An audience of more than 200 people gathered at the Gettysburg Fire Hall didn’t cooperate.

The proposed Mason Dixon Resort & Casino at the Eisenhower Inn dominated the meeting, hosted by WGAL-8 and Times & News Publishing Company.

Twenty-five citizens spoke Thursday night, with five area residents opposing Gettysburg businessman David LeVan’s project, while three citizens spoke in favor of the resort casino.

Representatives from Pro Casino Adams County and No Casino Gettysburg were permitted to open the 7 p.m. session with prepared statements. Pro Casino Adams County co-leader Captain Jeff Klein touted jobs and tax revenues, as reasons for supporting the project.

“We’re at 8.5 percent unemployment in Adams County – it’s unacceptable,” Klein told the crowd, noting that the proposal is expected to generate 400 new jobs.

No Casino Gettysburg spokesman Charles McElhose, who was the second speaker of the night, countered that “heritage tourists won’t come back to Gettysburg,” if LeVan is awarded a gaming license. The local businessman and re-enactor cited reports indicating that $45 million is “being sucked out of the local economy and going to Mason Dixon” if a casino opens here, “and only $2 million goes back” to the area economy.

“If I took $45 from you, and gave you back $2, is that a good deal?” McElhose asked the crowd. Dozens seated throughout the audience replied “no.”

Many in the crowd – pro or no casino – wore tee shirts and buttons showcasing their allegiance. When WGAL news anchor and event moderator Ron Martin asked for a show of hands to gauge support for the project, nearly two-thirds of the audience showed support.

Gettysburg resident Larry Bullis challenged a recent survey by nationally-recognized pollster Dr. G. Terry Madonna, showing that more than 60 percent of 600 residents surveyed in Adams County favor the casino.

“The media proclaimed it to be a scientific study. It was not,” said Bullis, a Belmont Road resident. “The study should not have been hailed as a great indicator of what we need.”

Gettysburg resident Daniel Smith, decked in a Pro Casino Adams County shirt, replied that “Mr. Madonna is an expert in the field” and that “he’s on WGAL all the time.”

Gettysburg College professor Jan Powers presented a petition of 100 signatures from faculty members and administration, concerned about gambling.

“The Gettysburg College faculty is expressing concern about a casino being established here,” Powers told Ron Martin, citing underage drinking issues.

A male in the crowd countered: “If you’re concerned about drinking, go to a frat house on a Wednesday night and look at that.”

Biglerville resident Melissa Klein posed a question to Gettysburg Times editor B.J. Small, regarding letters to the editor printed about the casino. She argued that the letters “seem to be 2-to-1 against.”

Small replied: “It’s a matter of perspective. We’re not manipulating anything and we’re not intentionally withholding anything.”

Residents raised concerns about topics other than the casino, such as motorcycle noise, WGET-radio programming, and a controversial trailer park in the York Springs area.

Save Our Rural Heritage spokesman Jeff King thanked the media for its coverage of the proposed Peakview Mobile Home Park in Huntington Township. The township’s board of supervisors recently rejected the project, but the developer has taken the board to court.

“We’ve been battling this project for 10 years,” said King.

WGET news anchor Larry Rhoten was asked about personnel and programming cuts at the station this year. Rhoten, the station’s director of development, answered that “the decisions made the first of the year were based on the economy.”

“We’re not alone,” said Rhoten, adding that “we’re on track to implement more original programming.”

Other topics included land-use rights, high school sports coverage, digital television, and regionalization of county services. The forum was sponsored by WGAL-8 of Lancaster and Times & News Publishing Company, which includes 1320 WGET, 107.7 WGTY, and the Gettysburg Times.

By Scot Andrew Pitzer

Copyright © 2010 – Gettysburg Times

(* Denotes Required To Fill)

NAME*

E-MAIL ADDRESS*

HOME ADDRESS*

CITY*

STATE*

ZIP CODE*

I wish to remain Anonymous

Do Not Include me in Newsletter

I would like to Volunteer

Message:

CAPTCHA Code:

With the 150th anniversary of the Civil War approaching in 2011, the potential for commemorative tourism is significant in both places, even though they appeal in different ways.

Gettysburg stands alone in the nation’s psyche as a place of both devastation and healing. As capital of the Confederacy, Richmond for some is a symbol of the nation’s lingering divisions, though it also has success stories to tell.

“Gettysburg, they refer to it as hallowed ground,” said Christy Coleman, president of the American Civil War Center at Historic Tredegar. “It’s a story of tremendous loss — people came back there to remember the fallen and also this amazing address that the president gave there. It’s the common ground.

“Richmond does not have that vibe for a lot of people. Part of that relates to the fact that a lot of its history has not been conciliatory.”

“I don’t think anything would ever truly compete with Gettysburg,” said S. Waite Rawls, president of the Museum of the Confederacy. “It was the biggest battle and most famous battle of the Civil War. Preservation efforts started during the war. The battlefields . . . around Richmond are as important if not more so, but they’re scattered all over.

“One of the lessons learned from Gettysburg, you need to make things easily accessible, with parking and signage and all those things, and we have not done that in Richmond.”

Creating a Gettysburg-type visitor experience in Richmond would require a public-private partnership similar to the Gettysburg Foundation. The Richmond National Battlefield Park and the American Civil War Center, adjacent to each other at Tredegar Iron Works, would be a possible starting point.

“My sense is that Tredegar is the perfect spot to do that,” said David Ruth, superintendent of Richmond National Battlefield Park. “It would require an expansion of the facilities down there to do a more thorough story. We just don’t have the space to do the kind of thing they were able to accomplish in Gettysburg.”

Ruth and Coleman toured the new Gettysburg museum together in July. Coleman sees the two Richmond museums as telling different aspects of the same story, the park service focusing on Richmond and her museum giving a national perspective.

“From a visitor’s point of view, it’s all connected,” she said. “We are putting our heads together to have a master plan. Gettysburg is a very good model.”

One possible addition at Tredegar would be an “experience theater. Among the stories we are discussing for dramatic purposes is the evacuation of Richmond,” she said. “There are some amazing stories. It allows us to keep our perspectives in there as well: Union, Confederate and African-American.”

