the United States, Dwight D. Eisenhower, and the son-in-law of the 37th President of the United States Richard M...
, and his granddaughter
SusanSusan Elaine Eisenhower is a consultant, author, and expert on international security and relations between the Russian Federation and the United States of America. She is the daughter of John Eisenhower, and the granddaughter of President Dwight Eisenhower...
continue a certain level of family involvement with the institution.
Campus
The college is located on a 200 acre (800,000 m²) campus adjacent to the Gettysburg National Military Park. Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, is 36 miles (60 km) from
HarrisburgHarrisburg is the capital of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, in the United States of America. As of the 2000 census, the city had a population of 48,950, making it the tenth largest city in Pennsylvania, after Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Allentown, Erie, Reading, Scranton, Bethlehem, Lancaster, and...
, 55 miles (80 km) from
BaltimoreBaltimore is an independent city and the largest city in the state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore City in order to distinguish it from surrounding...
, 80 miles (130 km) from
Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C. , formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States, founded on July 16, 1790...
, 117 miles (190 km) from Philadelphia, and 212 miles (340 km) from
New York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States, and the center of the New York metropolitan area, which is among the most populous urban areas in the world. A leading global city, New York exerts a powerful influence over worldwide commerce, finance, culture, fashion and entertainment...
, and 425 miles (680 km) from Boston.
The college's main campus is roughly divided in half by
Pennsylvania HallPennsylvania Hall, also known as Old Dorm, is the central administrative building of Gettysburg College. Constructed in 1838, it is the college's oldest building. During the Battle of Gettysburg in July 1863, Pennsylvania Hall was used as a hospital for wounded troops of the Union and Confederate...
(administration). The northern half contains Plank Gym, Masters Hall (physics and astronomy), Musselman Library, the College Union Building, the College Dining Center, Briedenbaugh Hall (English), and several freshman dorms and fraternities. A section of this part of campus—known as "Stine Lake," is not actually a lake, but rather a quad located outside of the library. Prior to Musselman Library being built in the late 1970s, and due to Gettysburg's wet climate and drainage issues, the quad and library site would be prone to accumulating water, creating a large, muddy "lake" of sorts. Today, however, Stine Lake does not flood, but the name has stuck, to the confusion of first-year students. Additionally, the College Dining Center is known to students and faculty as "Servo," after a now defunct 1980s food service company, Servomation.
The southern half of the main campus includes McKnight Hall (languages), Glatfelter Hall (economics, managmenent, political science, mathematics, and others), Schmucker Hall (art and music), Kline Theater, and several fraternities. Over the last half-century, the campus has expanded considerably to include land to the east of North Washington Street and to the west of the traditional campus. Since approximately 96% of students live on campus, most of this additional land is dedicated to housing. It also includes the college chapel, the admissions building, a large gymnasium and field house complex, and several athletics fields. The college has also purchased or leased a large number of buildings for student housing, including residences on Washington Street, Carlisle Street, Middle Street, Stratton Street, and others.
Academic Facilities
Library
Musselman Library houses the college collection of books, journals, videos, sound recordings, online publications, rare books, manuscripts, and digital collections. An online catalog, MUSCAT, provides a gateway to all library materials and is accessible through any computer terminal connected to the college network. In addition, the building contains a media theatre, computer lab, and media production center. Musselman Library is open around the clock when classes are in session. The library operates 24 hours a day on weekdays and selected hours during the weekends. In order to help facilitate late night studying, the library provides free coffee, tea, and hot chocolate at midnight to patrons who bring their own mugs.
Technology
Full network capabilities in all campus buildings and each residence hall room. Students have access to more than 1,300 computers and a complex system of workstations and laboratories.
WirelessWireless communication is the transfer of information over a distance without the use of electrical conductors or "wires". The distances involved may be short or long . When the context is clear, the term is often shortened to "wireless"...
connectivity is available across 97% of the campus (the other 3% being the practice fields) and in all of the residence halls.
