For the Sake of the Living: A Civil War Battlefield Burial

by Benjamin Resnick, Douglas Owsley, and Susan Frankenberg
This book reports on the archeological recovery and analysis of a Civil War battlefield burial identified along the eroded south bank of the railroad cut in the northern portion of Gettysburg National Military Park. The location of the burial site suggests that the individual was likely killed during intense fighting on the first day’s battle: July 1, 1863. Skeletal elements recovered from the excavation include, in part, portions of the skull, teeth, and several long bones in addition to numerous small unidentifiable fragments. In combination with bone previously collected in this area, approximately 60 to 70 percent of the body was represented. The excavation, analysis, and interpretation of the burial will be reviewed within the context of the treatment of battlefield dead and the Union and Confederate engagement in this area.

The reburial ceremony on July 1, 1997 at Gettysburg Soldiers’ National Cemetery, with full military honors, was attended by as many as 4,000 people and captured national attention.

Benjamin Resnick is the Cultural Resources Group Manager at GAI Consultants, Inc. Prior to joining GAI in 1989, Ben was employed as a Senior Archaeologist by Louis Berger and Associates, Inc.

Resnick attended the University of Maryland and the University of South Carolina where he received his B.A. and M.A. in Anthropology and Anthropology/Public Service Archaeology, respectively. He presently serves as Current Research Coordinator (MidAtlantic) for the Society for Historical Archaeology Newsletter and as Vice President/Chair for the Membership and Ethics Committee for the Pennsylvania Archaeology Council (PAC). He formerly served on the Nominations and Elections Committee for the Society for Historical Archaeology and Certification Committee for both the Society for Professional Archaeologists and Register of Professional Archaeologists.

Resnick specializes in the study of historic-period sites focusing on military sites, urban sites, farmsteads, and GIS-based applications to archaeological predictive modeling. He served as Project Manager and Principal Investigator for consecutive open-end contracts with the National Park Service (Denver Service Center) where he supervised archaeological investigations at Gettysburg National Military Park, Fort Necessity National Battlefield, Allegheny Portage Railroad National Historic Site, and Altoona Railroaders Memorial Museum.

To purchase a copy a Mr. Resnick's companion book, For the Sake of the Living: A Civil War Battlefield Burial, CLICK HERE.