On April 14, 2008, the Gettysburg National Military Park Museum & Visitor Center opened its doors to its first visitors. Since then, Gettysburg National Military Park and the Gettysburg Foundation have been welcoming hundreds of thousands of visitors each year from across the world to Gettysburg.
Gettysburg National Military Park Museum & Visitor Center, April 2008
The Gettysburg Foundation owns and operates, in partnership with Gettysburg National Military Park, the Museum & Visitor Center. The Museum & Visitor Center is home to the National Park Service Information Desk where visitors can learn more about Gettysburg National Military Park and Eisenhower National Historic Site, details on Ranger programs, battle walks, living history and events happening at the parks.
The Museum & Visitor Center is also home to the historic, restored Battle of Gettysburg Cyclorama painting and the 12-gallery Gettysburg Museum of the American Civil War. Visitors to Gettysburg can familiarize themselves with the American Civil War and the Battle of Gettysburg through the film presentation of A New Birth of Freedom. The Film, Cyclorama & Museum Experience combines all three experiences in one ticket. Licensed Battlefield Guided tours of the Gettysburg battlefield are available, by bus or car, departing the Museum & Visitor Center. Guided battlefield bus tours can be added to the Film, Cyclorama & Museum Experience as a value package that offers all four experiences in one ticket. Reserving a personalized guided tour in your own vehicle is another popular way to tour the battlefield. Tickets for these activities, as well as admission tickets to our special events, historic sites and experiences are available from our Guest Relations team at the Ticket Counter. Proceeds from tickets and other purchases in the Museum & Visitor Center benefit Gettysburg National Military Park and Eisenhower National Historic Site.
The Museum & Visitor Center also welcomes groups and is the hub for activities, experiences and events for any group visiting Gettysburg. The Museum & Visitor Center offers group tours, amenities, and custom and behind-the-scenes programming, as well as group dining options.
In addition to the experiences in and departing from the Museum & Visitor Center, convenient on-site dining and shopping are available in the Refreshment Saloon, the Battlegrounds Café & Grille and the Gettysburg Museum Book Store. Through our catering partner, Battlegrounds Hospitality, the Museum & Visitor Center offers on-site catering and after-hours event hosting, which can include exclusive experiences in this state-of-the-art facility.
The Friends Desk located in the main lobby at the Museum & Visitor Center is the place to learn more about the Friends of Gettysburg and to join or renew Friends of Gettysburg memberships. Information about volunteering with the Gettysburg Foundation and exclusive Friends of Gettysburg merchandise can also be obtained at the Friends Desk.
Gettysburg National Military Park and the Gettysburg Foundation offer visitors and area residents Civil War ancestry research and information in the Katherine Mabis McKenna Foundation Resource Room at the Museum & Visitor Center. Volunteers are on hand to assist visitors in connecting to resources that aid in facilitating archival information on a family relative, a regiment, a monument and other basic Civil War information.
The Museum & Visitor Center initially opened in 2008 with an environmentally friendly LEED Silver certification, which was upgraded in 2010 to LEED Gold designation. Through its maintenance of the facility and grounds, the Gettysburg Foundation continues striving to maintain its LEED Gold certification. The Museum & Visitor Center’s indoor environment is being correctly maintained to preserve the historic Cyclorama painting and the collections of artifacts on exhibit in the Museum and in the archives.
We look forward to welcoming many more generations of visitors to the Museum & Visitor Center in the years to come. To learn more and plan your visit to explore Gettysburg, visit GettysburgFoundation.org.