By Wendy Swanson
Washington, D.C.
Monday, July 22, 2024
Peter Carmichael, Gettysburg College’s Robert C. Fluhrer Professor of Civil War Era Studies, died unexpectedly on July 21, after a sudden illness. He was 58.
In announcing Carmichael’s passing, Gettysburg College President Bob Juliano wrote, “Pete’s impact on this community and in the community of Civil War scholars has been immeasurable. He has helped us to see the Civil War through a broader and more nuanced lens and along the way guided legions of Gettysburg College students into the field of public history.”
Carmichael joined the Gettysburg faculty 14 years ago. His areas of interest were widely spread and included 19th century U.S. history, the Civil War and Reconstruction, southern history, and public and cultural history.
Before coming to Gettysburg, he held positions at Western Carolina University, the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and West Virginia University. He earned his bachelor’s degree in history at Indiana State University and his Ph.D. from Penn State University, where he studied under Dr. Gary W. Gallagher.
He was widely known in the history community and, to many Lincoln Group members, as the director of the Civil War Institute, held each summer at Gettysburg College. He was a champion of education who expanded his outreach to educators to ensure the sharing of scholarship with future generations.
Renowned as a Civil War scholar and author, Carmichael was a vital member of the history community in Gettysburg. He was on the board of directors and the historians’ council of the Gettysburg Foundation, Gettysburg National Military Park’s first scholar-in-residence, and a co-editor of the Civil War America series from the University of North Carolina Press. He had held several seasonal interpretive positions at National Park Service (NPS) sites and developed a strong and lasting relationship with the Park Service.
Bob Juliano spoke for many in remembering Carmichael. “We will sorely miss Pete’s leadership and dedication, but more than that we will sorely miss Pete. He very much helped make this campus the special place that it is. We will forever cherish his presence in our lives.”
(Photo: Gettysburg College)