East Cemetery Hill at Gettysburg: we Supposed We Had Won the Battle…

Long neglected by historians and visitors to the battlefield, the eastern-most reaches of Cemetery Ridge formed the critical apex of the Union battle line at Gettysburg. Although one of the first areas chosen for preservation, the exigencies of development have permanently altered much of the ground around East Cemetery Hill, making it difficult to interpret the site and understand what made the area critical to the development of the battle.This study invites the reader to tour this seldom explored segment of the battle of Gettysburg, using first-hand accounts to help understand the area-much of which has changed dramatically in the past 155 years-with a participant’s eye.