About — BLOOD AND BLUE RIBBONS Stories and Studies Regarding the Events of the Battle of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania July 1st

View from Oak Ridge, Gettysburg, PA

On Writing

by Elyse Cregar

The romance of far-away places enchanted me so much that I often looked for a map so I could trace events. My Father's Dragon by Ruth Stiles Gannett may have been my first "map" book. I read it over and over. Later, C.S. Forester's Horatio Hornblower series, the naval adventures based on the life of Admiral Lord Nelson, completely enthralled me. Young Horatio was so handsome and so daring I couldn't wait to read each book. Michael Strogoff by Jules Verne took me on dangerous and romantic journeys through Czarist Russia. I wanted to travel to all of those places, even to Wild Island to rescue the dragon and to Northern Siberia to meet the courier of the Czar.

In researching and writing for this site, I have referred to my background as a former Licensed Battlefield Guide at the Gettysburg National Military Park, as well as to regimental histories. Though every effort has been made to maintain historical accuracy, the author is aware that there may be discrepancies in detail or context in a fiction format when compared to the actual historical records.

I grew up in Riverside, Illinois. Graduating from Eastern Connecticut State University with a B.S. Degree in Education and Shippensburg University with a M.L.S, Degree, I have served as a Library-Media Specialist in Moscow, Idaho, Swampscott, Massachusetts, and Hanover, Pennsylvania. Following my studies to test as a Gettysburg Guide, I then became engaged for several years as a Licensed Battlefield Guide at the Gettysburg National Military Park in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.

As a member of the American Association of School Librarians and the American Library Association, my articles on school library practices have been published in School Library Journal and Knowledge Quest, a Journal of the American Association of School Librarians. From 2011-2013 I served on the Intellectual Freedom Committee of the AASL. See links below:

“Browsing by Numbers and Reading for Points” by Elyse Cregar. Knowledge Quest: A Journal of the American Library Association. March-April, 2011.

https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ963492

To read the above complete article, please download:

“A Slow, Subtle Exercise in Censorship” by Elyse Clark (married name)

https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ333350

My years serving as a Licensed Battlefield Guide gave me a rich appreciation for our American history and for the high interest our visitors to the Park showed in hearing about a critical part of that history. My years as a public school librarian taught me the value of sharing my love of books with young people. Combined, these two life-time commitments have given me the opportunity to share stories in many formats; to help fulfill our human need for sharing, learning, exploring and developing empathy for our fellow travelers.

Elyse Cregar and Deb Novotny

Deb Novotny, LBG

The Study Guide questions closely follow the unfolding of major events before and during the three-day Battle of Gettysburg in July of 1863. Historical episodes and personalities have been verified by Debra Novotny, a Licensed Battlefield Guide at the Gettysburg National Military Park in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. She has been a Licensed Battlefield Guide since 1975 and an educator of U.S. History for 35 years. She received her B.S. in Education and her M.A. in History from California State College in Pennsylvania.

Deb Novotny’s tours of this important, tragic, and fascinating battlefield focus on the human interest stories of the town and the battle, giving life to a moment in history that continues to reverberate today. Since 1999 she has served on Gettysburg’s Historic Evergreen Cemetery Board of Trustees within the structure of three-year term limits. Serving variously as Secretary, Vice-President and President, she is again nominated for the 2020 election. The Cemetery has its own stories to tell, as many of the town's residents who had to deal with the long-term effects of the battle are buried there, as well as 69 casualties of the battle.

Deb Novotny’s contributions to this site are inestimable and her expertise rare.

gettysburgtourguides.org

https://discussion.roadscholar.org/b/blog/posts/a-woman-with-a-mission-deb-novotny-the-fourth-female-gettysburg-guide

My Dad with my daughters at the Illinois Monument, Chattanooga, TN.

Part of my interest in the Civil War dates from childhood when my parents took me to visit many Eastern Civil War Battlefields. My father, William L. Cregar, proudly told me how my presence on this earth was at least partly due to the short height of my great-great-grandfather, James M. White, who fought with the 19th Illinois Infantry under the command of General Ulysses S. Grant. Grampa's hat was shot off during the Union assault on Missionary Ridge, Chattanooga, Tennessee, November 25, 1863.

Note on Language Usage

In researching and writing this website I have relied on the National Association of Black Journalists (https://www.nabj.org/page/styleguideA ) for references to terms used during the Civil War as they pertain to enslaved and formerly enslaved peoples. Aside from my own desire to see this offensive word pass into history, I found no need to use the “n” word in my novel. There are sufficient historically accurate terms available that would have been used. Additionally, there are questions on proper capitalization of some terms that remain with us today. I believe most nineteenth century writers would not have capitalized many nouns, except for proper names.