Due to high temperatures forecast for Friday, July 25, we have made the decision to cancel this evening’s Sunset Walking Tour. Stay cool, stay safe, stay hydrated!

During the Confederate attack against Seminary Ridge on July 1, 1863, more than 20 United States cannon defended these grounds—one of the highest concentrations of artillery at Gettysburg—before at least 18 Confederate cannon occupied the Seminary campus for two days. Discover the guns used, the cannoneers who manned them, and the resulting damage.

- Free, donations appreciated-

Outdoors Weather Permitting - **Meet at Luther Statue**

Seminary Ridge Museum and Education Center

From Famine to Freedom

Join SRMEC summer intern Jack Hales (Allegheny College) in the Lydia Ziegler Clare Education Center for a review of how the Civil War changed Irish American status in society. This review encapsulates the origins of the Irish Brigade and their acts of bravery, as well as showing the impacts on society, this Brigade had on Irish Americans.

- FREE -

Lydia Ziegler Clare Education Center

Seminary Ridge Museum and Education Center

Join Seminary Ridge Museum & Education Center staff at the historic Mary Thompson house, which is open in conjunction with the American Battlefield Trust. On-site interpreters are ready to answer questions and tell the story of this crucial ground, which witnessed deadly fighting on July 1, 1863, and subsequently served as the headquarters for Confederate General Robert E. Lee.

Meet at 401 Buford Ave. (Route 30), 0.2 miles north of Seminary Ridge Museum & Education Center.

American Battlefield Trust may open the house at other times.
Click here to view their calendar.

Fridays on the Ridge
Dr. Brian Matthew Jordan
July 18, 2025 - 3:30pm
Valentine Hall Auditorium (next to Museum)
-FREE, donations appreciated-

“Held in War’s Grasp”: The Ordeals of Union Veteranhood

Beginning where many histories end, Brian Matthew Jordan will reveal the desperate fate that awaited Union veterans after demobilization. While Confederate troops returned to homes that shared in a sense of defeat, Union veterans returned to a civilian population eager to put the war behind them. Based on prodigious research in a trove of veteran correspondence, medical records, and pension files, this lecture surveys the myriad ways in which the Civil War continued to annex the bodies and minds of its survivors. Further, it reveals how the protracted battles over the conflict’s memory and legacy further complicated the onerous task of reintegration for ordinary veterans.

Brian Matthew Jordan is Associate Professor of U.S. Civil War History and Chair of the Department of History at Sam Houston State University, where he has taught for a decade. Professor Jordan earned his undergraduate degree in Civil War Era Studies at Gettysburg College (working under the tutelage of Gabor Boritt and Allen Guelzo), and M.A., M.Phil., and Ph.D. degrees in History at Yale. His first book, Marching Home: Union Veterans and Their Unending Civil War, was a finalist (one of three runners- up) for the 2016 Pulitzer Prize in History and, in its dissertation form, won the George Washington Egleston Prize (for Best U.S. History Dissertation at Yale) and John Addison Porter Prize. He has authored or edited five other books on Civil War soldiers, veterans, and memory, including The War Went On: Reconsidering the Lives of Civil War Veterans (with Evan Rothera); A Thousand May Fall: An Immigrant Regiment’s Civil War, and Final Resting Places: Reflections on the Meaning of Civil War Graves (with Jonathan W. White). Presently, he is at work on This War of Ours: A New History of the Civil War in the United States, a one-volume history of the conflict for Liveright/W.W. Norton. Brian is the founding co-editor of the series “Veterans” at the University of Massachusetts Press, and, for a decade, has served as Book Review Editor for The Civil War Monitor. He appears regularly on C-SPAN and was featured in the HISTORY Channel’s three-part documentary on the life of U.S. Grant. In 2024, he delivered a eulogy at the inurnment of 28 Union veterans and their spouses in Seattle, Washington. He has addressed audiences in more than thirty states.

