Gettysburg National Military Park, Pennsylvania - free ebook by Frederick Tilberg

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Gettysburg National Military Park, Pennsylvania

Frederick Tilberg

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GETTYSBURG NATIONAL MILITARY PARK Pennsylvania

GETTYSBURG NATIONAL MILITARY PARK Pennsylvania

by Frederick Tilberg NATIONAL PARK SERVICE HISTORICAL HANDBOOK SERIES No. 9 WASHINGTON, D. C., 1954 (Reprint 1961) The National Park System, of which Gettysburg National Military Park is a unit, is dedicated to conserving the scenic, scientific, and historic heritage of the United States for the benefit and inspiration of its people. The field of Pickett’s Charge, with his attack on the Union position at The Angle in the foreground. From the Philippoteaux painting in the Gettysburg Cyclorama. On

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The Situation, Spring 1863

The Situation, Spring 1863

The situation in which the Confederacy found itself in the late spring of 1863 called for decisive action. The Union and Confederate armies had faced each other on the Rappahannock River, near Fredericksburg, Va., for 6 months. The Confederate Army of Northern Virginia, commanded by Gen. R. E. Lee, had defeated the Union forces at Fredericksburg in December 1862 and again at Chancellorsville in May 1863, but the nature of the ground gave Lee little opportunity to follow up his advantage. When he

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The Plan of Campaign

The Plan of Campaign

Lee’s plan of campaign was undoubtedly similar to that of his invasion which ended in the battle of Antietam in September 1862. He then called attention to the need of destroying the bridge over the Susquehanna River at Harrisburg and of disabling the Pennsylvania Railroad in order to sever communication with the west. “After that,” he added, “I can turn my attention to Philadelphia, Baltimore, or Washington as may seem best for our interest.” Lee had suffered an irreparable loss at Chancellorsv

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THE TWO ARMIES CONVERGE ON GETTYSBURG.

THE TWO ARMIES CONVERGE ON GETTYSBURG.

The men of Heth’s division, leading the Confederate advance across the mountain, reached Cashtown on June 29. Pettigrew’s brigade was sent on to Gettysburg the following day to obtain supplies, but upon reaching the ridge a mile west of the town, they observed Union cavalry scouts posted along the roads. Not having orders to bring on an engagement, Pettigrew withdrew to Cashtown. Scene of the initial engagement on the morning of July 1. 1. McPherson Ridge. 2. Oak Ridge. In the intervening 2 days

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THE BATTLE OF OAK RIDGE.

THE BATTLE OF OAK RIDGE.

While the initial test of strength was being determined west of Gettysburg by advance units, the main bulk of the two armies was pounding over the roads from the north and south, converging upon the ground chosen by Buford. Rodes’ Confederates, hurrying southward from Carlisle to meet Lee at Cashtown, received orders at Biglerville to march to Gettysburg. Early, returning from York with Cashtown as his objective, learned at Heidlersburg of the action at Gettysburg and was ordered to approach by

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PRELIMINARY MOVEMENTS AND PLANS.

PRELIMINARY MOVEMENTS AND PLANS.

The small college town of Gettysburg, with 2,400 residents at the time of the battle, lay in the heart of a fertile country, surrounded by broad acres of crops and pastures. Substantial houses of industrious Pennsylvania farmers dotted the countryside. South of the town and hardly more than a musket shot from the houses on its outer edge, Cemetery Hill rose somewhat abruptly from the lower ground. Extending southward from the hill for nearly 2 miles was a long roll of land called Cemetery Ridge.

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LONGSTREET ATTACKS ON THE RIGHT.

LONGSTREET ATTACKS ON THE RIGHT.

In the execution of this plan, Longstreet was ordered to take position across the Emmitsburg Road and to attack what was thought to be the left flank of the Union line on Cemetery Ridge. From his encampment on the Chambersburg Road, 3 miles west of Gettysburg, he started toward his objective, using Herr Ridge to conceal the movement from Union signalmen on Little Round Top. After marching to Black Horse Tavern on the Fairfield Road, he realized that his troops were in sight of the signal unit an

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WARREN SAVES LITTLE ROUND TOP.

WARREN SAVES LITTLE ROUND TOP.

