Attend A Free HGAC Educational Lecture
Join us on the third Thursday of the month for a free program!
All sessions will be held at the historic 2023-year-old G.A.R. Building at 53 E. Middle Street in Gettysburg. All sessions are on a Wednesday. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. and the presentations will start at 7 p.m. No reservations are needed, and the hall is handicapped accessible.
The lineup of speakers:
--April 16 Thomas Nank, a research assistant with the American Battlefield Trust and a retired U.S. Navy Master Chief Petty Officer will present “From Canada to France: The Story of a Michigan Sailor in the Civil War's Greatest Sea Battle.” Come prepared to gain a greater insight on these dramatic and important events involving naval military operations during the Civil War.
--May 21 Ted Hirt, Gettysburg Town Guide, will speak on a number of topics about the the civilian experience at Gettysburg, including what happened during the battle at the southern end of the town and the “eight miles from slavery” experience, as well as the seldom seen aspects of Gettysburg.
--June 18 Author Ron Kirkwood will be returning to the G.A.R. hall by special request. Ron has given presentations for HGAC regarding his historical work at the Spangler Farm, as documented in Too Much for Human Endurance. In continuing that Spangler saga, Ron will provide details about the rescuers of the wounded and dying, and will speak on “The Women who came to the rescue at the Spangler Farm."
Stay tuned for our fall lineup of speakers.
Hope to see you at the hall!
HGAC 2026 Educational Speaker Series
HGAC thanks author Ron Kirkwood for his excellent and informative talk on the importance of the George Spangler Farm during the Battle of Gettysburg at the first Educational Speakers program for 2023.
Kirkwood, author of “Too Much for Human Endurance: The George Spangler Farm Hospitals and the Battle of Gettysburg," spoke on Tuesday, March 21 at 7:30 p.m. in the historic G.A.R. Hall on 53 East Middle Street in Gettysburg, PA 17325.
Kirkwood argues in “Too Much for Human Endurance” that the George Spangler farm was the most important farm in the Battle of Gettysburg, revealing factors that have been overlooked for generations. The book and his presentation also offer newly found information about Confederate Brig. Gen. Lewis A. Armistead’s time at Spangler and how the Spangler family and their farm suffered while their land was occupied -- along with stories of the agony and heroism of the surgeons, nurses, wounded and mortally wounded at the two hospitals on the Spanglers’ land.
Kirkwood is retired after a 40-year career as an editor and writer in newspapers and magazines including USA TODAY, where he edited national magazines for USA TODAY Sports and was National Football League editor for USA TODAY Sports Weekly. He also worked for newspapers in Baltimore, Harrisburg, York and Wilkes-Barre.
Kirkwood has been a Gettysburg Foundation guide at the George Spangler Farm Civil War Field Hospital Site since it opened in 2013.
