Hallowed Ground: A Walk at Gettysburg

Hallowed Ground: A Walk at Gettysburg, Three Days in July"More than any other place in the United States, this battlefield is indeed hallowed ground. Perhaps no word in the American language has greater historical resonance than Gettysburg. For some people Lexington and Concord, or Bunker Hill, or Yorktown, or Omaha Beach would be close rivals. But more Americans visit Gettysburg each year than any of these other battlefields--perhaps than all of them combined."Although I was born in Alabama and [...]

Hallowed Ground: A Walk at Gettysburg is about how the armies didn't want to fight at Gettysburg but went union soldiers saw confederate soldiers coming closer they stared to fire at them. It talked about where all the monuments are in Gettysburg. In the book it said what fights were won and what fights were lost. It said so of the tactics and attack formations. I thought that the book was good but could be a little better at some parts in the end I would recommend it to my friends.

As a result of reading quite a few books by the author [1], I have come to the understanding that James McPherson writes a great deal of short and topical books on various Civil War matters, and many of them are filled with a certain sense of wit as well as a highly critical attitude towards what he views as particularly poor historiography. Those tendencies are all in full evidence here, and this is a book that has a particularly narrow scope but one that handles that scope particularly well an [...]

James McPherson has done it again, just when I think that there is nothing more to be said about the battle of Gettysburg, he goes ahead and proves me wrong. "Hallowed Ground: A Walk at Gettysburg", is not intended to provide a thorough examination of this penultimate Civil War battle, instead it serves as historical guidebook. While taking readers on a tour of the Gettysburg National Park (as well as areas of the town itself), McPherson provides the history of those sites, detailing the events [...]

Author, Civil War scholar, and Princeton history professor James M. McPherson is your guide for a tour of the Gettysburg battlefield. The book and the tour are arranged chronologically, as you read about and visit sites important to each of the three days of the July, 1863 battle. I read the illustrated edition, which is enhanced with beautiful (and sometimes harrowing) pictures of places and people involved in the conflict. The story of the fighting is interspersed with first-person accounts an [...]

McPherson has a very natural, comfortable writing style and can evoke small anecdotal moments that can be clearly seen in the mind's eye as well as he can explain strategies and tactics of battle. The book has just the proper length, depth and tone and offers simple illustrative maps to help us picture the layout each day of the battle. I was surprised and amused by his sense of humor with the exception at the very end regarding the appearance of rain after battles that seemed to misfire as a fi [...]

This is a short book about the site of the battle that is considered the turning point in the Civil War. I think it would be a good book for someone with an intermediate knowledge of Gettysburg. It would also be good for a person who has just visited Gettysburg or who is preparing to visit. This book focuses on the land of Gettysburg, which is a novel approach. It has interesting factoids that are arranged well, but I don't think it was meant to be an overview or an introduction to Gettysburg. M [...]

This short book is written in McPherson's clear style. The historian shares brief anecdotal stories and tackles the many myths that arose from this cataclysmic and decisive Civil War battle.“Hallowed Ground”is perfect for anyone planning to visit Gettysburg, as McPherson weaves history into precise geographic spots on a battleground walk. He carefully provides perspective on the action in the context of the war and the nation's history. The walk ends at the site of President Lincoln's Gettys [...]

Read "Hallowed Ground", watched Ken Burns "Civil War: Episode 5", about Gettysburg. Now I feel ready for our trip to Gettysburg.

A Walk Through GettysburgJames McPherson, America's leading Civil War historian, is an ideal guide to the Gettysburg Battlefield. In his short, eloquent book, "Hallowed Ground," it is almost as if Professor McPherson is at the reader's side accompanying the reader as a guide to the great battle that took place from July 1 -- July 3, 1863.McPherson is an ideal guide for many reasons. Most importantly, he is reflective. His focus is on the meaning and significance of the Battle rather than on bare [...]

I first saw this in hard copy on the shelves at Gettysburg during the summer of 2016, however they only had one copy and it wasn't for sale. As soon as it popped up as a Kindle special this September, I jumped on it.A quick one day read as McPherson takes the reader on a journey with one of his many student groups through the grounds of Gettysburg. Rather than an overall narrative, or travel journey, McPherson follows the battlefield through the battles of July 1-3, 1863 with stops at each memor [...]

This is an ideal companion to a visit to Gettysburg. It is brief enough to complete before you arrive, and provides plenty of anticipated points of interest. The writer is a highly experienced guide. He knows all of the stories, those true and those not, or doubtful. But he shares a bit of everything. No intellectual snob he. And it is worthy of a reread before subsequent trips.

The first time I ever, by my own choice, listened to the story of a battle. I listed to this on our drive away from my first real view of Gettysburg. Just as Sally said it would, it made me want to turn around and see it all again, in much more detail.

This is a great detailed visit to Gettysburg. Wish I would have read before I went to the battlefield. Loved all the background information.

A walk through Gettysburg with the preeminent James McPherson.

Take a walk over the hallowed ground of Gettysburg and "hear" anecdotes and local history or the battlefield where the turning point of the Civil War took place.