Gen. G. K. Warren, Meade’s Chief of Engineers, having assisted Sickles in placing his line, now rode to the crest of Little Round Top and found the hill, “the key to the Union position,” unoccupied except by a signal station. Warren was informed by the signalmen that they believed Confederate troops lay concealed on the wooded ridge a mile to the west. Smith’s New York battery, emplaced at Devil’s Den, immediately was ordered to fire a shot into these woods. The missile, crashing through the tre

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CULP’S HILL.

CULP’S HILL.

In the Confederate plan, Ewell on the left was directed to attack Cemetery Hill and Culp’s Hill in conjunction with Longstreet’s drive. At the appointed time, the guns of Latimer’s battalion on Benner’s Hill, east of Gettysburg, opened a well-directed fire against the Union positions on East Cemetery Hill and Culp’s Hill, but the return fire soon shattered many of Latimer’s batteries and forced the remnants to retire out of range. In the final moments of this action the youthful Major Latimer wa

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CANNONADE AT DAWN: CULP’S HILL AND SPANGLER’S SPRING.

CANNONADE AT DAWN: CULP’S HILL AND SPANGLER’S SPRING.

Night brought an end to the bloody combat at East Cemetery Hill, but this was not the time for rest. What would Meade do? Would the Union Army remain in its established position and hold its lines at all costs? At midnight Meade sought the advice of his Council of War in the east room of his headquarters. The corps commanders—Gibbon, Williams, Sykes, Newton, Howard, Hancock, Sedgwick, and Slocum—without exception advised holding the positions established. Meade, approving, turned to the officer

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LEE PLANS A FINAL THRUST.

LEE PLANS A FINAL THRUST.

General Lee must have learned by mid-forenoon, after the long hours of struggle at Culp’s Hill and Spangler’s Spring, that his troops could not hold the Union works which they had occupied with so little effort the previous evening. He had seen, also, that in the tremendous battling during the preceding afternoon no important gains had been made at Little Round Top and its vicinity. Longstreet had gained the advantageous ridge at the Peach Orchard and had brought his batteries forward from Pitze

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LEE AND MEADE SET THE STAGE.

LEE AND MEADE SET THE STAGE.

Late in the forenoon of July 3, General Meade had completed his plan of defense in rear of the Union center by the concentration of all available infantry units. General Hunt, sensing the danger, placed a solid line of batteries in position on the crest of the ridge and brought others to the rear for emergency use. As a final act of preparation, Meade inspected his front at the stone wall, then rode southward to Little Round Top. Here, with General Warren, he could see the long lines of Confeder

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ARTILLERY DUEL AT ONE O’CLOCK.

ARTILLERY DUEL AT ONE O’CLOCK.

At 1 o’clock two guns of Miller’s Battery, posted near the Peach Orchard, opened fire in rapid succession. It was the signal for the entire line to let loose their terrific blast. Gunners rushed to their cannon, and in a few moments the massed batteries shook the countryside. Firing in salvos and in succession, the air was soon filled with smoke and heavy dust, which darkened the sky. Union gunners on Cemetery Ridge waited a few minutes until the positions of the Confederate batteries were locat

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CLIMAX AT GETTYSBURG.

CLIMAX AT GETTYSBURG.

Billows of smoke lay ahead of the Union men at the stone wall, momentarily obscuring the enemy. But trained observers on Little Round Top, far to the south, could see in the rear of this curtain of smoke the waves of Confederates starting forward. Pickett, finding his brigades drifting southeastward, ordered them to bear to the left, and the men turned toward the copse of trees. Kemper was now approaching on the south of the Codori buildings; Garnett and Armistead were on the north. Halted momen

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CAVALRY ACTION.

CAVALRY ACTION.

As the strength of Lee’s mighty effort at The Angle was ebbing and the scattered remnants of the charge were seeking shelter, action of a different kind was taking place on another field not far distant. Early in the afternoon, Stuart’s cavalry was making its way down the valley of Cress Run, 3 miles east of Gettysburg. The brigades of Hampton and Fitzhugh Lee, at the rear of the line of march, momentarily lost the trail and came out into open ground at the north end of Rummel’s Woods. Stuart, s

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End of Invasion

End of Invasion

Lee, as he looked over the desolate field of dead and wounded and the broken remnants of his once-powerful army still ready for renewed battle, must have realized that not only was Gettysburg lost, but that eventually it might all end this way. Meade did not counterattack, as expected. The following day, July 4, the two armies lay facing each other, exhausted and torn. During the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg, July 1-4, 1938, 1,845 soldiers attended the Federal and Confederate reu

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ESTABLISHMENT OF A BURIAL GROUND.

