On July 1, 1863, the bodies of many Confederate soldiers killed in the Battle of Gettysburg during the Civil War were collected near McPherson's Woods in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.

　　The bodies of many Confederate soldiers killed in the Battle of Gettysburg in the Civil War on July 1, 1863, were collected near McPherson's Woods in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.　 

　Union and Confederate forces made contact at Gettysburg on June 30, 1863. The main battle broke out on July 1. It began with Confederate attacks on Union forces in McPherson's Woods west of town. The Union forces held their position until the afternoon, when they were finally overrun and driven back to the south of town. That night the main Union army arrived and took up position, and in the early morning hours of July 1, the two armies clashed west of Gettysburg. The battle raged throughout the day as Union and Confederate forces arrived on the battlefield. By 4:00 p.m., the defending Union forces were defeated and retreated from Gettysburg, with many of their men taken prisoner. The remnants of the Union army massed in the rear.

　On July 2, the main parts of both armies were on parallel ridges, the Union on Cemetery Ridge and the Confederates on Seminary Ridge to the west. The Confederates were ordered to attack both Union flanks; an attack on the Union left flank destroyed the base and scattered casualties. The evening attack on the Union right flank did not work in favor of the Confederates. By morning, the main forces of both armies had arrived on the battlefield. The Confederates launched attacks on the Union left and right flanks in an attempt to dislodge the Union forces from their strong positions. The attack on Longstreet's Union left flank went well, but was blocked by Union reinforcements from the center and right flanks. On the Union right wing, Confederate forces occupied part of Culpus Hill, but were repulsed elsewhere.

　On July 3, Confederate artillery launched a two-hour artillery barrage against Union Federal positions. The bombardment was a temporary siege in which the artillery of both armies fought for supremacy. It had little effect in disrupting the Union defensive positions. About 12,000 Confederates charged across the open fields toward the Union center in a picket charge. The assault was a disaster, the Confederates lost more than 5,000 men in an hour, and the Confederate Battle of Gettysburg was assembled. The Confederates launched attacks on the Union left and right flanks in an attempt to dislodge the Union forces from their strong positions. The Confederate attack on Longstreet, on the Union left flank, proceeded well, but was blocked by Union reinforcements from the center and right flanks. On the Union right wing, the Confederates captured part of Culpus Hill, but were repulsed elsewhere.

　On November 19, President Abraham Lincoln traveled to Gettysburg to participate in the dedication of the new Soldiers' National Cemetery. His brief "Gettysburg Address," a speech of the people by the people and for the people, memorialized the sacrifices of the soldiers who had struggled at Gettysburg.