I visited the Gettysburg Vistor's Center for the second time on Friday. First, it's good to be a member of the "Friends of Gettysburg". They have a separate line for "Friends" members. I showed them my card and received a complimentary ticket to view the Film, Cyclorama, and Museum. The regular ticket price is $10.50.

I found the movie to be quite good. Who doesn't like to listen to Morgan Freeman talk? I thought the film handled the causes of the War in a fair and balanced manner. It pointed out that the North also benefitted from slavery and very few Northerners were in favor of equal rights for Black people. At the conclusion of the film, you are herded up to view the Cyclorama. The job that's been done to improve the viewer's perspective is outstanding. Problem is, you only get about ten minuted to view the painting.

The Vistor's Center has made an excellent decision. Anybody with a ticket is allowed back in the Cyclorama after 6:00 PM. You are allowed to view the painting until closing time at 7:00 PM. There were a couple of guides available to discuss the painting during this late viewing period. My return visit was very enjoyable. Far better than the earlier rush through.

The interpretive museum has already been discussed at length. It's not for people like us, who know something about the period. It's designed for the tourist; who knows little, or nothing, about the Civil War, or it's causes. Most of the artifacts were identified, which was a major improvement from my earlier visit. My biggest complaint, were the various repops on display, that were not identified as such. I miss the hell out of the old museum, that allowed the artifacts to speak for themselves; but that's just me. The "regular" folks seemed to be enjoying themselves just fine!

I went to see the Cyclorama in February. During the "off" season, we were allowed to stay and look at the painting as long as we wanted.

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GrumpyDave wrote : I went to see the Cyclorama in February. During the "off" season, we were allowed to stay and look at the painting as long as we wanted.

Grumpy,

Did they leave the painting lit up? When I was viewing the painting after the movie, much of it was kept in the dark. They do a regular light show, starting with the sun coming up on July 3rd. Smoke, gun flashes, you name it. Very well done, but you can't see much of the painting.

Yes. "They" also bring all of the lights up so, you can see everything very well.

I was in G'burg two weekends ago with the 24th Michigan LH.  I didn't make it to the VC, but did ask a number of spectators what they thought of it.  It was pretty much unanimous that they liked it.

I've got no problem with the Powers-That-Be wanting to give an overview of the entire war, but it seems to me that, it being Gettysburg, they could also reserve some space and film time to concentrate upon that particular very important battle.

They could also realize that there's a percentage of their clientele that is more than just introductory level to the time period (reenactors or otherwise), and provide some occasionally-changed displays for the more serious visitor.

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flattop32355 wrote : They could also realize that there's a percentage of their clientele that is more than just introductory level to the time period (reenactors or otherwise), and provide some occasionally-changed displays for the more serious visitor.

Bernie,

Truth be told, I don't think they care about the serious student of the period. After all, this place is called the "Vistors Center", not museum. They are interested in giving the average vistor an overview of the battle and a context of the period, nothing more. Last Friday, I spent about a hour and a half in the Vistors Center. I then spent two hours in Devil's Den, the Triangular Field and the Valley of Death. I'm still trying to figure out exactly how my unit, the 4th. Texas, got in position to attack Grumpy's unit, the 83rd. PA on Little Round Top. Meanwhile, the kids were having a great time climbing on the rocks in Devil's Den. People like us ain't exactly the usual vistor to Gettysburg.  

  Hallo!

 Herr Bill...

 Now with the deforestation of the base of Big Round Top, one can follow the advance of the 4th Texas around the Den, across Plum Run, and make one's way through the bolders to the furthest advance at the flat "plateau" on the side-front of Little Round Top.

 

 Sunday I was at the "Liberty Memorial"  aka "National WWI Musuem" that opened up last year in Kansas City, Mo.

