Featuring some of the best Rangers, historians, and authors from across the country, this popular eight-week Winter Lecture Series will once again return to the Gettysburg National Military Park (NMP) Museum and Visitor Center in 2026! The Winter Lecture Series is held at 1:30 p.m. on weekends in the Gettysburg NMP Museum and Visitor Center from January 10 through March 8, 2026. Seating is available on a first come – first serve basis. Free tickets are available day of at the Gettysburg NMP Museum and Visitor Center. Schedule is subject to change.
This week:
Historian Billy Griffith, Gettysburg Foundation Brentsville, Virginia native Joseph White Latimer was one of the rising stars in the Confederate Artillery when his life was tragically cut short at age 19 following a mortal wound received at the battle of Gettysburg on July 2, 1863. When the Civil War commenced, Latimer was in his second year at the Virginia Military Institute. He did not return to complete his studies, however, and instead joined the Courtney Artillery in September 1861 as a second lieutenant. His star rose quickly despite his young age, and he was made a major in R. Snowden Andrews’ Battalion by the spring of 1863. Affectionately referred to as the “Boy Major,” Latimer’s decision to join the fight, which he made while home in Brentsville in August 1861, placed him on the path to Gettysburg and towards an untimely death.

2026 Winter Lecture Series: The Boy Major- Joseph W. Latimer in the American Civil War

The Battle of Gettysburg was a turning point in the Civil War, the Union victory that ended General Robert E. Lee's second and most ambitious invasion of the North. Often referred to as the "High Water Mark of the Rebellion", Gettysburg was the Civil War's bloodiest battle and was also the inspiration for President Abraham Lincoln's immortal "Gettysburg Address".

A canon sits in front of an equestrian statue.

The Henry Slocum Monument

The Mississippi Monument at sunrise

The Irish Brigade Monument

The Soldiers' National Cemetery during special illumination event

A ranger-led interpretive program

A rainbow over the Abraham Brian Farm on Cemetery Ridge

The Cyclorama painting

The view from Little Round Top

Gettysburg

The battlefield and roads are open thirty minutes before sunrise to thirty minutes after sunset.
Visitors can plan their visit and obtain a listing of sunrise and sunset times by day in Gettysburg, PA at: https://sunrise-sunset.org/us/gettysburg-pa.

2026 Winter Lecture Series: The Boy Major- Joseph W. Latimer in the American Civil War

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