When developing plans for the Gettysburg museum, foundation officials visited the Richmond battlefield park, the American Civil War Center and The National Museum of the Civil War Soldier at Pamplin Historical Park, said Robert C. Wilburn, president of the Gettysburg Foundation and former head of the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation in Virginia.

“I would no way take away from the strength that Richmond has and should have in telling the story,” he said. “I think there are some good steps that have been made at Tredegar. The other gem there is the Virginia Historical Society. It’s a wonderful institution with incredible collections. You put together that institution with Tredegar and the Museum of the Confederacy, and you have an awful lot to build on.”

In Civil War terms alone, Richmond also is the center of a network of Civil War Trails that now has spread to five states and 800 sites.

“We were never in it to build another museum,” such as the new Gettysburg museum, said Jack Berry, president of the Richmond Metropolitan Convention & Visitors Bureau, which houses the Civil War Trails project. “What we needed to do was market them collectively. It’s a huge success.”

Rawls is learning from Gettysburg as he plans to build partner museums at Chancellorsville, Appomattox and Fort Monroe.

One of the lessons is that “technology works, particularly to attract the attention of a younger audience. . . .

“We’ll have technology on demand,” he said. “Contrast that with years ago when museums thought the best thing was a 20-minute film. People don’t have patience for it. They want a 2-minute film when they want it.”

To Charles Bryan, president of the Virginia Historical Society, Richmond’s historic riches may be a reason not to build another museum.

He’d rather see the city concentrate on creating easily seen directional signs for visitors, on having a more visible visitors center with easy parking and on having public transportation leading to clusters of attractions. A significant increase in dollars to market the city would help bring visitors in, too.

“Part of the problem, and it’s a good problem in a way, there are so many Civil War attractions in Virginia and in the South in general, to have yet another one is just diffusing the audience that much more.”

By Katherine Calos

Copyright © 2008 – Richmond Times-Dispatch

(* Denotes Required To Fill)

NAME*

E-MAIL ADDRESS*

HOME ADDRESS*

CITY*

STATE*

ZIP CODE*

I wish to remain Anonymous

Do Not Include me in Newsletter

I would like to Volunteer

Message:

CAPTCHA Code:

“So you’re from California,” the guide said as she pulled her Hyundai SUV onto Seminary Ridge. “Remind me to show you where your ‘regiments’ fought.”

I hadn’t known that Californians fought at Gettysburg, but it made sense. California was as Union Blue as Abe Lincoln’s underwear. I refer doubters to a map of San Francisco: Union Square, Grant Avenue, Union City across the bay. And can you guess the name of the train depot in Los Angeles? Hint: It’s the same as the one in Washington, D.C. (Answer: Union Station.)

I was in Gettysburg, smack in the middle of memorial ceremonies – 146th anniversary of the two-minute Gettysburg Address and Lincoln’s 200th birthday – that were particularly pompish and circumstantial.

By the scheduled start of my Civil War battlefield tour, which included an authentic November rain, I was chilled to the bone. My wool overcoat – a remnant of the wardrobe from my East Coast college days – offered little comfort, and like an idiot, I had forgotten the holy trinity of scarf, hat and gloves.

“It’s a good thing, actually,” said Joanne, my tour guide. She was a native Pennsylvanian, a middle-age mom who had gone back to school in preparation for the notoriously difficult Gettysburg tour-guide exam. “You’ll get a better sense of how it felt that weekend.”

“That weekend” in Gettysburg means July 1-3, 1861. In a very real sense, there is no other weekend, no other time in the town. Though I lived for two years in Colonial Williamsburg in Virginia, I have never experienced a place more rooted in a particular moment.

“I would apologize for the mist,” Joanne said as her Hyundai crept along Reynolds Avenue, stone monuments dotting the landscape like scarecrows. “But this weather is actually more representative. After 2 hours of cannon fire, you wouldn’t have been able to see your hand in front of your face.”

And so we rolled over the rolling hills, stopping here and there to imagine the lines of infantry and artillery, the headquarters and field hospitals. The car tour touched on all the legendary landmarks: the Roundtops (Little and Big), the Peach Orchard, the Wheat Field. In the land of the Eternal Weekend, these are all proper nouns.

We saw the ridge where Gen. George Pickett’s men lined up for their ill-fated charge, now marked every hundred yards with a monument to one of the former Confederate States. Of the thousand-plus stone markers on the field, only a couple dozen are dedicated to the Southern dead – an eerie physical reminder that history is written by the victors, at least in the victors’ backyard, anyway.

Eventually I reminded Joanne that I had to be back at the hotel for dinner. We were idling at a spot called The Angle, where Pickett’s Charge was repelled.

“I almost forgot,” she said. Lowering the driver’s side window, she pointed through the mist to a squat stone obelisk. “That’s one of your regiments. There were four ‘California regiments,’ and that’s the first.”

With the Hyundai back in gear and the gray skies fading to black, I had to ask. “Listen, Joanne, I noticed that every time you say ‘California regiments’ you use air quotes.”

Without pause she said, “That’s because all the men were from Pennsylvania.”

“Excuse me?”

“You all sent a check.”

Nearly three hours I had listened to her stories – about the sacrifice, the bloodshed, the only truly consecrated cornfields in North America and so on – and I had nodded and agreed, confident that my sacrifice was just as good as hers. Now I realized that this Pennsylvanian had all along seen me (and my state) for what we were: absentees.

That weekend, 331 men lined up as the 1st “California regiment,” virtually all of them from the City of Brotherly Love – 21 died, 58 were wounded, 19 more went missing. These were not Californians. They were “Californians.”

“I feel like a jerk,” I said as we pulled up in front of my hotel. “I had no idea. I know it’s a hundred years too late, but thank you.”

“Nah,” she said. “You all would have done the same.”

Back in 1861, California had plenty of gold but few men. Today it’s just the opposite. God forbid we should ever be in that situation again, but just supposing, we might have a chance to repay the favor.

Until then we’ll just keep sending players to the Phillies.

Nick Taylor is a writing professor at San Jose State who last wrote for Travel on Mallorca. E-mail comments to travel@sfchronicle.com.