Join Seminary Ridge Museum & Education Center staff at the historic Mary Thompson house, which is open in conjunction with the American Battlefield Trust. On-site interpreters are ready to answer questions and tell the story of this crucial ground, which witnessed deadly fighting on July 1, 1863, and subsequently served as the headquarters for Confederate General Robert E. Lee.

Meet at 401 Buford Ave. (Route 30), 0.2 miles north of Seminary Ridge Museum & Education Center.

American Battlefield Trust may open the house at other times.
Click here to view their calendar.

Codie Eash, SRMEC Director of Education and Interpretation, will present “‘The Glare of the Conflagration’: How Wrightsville Impacted Gettysburg and Its Aftermath” as part of "“Lectures on the Lawn,” hosted by Susquehanna National Heritage Area. The outdoor program begins at 6:30pm at the Mifflin Farm (202 Cool Springs Road, Wrightsville, PA, 17368). Tickets are required. To purchase tickets ($10 each), visit Susquehanna National Heritage Area’s Events page. Bring a blanket or lawn chair and bug spray.

The burning of the Wrightsville-Columbia Bridge on June 28, 1863, set into motion a series of military events that reverberated throughout south-central Pennsylvania. Beyond affecting those who fought and lived on either side of the Susquehanna River, the blaze influenced the maneuver of two massive Civil War armies, impeded the ability of aid workers to traverse a mile-wide waterway, and swayed both early and long-term interpretations of the Gettysburg Campaign. Join Codie Eash as he explores how events in Wrightsville impacted soldiers and civilians—men and women, Black and white—in the days that immediately followed, throughout the Battle of Gettysburg and its aftermath.

Join Seminary Ridge Museum & Education Center staff at the historic Mary Thompson house, which is open in conjunction with the American Battlefield Trust. On-site interpreters are ready to answer questions and tell the story of this crucial ground, which witnessed deadly fighting on July 1, 1863, and subsequently served as the headquarters for Confederate General Robert E. Lee.

Meet at 401 Buford Ave. (Route 30), 0.2 miles north of Seminary Ridge Museum & Education Center.

American Battlefield Trust may open the house at other times.
Click here to view their calendar.

This year, experience Gettysburg’s Independence Day fireworks from a unique perspective! On July 4, join Seminary Ridge Museum and Education staff in the historic Cupola for a special sunset tour and stick around to enjoy a fireworks display from the Gettysburg Rec Park, courtesy of the Rotary Club of Gettysburg, Gettysburg Area Recreation Authority, and Destination Gettysburg.

Click Here to Register Today!

Tickets for this event are always limited and is an experience like no other in Gettysburg! 

Please arrive by 8:15 to begin the Cupola tour, followed by fireworks at 9:20pm. 

All registrations will include museum admission during regular business hours.

If registration is full, please email info@seminaryridgemuseum.org to be placed on a waiting list.

Refund/Cancellation Policy

• In the event of inclement weather, a rain date of July 5 may be scheduled. If you are unable to attend the rain date, a 75% refund will be offered.

• 100% refunds will be offered with notice given at least 72 hours (3 days) prior to the event.

• 50% refunds will be offered with notice of less than 72 hours prior to the event.

• If the event is canceled entirely, a 100% refund will be offered.

Join Seminary Ridge Museum & Education Center staff at the historic Mary Thompson house, which is open in conjunction with the American Battlefield Trust. On-site interpreters are ready to answer questions and tell the story of this crucial ground, which witnessed deadly fighting on July 1, 1863, and subsequently served as the headquarters for Confederate General Robert E. Lee.

Meet at 401 Buford Ave. (Route 30), 0.2 miles north of Seminary Ridge Museum & Education Center.

American Battlefield Trust may open the house at other times.
Click here to view their calendar.

Featuring

Food catered by Northern Redneck BBQ

Pulled Pork
Pulled Chicken
Macaroni and Cheese
Green Beans
Pasta Salad

Michaux Brewing Company will be on site to serve their popular craft beer throughout the evening! One drink is included with registration for guests at least 21 years of age.