 And yes, it is the same "modern museum display theory" as the new G-burg visitors' center.
 Or to be brief, lots of open and empty spaces, ceiling high panels of facts, things to read, charts, posters, and repeating video TV screens (I liked the 1918 silent movie "Tarzan" the best with Elmo Lincoln).   A nice life size trench diorama was used below a three screen WWI history movie (currently politically correct with Black soldiers being featured several times, etc..)
 And some artifacts.  Out of 45,000 in the "collection,"  8,000 are on display. (one cartridge counts as one artifact, so a "clip" of five bullets equals five).

 I have more WWI German stuff in my collection than they have on display.

 Not a complaint or a whine, just as lads post here and on other boards,  "we" are not the "ones" targeted by the display concept(s).
 
 But as with G-Burg, the difference is, I have spent thousands of dollars on books at the old G-burg VC over 40 visits.  But the WWI musuem, like the new G-burg VC, has collected, and will collect just one admission fare from me.

 Others' mileage will vary...

 (I really liked Pea Ridge, but not the visitor's center.  ;))

 Curt
 Dinosuar and Relic of a Past Age Mess

Curt,

Some few years ago before Katrina visited this area my son was working on a masters degree.  One of the graduate students in a class he taking happened to be a docent at the WWII museum in New Orleans.  This fellow arranged a tour for the class.  My son was thoughtful enough to get permission for me to tag alone.  The young docent/student made arrangements with the museum staff for this graduate class to be taken into the vault (which was one whole floor of the place) where weaponry that has been cataloged but not put on display was stored.  We were allowed to handle any of those items we wished.  That hour spent in their weapons storage facility was a much better treat than the museum itself.

After the museum tour the graduate students were taken to a warehouse across the street from the museum and allowed to climb around on, over, and into a Sherman tank that was being prepared for a museum display.  They enjoyed that

I have not been to the new Gettysburg facility.  One of my friends, who is not a Civil War buff at all, recently returned from Gettysburg.  He liked what he saw at that visitors center.  From what has been read, the Gettysburg Visitors Center must have been designed for people like him.  

--Last edited by Curtis Makamson on 2009-08-14 08:09:00 --

  Hallo!

  Yes, when one gains access to the "vault goodies" it can be a wonderful experience.
  Over the years, I fondly recall the Museum of the Confederacy, the Smithsonian, and even the old Gettysburg Visitors' Center allowing us to fondle stuff.

   And even the odd, unexpected reosurces such as the West Virginia state archives where I examined stuff attributed to George Washington, Daniel Boone, Thomas Jefferson, George Rogers Clark, and other 18th century folk.

  Small museums and collections/collectors used to be more "open" and "friendly," until they realized that Black Market
contract or general sales were seeing thieves scouting out items and security under the guise of "history" and then coming back to steal the items.

  Last week I was at the Prairie Grove, Arkansas battlefield with their early 1970's visitors' center which seemed to simply "rehouse" what appeared to be a small 1940's or 1950's era collection that had hand-painted signs and labels that was sometimes wrong.  Such as the Model 1858 Remington Musket, .69 caliber for a Remington Maynard alteration of an M1822, or the
Model 1861 Enfield .58 caliber for the P1853 Enfield, 3rd Model, etc.

 Sometimes things are not just how "cutting edge" or "modern" a museum display is, but simple bottom-line economics.  Meaning, aside from the "message being the medium," and the "medium being message," there can be the financial necessity of appealing to and attracting millions of new tourists and family vacationers versus the few thousands of reenactors or living historians.

 Curt
 

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Curt Schmidt wrote :   Hallo!  Herr Bill...  Now with the deforestation of the base of Big Round Top, one can follow the advance of the 4th Texas around the Den, across Plum Run, and make one's way through the bolders to the furthest advance at the flat "plateau" on the side-front of Little Round Top.

Curt,

The Park Service cleared the valley between Big Round Top and Devil's Den two or three years ago. In that time, the area has become overgrown with heavy brush, some almost head high. Many of the rock formations are completly hidden again. I was trying to place some period photos by comparing the rocks. No such luck.  

The Park needs to buy buy a few goats!

I hiked up the Round Tops and Devils Den a week and a half ago and they were pretty overgrown. I didn't mind, but you had to stretch you imagination to picture what the boys saw.