This article appeared on page M – 5 of the San Francisco Chronicle

Nick Taylor

Friday, January 29, 2010

(* Denotes Required To Fill)

NAME*

E-MAIL ADDRESS*

HOME ADDRESS*

CITY*

STATE*

ZIP CODE*

I wish to remain Anonymous

Do Not Include me in Newsletter

I would like to Volunteer

Message:

CAPTCHA Code:

“That to me is very appropriate, to have other kinds of facilities there. I mean people have to earn a living… and so other types of development in my estimation is fine, as long as it doesn’t encroach on the battlefield itself.”

Santorum says he’s against the gaming bill altogether, adding that in the long run, it won’t be a valuable addition to any community.

Santorum Sees Economic Development, Not Casinos, as Savior of Gettysburg
Posted Friday, June 3, 2005 http://www.580whp.com/headlines.html

(* Denotes Required To Fill)

NAME*

E-MAIL ADDRESS*

HOME ADDRESS*

CITY*

STATE*

ZIP CODE*

I wish to remain Anonymous

Do Not Include me in Newsletter

I would like to Volunteer

Message:

CAPTCHA Code:

Those goods and services include everything from the facility’s plumbing to employee uniforms to the shampoo and soap that would furnish the bathrooms of 300 hotel suites.

LeVan and business partner Joseph Lashinger want to convert a Cumberland Township hotel into a resort casino featuring 600 slots machines and 50 table games. Since announcing their intention to compete for a Category 3 gaming license late last year, the business partners have gradually released more information about their plans for what is currently the Eisenhower Hotel and Conference Center on Emmitsburg Road.

The latest announcement came Monday about the business program, which they have dubbed “Buy Adams!”

The goal of the program is to buy as many products and utilize as many services as possible from businesses and vendors that reside in Adams County, said LeVan spokesman David La Torre.

“We believe that the vast majority of the businesses we need to contract with are located in Adams County. We want to make it clear that they are our priority,” La Torre said. “If you’ve got a business in Adams County, we are interested in working with you.”

Monday’s announcement, which came in the form of a news release, is meant to reinforce LeVan’s commitment to boosting the Adams County economy through the casino project, La Torre said. He said the investors want the community to know that local businesses will be given priority over others.
“We are putting it down in writing,” La Torre said.

La Torre said LeVan intends to take a “realistic approach” to hiring businesses. In some cases, a good or service may not be available in Adams County and would need to be sought elsewhere.

“If a service can be filled by an Adams County business, we want to hire that business,” La Torre said.

As for the hundreds of jobs LeVan has also pledged will be created by the casino project, La Torre said this: “Stay tuned.”

“We are going to go into greater detail about our philosophy on hiring, and we’re going to do that at a later date,” he said.

LeVan has vowed to create the “largest economic-development project in the history of Adams County.”

He and Lashinger have dubbed their project the Mason-Dixon Resort & Casino. They say it will create hundreds of needed jobs for local residents and support the Adams County tax base with millions of dollars.

The future of the project depends, however, on a decision of the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board. At least three other projects are competing for the last remaining resort casino license.

LeVan, who owns Battlefield Harley-Davidson on Route 30, had been a lead investor in another group that had tried in 2005-06 to bring gaming to Adams County. That attempt failed, however, largely due to the efforts of a grassroots citizens’ group that opposed the casino plan because of the site’s proximity to the Gettysburg battlefield.

That group, No Casino Gettysburg, was resurrected last year after LeVan announced his new project.

The head of the group, Susan Star Paddock, said Monday that she is both encouraged and discouraged by LeVan’s commitment to hiring local businesses.

While the Buy Adams! program is sure to help some local businesses, others will suffer if and when the casino begins operating, Paddock said. Paddock said she believes gamblers who might otherwise patronize Adams County restaurants and stores will instead spend their money at the resort casino.

Paddock also said she expects the casino to discourage some heritage tourists from visiting Gettysburg in the first place.

“It’s great that (LeVan) wants to use local people. That’s wonderful,” she said. “That in itself is not going to make up for the loss to Adams County.”

IF YOU GO

What: Public meeting hosted by No Casino Gettysburg to discuss a local businessman’s proposal to locate a resort casino in Cumberland Township south of Gettysburg. More details will be announced in the coming weeks.

When: 7 to 9 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 18

Where: Gettysburg Fire Department, 35 N. Stratton St.

By Erin James

Copyright © 2010 – The Evening Sun

(* Denotes Required To Fill)

NAME*

E-MAIL ADDRESS*

HOME ADDRESS*

CITY*

STATE*

ZIP CODE*

I wish to remain Anonymous

Do Not Include me in Newsletter

I would like to Volunteer

Message:

CAPTCHA Code:

LeVan recently announced plans to operate Mason Dixon Resort and Casino at Eisenhower Inn and Convention Center in Cumberland Township, Adams County. He plans to buy the convention center and operate under a resort license, which permits as many as 600 slot machines and 50 table games.

LeVan’s previous proposal called for a 3,000-slot stand-alone facility built on green space near the heavily traveled intersection of routes 15 and 30. But in 2006, the state’s Gaming Control Board rejected that license application in part because of public opposition to the casino’s proximity to Gettysburg National Military Park.

Leading the opposition was the grassroots group No Casino Gettysburg, which has reorganized to battle the new proposal.

‘Lessons learned’: LeVan spokesman David La Torre said the new proposal gives less to complain about than the first, and “a great deal of thought and opinion was given to lessons learned in 2006.”

The Mason Dixon Resort and Casino will be part of a renovation or expansion of an existing facility, and won’t involve building on green space, he said.

He said residents “had a valid concern” with traffic congestion when the previous plans were announced, but Mason Dixon wouldn’t be in a high-traffic area. Motorists wouldn’t even be able

to see the casino, located off Emmitsburg Road, as they drove past the entrance, he said.

“This is something that would be isolated but would still allow Adams County residents to benefit from the jobs and the income from slots,” La Torre said.

The facility would create hundreds of jobs and retain the existing staff, he said.

Poor taste? No Casino Gettysburg founder Susan Star Paddock said the new site is closer to the military park than the last. It’s about half a mile from the park, while the earlier site was about a mile away.