ESTABLISHMENT OF A BURIAL GROUND.

For the residents of Gettysburg the aftermath of battle was almost as trying as the 3 days of struggle that had swirled about them. The town’s 2,400 inhabitants, and the nearby country folk, bore a heavy share of the burden of caring for the 21,000 wounded and dying of both sides, who were left behind when the armies moved on. Spacious rooms in churches and schools and hundreds of homes were turned over to the care of the wounded; and kindly folk from neighboring towns came to help those of Gett

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DEDICATION OF THE CEMETERY.

DEDICATION OF THE CEMETERY.

Having agreed upon a plan for the cemetery, the Commissioners believed it advisable to consecrate the grounds with appropriate ceremonies. Mr. Wills, representing the Governor of Pennsylvania, was selected to make proper arrangements for the event. With the approval of the Governors of the several States, he wrote to Hon. Edward Everett, of Massachusetts, inviting him to deliver the oration on the occasion and suggested October 23, 1863, as the date for the ceremony. Mr. Everett stated in reply

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GENESIS OF THE GETTYSBURG ADDRESS.

GENESIS OF THE GETTYSBURG ADDRESS.

The theme of the Gettysburg Address was not entirely new. “Must a government, of necessity, be too strong for the liberties of its people,” Lincoln had once asked, “or too weak to maintain its own existence?” Speaking of war aims, he said, “We shall nobly save, or meanly lose, the last best hope of earth.” When he referred at Gettysburg to “the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced,” he had in mind the high purpose of the preservation of the Union and the wel

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THE FIVE AUTOGRAPH COPIES OF THE GETTYSBURG ADDRESS.

THE FIVE AUTOGRAPH COPIES OF THE GETTYSBURG ADDRESS.

Even after his arrival at Gettysburg the President continued to put finishing touches to his address. The first page of the original text was written in ink on a sheet of Executive Mansion paper. The second page, either written or revised at the Wills residence, was in pencil on a sheet of foolscap, and, according to Lincoln’s secretary, Nicolay, the few words changed in pencil at the bottom of the first page were added while in Gettysburg. The second draft of the address was written in Gettysbu

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SOLDIERS’ NATIONAL MONUMENT.

SOLDIERS’ NATIONAL MONUMENT.

As a fitting memorial to the Union dead who fell at Gettysburg, the Commissioners arranged for the erection of a monument in the center of the semicircular plot of graves. A design submitted by J. G. Batterson was accepted and the services of Randolph Rogers, a distinguished American sculptor, were secured for the execution of the monument. Projecting from the four angles of the gray granite shaft are allegorical statues in white marble representing War, History, Peace, and Plenty. Surmounting t

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THE LINCOLN ADDRESS MEMORIAL.

THE LINCOLN ADDRESS MEMORIAL.

The “few appropriate remarks” of Lincoln at Gettysburg came to be accepted with the passing of years not only as a fine expression of the purposes for which the war was fought, but as a masterpiece of literature. An effort to have the words of the martyr President commemorated on this battlefield culminated with the inclusion in the act approved February 12, 1895, which established Gettysburg National Military Park, of a provision for the erection of such a memorial. Pursuant to this authority,

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STOP 1. MCPHERSON RIDGE.

STOP 1. MCPHERSON RIDGE.

(Please face westward, with the statue of Reynolds on your right.) The Battle of Gettysburg began on this ridge at 8 a. m., July 1, 1863. The Confederate Army, approaching along the Chambersburg Pike, formed line of battle on the ridge one-half mile westward where you see the brick house (Herr Tavern). They first attacked the Union cavalry on this ridge, then infantry on the ridge 200 yards to your rear. In the afternoon, the Confederates renewed their drive from the west along the Pike and also

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STOP 2. OAK HILL.

STOP 2. OAK HILL.

(Please face southward with the Peace Memorial to your rear.) The Battle of Gettysburg, which began at 8 a. m., on the two ridges a mile south of here, halted at noon, and the Confederates withdrew. At 1 o’clock, a strong Confederate force arrived from the north on this hill and fired into the flank of the Union men on the ridges to the south. Faced with this powerful fire and with renewed attack from the west, part of the Union forces were shifted to Oak Ridge (see monuments on the ridge to you

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STOP 3. OAK RIDGE.

STOP 3. OAK RIDGE.

