Almost eight decades after the end of the Revolutionary War (1776-1783), there erupted another war (1861-1865). Mostly known today as the Civil War, the conflict seared our national consciousness and forever changed what it means to be an American. At dawn of July 1, 1863, the war had been unfolding for more than two years. For the next three days in the Battle of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, Americans slew Americans in the most lethal battle ever fought on United States soil. In that most pivotal clash of the Civil War, more than 51,000 soldiers were killed, wounded, or reported missing.  Four and a half months later, on November 19, 1863, a crowd of about 15,000 gathered at Gettysburg to consecrate a new Civil War cemetery. The story’s headline in The New York Times makes clear who was the designated declaimer of the day: IMMENSE NUMBERS OF VISITORS Oration By Hon. Edward