Battlefield tree axing to resume at Gettysburg
In the 143 years since the Battle of Gettysburg, the landscape, according to documented studies, has changed drastically, mutated by the growth of new trees and changes in field sizes, as well as the gradual removal of fences, orchards and farm lanes.
Park Service spokeswoman Katie Lawhon says GNMP is bringing back the battle’s significant missing features.
“We don’t like using the word restoration,” explained Lawhon, Thursday morning. “We’re rehabilitating. So much has been lost over the years.”
Next week, crews will initiate a cut targeting a 50-acre parcel along West Confederate Avenue, stretching to the McMillan House. Tree thinning will extend to the area of the Gettysburg armory, and to the borough’s recreation park.
Over the past several years, the park has been cutting down similar non-historic woodlots, thinning ‘historic’ parcels, planting new orchards, replacing fences, replanting thickets, and restoring farm lands into hiking and horse trails.
The goal?
To restore the park’s terrain, fence lines and battlefield views as seen by battle participants to increase understanding of Civil War skirmishes as they unfolded in early July, 1863.
“We’re not just doing this exercise because we feel like we have nothing to do,” said Kathy Harrison, senior historian at GNMP. “Battlefield views are significant because of their strategical and tactical importance. But you lose the whole concept because of the trees in the way.”
As of July 12, GNMP had completed 147-acres worth of cuts involving ‘non-historic’ woodlots. Non-historic trees, Park Service