sueoz

We have been to gettysburg and loved it. It must be a tough act to follow. Battlefield/history experts: what battlefield or historical area do you consider to be comparable to Gettysburg or maybe the next best one to visit? Thanks for any insight.

Ryan

Not exactly an answer to your question, but, if you ever have the chance a visit to the beaches of Normandy, particularly, Omaha Beach and the American Cemetary, are one of the more stirring sights you are likely to encounter in your lifetime.

ronkala

Belle Grove plantation and Cedar Creek battlefield in Virginia have just become a national park. It is located south of Winchester off of I81 and just north of Strasburg and the I66/I81 merge. They do hold battleield reenactments there, but I don't the dates. Tie that in with a trip to Antietam, New Market, and Manassas Battlefields.

Fodorite018

I have to agree with Ryan...Omaha Beach and the American Cemetary are absolutely amazing. To go along with that there is a Peace Memorial in Caen that is wonderful too.

Jacko

This might not rank highly among known battlefields, but I always was awed by the Brooklyn bank building location (Court Street and Atlantic Ave). At this slight rise, Washington conducted the Battle of Long Island (or whatever it was then known as) -- an extremely important turning point in the Revolutionary War and, of course, in the history of the entire world.

BillJ

Normandy Beaches and Bastogne.

retired_readytogo

I plan to see Gettysburg soon but in the meantime---
I was very impressed with Vicksburg, the audio tapes were vary descriptive -- i spent the whole day there and came back the next day to go thru cemetery that overlooks the river.
Also had a replica of a "war-ship" dug up from the Mississippi on display in the park.
Recently went to Chattanooga to see the battle field--Chickamauga--Also guided tours or audiotapes. Then Lookout mountain out of Chattanooga has view of where the battle took place--looks down on the Tenn. River. Right near the entrance fo historical park..is a "comercial' tourist shop that has a wonderful diorama of the battle. Inside the shop is a small theater with narration that takes you thru the battle.($5.00fee) Shows the positions of soldiers by a system of small lights against representation of the battlefield on a big board. Well worth the fee since you can visualize the action and troop movements.
I also was informed that "re-enactments" are not allowed to take place in the national park battlefields.
I heard about a re -enactment near Perryville in KY and was informed that it took place on a hill "near" the Nat Park.
By the way, I really liked the city of Chattanooga. Stayed at Courtyard by Marriott downtown (one block from river) across street from a wonderful Aquarium , IMAX and Discovery complex. City has free electric shuttle leaves from garage adjacent to hotel and makes frequent stops and eventually to the Chattanooga Choo-Choo Railway area..
Happy trails.

LordBalfor

A while back I posted an Epinions article about Verdun - a WWI battlefield in France where there were about 1 million killed. To me the place is haunted - and that was the main point of the article. I thought folks would belittle my experiences there, but surprisingly, many people left comments that they not only believed me, but had had similar experiences themselves. A couple of folks specifically commented about Gettysberg having the "haunted" feel to it. Any here experience that "strange feeling of being watched" there.

Ken

PS: On a side note, I feel the same way about Roanoke Island, North Carolina.

wantsomesun

Interesting comment Ken, I know feel that way about the World Trade Center. I feel sure that there was help from the other side, angels, for the people who perished that day. I get a feeling every time I see the site, and hope the memorial being planned, along with the new buildings will help to heal the nation and of course give some finality and comfort to the families of those who died.

dan_woodlief

The closest in the U.S. for me is Antietam. It is not as large as Gettysburg but is less commercialized, is very authentic, and has beautiful landscapes just like Gettysburg.

ilisa

Regarding the haunting of Gettysburg, I truly believe in it. My husband and I once drove the battlefield at night and heard things we cannot explain. I still get the chills thinking about it. The stories about the ghosts of Gettysburg are fascinating. I know people from Gettysburg who also firmly believe in them.

LaurenSKahn

I agree with the Antietam recommendation. It was the site of more deaths in 24 hours on American soil.

And then there was September 11th which changed that.

I do agree with other recommendations of overseas battlefields as well. I also have a piece on epinions.com about Verdun. I wrote for that site when they started up and paid people. That was along time ago.

If you are interested in reading what I had to say about Verdun, look here:

http://messages.independenttraveler.com/2/OpenTopic?a=tpc&s=457093444&f=390098874&m=38430953 17&r=3843095317#3843095317

I also did a review of Omaha Beach here:

http://www.epinions.com/trvl-review-1A7E-5FA24D6-38D7E966-prod1

dwooddon

I also agree with the suggestions of Antietam. While you are there, you may also want to visit nearby Harper's Ferry. It's a scenic town with a lot of civil war history. The other civil war battlefield I was impressed by was Shiloh. I have been to many others but Gettysburg, Shiloh, Antietam, and Harper's Ferry are my favorites, in that order of preference.

LordBalfor

Hi Lauren - Your first link leads to a trip report about LA. I think you pasted the wrong one.

I did link to your Epinions page and found that I was already familiar with your terrific posts there (when I saw the alias you use on Epinions). I remember your Verdun and Omaha Beach reviews very well. Excellent stuff.

Ken

LaurenSKahn

Yes, I am known as yentakvetch on epinions. I went for a silly moniker there rather than using my own name. Sorry about the problem with the link. I am going to try again. For my Verdun report, try

http://www.epinions.com/trvl-review-...38AF67F5-prod6

I think that will work. Thanks for telling me about the bad link--and sorry for the mistake.

Thank you for the nice compliment on my writing, LordBalfour.

lmsa_mc

I agree that Shiloh battlefield was one of the best we've been to and also found the lighted map at Lookout Mountain very interesting. One of the best books I've ever read has to do with re-enactments and visiting Civil War sites. It's called "A Confederate in the Attic" by Tony Horwitz. Funny and eye-opening. I will never forget reading about his "Civil Wargasm"!