(Gettysburg, Pa.) – As the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board prepares to enter final deliberations regarding the future of a proposed Gettysburg slots parlor, many of the nation’s leading experts on the Civil War have joined together to advocate for its rejection.

Although numerous individual historians have repeatedly stated their opposition to the proposal, this is the first time such a large group of respected historians have spoken out with one voice. Addressing Thomas Decker, chairman of the Gaming Control Board, the 111 co-signing historians pronounce Gettysburg to be a “unique historical and cultural treasure deserving careful stewardship” before declaring it “our solemn duty to protect this resource and not squander it through misguided choices.”

Among the prominent signatories of the letter is James M. McPherson, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Battle Cry of Freedom. According to McPherson, allowing gambling so close to the battlefield would be to disrespect the thousands of Americans who died at Gettysburg. “It would be a desecration of their memory and sacrifice to establish such a tawdry, tasteless enterprise next to their fields of honor,” he stated.

Jim Lighthizer, president of the Civil War Preservation Trust, said the impressive response to the letter, which was circulated this fall by the Stop the Gettysburg Slots Coalition, is a clear illustration of the near universal opposition to the proposal among historians.

“No one has a deeper, more abiding respect for all that Gettysburg symbolizes than the men and women who make it their lives’ work to study the battle and its consequences,” he noted. “And clearly, they recognize this as a ploy to exploit the emblematic name of Gettysburg.”

“When we walk the fields of Gettysburg,” said Cinda Waldbuesser, a spokesperson for the National Parks Conservation Association, “we seek to become historians ourselves and gain a deeper understanding of what happened there. A slots parlor would change Gettysburg’s atmosphere and diminish opportunities for that level of understanding.”

Adrian Scott Fine, spokesperson for the National Trust for Historic Preservation, another Coalition member, agreed. “Undoubtedly, historians have a special relationship with the physical places they study in such detail,” he said. “Their love for Gettysburg makes them want to protect it from the harm they know a slots parlor would bring.”

Joining McPherson in signing the letter are many other leading Civil War historians, including: Edwin Bearss, Chief Historian Emeritus of the National Park Service; Kent Masterson Brown, author of Retreat from Gettysburg; Gary Gallagher, author of The Second Day at Gettysburg; James I. Robertson, author of Robert E. Lee: Virginian Soldier, American Citizen; and many others.

###

---

The full text of the letter and complete list of signatories is available online at: http://www.stopthegettysburgslots.org/historianletter.html.

---

About the Civil War Preservation Trust (CWPT)
With 70,000 members, CWPT is the largest nonprofit battlefield preservation organization in the United States. Its mission is to preserve our nation’s remaining Civil War battlefields. Since 1987, the organization has saved more than 23,000 acres of hallowed ground, including 697 acres at Gettysburg. CWPT’s website is located at www.civilwar.org.

About the National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA)
Since 1919, the nonpartisan NPCA has been the leading voice of the American people in protecting and enhancing our National Park System. NPCA, its members, and partners work together to protect the park system and preserve our nation’s natural, historical, and cultural heritage for generations to come. NPCA is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization with more than 300,000 members, including more than 13,000 members in Pennsylvania. NPCA’s website is located at www.npca.org

About the National Trust for Historic Preservation (NTHP)
NTHP is a private, nonprofit membership organization dedicated to protecting the irreplaceable. Recipient of the National Humanities Medal, the Trust was founded in 1949 and provides leadership, education, advocacy, and resources to save America’s diverse historic places and revitalize communities. Its Washington, DC headquarters staff, six regional offices and 26 historic sites work with the Trust’s 270,000 members and thousands of local community groups in all 50 states. NTHP’s website is located at www.nationaltrust.org.

About No Casino Gettysburg
No Casino Gettysburg (NCG) is an all- volunteer organization composed of local citizens against the proposed Gettysburg casino. NCG was formed in May 2005 and has become the most vocal opponent of slots at Gettysburg.. NCG’s website is located at www.nocasinogettysburg.com.

About Preservation Pennsylvania
Preservation Pennsylvania (PPA) is the Commonwealth's only statewide, private non-profit, membership organization dedicated to the protection of historically and architecturally significant properties. In November 2006, PPA listed Gettysburg National Military Park on its list of the Commonwealth’s 10 most endangered historic sites. PPA’s website is located at www.preservationpa.org.