James Gindlesperger - So You Think You Know Gettysburg?: The Stories behind the Monuments and the Men Who Fought One of Americas Most Epic Battles

Also by James Gindlesperger

Escape from Libby Prison

Fire on the Water

Copyright 2010 by James and Suzanne Gindlesperger

All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever. For information address John F. Blair, Publisher, Subsidiary Rights Department, 1406 Plaza Drive, Winston-Salem, North Carolina 27103.

Manufactured in South Korea

COVER IMAGES

Front cover - The Confederate batteries on West Confederate Avenue / Seminary Ridge
Back cover left to right - Louisiana State Memorial, Irish Brigade Monument, General George Gordon Meade Monument,
Ninety-ninth Pennsylvania Infantry Monument, and Brigadier General Samuel Wylie Crawford Monument

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Gindlesperger, James, 1941

So you think you know Gettysburg? : the stories behind the monuments and the men who fought one of Americas most epic battles / by James and Suzanne Gindlesperger.

p.cm.

Includes index.

ISBN 978-0-89587-374-3

1. Gettysburg National Military Park (Pa.)Tours. 2. Gettysburg, Battle of, Gettysburg, Pa., 1863. 3. United StatesHistoryCivil War, 1861-1865Monuments. I. Gindlesperger, Suzanne. II. Title.

E475.56.G744 2010

973.7349dc22

2009045842

www.blairpub.com

DESIGN BY DEBRA LONG HAMPTON

Contents

Few events in our nations history hold as much fascination as the Civil War. Military officers study it for its tactics and strategies, while schoolchildren study it to learn about history. Genealogists study it to learn where and how their ancestors fought, and perhaps died, either to preserve the Union or to defend states rights, up to and including the right of secession. Whatever the reason, the fascination with the four years from 1861 to 1865 continues to grow.

Within that war, few battles grip us more than Gettysburg, the so-called high-water mark of the Confederacy. Statistics show that Gettysburg is the most popular Civil War site in the National Park Service system, drawing some 1.7 million visitors annually.

The authors have contributed more than most to that statistic. We have had a decades-long love affair with Gettysburg and rarely go longer than a few months without a pilgrimage to that hallowed ground. We have reached the point where friends and relatives roll their eyes when we announce we will be gone for a few days, knowing the odds are good that we are going to Gettysburg yet again.

Each visit finds us taking photographs, often of things we have shot countless times before. The wonders of digital photography have allowed us to delete the inferior shots, keeping only those that capture elusive lighting effects and shadows, those that offer more scenic panoramas than previous versions, and those we just plain like for no particular reason.

In this book, the photos and their accompanying descriptions are grouped according to areas of the battlefield. The color-coded map of the entire battlefield allows readers to select specific portions of the field, using the areas colors and letter designations as guides. The photos in turn have numbers corresponding to those on the accompanying area maps. Readers can use those numbers to determine where the photos were taken, which will allow them to read the explanations that accompany the photos while contemplating what took place on those very spots more than 145 years ago. We have also included GPS coordinates for those who prefer to test their navigational skills.

One short chapter is devoted to general-interest photos. These show features that appear in all areas of the battlefield and are not exclusive to any one section. Examples of such photos are those of flank markers, brigade plaques, and reenactment scenes. Because they do not appear on specific maps, they have been given general numbers. Their descriptive narratives serve to make a visit to the battlefield more meaningful.

We have made no attempt to present the entire history of the battle, although much can be learned simply by reading the narratives accompanying the photographs. We also have not depicted every monument on the field, although we have tried to balance the story by presenting photos for each side of the battle line. We do not editorialize as to which side was right and which was wrong, or which side showed more courage. That is left to readers, should they desire to make such judgments.

Some of the photos and narratives will reveal trivia readers never knew. Others share the heartbreak of war. Still others simply explain the beauty of a scene that belies the cacophony and unbelievably savage fighting that occurred on the pieces of ground depicted.

The pages that follow present a collection of photos and the interesting stories behind them. These are our favorites. We hope you like them.

The people who staff the visitor center at the Gettysburg National Military Park were very helpful, and we thank them for all they have done for us. We especially appreciate the guides, with whom we had many discussions and from whom we learned much.

We must also acknowledge the nice people at the Lutheran Theological Seminarys Schmucker Hall for their hospitality and generosity in allowing us to climb into the famed cupola. The feeling of awe in standing where famous generals plotted their strategies was powerful, and we thank them for the opportunity.

Thanks also to Amanda Smith and the MapQuest permission team for allowing us to use their maps. Their generosity saved us countless hours of cartographic work, and the results are far beyond anything we would have come up with on our own.

Our agent, Rita Rosenkranz, has been more than her title implies. She gave us sage advice, offered critical suggestions, and served as our mentor. Perhaps even more, she has become our friend. Thank you, Rita.

We also appreciate the generosity of the staff at the National Archives for making available the 1863 photo of the Confederate sharpshooter in Devils Den (photos I-6). That period photograph allowed us to compare our modern photo with the way things looked at the time of the battle, making the written discussion much more meaningful.

Our employers, AAA of Southern Pennsylvania and Carnegie Mellon University, must be recognized for their support and flexibility in enabling us to get to Gettysburg so often. Those folks were great!