Gettysburg Surgeons: Facing a Common Enemy

A research project that began with a goal to identify surgeons who cared for the wounded at the battle of Gettysburg in 1863 has grown into a searchable database and a publication.  More than 1200 surgeons, both Union and Confederate, were part of a complex system of doctors and caretakers both during and after the battle. By looking at the experiences of this particular group of surgeons at this  particular battle, the study includes not only well-documented and prominent physicians who left written accounts, diaries and letters, but also includes information about lesser-known surgeons whose stories have not been told. Far from the unskilled butchers of popular stereotypes, most had received the best training available to them in the United States or abroad, and were able to pass qualifying examinations that required advanced clinical knowledge.  Learning from each other and their shared military experience they acquired new skills and knowledge that would influence medical practice during and after the war. 

Barbara Franco is Founding Executive Director Emerita of the Gettysburg Seminary Ridge Museum and Education Center.  As a public historian, curator, and museum director she has written and consulted about museum practice and historical interpretation.  Her broad interest in the social, cultural, and intellectual history of the 19th century includes the decorative and fine arts, communal societies, fraternal organizations, the role of religion, and the Civil War era. She served as executive director of the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission, the Historical Society of Washington, D.C., and Assistant Director for Museums at the Minnesota Historical Society.

Additionally, a special gift basket raffle will feature prizes donated by local businesses, including:

Adams County Winery
American Battlefield Trust
Dale Gallon Art
Gettysburg Tour Center
Gettysburg Cookie Co.
Gettysburg Goods
Lark
National Civil War Museum
Oh Man!
Ragged Edge
Seminary Ridge Museum
Sixty East Hair Design
…and more!

We look forward to welcoming you to the Ridge for this special celebration!

Reserve your seats today!

Event will be outdoors, please dress comfortably.

Join Seminary Ridge Museum & Education Center staff at the historic Mary Thompson house, which is open in conjunction with the American Battlefield Trust. On-site interpreters are ready to answer questions and tell the story of this crucial ground, which witnessed deadly fighting on July 1, 1863, and subsequently served as the headquarters for Confederate General Robert E. Lee.

Meet at 401 Buford Ave. (Route 30), 0.2 miles north of Seminary Ridge Museum & Education Center.

American Battlefield Trust may open the house at other times.
Click here to view their calendar.

From the evening of July 1 through the morning of July 5, 1863, the Confederate army controlled the Lutheran Seminary. Robert E. Lee established his headquarters just north of the campus and made some of the most important decisions in American military history from this point. Join a guide for a walking tour of the Confederate-occupied grounds.

- Free, donations appreciated-

Outdoors Weather Permitting - **Meet at Luther Statue**

Seminary Ridge Museum and Education Center

Join Seminary Ridge Museum & Education Center staff at the historic Mary Thompson house, which is open in conjunction with the American Battlefield Trust. On-site interpreters are ready to answer questions and tell the story of this crucial ground, which witnessed deadly fighting on July 1, 1863, and subsequently served as the headquarters for Confederate General Robert E. Lee.

Meet at 401 Buford Ave. (Route 30), 0.2 miles north of Seminary Ridge Museum & Education Center.

American Battlefield Trust may open the house at other times.
Click here to view their calendar.

Join Seminary Ridge Museum & Education Center staff at the historic Mary Thompson house, which is open in conjunction with the American Battlefield Trust. On-site interpreters are ready to answer questions and tell the story of this crucial ground, which witnessed deadly fighting on July 1, 1863, and subsequently served as the headquarters for Confederate General Robert E. Lee.

Meet at 401 Buford Ave. (Route 30), 0.2 miles north of Seminary Ridge Museum & Education Center.

American Battlefield Trust may open the house at other times.
Click here to view their calendar.

