Gettysburg/Vicksburg Anniversary Commemoration
Mon.–Thurs., July 1–4, 2013
Times & prices vary
A four-day salute to the 150th anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg and the fall of Vicksburg.
Last Full Measure: Remembering The First Minnesota at Gettysburg
Mon., July 1, 7–8:30 p.m.
$12 ($10 MHS members). Tickets available online or by phone at 651-259-3015.
On the eve of the 150th anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg, the Minnesota History Center marks the service of the First Minnesota Volunteer Infantry Regiment with a special lecture by Richard Moe, esteemed public historian and author of Last Full Measure: The Life and Death of the First Minnesota Volunteers, the definitive history of that famous regiment in the Civil War.
Moe will recall how these otherwise ordinary young men― farmers, loggers, clerks, teachers, students, and lawyers, native-born and immigrant―formed the first regiment offered to President Lincoln after the fall of Fort Sumter, served in virtually every major battle fought in the eastern theater during the first three years of the Civil War, and helped the Union defeat Confederate forces at Gettysburg, turning the tide of the war.
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Made possible by the Arts, Culture and Heritage Fund approved by Minnesota voters in November 2008.
Nine Nights of Music: Honoring the Fallen with Century Brass Band
Tues., July 2, 5:30–9 p.m.
FREE
*Pre-show/Post-show Activities:
5:30 to 7:30 pm—displays/games
8:30 pm—Candlelight Processional
This special evening, in conjunction with the exhibit Minnesota and the Civil War highlights period music by the 5-piece ensemble Century Brass Band with dancing and instruction by George Ehrenberg. Pre-show activities include viewing outdoor displays and playing popular games of the 1860s led by members of the St. Paul Soldier’s Aid Society. At the conclusion of the concert, honor the Minnesota soldiers who fell 150 years ago at the Battle of Gettysburg by joining a processional led by fife and drum across Kellogg Boulevard to the Josias King Monument for a brief but poignant memorial ceremony. King was a Civil War veteran and the monument was commissioned by the Grand Army of the Republic to honor the brave soldiers of the war.
Surviving the Civil War (held at the James J. Hill House)
Wed., July 3, 6:30-9 p.m.
$12 ($10 MHS members). Tickets available online and by phone at 651-259-3015.
Enjoy Civil War scholarship, fashion and music in the convivial atmosphere of the James J Hill House. The evening includes presentations by historians including John Lundstrom, author of “
One Drop in a Sea of Blue.” Food and drinks available for purchase.
Gettysburg/Vicksburg Anniversary Commemoration Family Day
Thurs., July 4, 12–4 p.m.
Included with museum admission.
In the summer of 1863, the nearly simultaneous Union victories at Gettysburg and Vicksburg were the beginning of the end for the Confederacy. After Gettysburg, Lee’s forces never regained enough strength to seriously threaten the North. Visit the History Center’s exhibit, Minnesota and the Civil War, to learn more about these pivotal battles as well as celebrate the 4th of July with period music, ice cream social, displays, performers, and re-enactors. Bring your own picnic or purchase food at Café Minnesota’s terrace grill.
Highlights:
• Short presentations and conversation with General Ulysses S. Grant (portrayed by Peter Grady)
• Dance to the music of the New Pearl Buttons with instruction by George Ehrenberg
• Enjoy an ice cream social with complimentary frozen treats
• Make a Union photo case
• Try your luck in the Game Emporium
• Observe a vintage picnic (1-1:30 p.m.) and 1860s fashion showcase (2-2:30 p.m.) presented by the Living History Society
• Join up! First Regiment of the Minnesota Volunteer Infantry mustering and drilling of troops
• Learn about the St. Paul Soldier’s Aid Society – a display representing the women on the home front who banded together to provide civil relief to their fighting men
• Lecture by Curator Adam Scher: Long Remembering Gettysburg & Vicksburg (2 p.m.)
• Glimpse some of the best Civil War displays produced by History Day students
• 90-minute Civil War tours of the State Capitol at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. Separate admission fee and reservations required. Call 651-296-2881.
St. Paul After the Civil War - Trolley Tour
Saturdays, July 6, 13, 20, 27, Aug. 3, 10 a.m. - 1 p.m.
When the Civil War ended, Union veterans, recently freed slaves, and European immigrants arrived by the hundreds in St. Paul. Hear their stories of arrival or homecoming, and explore the St. Paul they helped to build, a city trying to move on after a devastating war.
Tour leaves from Historic Fort Snelling and visits Oakland Cemetery and the Old Soldiers Home. Ticket price includes picnic lunch catered exclusively by Chowgirls Killer Catering.
Faith and Freedom in the Civil War
Sat., Aug. 3, 10 a.m.
Reserve FREE tickets.
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In July of 1863, the Union and Confederate armies met on the battlefield at Gettysburg, PA. Overnight, the fighting transformed Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg into a battlefield and field hospital for both sides. War came in a bloody rush to a place of peaceful study, making Gettysburg Seminary a historic crossroads of duty and devotion, conflict and compassion.
Join Barbara Franco, Founding Executive Director of the newly-opened Gettysburg Seminary Ridge Museum, as she explores how the religious foment, innovation and change of the 19th century influenced our thinking about moral issues of war and slavery, and how the Americans who met at Gettysburg grappled not only with life and death, but with divergent ideas of faith and freedom that would shape the nation’s future.
In partnership with the Gettysburg Seminary Museum. Made by the Arts, Culture and Heritage Fund approved by Minnesota voters in November 2008.
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