Organization
As an independent institution, the college operates under a charter granted in 1832 by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The College is governed by a 39-member board of trustees comprising leaders from a range of professions and walks of life. Thirty of the College’s trustees are graduates of Gettysburg.
On the student level, adjudication of academic disputes takes place through an Honor Commission, which holds hearings in which students are given a chance to have their say on charges brought against them.
The Academic
Honor CodeAn honor code or honor system is a set of rules or principles governing a community based on a set of rules or ideals that define what constitutes honorable behavior within that community. The use of an honor code depends on the idea that people can be trusted to act honorably...
has been in effect since 1957, and recently has been updated to fit better with today's technology.
Academic Programs
Majors:
- Anthropology, Art History, Art Studio, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Biology, Chemistry, Classical Studies, Computer Science, Economics, English, Environmental Studies, French, German, Globalization Studies, Greek, Health and Exercise Sciences, History, International Relations and Affairs, Japanese Studies, Latin, Management, Mathematics, Music, Music Education, Music Performance, Philosophy, Physics, Political Science, Psychology, Religion, Sociology, Spanish, Spanish & Latin American Studies, Theatre, Women Gender & Sexuality Studies
Special Interest Programs (Minors):
- African American Studies, American Studies, Asian Studies, Civil War Era Studies, Comparative Literature, East Asian Studies, Education (elementary and secondary, with certification), Global/Area Studies, International Affairs Concentration, Law, Ethics, and Society, Neuroscience, Writing, Film Studies, Peace and Justice Studies
Greek Organizations
Fraternities:
Alpha Chi RhoAlpha Chi Rho is a men's collegiate fraternity founded on June 4, 1895 at Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut by the Reverend Paul Ziegler, his son Carl Ziegler, and Carl's friends William Rouse, Herbert T. Sherriff and William A.D. Eardeley. It is a charter member of the North-American...
(AXP, "Crow"),
Alpha Tau OmegaATΩ is an American Leadership fraternity that annually ranks among the top ten national fraternities for number of chapters, and total number of members. ATO has more than 250 active and inactive chapters with more than 200,000 members and more than 6,500 active undergraduate members...
(ATO),
Lambda Chi AlphaLambda Chi Alpha is one of the largest men's general fraternities in North America, by its own count, having initiated more than 270,000 members and held chapters at more than 300 universities. It is a member of the North-American Interfraternity Conference and was founded by Warren A. Cole,...
(Lambda Chi),
Phi Delta ThetaPhi Delta Theta is an international fraternity founded at Miami University in 1848 and headquartered in Oxford, Ohio. Phi Delta Theta, Beta Theta Pi, and Sigma Chi form the Miami Triad. The fraternity has about 160 active chapters and colonies in over 43 U.S. states and five Canadian provinces and...
(Phi Delt),
Phi Gamma DeltaPhi Gamma Delta is a collegiate social and secret fraternity with 108 chapters and 12 colonies across the United States and Canada. It was founded at Jefferson College, Pennsylvania in 1848 and its headquarters are located in Lexington, Kentucky, USA...
(FIJI),
Phi Kappa PsiPhi Kappa Psi Fraternity is an American collegiate fraternity.-History:Phi Kappa Psi was founded in 1852 in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania, on the campus of Jefferson College by William Henry Letterman and Charles Page Thomas Moore...
(Phi Psi),
Phi Sigma KappaPhi Sigma Kappa , colloquially known as Phi Sig, is a social fraternity devoted to three cardinal principles: the Promotion of Brotherhood, the Stimulation of Scholarship, and the Development of Character...
(Phi Sig),
Sigma Alpha EpsilonSigma Alpha Epsilon is a North American Greek-letter social college fraternity. Founded at the University of Alabama in 1856, it is the only fraternity founded in the Antebellum South still in operation...
