GETTYSBURG, Pa. — Andrew Dalton had a pretty crazy goal back in 2019, when he became the 23-year-old executive director of the Adams County Historical Society in this small town known for its pivotal Civil War battle. He wanted to open a new museum with a multimillion-dollar price tag.
Thanks in part to documentary filmmaker Ken Burns, whose award-winning, nine-episode series “The Civil War” is one of PBS’ most-watched shows, he actually achieved it.
Dalton was worried that the vast number of diaries, photos, letters and other artifacts the historical group had collected were at risk. So he pushed — pretty hard for a guy new to the job — for a new state-of-the-art facility to replace the tiny nonprofit’s leased location on the Lutheran Theological Seminary campus.
The 1883 Wolf House was too small hold the society’s 1 million-plus collection of items, most of which were stored in crates in a nearby warehouse. The facility also lacked proper fire safety and climate controls.
Without exhibit space or classrooms for educational programming, the historical society was failing its mission of promoting the preservation of Gettysburg’s remarkable history. Dalton, who grew up in Gettysburg and attended college there, “saw the potential and the appeal of our cause and was surprised that the project hadn't already happened.”
In December 2020, after winning his board’s approval, Dalton kicked off a capital campaign with help from Burns, who recorded a video urging people to support the project. And the money started pouring in.
Less than three years later, Dalton’s dream is a reality. On April 15, with more than $12 million raised, the 5,000-square-foot Gettysburg Beyond the Battle Museum will open to the public.
The 29,000-square-foot facility on Biglerville Road has 12 galleries exhibiting around 1,000 of Gettysburg’s rarest artifacts and a 140-seat event center overlooking a part of the battlefield known as Barlow's Knoll. The museum also has a classroom for small groups and extensive archives for genealogical and historical research on the second floor.
“It was daunting, but I told our board I would try it for as long as I thought I was making progress,” said Dalton, now 26.
‘Beautifully told story’
What made the job easier was that much of the money was raised from people outside the community. Among those lending support are actor Stephen Lang, who narrated five short films for the museum, novelist Jeff Shaara and Susan Eisenhower, granddaughter of President Dwight Eisenhower.
“It’s exciting to see what we thought of come to fruition,” said historical society vice chair Heidi Gillis, one of about 150 people invited to a preview of the museum on Feb. 10. “We’re so well known for the Civil War.... Now we can highlight those who lived here and continue to live here and Adams County as a whole.”
For instance, did you know Adams County is one of the nation’s top producers of apples? “It’s just fascinating,” Gillis said.
Burns, in town for a weekend-long film festival dedicated solely to his work, was the guest of honor. Shaara and filmmaker Jake Boritt were there, too, to discuss their connection to Gettysburg and the new stories that need to be told.
“This place is spectacular,” Burns said, not just for its technological feats but because of its mastery of the story.
The people who lived in town before, during and after the Civil War are often overshadowed by the battle. With its collections of artifacts and engaging multimedia presentations, “it’s a beautifully told story,” Burns said.
“There’s emotion to it,” agreed Boritt. While you learn a lot from walking Gettysburg’s battlefields, “this adds a richness that is so much deeper.”
For the people
The pandemic forced museums across the country to temporarily cease operations in 2020-21, so no one knew how it would affect fundraising for a new museum. Dalton ended up not only meeting his initial goal of $5 million but more than doubling it. The commonwealth provided a $2.8 million grant under Gov. Tom Wolf.
Dalton had countless face-to-face meetings with people with connections to Gettysburg and with tourists. “I’d try to network and find these people, and bring them into the fold.”
Cynthia Salisbury and her husband, David, were early supporters. They have a long family history in Gettysburg — her great-great grandmother, Lydia Ziegler, lived on the battlefield during the war. She was impressed with Dalton’s dedication. “He has been working for so long.”
Also, as secretary of the Adams County Community Foundation, Salisbury said helping fund the museum created “a real sense of pride.”
Millions of people have visited the Civil War battlefields since the Gettysburg National Military Park was established in 1895. In fact, some started showing up immediately after the 1863 conflict to sell relics and maps.
The 1993 movie “Gettysburg” and the Pulitzer Prize-winning book it was based on, “The Killer Angels” by Michael Shaara, only added to its appeal for tourists.