Join Seminary Ridge Museum & Education Center staff at the historic Mary Thompson house, which is open in conjunction with the American Battlefield Trust. On-site interpreters are ready to answer questions and tell the story of this crucial ground, which witnessed deadly fighting on July 1, 1863, and subsequently served as the headquarters for Confederate General Robert E. Lee.

Meet at 401 Buford Ave. (Route 30), 0.2 miles north of Seminary Ridge Museum & Education Center.

American Battlefield Trust may open the house at other times.
Click here to view their calendar.

Join us for a half-mile walking tour of ground on which soldiers fought during the first day at Gettysburg, with a specific focus on the importance of the Seminary to the battle. Learn about the United States army’s defensive action, how Confederates overcame the position, and how the fighting on July 1, 1863, set up the action for the remainder of the battle.

- Free, donations appreciated-

Outdoors Weather Permitting - **Meet at Luther Statue**

Seminary Ridge Museum and Education Center

The Gettysburg Animated Battle Map APP

Join us as we welcome Tom March who will present selected battle segments from the acclaimed Gettysburg Animated Battle Map APP, as well as welcoming requests from attendees to view and discuss their own favorites. This Web-APP offers users the capability to examine animations of the entire 56-square mile battlefield, over the course of the battle from early morning on July 1st thru early evening July 3rd. Users of the APP can go anywhere on the battlefield, at any time during the three days, and view and examine anything. It’s your opportunity to view animations of the high-profile battle vignettes; Pickett’s Charge, The Wheatfield, Barlow’s Knoll, Herbst Woods, etc.; as well as lesser-known engagements such as Humphrey’s trek to Black Horse Tavern, Brinkerhoff Ridge, Neill Ave., and Longstreet’s Counter March.

No registrationis required. All participants will receive a complimentary download code for trial access to the Gettysburg Animated Battle Map APP!

Tom Marchesani (March) is an independent scholar of the battle of Gettysburg. A student of the Battle all of his life, he began this project in 2017. Now, after working over 7-years on the project, investing over 14,000 manhours, the last animation segments were completed in May 2023. There are over 400,000 moving parts and over 8,000 footnotes behind the scenes. Every military unit is shown. Infantry and cavalry regiments, and batteries are shown from the time they arrive on the battlefield’s outer boundaries until the end of Day 3’s fighting. Key infantry companies, skirmish lines; cavalry squadrons, as well as individual artillery guns and sections are depicted. We guarantee you’ve never seen a Battle animation like this one.

From Seminary to Cemetery

In the aftermath of the fierce fighting on July 1, 1863, the grounds surrounding the Lutheran Theological Seminary were transformed from a place of peace into a somber landscape of death. Many soldiers were buried where they fell, turning Seminary Ridge into a makeshift graveyard.

Join Kaleb Kusmierczyk, Director of Museum Operations, as he explores the solemn transformation of the Seminary's campus—from a quiet center of learning to a landscape dotted with hastily dug graves.

- FREE -

Lydia Ziegler Clare Education Center

Seminary Ridge Museum and Education Center

Treated at the Seminary: Sergeant Adam Heilman

“Treated at the Seminary” is a series created to take an in-depth look into some of the 486 known patients treated at the Seminary Hospital between July 1 and September 16, 1863. This program aims to shed a new light on lesser-known, but certainly no less important, figures who fought in this historic battle. For some, their stories ended within the walls of Schmucker Hall, and for others, the life-saving medical care rendered here made the next chapter in their lives possible.

Join Kaleb Kusmierczyk, Director of Museum Operations, as he uncovers these seldom-told stories that reach far beyond the Gettysburg battlefield.

- FREE -

Lydia Ziegler Clare Education Center

Seminary Ridge Museum and Education Center

Two Lights for Tomorrow is a nationwide initiative to commence the celebration of the 250th birthday of the United States of America. The famous ride of Paul Revere occurred overnight on April 18 – 19, 1775. Two Lights for Tomorrow originated out of multi-state collaboration at A Common Cause to All in Williamsburg and uses the imagery of that shining light 250 years ago as a uniting call to action today for our fellow citizens, no matter where they are, to commemorate and remind ourselves that our history is about working together for a better tomorrow.