(Please face eastward toward the monuments on the plain.) When Rodes’ Confederate troops reached Oak Hill at 1 o’clock, Union troops on McPherson Ridge, as well as reserves, were shifted hurriedly to this ground. The Union troops, posted back of the stone wall, faced the Confederate charge from the west and north. Tenaciously holding this ground through repeated Confederate attacks, the Union men were finally forced to give way. Howard’s Union corps had arrived earlier in the plain north of Gett

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STOP 4. SEMINARY RIDGE.

STOP 4. SEMINARY RIDGE.

(North Carolina Monument.) General Lee had failed to achieve any definite gains July 2 against the Union left flank at Little Round Top and the Peach Orchard, or the right flank at Spangler’s Spring and Culp’s Hill. He therefore marshaled his forces on the forenoon of July 3 for a final thrust against the center of the Union line on Cemetery Ridge. For nearly 2 hours, 138 Confederate guns on this ridge directed a heavy fire at the Union positions. Lee then sent 15,000 men across the open ground

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STOP 5. WARFIELD RIDGE.

STOP 5. WARFIELD RIDGE.

The Union General Sickles, at noon July 2, began moving his troops forward from Cemetery Ridge and Little Round Top to Devil’s Den Ridge and the Peach Orchard. Longstreet’s Confederate corps was already marching from the Chambersburg Road to extend the line southward across the Emmitsburg Road. At 3:30 p. m., as Sickles’ men were taking position at the Peach Orchard and the Emmitsburg Road, a half-mile north of here, Longstreet brought his army into position on this ridge. A brisk artillery exch

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STOP 6. DEVIL’S DEN.

STOP 6. DEVIL’S DEN.

When General Sickles moved his corps forward to the Peach Orchard and the Emmitsburg Road at 3 p. m., his left flank was here at Devil’s Den. Longstreet’s Confederate brigades soon came charging from the west. Striking the entire Union line, the base of Little Round Top and this area quickly became a shambles. After hours of desperate struggle, the Union line had been broken and the remnants forced to the rear. The Confederates were now in possession of the west slope of Big Round Top, Devil’s D

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STOP 7. LITTLE ROUND TOP.

STOP 7. LITTLE ROUND TOP.

As Sickles completed the forward movement from Little Round Top and the area northward, his new line extended from the Peach Orchard southeastward through the Wheatfield to Devil’s Den (see boulders below). Longstreet’s attack on Little Round Top developed from the ridge a mile westward. His brigades successively struck the entire Union line from Devil’s Den to the Emmitsburg Road. The Confederates in a 4-hour fight broke the entire Union line, and the remnants of Sickles’ corps were forced to r

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STOP 8. CEMETERY RIDGE (THE ANGLE).

STOP 8. CEMETERY RIDGE (THE ANGLE).

On the afternoon of July 2, General Lee had tried to turn the left flank of the Union line at Little Round Top and the Peach Orchard, and the right flank at Culp’s Hill and Spangler’s Spring. Meeting with only partial success in these attempts, he then planned to strike the center. First he massed his artillery on Seminary Ridge and across the fields. Many batteries were hardly more than 800 yards west of here. Beginning at 1 o’clock they engaged in an artillery duel of nearly 2 hours with the p

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STOP 9. MEADE’S HEADQUARTERS.

STOP 9. MEADE’S HEADQUARTERS.

Gen. George G. Meade, commanding the Union Army, arrived on the field near midnight, July 1. He used the Leister house as his headquarters. On the night of July 2, General Meade called a council of his corps commanders in this house to determine whether they should hold the positions then established. The commanders advised him to hold the existing lines. Meade, agreeing with their advice and expecting the next attack on the center of his line, began the concentration of artillery and infantry s

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STOP 10. NATIONAL CEMETERY.

STOP 10. NATIONAL CEMETERY.

Soon after the battle, Governor Curtin, of Pennsylvania, commissioned Attorney David Wills, of Gettysburg, to purchase this ground as a cemetery for the Union dead. While reburials from the temporary graves on the battlefield were in progress, a committee arranged for a formal dedication on November 19, 1863. President Lincoln delivered his famous Gettysburg Address on that occasion. The National Monument, commemorating the Union soldiers who fell at Gettysburg, was dedicated, in 1869, on the si

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STOP 11. CYCLORAMA OF PICKETT’S CHARGE.

STOP 11. CYCLORAMA OF PICKETT’S CHARGE.