(SAE),
Sigma ChiSigma Chi is one of the largest and oldest college Greek-letter social fraternities. Sigma Chi was founded on June 28, 1855 at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio when members split from Delta Kappa Epsilon. Sigma Chi has seven founding members: Benjamin Piatt Runkle, Thomas Cowan Bell, William Lewis...
(Sig Chi),
Sigma NuSigma Nu is an undergraduate social college fraternity with chapters in the United States and Canada. Sigma Nu was founded in 1869 by three cadets at the Virginia Military Institute in Lexington, Virginia...
(Sig Nu),
Tau Kappa EpsilonTau Kappa Epsilon is a college fraternity founded on January 10, 1899 at Illinois Wesleyan University with chapters in the USA, and Canada, and affiliation with a German fraternity system known as the Corps of the Weinheimer Senioren Convent...
(TKE),
Phi Beta SigmaPhi Beta Sigma is a predominantly African-American fraternity which was founded at Howard University in Washington, D.C. on January 9, 1914. by three young African-American male students. The founders A. Langston Taylor, Leonard F. Morse, and Charles I...
(PBS),
Alpha Phi AlphaAlpha Phi Alpha is the first intercollegiate fraternity established by African Americans. Founded on December 4, 1906, on the campus of Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, Alpha Phi Alpha has initiated over 185,000 men into the organization and has been open to men of all races since 1940...
(A Phi A),
Sororities:
Alpha Delta PiAlpha Delta Pi was founded May 15 1851 at Wesleyan College in Macon, Georgia making it the first female fraternal organization established. The Executive office for this sorority is located on Ponce de Leon Avenue in Atlanta, Georgia...
(ADPi),
Chi OmegaChi Omega is a women's fraternity and the largest member of the National Panhellenic Conference. Chi Omega boasts 174 active collegiate chapters and hundreds of alumnae chapters. The fraternity's headquarters is located in Memphis, Tennessee.- History :Chi Omega was founded April 5, 1895 at the...
(Chi O),
Delta GammaDelta Gamma is one of the oldest and largest women's fraternities in the United States and Canada, with its Executive Offices based in Columbus, Ohio.-History:...
(DG),
Gamma Phi BetaGamma Phi Beta is an international sorority that was founded on November 11, 1874, at Syracuse University in Syracuse, New York. The term "sorority," meaning sisterhood, was coined for Gamma Phi Beta by Dr. Frank Smalley, a professor at Syracuse University.The four founders are Helen M. Dodge,...
(Gamma Phi),
Sigma Sigma SigmaSigma Sigma Sigma , also known as Tri Sigma or Sigma, is a national American women’s sorority with membership of more than 100,000 members...
(Tri Sigma),
Sigma Gamma RhoSigma Gamma Rho was founded on the campus of Butler University on November 12, 1922, by seven school teachers in Indianapolis, Indiana...
(SGRho)
Service Fraternities: Alpha Phi OmegaAlpha Phi Omega is the largest collegiate fraternity in the United States, with chapters at over 350 campuses, an active membership of approximately 17,000 students, and over 350,000 alumni members...
Music Sorority
: Sigma Alpha IotaSigma Alpha Iota , International Music Fraternity. Formed to "uphold the highest ideals of a music education" and "to further the development of music in America", it continues to provide musical and educational resources to its members and the general public. Sigma Alpha Iota is a fraternity for...
(SAI)
Past Greek Organizations on Campus:
Alpha Xi DeltaAlpha Xi Delta was founded on April 17, 1893 by ten women at Lombard College, Galesburg, Illinois, who shared a vision of an organization dedicated to the personal growth of women. Alpha Xi Delta is one of the oldest women's fraternities as well as one of the ten founding fraternities of the...
,
Chi PhiThe Chi Phi ' Fraternity is an American college social fraternity that was established as the result of three separate organizations that each were known as Chi Phi. The oldest active organization that took part in the union was originally founded in 1824 at Princeton...