Putting a casino that close to a place that “honors the sacrifice of over 51,000 Americans” is in poor taste, akin to building a casino “next to” Ground Zero of the 2001 terrorist attacks or Arlington National Cemetery, she said.

“People feel very strongly about (the park in) Gettysburg,” she said. “It’s considered hallowed ground.”

And she’s not appeased by the smaller size of the facility, she said.

“The number of slots or table games is not the issue,” she said. “It’s an adult-oriented business in a family-friendly area … and it’s like having the Mona Lisa and putting it in a neon frame.”

And she said she didn’t see how traffic problems wouldn’t be an issue. Emmitsburg Road is a not only a two-lane rural road but a nationally designated Historic Byway from Gettysburg to Virginia, called the “Journey Through Hallowed Ground.”

She said the Gaming Board’s reasons for denying the original proposal are still present, including “overwhelming opposition” from residents and business owners.

She’ll be surprised if the plans are approved, she said.

The process: Gaming Board spokesman Richard McGarvey said a 90-day application period started when Gov. Ed Rendell signed table games legislation earlier this month and ends on April 7.

There’s only one license remaining for a resort license, he said. Applications have come in for three proposed casinos — in Berks, Fayette and Monroe counties. The Fayette application, for Nemacolin Woodlands Resort in Farmington, was received Wednesday.

McGarvey said LeVan hasn’t yet submitted an application. But if the application is submitted and clears state review, the state would call meetings in Cumberland Township for public comment, he said.

La Torre said he thinks Mason Dixon will have a good shot at a license. It would be “right on doorstep of an underserved region” because though Maryland has legalized slots, its rules are more conservative than Pennsylvania’s, he said.

Access to Mason Dixon would be limited to patrons of the amenities at the resort. Using an amenity could include buying a $10 meal, McGarvey said.

ckauffman@yorkdis patch.com

York Dispatch

(* Denotes Required To Fill)

NAME*

E-MAIL ADDRESS*

HOME ADDRESS*

CITY*

STATE*

ZIP CODE*

I wish to remain Anonymous

Do Not Include me in Newsletter

I would like to Volunteer

Message:

CAPTCHA Code:

While the recession hit home for many midstate businesses, hospitality and some retail businesses in Gettysburg and Adams County as a whole were more fortunate because tourism remained strong.

Gettysburg offered the perfect short trip from America’s major East Coast cities, which kept tourism from falling too hard, Adams County businesspeople said.

“I think it’s just where we’re located,” said Rebecca Hanson, owner of The Gaslight Inn Bed and Breakfast. “Gettysburg has nice restaurants, and it’s an interesting place because of the history. Even if you don’t care about the history, there’s always something to do.”

The Gaslight, about a block off Lincoln Square in Gettysburg, had one of its best years since 2004, Hanson said. October has always been a good month for the inn because of autumn events such as the National Apple Harvest Festival. Despite the recession, the occupancy rate was 79 percent, up from 74 percent occupancy in 2008, she said.

September wasn’t much different. The Gaslight’s occupancy rate was 67 percent, up from 63 percent ayear ago, Hanson said. Even the slow months are up from lastyear, she said. November 2008′s occupancy was 40 percent, but occupancy is 47 percent this year, Hanson said.

A shrewd business move helped occupancy rates, she said.

“When I heard what was going on in the economy, I said, ‘I’m going to lower my prices so that people can still come to Gettysburg,’ ” Hanson said.

She lowered the Gaslight’s prices by $15 to $20 for its more expensive rooms, she said. That’s not ideal, but the increased number of customers made up the difference, she said. Hanson did not release revenue figures.

Groups representing Adams County businesses found that 2009 tourism probably will break even or be down slightly from past years.

“Some of our businesses have said there was more business. Others said the number of visitors was the same as last year,” said Robin Fitzpatrick, president of the Adams County Economic Development Corp.

The organization had a good year for business loans, she said. It processed 22 loans worth more than $27 million. Seventeen of the loans came from the state-backed First Industries Fund, a revolving loan fund to assist companies in tourism and agriculture. This could indicate companies are taking the recession as an opportunity to invest in their businesses for future prosperity, she said.

“Businesses have been putting money into keeping themselves alive,” Fitzpatrick said. “They’re spending money on things they have to replace, things they need to make their business run.”

Inpastyears, businesses were more willing to take a risk on speculative expansion, she said.

July is typically the busiest time of year in Gettysburg, said Norris Flowers, president of the Gettysburg Convention and Visitors Bureau. That coincides with the influx of visitors for the anniversary of the Civil War battle from July 1-3, he said.

July hotel occupancy was 73 percent, only a 2 percent drop from 2008, which was a big year because of the 145th anniversary of the 1863 battle, Flowers said.

There are 60 million people who live within 300 miles of Gettysburg, he said. The recession could have driven more ofthose people to Gettysburg instead of more-distant places, he said.

The visitors bureau estimates 3 million people visit the Gettysburg area every year.

“Travel plans have changed, but people are still traveling,” Flowers said.

Gettysburg is not the only place that benefits from such short-distance travel, he said. Much of Adams County reaps the benefits.

“We rely heavily on the tourism trade,” said John Kramb, owner of Adams County Winery in Franklin Township.

The vineyard markets itself as a destination business and keeps in contact with its best customers to notify them of new wines and deals, he said.

Sales in 2009 were up significandy, Kramb said. He declined to release dollar figures or percentages.

“We took a vote and decided not to participate in any economic downturn,” he said.

There are a lot of businesses in Adams County that are doing well, and that success could carry over to next season, Hanson said. Much otitis because businesses work together to put on events in slower months, such as the USO Holiday Dance in December, the Innkeeper’s Civil War Ball in January, and a weekend dedicated to President Abraham Lincoln in February, she said.

“I don’t think the recession is going to be over,” Hanson said. “But people still need to get away, so they do these short trips and vacations.”