The Cyclorama of Pickett’s Charge is regarded as a masterpiece of art. It offers an unsurpassed picture of the wartime appearance of the field, the manner of fighting, and of equipment employed. This magnificent painting, measuring 370 feet in circumference and 30 feet in height, was acquired by the National Park Service in 1942. The French artist, Paul Philippoteaux, completed the painting in 1884. It was brought to Gettysburg in 1913 when it was first mounted and exhibited in connection with t

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STOP 12. EAST CEMETERY HILL.

STOP 12. EAST CEMETERY HILL.

Early’s Confederates assaulted Union positions here at dusk on July 2, in coordination with an attack on Culp’s Hill (to your right). Rodes’ men failed to charge from the west at the same time. Early’s troops took possession of the hill and many of the guns, but in the absence of support from Rodes they were driven back. The desperate hand-to-hand fighting lasted long after dark. Culp’s Hill is one-quarter mile eastward (see the observation tower) and Spangler’s Spring a few hundred yards beyond

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STOP 13. CULP’S HILL.

STOP 13. CULP’S HILL.

A Confederate attack was directed against this hill on July 2 in conjunction with the assault on East Cemetery Hill. Because of the steep incline and the strength of the Union positions here at the crest, the Confederate force shifted southward across Rock Creek for a flank attack. Most of the Union troops had been ordered earlier to the defense of the Wheatfield and Peach Orchard. The Confederates, meeting with little resistance, took possession of the Union earthworks on the south slope of thi

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STOP 14. SPANGLER’S SPRING.

STOP 14. SPANGLER’S SPRING.

Failing to take possession of Culp’s Hill on the evening of July 2, Johnson’s Confederate force shifted southward across Rock Creek and attacked the Union position on the hill north of this spring. The defense works here had been vacated an hour earlier when most of the troops were called to help defend the Union line in the Wheatfield and Peach Orchard. The Confederates then took possession of the Union works. The Union forces, having returned during the night, opened fire at dawn on July 3 wit

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The Park

The Park

In 1895, the battlefield was established by act of Congress as Gettysburg National Military Park. In that year, the Gettysburg Battlefield Memorial Association, which had been founded April 30, 1864, for the purpose of commemorating “the great deeds of valor, endurance, and noble self-sacrifice, and to perpetuate the memory of the heroes, and the signal events which render these battlegrounds illustrious,” transferred its holdings of 600 acres of land, 17 miles of avenues, and 320 monuments and

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Anniversary Reunions of the Civil War Veterans

Anniversary Reunions of the Civil War Veterans

The great interest of veterans and the public alike in the Gettysburg battlefield has been reflected over the years in three outstanding anniversary celebrations. Dominant in the observance of the 25th anniversary in 1888 were the veterans themselves, who returned to encamp on familiar ground. It was on this occasion that a large number of regimental monuments, erected by survivors of regiments or by States, were dedicated. Again, in 1913, on the 50th anniversary, even though the ranks were grad

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How to Reach the Park

How to Reach the Park

Gettysburg National Military Park and National Cemetery are accessible by highway over U. S. No. 30 from the east and west, U. S. No. 15 from the north and south; U. S. No. 140 from Baltimore, Md.; State No. 34 from Carlisle, Pa.; and State No. 116 from Hagerstown, Md., and Hanover, Pa. Greyhound Bus Lines operate over U. S. Nos. 30 and 140; the Blue Ridge Lines over U. S. No. 15 from the south; and the Gettysburg-Harrisburg Bus Line over U. S. No. 15 from Harrisburg....

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Administration

Administration

Gettysburg National Military Park is administered by the National Park Service of the United States Department of the Interior. Communications should be addressed to the Superintendent, Gettysburg National Military Park, Gettysburg, Pa....

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Related Areas

Related Areas

Significant parts of most of the major battlefields of the Civil War have been set aside under the control of the Federal Government to be administered as national military areas by the National Park Service. Among the areas in this group are: Antietam National Battlefield Site, Md.; Manassas National Battlefield Park, Va.; Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania County Battlefields Memorial National Military Park (includes Chancellorsville, The Wilderness, Spotsylvania Court House, and Fredericksburg b

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NATIONAL PARK SERVICE HISTORICAL HANDBOOK SERIES

NATIONAL PARK SERVICE HISTORICAL HANDBOOK SERIES

(Price lists of National Park Service publications may be obtained from the Superintendent of Documents, Washington 25, D.C.)...

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