Heritage Days at The National Shrine of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton

The National Shrine of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton will hold a three-day heritage festival to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg. The Shrine is rich with Civil War history as Union troops encamped on our grounds before the Battle of Gettysburg, a war council was held in the historic White House where Mother Seton lived and died 40 years prior to the Civil War, and the Sisters of Charity and Daughters of Charity served as nurses to soldiers on both sides of the war.

Event highlights:
Ribbon-cutting ceremony for Charity Afire exhibit, June 28 at noon, Shrine Visitor Center
We invite you to attend the ribbon-cutting ceremony of our Civil War exhibit Charity Afire. The exhibit depicts a hospital and battlefield scene with realistic manequins and backdrops. Visitors can also view a large-scale map of the United States, which details the locations of where the Sisters served during the war and read personal accounts of the Sisters from journals they kept during the war.

Back from the Dead Cemetery Walk, June 28 and June 29 from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m., St. Joseph’s Cemetery
Back from the Dead: Soldiers and Angels is a Civil War-themed cemetery walk where guests encounter “dead” soldiers and sisters from the battlefields.

Miracles Amid the Firestorm Tour, June 28 – 30 at noon, 1 p.m., 2 p.m., 3 p.m., Shrine Visitor Center and grounds
Guests tour the Shrine’s grounds with a living historian to learn how 40 years after Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton’s death, her home was the site of a Union encampment and also served as the location for a war council to prepare for the battle of Gettysburg. Hear real-life accounts of miracles on the battlefields as witnessed by Sisters of Charity and Daughters of Charity who nursed the soldiers during the Civil War.

150th Commemoration Concert, June 30 at 4 p.m., Basilica of The National Shrine of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton
The Williamsport Community Band and the Metropolitan of Detroit Chorale will perform a patriotic concert featuring songs from our country’s heritage.