Gettysburg - Harvest of Death - Location Update: 1-26-12

I am currently still comfortable with the general location I presented earlier this month, with some minor modifications to the camera location. I will still be field testing and re-shooting in the hopeful near future, but since I am three hours south of Gettysburg, and it is winter, it may be a little delayed. The area of the field in question has been rather swampy during my two previous reconnaissance trips which make tramping around, and fine tuning the spot, awkward. However, working with some additional materials from home base, I can see where the two camera locations were probably close to forty-five yards to the southwest, and forty yards to the slight northwest of my initial efforts. My calculations suggest that this will provide the visible tilt in the foreground looking toward the Thompson house, as well as the opposite tilt looking toward the south for the "Harvest of Death" view.

Images are clickable to enlarge the view.

Tighter view of field. Theorized camera locations are marked by white circles.

I am more convinced now that Gardner was not bending any truth when he titled the "Field Where Reynolds Fell" image as he did. This field is within the confines of the two fences that enclose the woodlot where the general was struck down. This information was probably why Gardner would have sought out this field, even though it was not "THE" spot Reynolds went down. The importance was that it would illustrate the ferocity of the first day's fighting, and at the time of Gardner's visit there, no one in the burial crews could, in all likelihood, point to a more precise location. These images would illustrate the price paid by the Union defenders. Were these some of the only remaining Union dead yet unburied by the time of Gardner's arrival? Confederate dead were not the immediate priority and were plentiful on the southern end of the battlefield.

I will go into this in further detail when I can post my revised then and now pairings.

Previous postings pertaining to this examination can be found here and here.

Standing in the sogginess during my November 18, 2011 session.

Photo by James Anderson.

Examination of the full size stereo pairs is vital to revealing the clues.

Photo by James Anderson

Right half of stereo pair.

I theorize that the woods along the rail cut, on Oak Ridge, are on the far

 horizon, placing the Thompson house in the upper right corner of the image.

Collection of Library of Congress