The latest monument in Gettysburg National Military Park — a new $103 million visitor center and museum — proves Abraham Lincoln wrong once again. At a battlefield cemetery dedication in November 1863, Lincoln told his audience the world would never remember what he said, nor could the living hallow the battleground on which they stood. But ensuing decades have countered him.

In fact, Lincoln's Gettysburg Address became a monument itself. And by the 1890s, Americans had placed one of the largest outdoor collections of statues and other monuments anywhere in the world on the Pennsylvania battlefield to honor the 51,000 soldiers who fell wounded or dead there July 1-3, 1863. Today, 2 million visitors a year walk the grassy knolls where 165,000 men fought for their beliefs.

Private funds financed the new museum and visitors center. Inside, 12 galleries, Civil War weaponry, and educational films display the story of America's darkest hour in a monumental manner, now with contemporary interactive technology assist and a film narrated by actor Morgan Freeman. The new exhibits put the battle in context — in a way the former visitor center did not — and explains why the nation was torn apart.

The museum's centerpiece, the 360-degree, circular, 1884, Paul Philippoteaux Gettysburg Cyclorama painting, has been restored and as of Sept. 26 will occupy its own new gallery behind a dramatic 3-D battle diorama that has been missing for several decades from the display.

The Gettysburg battle stories one learns in the museum and on foot, horseback, coach, or auto tours of the 6,000-acre battlefield are difficult to process in a different age. Death and hardship were rampant. Unspeakable indignities and deprivation assaulted soldiers and townspeople alike. The pastoral countryside I viewed from my upstairs window at Lightner Farmhouse B&B didn't make the battle era — or the kitchen tabletop amputations that happened in that house and many others in the town — seem any more real. So I kept looking around town for more markers.

The plight of Gettysburg civilians comes alive at Shriver House Museum. Costumed interpreter/actors do the narrative. Displays include live Confederate ammunition and other battle debris. The actresses depicting Shriver women, whose men were off to war, tremble at the dangers. But they press on even as they endure Confederate sharpshooters making a nest in their attic to pick off Union Soldiers in the streets outside. And the cannon holes are still there to see.

There's a sort of reverence and awe about Civil War history almost everywhere one goes in Gettysburg, and often even a passion. I asked my innkeeper Eileen Hoover why after so many years the monuments keep coming.

"The battles were like 9/11 events in our day," she said. "The nation was forever changed, and so were the people who were there. Almost everyone was affected by it in some way."

Congress and President George W. Bush have recently added another monument, designating Gettysburg the northern gateway on a 175 mile-long preserve that stretches to Charlottesville, Va. The Journey Through Hallowed Ground National Heritage Area passes through four states, past nine presidential homes, 73 historic areas, Civil War battlefields, historic communities and lots of mesmerizing farm and mountain scenery. The initiative caps a 12-year effort by public and private interest groups. The idea is to promote early U.S. history and protect the land on which it happened from commercial development. Attracting tourists is part of the initiative, too.

One of the Journey's early boosters, Yale University professor C. Vann Woodward declared, "This part of the country has soaked up more of the blood, sweat, and tears of American history than any other part of the country. It has bred more Founding Fathers, inspired more soaring hopes and ideals and witnessed more triumphs, failures, victories, and lost causes than any other place in the country."

Heritage tourists are the Journey's target audience, but there are plenty of 21st century diversions along the way to interest just about everyone else. Like Gettysburg's ghost tours — where so many died, there must be spirits — boutiques, bistros, luxury inns and resorts, wineries, and antique shops add contemporary spice to the mix.

Following are sample stops on the Journey:

Emmitsburg, Md.: Chartered in 1785 as a remote outpost for Catholic Maryland, the town was site of Union encampments after the Battle of Gettysburg. Main attractions are the Grotto of Lourdes and the National Shrine of Elizabeth Ann Seton, the first American-born person to be canonized a saint. The grotto is a peaceful garden above Mount St. Mary's University that harbors a shrine dedicated to the Lady of Lourdes. Emmitsburg is also site of The National Fallen Firefighters Memorial, which honors those firemen and volunteers who have died on duty.

Frederick, Md.: Stunning vintage architecture from mansions to churches makes this city a great place to walk. Map out a personal tour with the historical society in a 1829 mansion. Or, do a train ride from the old depot that can include fall foliage or a mystery dinner performance. Civil War shadows lurk all around Frederick, in stops like the National Museum of Civil War Medicine and nearby Antietam National Battlefield, site of the bloodiest day in U.S. history. State parks, and the antiquing towns of New Market and Brunswick offer more reasons to linger.

Leesburg, Va.: Heritage meets the 21st century in this pulsating town where modern eateries, shopping, and commerce mingles with sites connected to famous Americans like General George C. Marshall (Dodona Manor) and Morven Park (home of Virginia Gov. Westmoreland Davis).The Loudoun Courthouse site in the old town district dates from 1758, and walking tours of the 250-year old town reveal more buildings and homes with interesting stories. Tuscarora Mill, or "Tuskie's," is a local restaurant favorite housed inside the timbers of an old mill.

Middleburg, Va.: Elizabeth Taylor and Jackie Kennedy aren't the only notables who've loved this heart of Virginia Hunt Country, only an hour from Washington, D.C. Middleburg remains a place to see the rich and notable. Dining and overnight guests feel the history at Red Fox Inn, circa 1728, where George Washington and Civil War General J.E.B. Stuart slept. Local pubs and historic country inns like Goodstone Inn & Estate preserve the equestrian culture of the decades. Organic and gourmet food, riding clothes, antiques, and elegant household nonessentials from Europe provide retail therapy.

Charlottesville, Va.: Location of Thomas Jefferson's beloved Monticello estate, and Jefferson's academic legacy The University of Virginia. A guided tour of the university grounds takes visitors into the Virginia Rotunda, Lawn, and Pavilions that are a designated World Heritage Site and core of Jefferson's "academical village." Jefferson labeled the lush rolling terrain around Charlottesville "Eden," and today it holds wineries and unique historic lodgings like Prospect Hill and Keswick Hall.

IF YOU GO

The Journey Through Hallowed Ground Partnership offers online itineraries and information on the corridor at www.hallowedground.org. For more information, order Journey's guidebook by David Edwin Lillard at the site. Gettysburg information is at www.gettysburgfoundation.org and www.gettysburg.travel.

Ruth Hill is a freelance travel writer. To find out more about Ruth Hill and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

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