BY JIM T. RYAN

jimr@journalpub.com
Copyright Journal Publications Inc. Dec 11, 2009
Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning Company. All rights Reserved

(* Denotes Required To Fill)

NAME*

E-MAIL ADDRESS*

HOME ADDRESS*

CITY*

STATE*

ZIP CODE*

I wish to remain Anonymous

Do Not Include me in Newsletter

I would like to Volunteer

Message:

CAPTCHA Code:

Borough officials say they have not been approached by local businessman David LeVan, who hopes to transform the Eisenhower Inn into an exclusive slots resort.

But it’s not just the money that concerns new Borough Council President John Butterfield.
“It will affect our infrastructure,” said Butterfield. “If people come here from Maryland, they’ll stay in town.”

LeVan and his business partner Joseph Lashinger have presented the project to the Adams County Commissioners and Cumberland Township Board of Supervisors, but Butterfield said that “they have made no overtures to us at all.”

Under a state gaming law formula that determines local government share, it would take $50 million in casino revenues to generate $1 million in tax revenue for the county and Cumberland Township.

The borough is not a part of that formula — at least for now — and LeVan spokesperson Dave LaTorre said he was unsure if the borough would be included in future discussions.

Fourteen-year Councilman Ted Streeter, the board’s former president, doesn’t envision casino revenues being offered to the cash-strapped borough this time around.

“It’s unlikely that any revenue-sharing agreement directly between the borough and the casino will materialize,” said Streeter.

Butterfield acknowledged that he “wouldn’t expect” Mason Dixon Resort to make a presentation to the borough, “unless out of the goodness of their hearts, they’d be willing to offset infrastructure and police costs.” The third-year board member was not on Borough Council during the Crossroad Gaming Resort public hearings and deliberations in 2005-06.
“I hope they do come to us at some point and tell us what sort of impact it would have on the community,” he said.
Streeter recalled the failed Crossroads Gaming Resort project, which literally split the nine-member board in 2005-06.

The project was proposed for the intersection of U.S. 15 and Route 30, about two miles from borough boundaries. But to gain support from Borough Council, LeVan guaranteed $1 million in annual gaming revenue from the slots parlor, which would have represented one-fourth of the town’s $4 million budget. Later, after a revenue-sharing agreement was crafted between the borough, county and Straban Township, the borough would have received up to $2.5 million in the first year of operation from the casino, with the figure escalating on a yearly basis. Streeter noted that only 50 percent of the town’s properties are taxable, so the borough struggles to balance its budget every year.

At the time, Streeter testified in favor of the project before the state’s Gaming Control Board, noting that the nine-member board voted 6-3, and later 5-4, in favor of the project. But the Gaming Control Board rejected the proposal in 2006, citing opposition to the project.

“I must confess that, as I presided over the casino hearings, I couldn’t quite understand the perspective of the ‘cons’,” said Streeter. “Their argument that a casino would bring organized crime, prostitution, pawn shops, gin mills and other nefarious activities into the area didn’t seem valid to me.”

The Mason Dixon project is proposed for land along Business 15 in southern Adams County. Still, Butterfield said he’d like to see visitation projections, including winter and summer estimates and overnight stays.

“There is a little bit of…I wouldn’t say concern, but interest as to what this would do to the borough,” Butterfield said Tuesday morning on 1320 WGET.

“Of course, we’d have to make infrastructure improvements, or at least consider our infrastructure if we got a significant number of people,” said Butterfield, noting that the Mason Dixon project is “certainly not a done deal.”

“These are peripheral things that we’d like to hear about at some point,” he concluded.

LeVan has secured an option to purchase the Eisenhower Inn, which is located atop land that is already home to commercial and recreational development. As part of the State Legislature’s table game law, the Gaming Control board has reopened the gaming application process. LeVan, who owns Battlefield Harley Davidson near Gettysburg, plans to file an application by the April deadline. There is one Category III license available for a “slots resort,” which are issued to existing hotels

By Scot Andrew Pitzer

Copyright © 2010 – Gettysburg Times

(* Denotes Required To Fill)

NAME*

E-MAIL ADDRESS*

HOME ADDRESS*

CITY*

STATE*

ZIP CODE*

I wish to remain Anonymous

Do Not Include me in Newsletter

I would like to Volunteer

Message:

CAPTCHA Code:

I view with dismay the proposal for a large gambling casino near the historic battlefield at Gettysburg. President Abraham Lincoln said that the world can never forget the brave men who struggled on that field, but the construction of a gambling casino near the site of their epic battle would seem to indicate that our national memory has indeed dimmed.

The view that a casino dishonors the memory of those who died at Gettysburg is rooted in the policies of the National Council of Churches on gambling and public morals. More than 50 years ago, in one of its first policy statements, the National Council of Churches said:

…the so-called “innocent” forms of gambling—such as legalized race-track wagers, betting on athletic events, lotteries, bingo and the like—contribute to the weakening of the moral fiber of individuals and lower the moral tone of the community.

Our position has not changed in the intervening years. It is our view that gambling in any form contributes nothing positive to society. It offers no service, creates nothing of value, and does not improve the lives of those who participate.

We are aware of arguments by proponents that legalized gambling creates jobs. We also know there is countervailing evidence that even where jobs are created in the gambling industry, more jobs are lost elsewhere in the community as business is drawn away from already existing restaurants, hotels and places of entertainment. Job creation is desperately needed, but the jobs that are created should serve the needs of society and contribute to the well-being of workers and their families.

We also are concerned about the negative impacts we believe gambling is having on communities, such as increased crime and the cost of trying to contain it, the disruption of family life and the desperate actions of some people whose gambling debts put their lives and futures in jeopardy.

We would discourage casino construction anywhere, and feel that a casino at Gettysburg is doubly objectionable because it would detract from what should be a respectful and reflective atmosphere in this place where so many died.

(* Denotes Required To Fill)

NAME*

E-MAIL ADDRESS*

HOME ADDRESS*

CITY*

STATE*

ZIP CODE*

I wish to remain Anonymous

Do Not Include me in Newsletter

I would like to Volunteer

Message:

CAPTCHA Code:

Picks up tour on Confederate Ave.
Continue to the stop sign at the intersection with the Emmitsburg Road (Rt. 15). If you wish to visit South Cavalry Field to examine fighting that took place on the Confederate right flank before and during Pickett’s Charge, turn right and reset your odometer to 0.0

After .7 miles, note the monument of the 6th Pennsylvania Cavalry (known as “Rush’s Lancers”) along the road to your left. Continue another .4 miles and you will see a small elevated open area with markers to your left. Continue ahead and turn around where safe to do so, then return to the grassy area and carefully park on the right side of the road (parking is limited and not easily available here along this busy road, so please exercise caution).