Many visitors are enthralled by battles and the men who led them. What many of them don’t think about, said Dalton, is what war does to a community and the people caught in the middle.
“Hopefully the museum will help people understand and emphasize with that,” he said.
The toll was huge: Gettysburg was a small farming community of about 2,400 when more than 150,000 soldiers collided at its crossroads. The townspeople saw their homes and farms destroyed by bullets and cannonballs, then taken over by Confederate soldiers or turned into field hospitals.
Residents also had the gruesome task of helping to bury bodies — in various stages of decomposition — in mass graves after troops left. Historians say people carried around bottles of peppermint oil and pennyroyal to mask the stench.
“A lot of people come here and get bogged down in strategy and generals,” Dalton said, “but I talk to so many people where that doesn’t resonate. They want the human interest stories, and to hear about real people.”
Prehistoric Pa. to today
The first new Civil War museum here in a decade, Gettysburg Beyond the Battle was designed by HealyKohler Design, the Washington, D.C., firm behind the Museum of the American Revolution in Philadelphia. It took Dalton and others more than a year to winnow down Adams County’s collection to “the best and most interesting items” to tell a story that stretches back not just to the 1800s but also prehistoric times. Some items were newly discovered when unpacking the boxes in storage.
In creating the space, “we wanted it to be immersive so people could live it,” said design principal Terence Healy. That meant video and audio along with text and images to bring out the various personalities.
One of the most riveting stories is told in the immersive exhibit “Caught in the Crossfire.” It places visitors inside a reconstructed Gettysburg home as it is being overrun by invading forces. As family members hiding in the basement ponder what to do (Shaara wrote the script), the floors shake while the sound of bullets flying, breaking glass and exploding cannonballs fills the air. It’s both frightening and fascinating.
Other exhibits explore the rock formations that created “Devil’s Den” 200 million years ago, the lives of Gettysburg’s Indigenous communities, and stories of murder and captivity on the frontier. Visitors take a seat in Samuel Gettys’ 18th-century tavern and explore local ties to abolitionist Thaddeus Stevens. One exhibit focuses on Mag Palm, a Black resident who gained notoriety for battling bounty hunters.
“The Black community in Gettysburg has never been highlighted in the way it should be,” said Dalton. “Being so close to the Mason-Dixon Line, there were many incidences of slave catchers coming into town to capture them.”
In another exhibit, eyewitnesses discuss Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address. The museum also explores more contemporary history with Eisenhower artifacts, scripts from the movie “Gettysburg” and a “Lasting Legacy” film.
The hardest part of the two-year process, Healy said, was working within a budget that kept changing as Dalton raised more money.
Dalton admitted he never could have imagined going from its original small space to a full-sized museum, with space for everything the society has amassed, and continues to amass at the rate of 100 or so objects a year.
“We’re still awestruck by having the collection in a nice building,” he said.
“We have a responsibility to protect everyone’s story,” he said. “This is a perspective people want.”
IF YOU GO:
Where: Gettysburg Beyond the Battle Museum is at 625 Biglerville Road, Gettysburg, about 2½ miles north of Gettysburg National Military Park Museum and Visitor Center. Beginning April 15, it will be open Thursday-Monday from 10 a.m.-5 p.m., excluding major holidays; other days and times by request. Admission is $15 for adults, $10/grades K-12 and $14/seniors; active duty military are free. More information: achs-pa.org or 717-334-4723. It’s about a 3½-hour drive from Pittsburgh, with free parking.
Before/After: Gettysburg has accommodations for every budget. If you love history, the Gettysburg Hotel in the heart of downtown dates to 1797; the newly remodeled Union Hotel near Lincoln Square offers modern conveniences in a bed-and-breakfast atmosphere. There also are several chain hotels, many within easy walking distance of restaurants, shops and attractions. Dining spots include Mela Kitchen, Garryowen Irish Pub, Dobbin House Tavern, Gettysburger Co., Food 101 and the Abraham Lincoln-themed Fourscore Beer Co.
Note: There is no street parking after midnight in downtown Gettysburg, but you can park overnight in a garage for $12.
Gretchen McKay: gmckay@post-gazette.com, 412-263-1419 or on Twitter @gtmckay.
First Published: February 16, 2023, 11:00 a.m.
