You heard it here first. According to an NPS press release John Latschar has decided to stay on after learning from the Department of the Interior that his ability to continue to work with the park as the president of the Gettysburg Foundation would be severely curtailed. This conflict of interest was mentioned by a [...]
Battlefield Interpretation
A belated congratulations to former Gettysburg superintendent, John Latschar, who earlier this month was honored by The National Parks Conservation Association with the Stephen T. Mather Award for his work on park preservation. The award recognizes National Park Service employees who have demonstrated initiative and resourcefulness in promoting environmental protection and who have taken direct [...]
I heard about this during my presentation at Fredericksburg this past Sunday. The day before re-enactors from the 28th Massachusetts and the 47th Virginia marked the 146th anniversary of the battle with a historic handshake over the famous stone wall at Marye’s Heights. It’s arguably the most powerful example of our Civil War community’s obsession [...]
It finally hit me early yesterday morning why I felt just a little uncomfortable about giving the commemorative talk on the Fredericksburg battlefield. I am used to addressing audiences – either in the form of an academic panel discussion or informal roundtable setting – about the past from a detached perspective. More specifically, I am [...]
Today I am giving the keynote address as part of a ceremony commemorating the 146th anniversary of the battle of Fredericksburg. Thanks to my friend and fellow historian John Hennessy for inviting me to take part on this important day. I can’t say this was the easiest presentation to write, but I am fairly comfortable [...]
On Wednesday Clint Schemmer, of the Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star, interviewed me about my upcoming talk on Sunday. I did my best to give him a taste of some of the themes that I will touch on even as I continue to write and edit. Although the assignment has been a challenge, I am looking forward to [...]
Yesterday, I briefly touched on some of my concerns surrounding a commemorative talk that I am scheduled to deliver in December for the anniversary of the battle of Fredericksburg. Part of the reason I find it so difficult to commemorate a Civil War battle has to do with my tendency to interpret the war years [...]
I don’t mind admitting that I am just a little nervous about the upcoming commemorative speech that I will give in Fredericksburg on December 14. I’ve never delivered such a speech before. It’s much easier to present a traditional conference paper where the speaker at least appears to be detached from the subject at hand. A [...]
