Gettysburg Daily

Warren Statue: It’s Not Easy Turning Green



It’s taken approximately four years, but the statue to Gouverneur Kemble Warren on Little Round Top is turning green again. This view was taken from the southwest facing northeast at approximately 5:00 PM on Friday, September 5, 2008.

The statue to Gouverneur K. Warren on Little Round Top at Gettysburg National Military Park is turning green. The patina is settling on one of the Civil War’s most famous statues. National Park Service Supervisory Exhibits Specialist, Vic Gavin, is well aware of the problem, and stated the statue is scheduled to be cleaned.

There are over 1300 monuments, markers and plaques at the Gettysburg National Military Park, and the goal is to power wash each of them at least once every four years and apply a special wax sealant created by Vic Gavin.

Other statues on Little Round Top and Cemetery Ridge are also becoming oxidized. Gavin previously told the Gettysburg Daily that if the statue is made of a good, quality bronze, it only needs to be cleaned every four years. If one is made of a cheap bronze, like the Oliver O. Howard Statue on East Cemetery Hill, it needs to be cleaned every two years.



The statue was dedicated 120 years ago by veterans of the 5th New York Infantry Regiment (Duryee’s Zouaves). This view was taken from the southwest facing northeast at approximately 5:00 PM on Friday, September 5, 2008.



Here is how the statue looked a few years ago. This view was taken from the southwest facing northeast



The plaque on the west side of the Warren Rock is also turning green. This view was taken from the west facing east at approximately 5:00 PM on Friday, September 5, 2008.



While Little Round Top is famous for the fighting on July 2, 1863, seven men were killed around these rocks the morning of July 3, 1863. The records do not show how many were wounded. This view was taken from the northwest facing southeast at approximately 5:00 PM on Friday, September 5, 2008.



While we were here, we thought we’d throw in our own version of the typical “Gouverneur K. Warren Savior of Little Round Top” shot. This view was taken from the northeast facing southwest at approximately 5:00 PM on Friday, September 5, 2008.