By Leon Reed, Bulge Bugle Editor

In a move that will have special meaning to BOBA members, the American Battlefield Trust announced that it is in negotiations to buy one of the most prominent remaining eyesores intruding on hallowed ground at Gettysburg. The link below describes the Trust’s fundraising campaign.

The property targeted by the Trust holds the Battlefield Theater and the popular restaurant, General Pickett’s Buffet. Those who enjoy Pickett’s will be pleased to know that the restaurant isn’t going away; it’s moving to larger quarters south of town. If the Trust acquires the property, it plans to clear and restore the property (which was near the left flank of Pickett’s Charge and the scene of some sharp skirmishing on July 3, 1863), provide some trails and interpretive signs, and turn it over to the park.                             

There are several reasons that this news should excite Battle of the Bulge veterans. First, the ground being purchased has several ties with General Eisenhower and World War II. During World War I, the land was part of Camp Colt, a tank training facility commanded by Dwight Eisenhower; during WWII, it served as a German POW camp. 

In addition, because they are the largest, bloodiest, and most important battles ever fought by the U.S. army, there is a natural kinship between veterans of these engagements. The massive Bulge battlefield has largely been protected by its rural status, but in Gettysburg, a town with limited land available for development and booming tourist and retiree economies, every parcel of land is at risk of development.

The announcement: https://www.battlefields.org/give/save-battlefields/unparalleled-preservation-opportunity-gettysburg-battlefield

A video, which includes three photos by Bulge Bugle editor Leon Reed –