American Civil War Game Club (ACWGC)

For those who might be interested. Similar but on a smaller scale to the Little Round Top closure, Devil's Den itself will close next Monday for a 5-6 month rehabilitation project. It is meant to address significant erosion along existing walkways and unauthorized social trails that have created safety hazards.

All roads around it will remain open, with some temporary closures. Areas around it like the the Slaughter Pen, Devil’s Kitchen, and the Triangular Field will remain open as well.

You can read about it more here:

https://www.nps.gov/gett/learn/news/dev ... roject.htm.

I will try to take photos when I can.

_________________
General Scott Ludwig
4/II/ANV

A very interesting post Suh, thank you, <salute>.

I have never been there and doubt I ever shall but it must be wonderous to be close enough to be able to take pictures of it let alone sense the atmosphere of the place. I was struck by something you said in your message "unauthorized social trails that have created safety hazards". We have become very politically and morally correct these days it seems......in 1863 those very same trails must have created many and significant safety hazards to the men there and nobody gave a damn then I, for one, would be truly delighted to see any pictures you may be able to take and post, and I will look forward to it.

Respectively Suh,

_________________
Karl McEntegart
Major General
Officer Commanding
Army of Tennessee





Make my enemy brave and strong, so that if defeated, I will not be ashamed.

Hey Karl,

I'll look through my pictures and try to find ones that can five a decent view of things. The 'sense of the atmosphere' is really an interesting part of it. The terrain is something else that is unique to see, even in photos and especially in the off season (winter) as you can walk more if it and get a more clear sense of the Confederate's approach in a way. It's more broken ground than is visible from either battle line.

Yeah, I think the original "social trails" date back to that day!

_________________
General Scott Ludwig
4/II/ANV

Thanks Scott,

I would be delighted to see anything you have to share.

I have been to the Normandy beaches and other battle sites, Falaise, Caen, Oradour sur Glane etc in France, over the years and there is a definite feel to it.

Many thanks,

_________________
Karl McEntegart
Major General
Officer Commanding
Army of Tennessee





Make my enemy brave and strong, so that if defeated, I will not be ashamed.

Without a doubt Karl. Hoping to get to some of them myself one day.

_________________
General Scott Ludwig
4/II/ANV

The below is just one image from my visit in January. I've been back subsequent times since then, but this image gives somewhat of an idea of the terrain that the Confederates contended with on the approach.



I'm just uphill from Rose (Rose's) Run looking at the Triangular Field in the middle foreground. Little Round Top is in the distance. The pinnacle of Big Round Top is on the far right of the photo and the Rose Woods is on the far left, slight obscured by the small tree I'm standing next to. Where the stonewall in the Triangular Field starts to slope down is where the larger area of Devil's Den is. A good eye can make out the big tree present in Devil's Den. A real good eye can make out the cannon's from Smith's Battery. The Slaughter Pen is obfuscated by the landscape, but I note it's general area in the next photo. Also cutting across almost the center of the photo, just above the cattails and marsh reeds is a white patched line of snow. These days it's a hiking trail. In the past it's the railbed of the Gettysburg Electric Trolley.

One can possibly make out the monuments on Little Round Top and Devil's Den, though those are harder to see in the image.






The areas I mentioned above, labeled on the image.




Finally I just made a quick Google Map overview of the area:






The approximate point I was standing at:






Some of the items mentioned above either labeled by me or Google:






As an interesting side conversation, there's a post at Civil War Talk that discusses where the Plum Run and Rose Run meet. Incidentally a subtopic has folks talking about the naming of the Rose Run portion.

https://civilwartalk.com/threads/conflu ... ms.171475/

Also, Gettysburg Daily has a segment by Rich Kohr, a Licensed Battlefield Guide on the Electric Trolley: https://www.gettysburgdaily.com/battlef ... c-trolley/

Part 6 covers some of the area of my photo, as well as the controversy of the Big Fill: https://www.gettysburgdaily.com/license ... ey-part-6/

Part 7 Covers the Devil's Den area: https://www.gettysburgdaily.com/license ... ey-part-7/

_________________
General Scott Ludwig
4/II/ANV

Brilliant pics and graphics, thank you

_________________
Karl McEntegart
Major General
Officer Commanding
Army of Tennessee





Make my enemy brave and strong, so that if defeated, I will not be ashamed.

No problem Karl! I'll put some more images together as I have time.

_________________
General Scott Ludwig
4/II/ANV

Much appreciated Scott, no hurry at all.....I'm kinda "busy" at South Mountain just at present anyway

_________________
Karl McEntegart
Major General
Officer Commanding
Army of Tennessee





Make my enemy brave and strong, so that if defeated, I will not be ashamed.

Excellent photos, General Ludwig!

_________________
Colonel Jason "Skeedaddle" Campbell
The Mahoning 4th Brigade
3rd Division
2nd Corp
AoT
"Let's fill up our canteens, boys. Some of us will be in hell before nightfall and we'll need the water"

Thanks Jason! This was the day I was hunting for the Timbers foundation again. I like to try to find it from memory each year.

_________________
General Scott Ludwig
4/II/ANV

Hope you bring home a win from South Mountain, Karl!

The below I took in 2018 at Fox's Gap:



The "battlefield park" has several points to stop at, though it isn't a park like Gettysburg or Antietam. The Appalachian Trail one of the US' Great Walks, for lack of a better term, does run right down the mountain line so you'll see hikers at certain points in each of the gaps. I do think the American Battlefield Trust bought some land that is by Turner's Gap, where Hooker's I Corps went up to attack. Hoping to find a point where I can photograph the Union view from the base of the gaps in the area of Bolivar. Finding a decent place to turn off safely for the photo can be a little problematic.

Either way may glory shine down on your banners!

_________________
General Scott Ludwig
4/II/ANV

Just wanted to post a few update photos on the work being done. I went the first day they closed it and had the chance to go again on Friday. The below are from Friday and they're doing a really nice job! Making it way more accessible on what were very tricky pathways prior.


The path & new steps from the parking lot at the bottom of Devil's Den, which is right by the Slaughter Pen as well:






Closeup of the new steps:






The path up the backside of the rocks to the top:






The new path being put in by the famous Confederate Sharpshooter nest:






At the top where working is being done around Smith's Battery:






This is what the steps looked like in late January from the parking lot:

_________________
General Scott Ludwig
4/II/ANV

General Ludwig, Suh, <salute>

Apologies, only catching up now. Those pictures are brilliant, thank you for posting them. The one from Fox Gap is absolutely outstanding, very atmospheric. It must be truly amazing to stand in such a place.

Btw, I regret I did not prevail at South Mountain. As it happens, Fox Gap was my undoing, held Turners and fought Crampton's. Good game though and great fun.

_________________
Karl McEntegart
Major General
Officer Commanding
Army of Tennessee





Make my enemy brave and strong, so that if defeated, I will not be ashamed.

Hey Karl,

Thanks and yeah the three gaps are really neat! Each has their own look. Turner's Gap is where the national pike still goes through, so it's a somewhat busy two lane road. Crampton's Gap has more people on foot usually due to the ruins & the picnic areas. Fox's Gap is the most atmospheric & isolated to traffic. More foot traffic than cars, but still less people than Crampton's Gap, so the stillness of things or the weather can be taken in better.

I'm sorry to hear of your loss at South Mountain, but glad you enjoyed the game! It's one I have liked playing over the years as well.

_________________
General Scott Ludwig
4/II/ANV