The picturesque Gettysburg Battlefield has long been memorialized as an iconic landscape of America's national identity. The tumultuous Civil War battle and Abraham Lincoln's subsequent address transformed the country in profound ways that continue to echo throughout the ages. In the aftermath of the struggle, Gettysburg National Military Park was embraced by citizens not only as a shrine of commemoration but also as a public space utilized for leisure, education, politics, and discovery. This compelling photographic history documents the park from the post-World War II era onward, chronicling the dramatic evolutions the battlefield has undergone in the wake of modern tourism. Exploring the fascinating issues of historical memory, preservation, and popular culture, the book paints a vivid picture of a national park at work for the benefit "of the people."