A witness view with a walk.So simple, yes so eloquent. It captures a view overlooking the hallow battleground with a sense of witness. McPherson is like a consultant reincarnated

Excellent work by a noted professor of American History. This short, 2 hour listen is descriptive of the Civil War battle field at Gettysburg. Not only does McPherson provide the basics of the battle but also some unknown factoids and vignettes not previously known. For example, Daniel Sickles lost a leg and it's still in Philadelphia; he was also largely responsible for the battle field as we see it today. The book should be accompanied by a visit to Gettysburg because it references information [...]

Hallowed Ground packs a great deal of information regarding Gettysburg, past and present, into a tight package. I own an earlier edition, and I used the photographs in it as part of my lectures when I was teaching a unit on the Civil War. Thank you to Edelweiss-Above the Treeline and the publisher for the DRC.McPherson is a renowned author, winner of the Pulitzer for Battle Cry of Freedom. That volume should be the go-to book for anyone looking for a first highly literate glimpse of the American [...]

This relatively-recently-written (2003) book is a very good, and very clear, brief, walking tour of the Gettysburg battlefield. McPherson has toured the battlefield many times and, of course, is a fine scholar of the war. His familiarity with both the battlefield landscape and the facts of the strategy and tactics is clear, and he has an eye for the interesting backstory, as well as the ways that the topography of the battlefield affected the outcome. He also identifies still-ongoing historical [...]

Hallowed Ground: A Walk at Gettysburg (The Illustrated Edition) by James McPherson is a nice work about both the battle and the park as it now is. The addition of photographs, drawings and maps makes this a far more valuable work than it was previously.For those of us who have visited multiple times we will be reminded of many things we may have forgotten. For those who haven't yet visited this can serve as a guide (though I would caution that it is not an exhaustive guide) or simply as a substi [...]

A nice and concise summary of Gettysburg. Not by any means McPherson's most insightful work on the Civil War (See the illustrated edition of Battle Cry of Freedom or, I'm told, For Cause and Comrades) but informative and readable. The maps are very minimalist and don't show up terribly well on my Kindle Touch. Fortunately I have The Atlas of the Civil War, edited by McPherson.I do like the efforts McPherson goes through in this slim volume to debunk myths of which the Civil War bred hosts. He al [...]

This book, for what it is, is great. For me, it was interesting, but it was very light reading.The book is very worthwhile as a refresher to the Battle of Gettysburg. McPherson writes this like he's giving a very laid-back tour of the battle. Certainly, with such a small book, there is a lot of detail left out of his story. Even so, there are a lot of interesting things as well. Note that the upcoming landscape changes he mentions have taken place and are still taking place to more closely refle [...]

Fans of Civil War History will not want to miss this one. McPherson's This is a written version of the Princeton professor's walking tours with his students. Exciting and approachable treatment of the topic. The text is brief but manages to be comprehensive in its overview of the three-day battle-the bloodiest in our history-while including fascinating stories. McPherson writes in a conversational tone as he describes the atmosphere of the site. Specific street directions are provided, and the a [...]

I actually read this book on our way home, after visiting Gettysburg, so I didn't get to enjoy it on location as a guide book. Still, everything was fresh in my mind. Unlike the audio tour we purchased at the gift shop, this author did a great job sharing interesting tidbits and anecdotes while still offering a great overview of the battle and following a coherent timeline. James McPherson is clearly quite knowledgeable and he has a great sense of humor. The book is very readable and enjoyable.

A very nice, quite short, outline of the battle of Gettysburg. It's written as a walking tour; I don't think it would be useful as one, but it would be a good introduction if you are going to visit the battle site. There are no pictures, but there are some simple maps. Although short, the author seems to have a special interest in debunking myths and false stories (he's a professor at Princeton and the author of the "Battle Cry of Freedom"), and you can read and enjoy the whole thing in a day or [...]

Excellent walk through of the Battle of Gettysburg. Planning to use the book and follow McPherson's directions to view the various battle spots. Brief, yet thorough, he gives perspective and vision to each site discussed. I've been to the battlefield many times, but gained a new glimpse through McPherson's many years of Gettysburg tour guiding. I especially enjoyed the human interest stories and the be-bunking of various Gettysburg Battle myths. I highly recommend this book for those interested [...]

Probably best when you're actually touring Gettysburg, this book nonetheless captures the story and dispels some of the myths surrounding those three important July days in 1863. I enjoyed McPherson's tone: conversational, yet knowledgeable - just like I imagine he is in front of students. He takes readers throughout the battlefield, and you feel as if you're getting the inside story. I'll bet his rivals the best of the official guidebooks. The only thing missing are photos, but I suppose if you [...]

I appreciated the insight this book gave on the battle of Gettysburg without being overwrought with details. It reads like a guided tour, and makes me hunger for the chance to visit this remarkable place and see for myself the details of the battlefield. This book is not a comprehensive description of the Battle of Gettysburg, but is just enough to get your feet wet on understanding the battle. Definitely a worthwhile read for anyone looking to visit the Gettysburg area.

This was a very short book that was fun but not very deep. I enjoyed the read and learned a few new anecdotal pieces of information, but this basically feels like a quick way for McPherson to make some money. That sounds very critical, but I do not mean it to be. I enjoyed the light read and if nothing else, it really makes me want to visit Gettysburg and spend some real time there. This was a perfect one day read during what has become a Civil War kick for me.