Witness Tree
They call them Witness Trees - they are trees that were present at the Battle of Gettysburg. They are the last living survivors of those brutal three days in July of 1863. While the people have long since gone, about 150 trees that were alive during the battle, remain alive and in place today. If you stand and run your hands over the rough bark, it's quite possible soldiers from the battle 150 years ago did the same thing. If the trees could talk, what would they tell us about what happened here? Is it possible they remember what happened here?
The tree above is a stately old oak located above Devil's Den - scene of some of the worst fighting in the battle. Today, it watches the sun rise above Little Round Top and warm the rocks of Devil's Den, before setting over the distant ridge of South Mountain. Today, it's like any other tree in any other field. But it is definitely not like any other tree.
I've had this idea for awhile - I thought of creating beautiful landscape images in fields that have seen battle - beauty where there was horror. I thought I would start with the Civil War battlefields and start with Gettysburg since it is only about two hours from where I live. It may become a long term project - or it may fade away. But I think this is a good start.