Gettysburg Daily

National Cemetery Comfort Station Closed for Repairs

The National Cemetery Comfort Station, as viewed from the Baltimore Pike. This view was taken facing southwest at approximately 5:50 PM on Wednesday, September 14, 2011.

The only publicly accessible restroom within the National Cemetery is temporarily closed for rehabilitation.

We’ll enter the Soldiers National Cemetery at the Baltimore Pike Street entrance. This view was taken facing southwest at approximately 5:50 PM on Wednesday, September 14, 2011.

The portable toilets have been brought in and setup here just inside the gate. The National Cemetery Comfort Station is in the far left of this view, behind the trees surrounded by the orange fence. This view was taken facing southwest at approximately 5:50 PM on Wednesday, September 14, 2011.

The restroom was constructed in the 1920s, and predates the more common 1930s-era comfort stations built by the CCC, which we have featured previously. This view was taken facing east at approximately 5:50 PM on Wednesday, September 14, 2011.

Because of its age, the structure lacks a proper heating system, meaning it is often closed during the winter months (or causing issues when it is open and the pipes freeze). A new heating system will be installed and the plumbing will also be replaced. This view was taken facing south at approximately 5:50 PM on Wednesday, September 14, 2011.

Repairs are expected to take approximately four months. This view was taken facing northwest at approximately 5:50 PM on Wednesday, September 14, 2011.

As we left the cemetery, thunderclouds had started to form. The tall monument on the left is the New York State Monument, and the statue to Major General John Fulton Reynolds is the closer monument in the foreground. This view was facing southwest at approximately 5:50 PM on Wednesday, September 14, 2011.

A few minutes after we left yet another downpour visited Gettysburg Wednesday evening. This view was taken facing southwest at approximately 5:50 PM on Wednesday, September 14, 2011.