Merritt’s Fight on South Cavalry Field – July 3

Walk up to the clearing, and you are now on the part of the field called “South Cavalry Field.” On July 3 the surrounding area (all of which is in private hands except for this clearing and a small strip of land we will visit shortly) witnessed a great deal of skirmishing before, during, and after Pickett’s Charge between Federal cavalry and Confederate infantry. The amount of Federal cavalry that was available here and to the east just off the Federal left flank was considerable – two brigades totaling nearly 3,000 horsemen. In fact, the opportunity to use these cavalrymen following the repulse of Pickett’s Charge has led some modern historians to postulate that a coordinated assault by the horsemen and fresh Federal infantry may have been able to exploit a weakness in the Confederate right flank to the northwest.

One of the brigades, commanded by Brig. Gen. Elon J. Farnsworth of the Federal cavalry division of Brig. Gen. Judson Kilpatrick, fought over ground further along West Confederate Avenue (as it become South Confederate Avenue) that we will visit later in the tour (Kilpatrick’s other brigade, commanded by Brig. Gen. George A. Custer, fought at East Cavalry Field about four miles to the east on July 3).

The other brigade was a veteran group of U. S. Cavalry Regulars in Buford’s division commanded by newly promoted Brig. Gen. Wesley Merritt. Merritt, twenty-seven-years-old and an 1860 graduate of West Point, had been elevated to brigadier only a few days before the battle. He was one of three young officers jumped from junior grades to brigadier general – the others being Custer and Farnsworth – nicknamed the “Boy Generals.” Merritt’s brigade consisted of the 1st, 2nd, 5th and 6th U. S. Cavalry regiments, plus the 6th Pennsylvania Cavalry, about 1,300 troopers. The 400 cavalrymen of the 6th U.S. Cavalry, however, had been sent to Fairfield eight miles to the southwest on the morning of July 3, so that regiment was not here on the field with the rest of Merritt’s brigade.

Merritt’s troopers had been performing picket and guard duty in Maryland since June 29, and were in Emmitsburg eight miles to the south on July 2. On the morning of July 3, Cavalry Corps commander Maj. Gen. Alfred Pleasonton ordered Merritt to the Gettysburg battlefield. Face north back toward the main battlefield. Merritt arrived with his four regiments and many of his men dismounted and began advancing through the woods nearly a mile to your left (west) on the other side of the Emmitsburg Road.

Col. John L. Black, commanding a small detail of 100 troopers of the 1st South Carolina Cavalry on the Southern right near the Emmitsburg Road, spotted Federal cavalry, which was the advancing 6th Pennsylvania Cavalry of about 240 troopers (two companies of the regiment had been detailed to army headquarters). The cannonading preceding Pickett’s Charge had not yet begun. Black reported the presence of a force of enemy cavalry to Brig. Gen. Evander Law, commanding a brigade in Longstreet’s Corps. He then formed a dismounted line of battle with his little command to confront Merritt’s advance. Black’s force was augmented with both Confederate artillery and infantry. Two guns of Capt. James Hart’s horse battery from South Carolina unlimbered in the Emmitsburg Road about .3 miles north of where you passed the 6th Pennsylvania Cavalry monument. The 340 men of the 9th Georgia Infantry of Brig. Gen. George “Tige” Anderson’s Brigade of Hood’s Division advanced along the Emmitsburg Road from their position west of Big Round Top and also began skirmishing with Merritt’s troopers.

The 6th Pennsylvania Cavalry had difficulty advancing through the fields to your north, but once Capt. William M. Graham’s battery of horse artillery began throwing shells at the Confederate skirmishers, the Pennsylvanians were able to move forward. Merritt’s other regiments came into the line and began pushing Anderson’s infantrymen back toward the Confederate guns. By this time, the cannonading preceding Pickett’s Charge to the north had gotten underway.

Hearing that the Federal cavalry advance in this area was heavier than expected, General Law ordered more Georgians of Anderson’s Brigade to bolster the line of the 9th Georgia, and sent a section of Capt. James Reilly’s batter to unlimber on this side of the Emmitsburg Road to Hart’s left rear. Once exposed to converging Southern artillery fire, however, Merritt’s advance slowed until the Federals began overlapping the 9th Georgia’s line, causing the Southerners and Hart’s infantry to fall back. The arrival of the 7th and 8th Georgia Infantry, probably slightly less than 500 soldiers total, forced Merritt to extend his line further, and the arrival of several hundred more infantrymen from the 11th and 59th Georgia meant that the two sides had become evenly matched. The fighting had continued for nearly three hours, and Pickett’s Charge on the main battlefield was coming to an end.

Before continuing back along the Emmitsburg Road to the north to a stop seldom seen by battlefield visitors, you may wish to take a moment to examine the markers here. Note that although one of the markers lists the 6th U. S. Cavalry of Merritt’s brigade, as previously mentioned that regiment was not present here. Just prior to 1900, when the War Department was mapping the possible locations of Park roads, a road to be called “Cavalry Avenue” was proposed to begin here at the Emmitsburg Road, proceed generally northeast, and terminate at South Confederate Avenue just northeast of Bushman’s Hill. The road would allow visitors to ride the area of the positions of Merritt’s and Kilpatrick’s cavalry on July 3. It never came to fruition, but in this small clearing you may be able to distinguish the trace of the old lane that passed in that direction.

