Gettysburg

Gettysburg, borough, Pennsylvania, United States. As a tourist centre with industries manufacturing processed food, footwear, textiles, electrical equipment, and printed materials. Gettysburg is famous as the site of the decisive Battle of Gettysburg (July 1863), one of the bloodiest encounters of the American Civil War. Subsequently, President Abraham Lincoln delivered his noted speech, the Gettysburg Address, when Gettysburg National Cemetery was dedicated on November 19, 1863. The battlefield and cemetery are now part of Gettysburg National Military Park (1895). In the borough are Gettysburg College (1832) and Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg (1826); Eisenhower National Historic Site, encompassing the home and farm of President Dwight D. Eisenhower, is nearby. The community, planned in the 1780s, is named after General James Gettys, an early resident. Population (1980) 7,194; (1990) 7,025.