Show t FIELD OF CHICKAMAUGA Dedication of BloodSoaked J Battlefields j l Grounds Ovor Which tho Armies oft of-t tho Koi in and South lought for c Eight Days Plan of the jark and History of tho Project Programme of the Exercises tor the Coming Week Chattanooga Tenn Sept 16 Under Ulu uuiding hand or tliu Secretary ot Will anting under tile authority or CoiiBtus yimttunooKa una tliu notable bauiellehw Buuounumg It have been r picparing for a National event without liuuillcl Great throngs of veterans vlui tolight against euch other are crowding Into the city to take equal paRt unaer National enactment In the dedication of the llelds which their prowess made memorable as a National j Nation-al military park wherein the movements move-ments and the achievements ot each side have received Impartial attention As provided In the act of Congress Secretary Lamont has invited the attendance at-tendance of the legislative department or the Government and the members t of the Supreme court Congress and its presiding officers the LieutenantGeneral of the army and the Admiral of the navy the Governors of all tho States and their staffs and the veterans of the I contending armies All are to be prominently prom-inently represented Nearly every surviving I sur-viving general or the two armies has I sent notice of his intention to attend II The Governors of every State which had troops in the action have responded I L respond-ed favorably to the Secretarys invitation invita-tion A Joint committee of twenty Senators and Ility members of the House will represent Congress The members 01 twentysix State committees who have been at work with the National committee r com-mittee In locating lines of battle of the > tioops of their States will attend The ft0 Army or the Cumberland the Anliy of the Tennessee the G A It and the Association of Confederate Veterans will be present In unusual numbers This ollleial concourse is to be increased by a gathering of an army of visitors already known to be so great that It will tax the capacity ol the railroads centering here to their utmost ut-most V LloutGen Schollekl has cordially afforded every assistance which could be given from the headquarters of the army and the movement of regulat troops from Fort Sheridan Fort Rlley b Fort Thomas Columbus Barracks and Pensacola presented an instance 01 < rapid concentration ospei > o1 11J1Q I ton to the NatulHCOmmlttee t that the distant battalions batteries and squadrons squad-rons had been expected to move were scarcely received before dispatches arrived ar-rived at Park headquarters from each post that the troops were starting THE MILITARY PARK The park which is to be dedicated is of Immense dimensions It extends with its approaches from Sherman Heights in Tennessee six miles north of Chattanooga to Glass Mill In Georgia Geor-gia a distance of twentytwo miles Tile broad boulevard oetween the two points Is owned by the Government apart a-part of the park and full jurisdiction over this over the fifteen miles square of the Chlckamauga Held and ovei e many miles beside ot other approaches has been ceded to the Government by the States of Tennessee and Georgia This drive runs for eight miles along Braggss line of battle on the crest 01 Missionary Ridge It passes along the fronts of Shermans army Thonmst army and the army under Hooker Ii overlooks all the battlefields about Chattanooga including Lookout Mountain J Moun-tain and runs for twelve miles through the center of the lighting ground of the three days battle uf Chickamauga Of the territory over which Jurisdiction Jurisdic-tion has been ceded to the United Slates for park purposes ten square miles have been already purchased in a single block on the chickamaUga Held The entire crest about Draggse headquarters on Missionary Ridge Orchard Or-chard Knob the headquarters of Grant Thomas and Granger during the battle ot Chattanooga a tract eight acres in I extent llfty acres at the north end 01 Missionary Ridge being the ground assaulted by Gen Sherman and defended defend-ed by Clebuine and a tract of live acres on another portion of the Ridge marking the left of the assault of thi Cumberland form portions of the park Congress has also authorized the addition addi-tion to the park of Hookers and Val I thall battleground on Lookout Tht Government already owns the roads tt and over Lookout mountain through Hookers field to Wauhatchle on Long streets field The park and Its approaches embrace or overlook the fields of live days ol general battle between great armies and three days of minor engagements namely ChlcUamauga Orchard Knob Lookout Mountain and Missionary Itldgc Browns Ferry and Wauhatchle PLAN OF THE PARK The plan of the park Is to restore the fields as nearly as possible to theft condition at the time of the battle to close all new roads and reopen and improve im-prove thoso used in tho battles andover and-over which the armies moved to and from the fields The lines of battle have all bwn ascertained and a vasl amount of work toward permanently marking them has been done This Is accomplished by historical and guide tablets which point the way to and explain the movements upon every portion por-tion of the lines These tablets show UK organizations of armies corps divisions di-visions and brigades with the names of the respective commanders and their staffs of the field and the commanders com-manders of all regiments and batteries Full historical text on each tablet sets forth the details of the movement at each IKint There Is no distinction