The Battle of Gettysburg, fought from July 1 to July 3, 1863, marked a turning point in the Civil War and stands as one of the deadliest battles in American history. By the end of the conflict, over 50,000 soldiers had been killed, wounded, or reported missing. Nearly one million people visit Gettysburg each year. But they’re not coming just for the sake of history—many are also drawn to the tales of lingering spirits that add a mysterious and chilling layer to this iconic Pennsylvania town.
For decades, stories of wandering spirits across the Gettysburg battlefield, local buildings and nearby woods have captivated visitors and residents alike. People claim to hear phantom footsteps, ghostly drumbeats, and echoes of musket fire and cannon blasts.
Many believe these encounters are the restless souls of soldiers reliving their final moments of violence and fear. Today, Gettysburg’s history blends folklore, firsthand accounts, and tragedy, solidifying its reputation as one of the most haunted places in the United States.
The Battle and Its Aftermath
Gettysburg was a pivotal clash between Union and Confederate forces. General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia faced off against General George Meade's Army of the Potomac in a brutal three-day conflict. The battle ended with a decisive Union victory, halting Lee’s invasion of the North and marking the beginning of the Confederacy’s decline. However, victory came at an enormous cost.
Soldiers lay where they fell, and graves lined the once peaceful landscape. The devastation was overwhelming, turning Gettysburg into a grim scene of loss and suffering. One anonymous New Jersey soldier described the horrific scene:
“Burial Parties were sent out, and those who could get away from their commands went out to view the scene of carnage, and surely it was a scene never to be forgotten. Upon the open fields, like sheaves bound by the reaper, in crevices of the rocks, behind fences, trees, and buildings; in thickets, where they had crept for safety only to die in agony; by stream or wall or hedge, wherever the battle had raged, or their waking steps could carry them, lay the dead.”
The emotional and physical scars left behind in Gettysburg weren’t felt only by those who survived—it’s believed the sheer magnitude of suffering and death has left an imprint on the town that lingers to this day.
Theories Behind the Hauntings
There are various theories as to why Gettysburg is such a hub for alleged supernatural activity. According to Mark Nesbitt, a former National Park Service ranger and historian at Gettysburg and author of several books on the region’s ghosts, the battlefield may have been destined to be just that—a battlefield.
“Years before the Battle of Gettysburg, another battle, one even bigger, may have occurred about a mile from Big Round Top [at the southern peak of the battlefield],” he says. “Maps show that two Native American tribes had territories delineating through Adams County, suggesting it could have been a turf war between them.”
Emmanuel Bushman, a writer from Gettysburg, wrote in 1887 about "many unnatural and supernatural sights and sounds" experienced in the area of the Round Tops that he called the “Indian Fields."
Nesbitt, who also runs a ghost tour company in Gettysburg, mentions additional theories like the "Stone Tape Theory," which suggests that energy released at the moment of death becomes trapped in the area's abundant granite and quartz. While intriguing, these theories are speculative at best.
There are those individuals, like Jeff Belanger, an author and folklore researcher who has studied the history of Gettysburg, who simply accept the haunting presence as part of the region’s history. “Gettysburg is haunted because it should be haunted,” he says. “When you have [tens of thousands] dead, missing, or wounded in the span of three days, that leaves a stain that can never be washed away.”
Belanger points to the infamous words from President Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address:
“ … we cannot dedicate, we cannot consecrate, we cannot hallow this ground. The brave men, living and dead who struggled here have consecrated it far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here.”
The Haunted Battlefield
In his research, the first ghost story that Nesbitt found specifically tied to the battle happened on the night of July 1 and into the early hours of July 2, 1863. “During that night, as the Union Army's Fifth Corps marched into Gettysburg, they spotted a mysterious horseman in the darkness ahead,” Nesbitt explains. “The figure would appear and then disappear, but it was obvious from their accounts he was wearing a uniform from the Revolutionary War. Many believed it was the ghost of George Washington.”
The battlefield is considered a hotspot for paranormal activity, particularly at Devil’s Den, a rocky outcrop known for intense fighting. Confederate sharpshooters used the rocks for cover, resulting in many casualties. Visitors frequently report strange occurrences: cameras malfunction, mysterious figures appear in photographs, and some claim to hear distant gunfire and screams echoing through the rocks.
Others claim to have seen a barefoot, disheveled man dressed in ragged clothing who reportedly says, “What you’re looking for is over there,” before vanishing into thin air. Confederate soldiers often wore their own clothes during the Civil War since standard uniforms were not consistently issued. This lack of regulation led to a variety of attire on the battlefield, making their appearance less uniformed compared to Union forces.
Triangular Field, located northwest of Devil’s Den, is also notorious for ghostly activity. Visitors report shadowy figures crossing the field, feelings of being touched, and an unsettling presence around them. Similar phenomena have been reported at Little Round Top, where Colonel Joshua Chamberlain’s 20th Maine Regiment secured a crucial Union victory. Many claim to see soldiers in uniform, hear musket fire, or encounter figures from the past who vanish without a trace.
Just outside the battle lines, Hospital Woods served as a temporary field hospital. Mark Nesbitt recalled speaking to a woman who sensed two men approaching her in the woods. She later identified them as soldiers from the 42nd Mississippi Regiment, even providing their names and company details. Nesbitt later confirmed that these soldiers had been wounded nearby and treated at the same spot. "To come up with two names, a unit number, and the fact these men were treated here is almost... impossible," he remarked.
Ghosts in the Town of Gettysburg
Almost every old building in Gettysburg has its own haunted story, but a few places stand out, including the Jennie Wade House. Jennie Wade, 20, was the only civilian killed during the battle, after being struck by a stray bullet while baking bread in her sister’s kitchen. Her death was an unfortunate accident, but it left a lasting mark on the house. Visitors and staff report doors that open and close on their own, disembodied voices, and the feeling of being watched. Some believe Jennie’s spirit still lingers, trapped in the place where she met her untimely end.
The Gettysburg College was used as a hospital and command post during the battle. One of the most famous tales involves two administrators who, while riding the elevator in Pennsylvania Hall, were transported to what seemed like a Civil War-era hospital scene. They claim to have witnessed wounded soldiers, blood-covered doctors, and frantic nurses. When the elevator doors closed and reopened, the haunting vision disappeared, leaving them startled and shaken by the experience.
The Farnsworth House Inn, once a stronghold for Confederate sharpshooters, is still marked by bullet holes from the battle. Spirits are said to linger here too, with guests reporting apparitions of soldiers, disembodied footsteps, and cold spots. Other haunted locations include the Tillie Pierce House, the Daniel Lady Farm, and Sach’s Covered Bridge.
Legacy of Gettysburg's Ghosts
Gettysburg holds a special place in American history—a place where the past feels remarkably close. For those who visit these hallowed grounds, the stories of haunted houses, restless spirits, and strange encounters serve as reminders of the human cost of war and the lingering horrors that unfolded over three fateful days in 1863.
“Ghosts are history demanding to be remembered," says Belanger. "Though the notion of a haunted battlefield may offend some who believe the definition of a ghost is some earthbound spirit doomed to never pass on, I think sometimes a ghost is a movie that plays over and over again because we have yet to reconcile the lessons of the past.”
