What happened after the battle?
In 1913, the largest reunion of American Civil War soldiers took place on the Gettysburg battlefield (encampment pictured above). It came to be known as the "Great Reunion of 1913." The reunion took place from June 5th to July 4th. In attendance were more than 50,000 soldiers, both Union and Confederate. At the time, the veteran's ages ranged from 61 to (rumored) 112 years of age. 47 out of the 48 states were represented by the attendees; the only state that did not have representatives was Nevada.
During the reunion, veterans were able to participate or watch some very special events. The most moving perhaps was the reenactment of Pickett's Charge. This emotional recreation of the charge had the two sides come together at the High Water Mark, where the Confederate veterans met with the Union veterans. The two sides came together with handshakes, ceremonial flags, and speeches. Another event that took place during the Great Reunion of 1913 was the attendance of President Woodrow Wilson (the first Southerner to be elected to President since 1848). Not wanting to draw comparisons to Abraham Lincoln's "Gettysburg Address," he was a little reluctant to make his own speech. Eventually, after appearances amongst the veterans, he addressed the soldiers on July 4th.
Another reunion took place on the 75th anniversary in 1938. This time, only 1,845 veterans were in attendance. There were 1,359 from the North and 486 from the South. Of all the veterans there, only 65 of the men were in the battle at Gettysburg. Since the average age of the veterans was 94, special arraignments were made to help them at the event. This anniversary saw the dedication of the Eternal Light Peace Memorial by Franklin D. Roosevelt. The eternal flame was lit during the dedication on July 3rd.
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