Read Online Last Ghost at Gettysburg by Paul Ferrante - Free Book Online

considered
equal. The stones are grouped by state with two sections for
unknowns and one for the regular army. In later years, the dead
from the Spanish American War and World War I were added outside
the original configuration. Which brings us to the centerpiece of
the military cemetery.”
    T.J., along with the rest of the group,
shielded his eyes from the blazing sun and looked skyward at the
marble structure that towered above the graveyard.
    “The cemetery was dedicated on November 19,
1863. Of course, it was here that President Abraham Lincoln
delivered his famous Gettysburg Address, which is noted for its
brief yet powerful message. The cemetery was completed in March of
1864 with the last of 3,512 Union dead being reburied. In 1872
control of the grounds was transferred to the War Department and it
is currently administered by the National Park Service as part of
Gettysburg National Military Park. It contains today the remains
of over six thousand bodies from numerous American wars.
    “This monument before you was the first of
any type to be placed at Gettysburg. The cornerstone was laid on
July 4, 1865, and the full monument was dedicated on July 1, 1869.
The white, westerly granite pedestal supports a shaft and marble
statue entitled Genius of Liberty . Four buttresses on the
pedestal support allegorical statues of War, History, Plenty, and
Peace.
    “I hope you have enjoyed our tour, and I will
stay behind for a few minutes for anyone who had further questions.
Please observe the cemetery protocol of silence and respect as you
walk about the grounds. Thank you for your patience on this hot
day, and enjoy your visit to Gettysburg.”
    A few stragglers stayed behind to ask
questions but most moved off to wander about before heading back to
their tour bus. Some of the older men had a distant look in their
eyes, perhaps remembering their own battlefield experiences in
more modern conflicts.
    “So, how was it, big guy? Did I bore you?”
asked Mike, putting an arm around his nephew’s shoulders.
    “Not at all,” said T.J. “Actually, I’m
starting to get into it.”
    “Super. You gonna do the bus tour I
mentioned?”
    “Not today. That might be overdoing it.”
    “You’re right, no need to rush all this. If I
were you I’d take a stroll around downtown, grab a bite to eat.
There’s all kinds of fast food places and a couple ice cream shops
just a block away. A cold vanilla shake would go down nice right
about now. Today I don’t knock off till five, but you can hop the
trolley when you’ve had enough and it’ll drop you fairly near
Seminary Ridge.”
    “Sounds great, Uncle Mike.”
    “You still worn out from this morning?”
    “Well, I’ve kinda gotten my second wind.
Still, it’ll feel good to go home later and put my feet up.”
    “Listen,” said his uncle, “don’t let LouAnne
steamroll you. She can be a handful when she gets going. If you
think she’s being too bossy or a know-it-all or whatever, give it
right back. She respects that.”
    “Will do. See you later.” And with that, T.J.
ambled off to see where the day would take him while his uncle
downed a bottle of water and steered the golf cart back toward the
Visitor Center.
    T.J. wandered along Steinwehr Street, the
most commercial avenue, ducking in and out of the many shops that
filled the gaps between eateries and motels. In some ways they were
all the same. There would be a front counter that sold “authentic”
Civil War bullets and artillery shells and fragments, right next to
the refrigerator magnets and key chains, followed by racks of
kiddie plastic guns and swords, much more realistic, and expensive,
replica pistols and rifles for adults, hats, flags, tee shirts,
blankets, toy soldiers and cannons, belt buckles, glassware,
collector spoons and thimbles, CD’s, DVD’s and books, a surprising
percentage of which that dealt with ghosts and hauntings in the
area.
    Especially strange to T.J. were the
Southern-oriented tee