Gettysburg (continued)

Gettysburg (continued)

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Barlow's Knoll, looking west. Also known as Blocher's Knoll because of the Blocher farm, visible in the distance. Union Brig. General Barlow faced his unit to the west because the only enemy in their view was Doles brigade of Confederates on the eastern slope of Oak Ridge and maybe some of O'Neal's men. Had that been the only enemy force in the vicinity, Barlow's decision to seize the knoll and face his command westward would have made sense.

Barlow's Knoll, looking north. The nature of the terrain to the north of the knoll also aided the Confederates. Woods stretched from just north of the knoll to Rock Creek, effectively shielding Early's column from observation from the knoll. As a result, Early unlimbered his artillery just north of the creek, from where they could pour a devastating flank fire into Union ranks. At the same time, a brigade of 1,200 Georgians under the command of Brig. General John Gordon made their way across Rock Creek and used the woods to conceal their advance. Barlow, fixated on Dole's brigade as it crossed Carlisle Road and made its way forward, never knew what hit him. (Gettysburg: A Battlefield Guide)

It is common on Civil War battlefields to mark headquarters of Generals by placing an upward pointing cannon barrel near or on the site. This one is across the street from General Robert E. Lee's headquarters (see next photo). You are looking southwest with Seminary Ridge to the left of this photo and McPherson's Ridge visible on the right. Pitzer's Run cuts through the center of the picture. This was the ground heavily fought upon during the morning and afternoon of the first day.

This picturesque house, located on Chambersburg Pike, was built in 1834 and at the time of the Civil War was owned by the noted statesman Thaddeus Stevens. It was on July 1, 1863 that General Robert E. Lee established his personal headquarters in this old stone house. An ideal location, it was at the center and rear of his battle lines and it was on the same road that many more of his troops were quickly approaching. At the time of the battle, the house was the dwelling place of Mrs. Mary Thompson, who was known by the residents of Gettysburg simply as the "Widow" Thompson. She was not excited about having her house occupied by a "Rebel," but she testifies that the gentlemanly deportment of General Lee whilst in her house, but complains bitterly of the robbery and general destruction of her goods by some of his attendants. At the time of the battle of Gettysburg, the Thompson house was probably a duplex. The eastern side of the house was occupied during the period of the battle, while the western side was occupied by the widow Thompson. While the battle raged outside, Mrs. Thompson and her daughter-in-law with two small children probably sought shelter in the cellar beneath the house. Lee's staff chose this house not only because of this close proximity to the center of the Confederate line, but also because the house with its thick wall afforded the General some physical protection from artillery shells. (civilwarheadquarters.com)

Major General John Reynolds. There is much debate over the importance of the position of horses hooves in Gettysburg monuments. I defer to Pulitzer Prize winning author James McPherson: "Two of the hooves of Reynolds's horse are raised. Generations of battlefield guides have explained that this pose conforms to a pattern indicating that the rider was killed in the battle. If one hoof is off the ground, the rider was wounded--and this is true of the equestrian monument to Major General Winfield Scott Hancock, who was wounded at Gettysburg. If all four of the horse's feet are on the ground, the rider was unharmed in the battle--and that also is true of all the rest of Gettysburg's monuments. Some park personnel and guides, however, now debunk this "myth" as well, and insist that the relationship between hooves and the rider's fate is purely coincidental. But that strikes me as unlikely. For centuries a convention has existed among sculptors of equestrian statues to symbolize the rider's fate in battle by the placement of the horse's hooves. So I will continue to tell that story about the equestrian monuments at Gettysburg."

Brig. General John Buford. Once again, James McPherson: "It was Buford who made the crucial decision that led to the battle being fought at Gettysburg. For that distinction he earned one of the statues on the battlefield, portraying Buford on foot with binoculars in hand looking toward the northwest. There are seven equestrian statues at Gettysburg, all of infantry commanders (including army commanders Lee and Meade); the most prominent Union cavalry commander is memorialized in bronze on foot. Go figure."

Doubleday's Headquarters. Looking southeast. In the distance is Seminary Ridge with the Seminary, and adjacent church, visible on the left. On the afternoon of the first day, several intermixed Union brigades conducted a fighting withdrawal across these fields before establishing a final line of battle just west of the seminary itself. Confederate Maj. General William Pender's division tried to crack the position. At 4 p.m. they advanced. One officer wrote, "After a few minutes of the belching of the artillery the blinding smoke shut out the sun and obstructed the view." Confederate Brig. General Scales fell wounded at the bottom of the swale and all but one field officer (colonel, lieutenant colonel, and major) of his regiment were hit. Eventually, Perrin's South Carolinians pressed ahead and Doubleday's men retreated. Shortly thereafter, General Lee made his headquarters on Chambersburg Pike to the left of the photo.

11th Pennsylvania monument. One of the Union regiments that fought with Baxter was the Eleventh Pennsylvania. Their monument has a bronze dog at the base on the side away from the road. Many regiments had mascots. This one was named Sallie. When the 11th was driven back on the afternoon of the first day, Sallie stayed behind with the dead. She guarded them for four days until survivors came to bury them on July 5th. She was returned to her regiment and was, herself, killed ten months later at the Wilderness.

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