With the new school year, a new class of students at the Gettysburg Area High School are working with Historic Gettysburg Adams County (HGAC) to manufacture replacement markers for Civil War hospital sites in and around Gettysburg.
GAHS Technology Education instructor Stan Licharowicz supervises the students as they use the latest computer-aided design and laser manufacturing technologies to produce weather-resistant, long-lasting signs. The signs are then installed by HGAC volunteers.
The project, under the supervision of HGAC board member Mike Koziski, begin in May 2022 and was the focus of HGAC’s Giving Spree fund-raising drive last year. This partnership with the Technology Education program grows out of HGAC’s Investing in Youth Initiative and its goal to foster interest among the younger generation in historic preservation and restoration — and to build a base of appreciation for our area’s history.
During the past two school years, students have manufactured 14 replacement signs, 13 for sites under private ownership and one for the National Park Service. This year, the technology class will be working on nine replacement signs for the NPS. This year’s students were very proactive and reached out to HGAC to identify which signs were to be fabricated next.
The nine NPS signs will include these area farms used as hospitals: Lydia Leister, Jacob Hummelbaugh, William Patterson, Michael Frey, George Spangler, Edward McPherson, Henry Culp, Josiah Benner and Samuel Cobean.
HGAC first posted roadside Civil War hospital signs in 1983. The original signs were updated in 2001 and now are once again showing their age. If you come across one of the new markers, you will see the care and attention the students have given these signs. And for that dedication, we at HGAC thank them!