In the preparation prepara-tion of these tablets between Union and Confederate forces nor in any other department of the work Is thereIn there-In difference The design Is to mark with historical accuracy the Identical ground of engagements which occurred on these fields and thus present an ob Jtn t lesson in actual war which no otlltr nation has attempted Besides tho historical tablets which are prepared by the Government the States are erecting monuments to mark the positions of their troops Already nearly a half a million dollars have bean appropriated by States which had troops here and all of the Staten but two of tIbet twentynine which were rep resented In battles have commissioners at work locating positions for monuments monu-ments There arc nearly a hundred miles of roads opened and fiftytwo have been Improved In most substantial substan-tial manner and all through military positions l Over 400 guns of the butteries but-teries used on these fields have been obtained fioin the arsenals and 160 have already been mounted upon Iron guncarriages which are of the pattern pat-tern of the carriages of the war and set up to mark the exact position of the batteries of ouch side In the battle Eventually the whole 400 guns wijl ben i be-n position Visitors find this one of the most imposing features of the restoration re-storation as they come upon batteries of real guns at every prominent pulm of the lines 8te < l nlisui viiilnii invert rising above the foieht in various corn rnandlng positions afford views of the entire theater of battle The Chlckamauga Held Is already thickly dotted with State monuments and the Government tablets and while not over half of the number of each which are to be erected have yet been provided the lines of the threedays engagement are readily followed Ohio has fiftyfive monuments and fifty three granite markers for minor positions posi-tions In place Minnesota has five monuments to her two organizations I and two of these are the most costly of any yet erected Massachusetts has a fine granite and bronze monument on Orchard Knob All of the monuments thus far erected except those from In diana are of granite and bronze Those of that State arc of Bedford limestone HISTORY OF THE PROJECT The park project and the main details de-tails of its comprehensive plan was the conception of Gen Boynton now the historian of the National commission Ills public suggestion to make Chickamauga Chicka-mauga a National park was taken up by the Society of the Army of the Cumberland and his first plan was to secure this through a joint memorial of Union and Confederate veterans with the idea of securing State assistance A memorial association was organized and chartered but before it began operations op-erations he perfected a plan for a National Na-tional commission acting under the supervision of the Secretary of War He wrote a bill which is the present law l placed it in the hands of Gen Grosvenor of Ohio who Introduced it In I the House of Representatives Many members of the House took an immediate immedi-ate and strong interest In the measure notably thirty of those who served in one or the other of the armies of the battle of Chattanooga Before it was called up universal support had been secured for it and it passed both houses by unanimous consent It provided pro-vided for the purchase of 7600 acres of the Chickamauga field and for the equal participation of both sides in the marking of the lines and the erec tion of monuments All subsequent appropriations now aggregating 750 000 havo also passed without opposition opposi-tion r roctor took great < intoroit mission under which the park is being established Secretary Elklns gave the project energetic support and through the last two years while the Immediate Immedi-ate work has been placed in final shape Secretary Lamont has rendered constant and most energetic assistance The National commission consists of Gen J S Fullerton chairman Gen A P Stewart representing the Confederate Confede-rate side Maj Frank G Smith Second artillery secretary and Gen H V Boynton historian Gen Fullerton by order of the Secretary of War has charge of all arrangements for the dedication DEDICATION CEREMONIES The official dedication under the auspices aus-pices of Congress and the Secretary of War will occupy the 19th and 20th instants in-stants but exercises of a general character char-acter which will be attended by most jf the officials who are to arrive will ccupy the whole of the ISth and the jvenlngs of the 18th 19th and 20th The dedications of State monuments will occur mainly on the 18th At noon of the IDth the Chickamauga > ield will be dedicated the VlcePresI I lent of the United States presiding upon the Invitation of Secretary La mont The orators will be Gen John M Palmer and Gen John B Gordon both ot the United States Senate The night of the 19th In the tent at Chattanooga the veterans of Sher mans and Braggss armies will hold public exercises Gen Granville M Dodge president of the Society of the Army of the Tennessee presiding The hlef speeches will be by Gen O O Howard Gen Joseph Wheeler of Alabama Ala-bama and Gen Wlllard Warner of Chattanooga During the forenoon of the 20th there will be a parade and a review In which I ill organized military bodies and the Governors of States will take part At noon the dedication of the Chattanooga field will take place In the tent the ipeakerr being Gen Charles II Qros venor of the House of Representatives and Gen William H Bate of the Senate Sen-ate |