Consecration of the National Cemetery at Gettysburg
Abraham Lincoln (center) at the consecration just after arriving c. noon and ~3 hours before the speech. In 2006, two additional Gettysburg procession photographs of Lincoln were identified in the Library of Congress.
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| Date | November 19, 1863 |
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| Time | ~3 PM |
| Venue | Cemetery Hill, Gettysburg National Cemetery |
| Location | Gettysburg, Adams Co, Pennsylvania |
| Coordinates | 39°49′11″N 77°13′52″W / 39.819767°N 77.231217°WCoordinates: 39°49′11″N 77°13′52″W / 39.819767°N 77.231217°W |
| Type | Ceremony |
| Participants | ~15,000 |
The Consecration of the Soldiers' National Cemetery was the ceremony at which U.S. President Abraham Lincoln delivered the Gettysburg Address on November 19, 1863. In addition to the 15,000 spectators, attendees included six state governors: Andrew Gregg Curtin of Pennsylvania, Augustus Bradford of Maryland, Oliver P. Morton of Indiana, Horatio Seymour of New York, Joel Parker of New Jersey, and David Tod of Ohio. Reporters present included Joseph Gilbert (Associated Press), Charles Hale (Boston Advertiser),John Russell Young (Philadelphia Press); and Cincinnati Commercial,New York Tribune, & The New York Times reporters.
Following the Battle of Gettysburg, an Evergreen Cemetery Association plan to create a soldiers annex requiring fee payments for interments (e.g., by families) was replaced by a plan by local attorney David Wills for a cemetery funded by the states. The Pennsylvania governor designated Wills the commonwealth's agent, who was authorized to purchase 17 acres (6.9 ha) for a cemetery, paying $2,475.87 for the land ($48,160 as of 2017). Wills' September 23 invitation to the renowned statesman Edward Everett requested an oration on Wednesday, October 23; but Everett needed more time to prepare his speech, which would feature fine details of the battle culled from Everett's personal interviews with those involved. Wills rescheduled the ceremony to Thursday, November 19 to accommodate Everett's needs. On November 2, Lincoln received formal notice of Wills' invitation to participate.
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