The Gettysburg Museum and Visitor Center is a Gettysburg National Military Park facility, with a museum about the American Civil War, the 1884

Gettysburg Cyclorama ''The Battle of Gettysburg'', also known as the Gettysburg Cyclorama, is a cyclorama painting by the French artist Paul Philippoteaux depicting Pickett's Charge, the climactic Confederate attack on the Union forces during the Battle of Gettys ...

, and the tour center for licensed Battlefield Guides and for buses to see the

Gettysburg Battlefield The Gettysburg Battlefield is the area of the July 1–3, 1863, military engagements of the Battle of Gettysburg within and around the borough of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Locations of military engagements extend from the site of the first sho ...

and

Eisenhower National Historic Site Eisenhower National Historic Site preserves the home and farm of Dwight D. Eisenhower, the 34th President of the United States, and its surrounding property of . It is located in Cumberland Township, Adams County, Pennsylvania, just outside ...

. The museum displays artifacts including cannon, firearms, and uniforms, and includes an exhibit gallery and theater. Additional facilities are a "computer resource room", a bookstore with gifts, and a restaurant.

History

One of the first Gettysburg museums displayed the J Albertus Danner collection of artifacts in 1881. In 1894 the

was displayed in a tent at

The Angle The Angle (Bloody Angle colloq.) is a Gettysburg Battlefield area which includes the 1863 Copse of Trees used as the target landmark for Pickett's Charge, the 1892 monument that marks the high-water mark of the Confederacy, a rock wall, and sev ...

Groundbreaking for a building on

Cemetery Hill Cemetery Hill is a landform on the Gettysburg Battlefield that was the scene of fighting each day of the Battle of Gettysburg (July 1–3, 1863). The northernmost part of the Army of the Potomac defensive " fish-hook" line, the hill is gently ...

occurred in 1912. The 1888–1964

Round Top Museum The Round Top Museum was a Gettysburg Battlefield visitor attraction established by John H. Rosensteel in 1888 on the north foot of Little Round Top near the Round Top Station and northeast of the Wheatfield Road and Grand Central Avenue (now Sedg ...

, and the 1921–2008 Gettysburg National Museum were both acquired by the National Park Service after the 1963 battle anniversary. During the post-WWII increase of tourism, Mission 66 improvements for the NPS 50th anniversary included the construction of the modernist

Cyclorama Building at Gettysburg The Cyclorama Building at Gettysburg was a historic modernist concrete and glass Mission 66 building dedicated November 19, 1962 by the National Park Service (NPS) to serve as a Gettysburg Battlefield visitor center, to exhibit the 1883 Paul Phi ...

, designed by

Richard Neutra Richard Joseph Neutra ( ; April 8, 1892 – April 16, 1970) was an Austrian-American architect. Living and building for the majority of his career in Southern California, he came to be considered a prominent and important modernist architect. He ...

, as the first NPS visitor center for the battlefield. It opened in 1962. Plans in 1973 for a projected tourist increase included an Oak Ridge visitor center and an Eisenhower Parkway on the west. Neither was built, nor was an

Appalachian Trail The Appalachian Trail (also called the A.T.), is a hiking trail in the Eastern United States, extending almost between Springer Mountain in Georgia and Mount Katahdin in Maine, and passing through 14 states.Gailey, Chris (2006)"Appalachian T ...

spur to the battlefield considered in 1982. The Gettysburg National Museum became the visitor center in 1974. There were technology and sewer improvements in 1995.technology and sewer improvements
/ref> The building was demolished in 2008, after the new Gettysburg Museum and Visitor Center was completed. The new building now displays the restored

. The landmark 1962

Cyclorama Building Cyclorama Building may refer to: * Cyclorama Building (Boston), built in 1884 in Boston, Massachusetts * Atlanta Cyclorama & Civil War Museum, built in 1885 in Atlanta, Georgia * Cyclorama Building at Gettysburg, built in 1962 and demolished in ...

by Neutra was destroyed in February 2013.

Images

Image:15 23 0261 gettysburg address.jpg, Display of the

Gettysburg Address The Gettysburg Address is a speech that U.S. President Abraham Lincoln delivered during the American Civil War at the dedication of the Soldiers' National Cemetery, now known as Gettysburg National Cemetery, in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania on the ...

Image:Gettysburg2.JPG, Displays in the new gift shop.

References

*For references regarding the Background for tourist services, use the hyperlinks to the sub-pages (e.g.,

) to see specific citations.

External links

Gettysburg National Military Park Museum & Visitor Center (Gettysburg Foundation)
{{authority control American Civil War museums in Pennsylvania Gettysburg National Military Park History museums in Pennsylvania Museums in Adams County, Pennsylvania National Park Service visitor centers Museums established in 2008 2008 establishments in Pennsylvania