World War II in Gettysburg Bus Tours (weekly)

“OK. Let’s go.” With that utterance, General Dwight D. Eisenhower issued the order to start the D-Day invasion to liberate Europe from Nazi Germany in June 1944. For most people, the Civil War dominates Gettysburg’s history. This year—D-Day’s 75th Anniversary—experience a different side of Gettysburg on a “World War II in Gettysburg” bus tour, plus a bonus walking tour of the Gettysburg National Ceremony.

A collaboration between Gettysburg Battlefield Bus Tours and Tigrett Leadership Academy, this year’s bus tour departs each Saturday at 2:00pm from the Gettysburg Tour Center at 778 Baltimore Street. The two-hour tour runs weekly from August 6 through November 9. This year, Gettysburg Tours and Tigrett have added a bonus 45-minute walking tour of the Gettysburg National Ceremony.

“World War II in Gettysburg” tour highlights include:

Experience the moving stories of World War II veterans buried in the Gettysburg National Cemetery—including D-Day veteran Frank Materewicz and his brother Edward; from Pearl Harbor to the Battle of the Bulge to Guadalcanal, these wartime casualties encompass all theaters of the war and all branches of the military.

Visit a prisoner-of-war camp and learn why an intelligence camp was located here, training specialized troops for psychological warfare.

Hear stories of the Navy’s map-making operation that prepared for the invasion of Japan.

Learn about the scrap drive that almost took some of the battlefield’s most famous monuments, and find out what sacrifices Gettysburg’s citizens made to help the war effort.

Learn which wartime leaders journeyed to Gettysburg to pay their respects, including Eisenhower, who made Gettysburg his home in 1950.

Additional information about the “World War II in Gettysburg” bus tour, including the 2019 season schedule and links to online ticketing, is available at https://www.gettysburgbattlefieldtours.com/bus-tours/wwii-bus-tour/. All veterans are eligible for a 10% discount, and World War II vets ride for free—contact Gettysburg Tours for more information. There will be no tours from June 29-August 3 to facilitate visitors’ participation in events commemorating the Battle of Gettysburg.