Witness to Gettysburg. Have you ever been to Gettysburg? Maybe it’s ghosts, or just how the winds swirl across empty fields. If you didn’t know that during the first three days of July 1863 nearly 60,000 Americans were dead or wounded, you’d swear that something hellish happened here.

Annette Hubbell, who wrote and performs this one-person show, dresses in  mourning and tells the story of Hattie Elizabeth Turner. She went to Gettysburg with her husband, Captain George Turner of the 90th Pennsylvania volunteers. She didn’t sit on one of the town’s roofs—as many did—but she witnessed the slaughter first hand, including her husband.s death.

And had no time to grieve. When professional doctors were late, Hattie and other women took charge. The “onlookers” cared for the wounded as if by instinct. Everywhere they walked, Hubbell/Hattie exclaims, “the ground was wet with blood.”

Hubbell’s writing, often rich in details, makes her audience an eyewitness. Descriptions of the battle and Hattie’s intial reluctance (“I can’t do this. I can’t free the memory of what I know is sure to follow.”) are vivid and truly felt. That this is the battle of Gettysburg from a woman’s perspective casts a fresh eye on the havoc.

During the performance, Hattie changes from a proper young woman to a tough battlefield nurse. Her compassion never sees sides —yanks or Rebs — just endless carnage.