,
Kappa Delta RhoKappa Delta Rho is an American college social fraternity, with 77 chapters spread out over the United States, primarily in the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic regions. Kappa Delta Rho's open motto is Honor Super Omnia, or Honor Above All Things....
, Rho Beta (local),
Sigma KappaSigma Kappa is a sorority founded in 1874 at Colby College in Waterville, Maine. Sigma Kappa was founded by five women: Mary Caffrey Low Carver, Elizabeth Gorham Hoag, Ida Mabel Fuller Pierce, Frances Elliott Mann Hall and Louise Helen Coburn...
,
Theta ChiTheta Chi Fraternity is an international college fraternity. It was founded on April 10, 1856 as the Theta Chi Society, at Norwich University, Norwich, Vermont, U.S., and was the 21st of the 71 North-American Interfraternity Conference men's fraternities .-Founding and early years at Norwich:Theta...
, Phi Kappa Rho (local),
Phi Mu Alpha SinfoniaPhi Mu Alpha Sinfonia is an American collegiate social fraternity for men who wish to devote themselves to the advancement of music in America and who wish to associate with others who share that interest...
,
Zeta PsiThe Zeta Psi Fraternity of North America was founded June 1, 1847 as a social college fraternity. The organization now comprises about fifty active chapters and twenty-five inactive chapters, encompassing roughly twenty thousand brothers, and is a founding member of the North-American...
Student Media
"The Gettysburgian" (Campus Print Newspaper), "The Gburg Forum" (Campus Online Newspaper), Channel 34 Gburg TV (Campus Television Station), WZBT 91.1 (Campus Radio Station)
Students and Faculty
Nearly 2,600 students (approximately one-half men and one-half women), representing 40 states and 35 foreign countries attend the college.
The college employs 180 full-time faculty, with 95% of the permanent faculty holding a
doctorateA doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries represents the highest level of formal study or research in a given field. In some countries it also refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder to practice in a specific profession . The best-known example...
or highest earned degree in their fields. The faculty includes noted Lincoln scholar
Gabor S. BorittGabor S. Boritt is the Robert Fluhrer Professor of Civil War Studies and Director of the Civil War Institute at Gettysburg College. Born in World War II Hungary, he participated as a teenager in the 1956 revolution against the Soviet Union. He escaped to the United States, where he received his...
, and the first double-Lincoln Prize lauereate,
Allen Carl GuelzoAllen Carl Guelzo is the Henry R. Luce III Professor of the Civil War Era at Gettysburg College, where he serves as Director of the Civil War Era Studies Program.Guelzo was born in Yokohama, Japan...
, who directs the Civil War Era Studies program. The student/faculty ratio is 11:1, with an average class size of 18 students. The college hosts one of only 19 chapters of
Phi Beta KappaThe Phi Beta Kappa Society is an academic honor society with missions to "celebrate and advocate excellence in the liberal arts and sciences; and for induction of the most outstanding students of arts and sciences at America’s leading colleges and universities." Founded at The College of William...
in Pennsylvania.
Athletics
Twenty-four sports programs, for both men and women, participate in
NCAA Division IIIDivision III is a division of the National Collegiate Athletic Association of the United States.-Membership:The division consists of colleges and universities that choose not to offer athletically related financial aid to their student-athletes...
. Gettysburg has earned the distinction of having the best win/loss record in the
Centennial ConferenceThe Centennial Conference is an athletic conference which competes in the NCAA's Division III. Member teams are located in Maryland and Pennsylvania. Since 1981 the "Centennial Conference" has been considered one of the nation's elite small colleges athletic conference.- Conference Background...
for the past 12 years.
The college also offers an extensive array of club, intramural, and recreational programs. Twenty-five percent of Gettysburg's students participate in intercollegiate programs, which include twelve sports for men and twelve sports for women.
"Loyalty Song"
- Fair Gettysburg our Alma Mater, hear us praise thy name,
- We'll ever lend our hearts and hands to help increase thy fame.
- The honor of old Gettysburg calls forth our loyalty.
