Gettysburg

This young man, Col. Patrick O'Rorke, graduated first in his class at West Point. He died at 22 (I think) at Gettysburg. His commanding officer said he would gladly have given his life in exchange for this outstanding youngster. (It appears people rub his nose -- for luck??? -- like the tortoise at the University of Maryland. His bad luck means good luck for them??? Don't know. Just guessing. But his nose is polished.)

 

At first I wasn't going to post the above photo. Not very good. Can't see much of the field. Then I remembered from the film I'd seen not long before that this is pretty much what the gunners saw -- nothing because of the smoke from the 160 Southern guns and 100 Northern guns (on higher ground). Some cannon balls met in midair and fused with each other.

Pictures from Gettysburg. General Lee and his horse, Traveller.