History’s priests, history’s magicians: exploring the contentious relationship between authorized heritage and ghost tourism in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania

I explore the contentious relationship between ghost tourism and authorized heritage in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania through the classical distinction between magic and religion. Durkheim argues the magic cannot sustain a social universe; it must operate within the bounds the religion creates. Similarly, I show the ghost tourism in Gettysburg reflects the version of the past that authorized heritage constructs. Although actors in the ghost-tourism industry recognize the legitimacy of authorized heritage, they see also ghost stories as a more reliable tool for knowing the past, and teaching it to visitors, than authorized heritage has at their disposal. Thus, they mirror Weber’s magicians, whose relationship with the supernatural is based on rationalize formulae. Data for this project were collected over a three-day trip to Gettysburg in August 2017.