Reset your odometer to 0.0 and continue north on the Emmitsburg Road. After a little more than .1 miles you will see a narrow grassy lane on the left side of the road that proceeds to the west. Carefully park on the right side of the road (be mindful of traffic and exercise caution). This lane is on ground through which Merritt’s cavalry advanced and skirmished with Anderson’s Brigade and Black’s South Carolina cavalry. Walk the short distance back to the markers for the 1st and 2nd U. S. Cavalry and the 6th Pennsylvania Cavalry. With his sizable infantry force, General Law counterattacked over the ground to the north on this side of the Emmitsburg Road, threatening to overlap Merritt’s left flank (held by the 5th U. S. Cavalry) near the far end of this lane. Law claimed to have to have doubled Merritt’s line back upon itself to the road, but the cavalrymen had already begun to retreat. Law halted his advance, and Merritt reorganized his troops in this area. “Everyone fought like a tiger,” claimed a member of the 1st U. S. Cavalry, but each side recognized that little was to be gained by pressing an attack. Law and Merritt held their ground until after dark.

Depending on the amount of foliage, you may be able to see the Eisenhower Farm and the open ground directly to the north, ground that would have been directly behind Lee’s right flank and center on the afternoon of July 3. General Farnsworth’s brigade, which fought against the Confederate line next to Merritt northeast of this position, was not coordinated in its efforts with any other Federal unit, Merritt’s brigade in particular. Following the repulse of Pickett’s Charge, Federal army commander Maj. Gen. George Meade could have sent a force of fresh regiments from Maj. Gen. John Sedgwick’s 6th Corps and these 3,000 cavalrymen on a foray into the rear of Lee’s right flank to capitalize on that repulse. In his memoirs, General Longstreet opined: “Kilpatrick’s mistake was in not putting Farnsworth in on Merritt’s left, where he would have had an open ride, and made more trouble than was ever made by a cavalry brigade. Had the ride been followed by prompt advance of the enemy’s infantry in our line beyond our right and pushed with vigor, they could have reached our line of retreat.”

If such a counterattack had any chance of significantly damaging Lee’s line, and changing either the outcome of the day or Lee’s ability to effect a successful retreat, will never be known.

Tour Stop 4. Farnsworth’s Charge of July 3

After .3 miles, note the large boulder on the right side of the road and the path beside it that leads up the slope of this hill southwest of Big Round Top, called Bushman’s Hill. From near the top of this hill, Brig. Gen. Judson Kilpatrick, commanding the Federal 3rd Cavalry Division of approximately 3,300 troopers, launched an attack with one of his brigades against the Confederate right following the repulse of Pickett’s Charge.

To walk the path that leads to monuments and markers of Kilpatrick’s division and the point where Farnsworth’s Charge originated, park your vehicle on the right side of the Park road here. About 120 feet along the path is a War Department marker for Kilpatrick’s division on the left side. Behind this marker is a path that will lead you to the monument of the 18th Pennsylvania Cavalry about 200 feet further up the slope. On Pennsylvania Day, September 11, 1889, veterans of the 18th Pennsylvania dedicated this monument to mark the ground through which they advanced against Confederate skirmishers below. Keep this location in mind, then return to the Kilpatrick divisional marker and then continue back to the main path.

The walk to the summit of Bushman’s Hill will take about ten minutes. As you walk, take note of the large boulders scattered to your left and right, and keep in mind that this hill was not nearly as densely wooded in 1863 as it is now. Follow the main path until you reach the top, where you will see the monument of the 5th New York Cavalry on a large boulder. Nearby is the War Department marker for Battery E of the 4th U.S. Artillery, commanded by Lt. Samuel S. Elder, which was attached to Kilpatrick’s division.

Kilpatrick’s division consisted of the brigades of Brig. Gens. George A. Custer and Elon J. Farnsworth. Following the fight at Hunterstown about four miles northeast of Gettysburg on the evening of July 2, against the Confederate cavalry brigade of Brig. Gen. Wade Hampton, Kilpatrick’s brigades camped near Two Taverns a few miles south of Gettysburg. Like Merritt, Kilpatrick was ordered to the battlefield on the morning of July 3. Farnsworth’s brigade departed first and passed behind much of the Federal line to march toward the left flank.

When Custer’s brigade reached the area behind the right flank to follow Farnsworth, Brig. Gen. David Gregg, commanding the Federal 2nd Cavalry Division, asked Custer and his men to stay there. Gregg had seen an advance by Jeb Stuart’s Confederate cavalry upon that flank, and needed Custer’s support to protect the vulnerable area. Custer and his troopers won fame that afternoon in the fight at East Cavalry Field; Kilpatrick, consequently, was without Custer’s brigade here on the left flank.

As Pickett’s Charge reached its height to the north, Kilpatrick felt that an assault from his position atop Bushman’s Hill against the Confederate right flank in his front could successfully roll up the Southern line upon its center. Skirmishers of the 1st Texas and 47th Alabama Infantry were posted in an east-west line that generally followed a portion of today’s South Cavalry Avenue. Beyond them, Kilpatrick saw what appeared to be vulnerable Confederate artillery posted just south of the Michael Bushman farm.

From his line here that faced north, Kilpatrick ordered the 390 troopers of the 1st West Virginia Cavalry, commanded by Col. Nathaniel Richmond, to assault the 1st Texas skirmish line in the valley below. The West Virginians began at a trot, then sped their pace as they tried to negotiate the large boulders on the slope. When they reached the bottom, a stout rail fence in front of much of the Confederate skirmish line brought them to a stop. As the Texans fired on them, the cavalrymen slashed at the rails with their sabers while some dismounted and attempted to knock over the posts. Once enough holes were made in the fence, the West Virginians galloped toward the Confederates. One of the southerners remembered that “the ground trembled as they came, they rode down our skirmishers and charged us, and in a few seconds were [up]on us.”

The Texas skirmishers fired a volley into the cavalrymen, and guns of Reilly’s Confederate artillery posted near Warfield Ridge to the west also opened up on the horsemen. When they hit the line of Texans posted behind a large stone wall, hand-to-hand combat erupted in a wild melee as the cavalrymen used their pistols and sabers. One Southerner thought the West Virginians to be in “a state of intoxication.” With no time to reload, many Texans swung their muskets like clubs and knocked several cavalrymen out of their saddles. Soldiers of the 9th Georgia Infantry, posted near the Emmitsburg Road, also fired into the Federals. Realizing that he had ridden into a maelstrom and nearly surrounded by the enemy, Col. Richmond ordered his men to retreat back toward Bushman’s Hill.

