Gettysburg National Military Park officials discovered an unexploded artillery shell this week at the Central Pennsylvania historic site during a rehabilitation process of the park.
The unexploded ordnance shell was found on Feb. 8 within the Little Round Top area of the park, said officials, and it dates back to the Battle of Gettysburg, which was fought in 1863.
Park officials gently washed off the mud to allow park staff to photograph the shell, then they safely removed the shell before it was destroyed off-site, according to the park’s Facebook page.
The explosive ordnance disposal team, the 55th Ordnance Disposal Company EOD, from the Army base at Fort Belvoir in Virginia completed the removal.
Some roads in the park were temporarily closed after the shell was found, but they have all since reopened.
The Battle of Gettysburg occurred from July 1-3 in 1863 and was the deadliest battle in the Civil War. Union soldiers defeated the Confederate army during that battle, halting the Confederacy’s attempted northward invasion. The battle is often described as the turning point in the Civil War that boosted the Union to eventual victory.
