America’s largest preservation group has launched a campaign to raise $75,000 in hopes of permanently saving a 2-acre piece of land on the Gettysburg Battlefield.
When its goal is met, the Civil War Preservation Trust (CWPT) plans to sell the land to the National Park Service – which has already allocated $300,000 toward the purchase. In the meantime, the CWPT has the land under contract.
Acquiring the property – which lies directly along the Emmitsburg Road and was originally part of the historic Philip Snyder farm – has long been considered a top priority by Gettysburg National Military Park officials, spokeswoman Katie Lawhon said.
There are two main reasons for that status, Lawhon said.
First of all, the property is in close proximity to areas of major battle action – particularly Little Round Top, the Peach Orchard and Devil’s Den, all popular tourist areas. It is estimated that nearly a third of the Union Army marched by or across the property on their way to Gettysburg on July 1, 1863.
Secondly, two modern homes which sit on the property are significantly more intrusive on the views of those studying the battlefield since park officials completed a landscape rehabilitation project on that section of the battlefield. Much of the work included tree removal to make the land look more like it did in 1863.
What that meant was a better view of the landscape – and the houses.
“They really, really stuck out like a sore thumb,” Lawhon said, adding that the park plans to remove the homes when the land comes under its ownership.
But – as with any potential land purchase – the park cannot do anything unless there is a willing seller.
The park was notified late last year of the owner’s intention to sell the property. But the land was appraised at a value significantly higher than the $300,000 already set aside.
Lawhon declined to comment on the difference, but the CWPT has set its fundraising goal at $75,000.
Acting quickly, before a new private landowner could purchase and further develop the property, the CWPT put the land under contract. After closing, the CWPT plans to sell the land to the National Park Service for $300,000.
“Virtually everyone who has ever come to Gettysburg, seeking to walk the fields of the Civil War’s greatest battle, has passed by this land,” CWPT president James Lighthizer said in a news release. “As significant as the protection of large swaths of historic land can be, getting critical in-holdings like this one under protection of the National Park Service cannot be overemphasized.”
About 80 parcels of land – the equivalent of about one in every six acres – within the 6,000-acre battlefield are privately owned. Of those, about 30 are considered high priority by park officials.
Those types of statistics are not unique to Gettysburg, however.
According to a 2008 study by the National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA), there are 4.3 million acres of privately owned land within the borders of America’s national parks.
Gettysburg National Military Park received land-acquisition funds from the federal government in 2009 for the first time since 2001. That allocation, which amounted to $2.2 million, is what will fund this latest purchase.
Lawhon said the park’s plan is to restore the property to its 1863 appearance by removing the modern structures and returning the landscape to an agricultural field.
Donations toward the fundraising campaign can be made at www.civilwar.org/battlefields/gettysburg/gettysburg-2010/.
ON THE WEB
The Civil War Preservation Trust is raising money to preserve a 2-acre piece of land near Little Round Top and Devil’s Den. To donate, visit www.civilwar.org/battlefields/gettysburg/gettysburg-2010/.
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