- So cheer (Rah! Rah!) old G'burg's Bullets on to victory!
However, another rendition exists with a few differences:
- Hail Gettysburg our Alma Mater, help us praise thy name.
- We'll ever lend our hearts and hands to help increase thy fame.
- The honor of old Gettysburg calls forth our loyalty,
- So cheer (Rah! Rah!) our G'burg Bullets on to fight for victory!
Civil War History activities
Due to its close relationship to a crucial battle in the
American Civil WarThe American Civil War , also known as the War Between the States and several other names, was a civil war in the United States of America. Eleven Southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America...
, Gettysburg College hosts a number of activities and awards:
- Pennsylvania Hall
Pennsylvania Hall, also known as Old Dorm, is the central administrative building of Gettysburg College. Constructed in 1838, it is the college's oldest building. During the Battle of Gettysburg in July 1863, Pennsylvania Hall was used as a hospital for wounded troops of the Union and Confederate...
, located in the center of campus, was occupied by both Union and Confederate forces during the Battle of GettysburgThe Battle of Gettysburg , fought in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, as part of the Gettysburg Campaign, was the battle with the largest number of casualties in the American Civil War and is often described as the war's turning point. Union Maj. Gen. George Gordon Meade's Army of...
. Today, a Civil WarThe American Civil War , also known as the War Between the States and several other names, was a civil war in the United States of America. Eleven Southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America...
era-style flag (for the year 1863) flies above the building, which was used as a lookout position and a field hospital during the battle.
- In 1982, professor and historian Gabor Boritt
Gabor S. Boritt is the Robert Fluhrer Professor of Civil War Studies and Director of the Civil War Institute at Gettysburg College. Born in World War II Hungary, he participated as a teenager in the 1956 revolution against the Soviet Union. He escaped to the United States, where he received his...
founded the Civil War InstituteThe Civil War Institute at Gettysburg College is a non-profit organization created to promote the study of the Civil War Era. The Institute was founded in 1982 by historian and Gettysburg College professor Gabor Boritt, an Abraham Lincoln and American Civil War scholar...
, which hosts annual seminars and tours on Civil War themes. Scholarships are granted to high school students and history teachers to attend the week-long summer event.
- Since 1998, the Gettysburg Semester, a semester-long immersion in Civil War academic study has been offered.
- Gettysburg College students may elect to pursue a unique interdisciplinary minor in Civil War Era Studies. Requirements include a general introduction course about the Civil War and a capstone senior-level seminar. Students must also select four classes of at least two disciplines. Some of the classes offered include (but are not limited to): military history, Economics of the American South, Civil War Literature, films about the Civil War, and Gender Ideology in the Civil War.
- The Lincoln Prize
The Lincoln Prize, endowed by Richard Gilder and Lewis Lehrman and administered by the Civil War Institute at Gettysburg College, has been awarded annually since 1991 for the best non-fiction historical work of the year on the American Civil War. It is named for U.S...
has been awarded annually since 1991 for the best non-fiction historical work of the year on the Civil War.
- Starting in 2005, the Michael Shaara
Michael Shaara was an American writer of science fiction, sports fiction, and historical fiction. He was born to Italian immigrant parents in Jersey City, New Jersey, graduated from Rutgers University in 1951, and served as a sergeant in the 82nd Airborne division...
Prize has been awarded for excellence in Civil War fiction. (Shaara was the author of the Pulitzer PrizeThe Pulitzer Prize is a U.S. award for achievements in newspaper journalism, literature and musical composition. It was established by Hungarian-American publisher Joseph Pulitzer and is administered by Columbia University in New York City....
-winning novel about the Battle of Gettysburg, The Killer AngelsThe Killer Angels is a historical novel by Michael Shaara that was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1975. The book tells the story of four days of the Battle of Gettysburg in the American Civil War: June 30, 1863, as the troops of both the Union and the Confederacy move into battle around...
.)
External links