The 18th Pennsylvania Cavalry on the left of Kilpatrick’s line had not yet moved out. “Why in hell and damnation don’t you move those troops out?” Kilpatrick barked at their commander, Lt. Col. William Penn Brinton. At Brinton’s order, the more than 400 Pennsylvanians trotted down the slope, flanked by squadrons of Maj. John Hammond’s 5th New York Cavalry on either side (the balance of the 5th New York supported the Federal artillery battery of Lt. Samuel S. Elder posted here on the summit). The Pennsylvanians, however, suffered the same fate as their West Virginia comrades and were likewise forced to retreat.

Brig. Gen. Evander Law, who had been shifting troops to deal with Merritt’s threats along the Emmitsburg Road to the west, grew increasingly worried about the aggressiveness of the Federal cavalry in this area. The 300 men of the 4th Alabama Infantry were marched from its position at the western base of Big Round Top to near the Slyder Farm to face south. The balance of his brigade – the 44th, 48th, and 47th Alabama (facing east to Big Round Top) were turned around and moved slightly forward to face west across the Plum Run Valley. With the 1st Texas Infantry and Capt. William Bachmann’s guns (plus perhaps a section of Reilly’s) facing east on the other side of the valley, any of Kilpatrick’s forces that advanced would find themselves nearly surrounded.

Kilpatrick likely wished that the 600 men of the 1st Vermont Cavalry had attacked sooner, but now the young commander, known to many of his men as “Kill-Cavalry” due to his penchant for costly mounted charges, ordered the Green Mountain troopers to advance. According to many accounts, Farnsworth and several other subordinates initially protested, citing the ill-suited, rugged terrain, and the repulse of the West Virginians and Pennsylvanians. Recall how the ground looked as you walked up the slope, and examine the boulders and uneven ground that surrounds you. Ultimately, Farnsworth decided to personally lead the mounted charge of the 1st Vermont Cavalry.

To examine the ground over which the 1st Vermont collided with the Confederates, walk back down the path to return to your vehicle.

Reset your odometer to 0.0 and continue on South Confederate Avenue. After .2 miles waysides describing Farnsworth’s Charge are on the left side of the road. At the 1st Vermont Cavalry’s position atop Bushman’s Hill behind you, the regiment was divided into three battalions for the charge. Four companies were in each battalion. Lt. Col. Addison Preston, commanding the regiment, led one battalion. Maj. William Wells and Capt. Henry Parsons led the others. Preston’s battalion was dismounted, however, and supported the charge of the other two by deploying behind a stone wall at the base of Bushman’s Hill.

On the right of the attacking column (about .2 miles further down South Confederate Avenue), Parson’s charging battalion aimed for the Slyder farm, which you can see in the distance beyond the waysides. They quickly came under fire from the recently arrived 4th Alabama Infantry. Wells’ battalion charged through the area where you are standing and came under not only infantry fire but from Bachmann’s artillery as well, posted near Warfield Ridge to your left front as you face the waysides.

Parson, wounded, went down, and the rest of his battalion began to break formation under the heavy fire from the Alabamans. The troopers turned west but, seeing the heavy Confederate forces near Devil’s Den to the north, continued turning west and then south. They soon, too, ran the gauntlet of the Confederate artillery. General Law, standing and watching from near Bachmann’s guns, later stated that the Federals galloped “in gallant style.”

Farnsworth’s horse was shot, but he was given a replacement and continued riding with Wells’ battalion. Due to the rocky ground, fences, and Confederate infantry and artillery fire, Wells’ battalion lost cohesion. Soon small groups of mounted cavalrymen, like Parson’s men to the east, tried to gallop and cut their way out back to Bushman Hill.

Continue on South Cavalry Avenue. About 300 feet ahead is the statue monument of Brig. Gen. William Wells of the 1st Vermont Cavalry on the right. Through this area, Wells’ battalion charged to the northwest toward the Slyder farm. A major at the time of the battle, Wells rose to brigadier general by the end of the war. For his bravery during Farnsworth’s Charge, Wells was awarded the Medal of Honor in 1891. J. Otto Schweizer sculpted the statue, dedicated on July 3, 1913, the fiftieth anniversary of the battle. Note the bas relief in the boulder on the front – it depicts Wells’ battalion during the charge, and many of the figures, including that of General Farnsworth in the lead, were modeled after actual members.

After another .2 miles the “D-shaped” field of the Slyder Farm, which contains the monument of the 1st Vermont Cavalry, is on the left. To visit the monument of the 1st Vermont Cavalry at the high point of the field, park your vehicle on the right side of the road.

Farnsworth and his small mounted group burst over the stone wall behind the monument. From the opposite end of this field, infantrymen of the 15th Alabama commanded by Col. William Oates fired on them. Farnsworth and his horse were both shot. When the twenty-five-year-old brigadier crashed to the ground in the vicinity of the monument, he suffered from five bullet wounds and died soon after.

Besides losing their brigade commander, the 1st Vermont Cavalry suffered heavily – sixteen were killed or mortally wounded, over a dozen more wounded, and thirty-five were missing when the remnants of the regiment finally made it back to safety. General Kilpatrick’s attempt at glory on the Federal left was over. On October 9, 1889, surviving members of the 1st Vermont came to this spot to dedicate their monument near where Farnsworth went down. The mention of his death on the monument is the only memorial on the battlefield to the sole Federal brigadier general killed behind Confederate lines while making a charge.

From the 1st Vermont Cavalry monument, you may also easily walk the short distance to the buildings of the Slyder farm. A path leading to the farm begins on the west side of the monument. As you stand near the stone home, you have a good view of the very rocky and undulating terrain in all directions over which Kilpatrick’s cavalry charged. The Slyder farmhouse, incidentally, was used in the 1993 motion picture Gettysburg to depict Gen. Robert E. Lee’s headquarters at the Mary Thompson home.

(* Denotes Required To Fill)

NAME*

E-MAIL ADDRESS*

HOME ADDRESS*

CITY*

STATE*

ZIP CODE*

I wish to remain Anonymous

Do Not Include me in Newsletter

I would like to Volunteer

Message:

CAPTCHA Code: