Gettysburg's famed Electric Map sold to York Co. businessman

Gettysburg's famed Elecrtric Map will longer be displayed in Getysburg, but its buyer says it will have a permanent - and public - home about 14 miles away.

A Hanover businessman bought the 30-by-30 foot map for $14,000 at a federal auction that ended last night.

Scott Roland, who owns Blue Ridge Holdings and has been leading an effort to revitalize downtown Hanover, purchased the map, according to the Evening Sun. he said he wants to house the map in the old Wachovia bank building where he wants to create a heritage/conference center.

The 12-ton map has been stored in pieces in shipping containers since the closure of the old Gettysburg Museum four years ago.

For 45 years the map exhibit delighted visitors to the museum, using flashing light bulbs to mark the troop movements over the three-day battle. Preservationsists had lobbied the park service to save the map or sell it. Most wanted it to remain local.

The map was auctioned after the National Park Service obtained a waiver from the General Services Administration that would allow it to be sold to the highest bidder rather than be destroyed.

The 3-D plaster map contains asbestos. Roland now has 30 days to remove the behemoth from its shipping containers.

In a statement, Gettysburg National Military Park thanked Roland for saving it $32,000 it would have cost to dispose of it properly.

Bidding started at $5 and there no bids throughout the week. In a final flurry of bidding on Friday Roland beat out another bidder.

"In the end, whether it was $10 or $10,000," Roland said, "if it brings people to downtown (Hanover) I think it's worth it."

Hanover has its Civil War battle cred.

A month before the the clash at Gettysburg, the Battle of Hanover broke out on the streets of the York County borough when Maj. Gen. J.E.B. Stuart's Confederate cavalry, riding north to avoid the Union Army, attacked a Federal cavalry regiment, driving it through the streets of Hanover.

Brig. Gen. Elon Farnsworth's brigade arrived and counterattacked. Stuart was nearly captured in the melee and it delayed Stuart's effort to join Gen. Robert E. Lee west of Gettysburg.

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