At it’s heart it is a call across the country, in private homes, local communities, and statehouses alike, for two lights to be displayed to remind us all of the importance to come together to form a more perfect union.

Join Seminary Ridge Museum and Gettysburg Foundation on April 18 to commemorate this momentous part of American history! Children’s activities will include paper lantern/luminary making. This free, family-friendly event is open to the public. Attendees are encouraged to bring chairs or blankets.

Codie Eash, SRMEC Director of Education and Interpretation, will present “‘If it Takes Three Years More’: Lincoln at the Sanitary Fairs of 1864” at the York Civil War Roundtable. The meeting begins at 7:00pm at the York County History Center Museum (121 North Pershing Avenue, York, PA, 17401). For more information from the YCWRT, visit https://www.yorkhistorycenter.org/event/civil-war-roundtable-april/.

In 1864, Abraham Lincoln spoke at three fairs benefiting the Sanitary Commission in Washington, Baltimore, and Philadelphia, pleading for a new “definition for the word liberty,” promising “retribution” against Confederates who slaughtered Black U.S. soldiers, and vowing to proceed even “if it takes three years more” — collectively encompassing the most under appreciated orations of his presidency, set against the backdrop of the Civil War’s costliest year and a looming reelection campaign.

Join us on Zoom for our final History Happy Hour of the season as we welcome historian and educator, Keith Harris, author of Across the Bloody Chasm.

There are over 1300 monuments memorializing sacrifice and commemorating fortitude at Gettysburg. Most of these monuments went up during the late-19th and early-20th centuries and nearly all of them commemorate the victory of the United States Army of the Potomac in July 1863. Veterans played a vital role creating this commemorative landscape. The words that resonated on the battlefield during this commemorative era explained why Union soldiers supported a cause to secure the integrity of the Republic on the premise of freedom and free institutions. Their commemorative ethos suggests that a generation of citizen soldiers thoroughly embraced a national creed and used the Gettysburg battlefield as the central place from which to articulate their beliefs and national vision. They told the world that they had fought to resolve a mid-19th century crisis of American exceptionalism, and by the Grace of God they were victorious. 

Keith Harris is a historian, a high school history teacher, an author, a Star Wars fan, and a cat person. He received his BA at the University of California at Los Angeles (summa cum laude) and his Ph.D. in United States history at the University of Virginia. He has taught courses in United States history at the University of Virginia and the University of California at Riverside, and currently teaches at a private high school in Los Angeles. His work focuses on nineteenth and twentieth-century American history with a special emphasis on the Civil War, Reconstruction, historical memory, the Progressive Era, and national Reconciliation. His first book, Across the Bloody Chasm: the Culture of Commemoration Among Civil War Veterans, is available from the Louisiana State University Press. He is currently writing a book on American exceptionalism and the monuments at Gettysburg. He lives and works in Hollywood, California.

Click Here to Register

From Appomattox to Adams County: Gettysburg and the End of the Civil War

The first two weeks of April 1865 are among the most consequential in American history. From the 2nd to the 15th, the breakthrough at Petersburg, the fall of Richmond, the surrender at Appomattox, and the assassination and death of Abraham Lincoln brought an effective end to the Civil War.

Join Codie Eash, Director of Education and Interpretation, as he explores these events’ impacts on the people of Gettysburg and the soldiers who once fought here as they received news of these momentous affairs.

- FREE -

Lydia Ziegler Clare Education Center

Seminary Ridge Museum and Education Center

Rescheduled from February 15

Join us for another lighthearted evening of family-friendly general trivia (but not about generals) for prizes!

A taco bar will be provided by Ragged Edge catering. The evening is BYOB, though water, lemonade, and iced tea will be included. 

Registration is individual, but you may register up to 6 total people (a full team) at one time.

Click Here to Register