I am fortunate to have several Civil War veterans in my lineage, including my great-great-grandfathers William Sisson of Dover, Ohio, who fought in the 51st Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and John Fauley of Fultonham, Ohio, who fought in the 5th U.S. Regulars. My great-uncles, the Chambers boys, fought in the 7th West Virginia on East Cemetery Hill at Gettysburg and participated in the famed charge on the Sunken Road at Antietam.

Another great-uncle, Aaron Barnhill, was in the 141st Ohio, a National Guard regiment that served for 100 days in the summer of 1864 when the U.S. War Department enrolled tens of thousands of men for temporary duty for an all-out push to win the war. These "Hundred Days Men" in the 141st served on garrison duty at Charleston, West Virginia, allowing the release of veteran troops to man the front lines.

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Several descendants of Michigan Brigade soldiers and other interested persons donated money to acquire a small piece of land at Hunterstown and erect one of the country's newest Civil War monuments. This marble slab and bronze relief is dedicated to Brig. Gen. George Armstrong Custer, who led the Michigan Brigade (the "Michigan Wolverines") into action at Hunterstown against the troops of Wade Hampton III of the Confederate cavalry during the Gettysburg Campaign.

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Sunday dawned bright and early on June 28. Most townspeople in York went about their daily routines, including dressing nicely for worship, strolling the sidewalks, and visiting friends and relatives. While church was in progress at St. Paul's Lutheran, the vanguard of the Confederate division of Jubal Early marched into York, preceded by the pioneer corps and advance pickets from the 31st Georgia. Rebels hauled down the large flag in the Center Square, as well as a smaller one from a nearby shop. York was now under Confederate control. The lead brigade, the Georgians of John Gordon, moved on to Wrightsville, while Jubal Early ringed York with artillery and established a series of camps.

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Maj. Gen. Jubal Early's veteran Confederate division, one of the hardest fighting units in the Army of Northern Virginia, departs from camps near Mummasburg, Gettysburg, and Hunterstown and heads eastward toward the prize they had been ordered by Richard S. Ewell to capture - the prosperous town of York. Early's main column - 3/4 of his artillery, all but one company of the 17th Virginia Cavalry, and the brigades of Ike Avery and Extra Billy Smith trudged from Mummasburg toward Hunterstown, picking up the Louisiana Tigers en route. John Gordon's Georgians left the Wolf farm just east of Gettysburg and marched out the turnpike (today's U.S. 30). It would be a leisurely march for these two columns this day, one that would end at Big Mount and Farmers, respectively.

It was the third column that would create the military excitement on this day - White's Comanches which had terrorized much of northern Maryland and had earned a reputation for lightning raids on Union supply lines. Now, their war whoops would be heard in southwestern York County...

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Robert E. Lee,
General Orders, No. 73

Headquarters, Army of Northern Virginia
Chambersburg, Pennsylvania
June 27, 1863

The commanding general has observed with marked satisfaction the conduct of the troops on the march, and confidently anticipates results commensurate with the high spirit they have manifested.

No troops could have displayed greater fortitude or better performed the arduous marches of the past ten days.

Their conduct in other respects has with few exceptions been in keeping with their character as soldiers, and entitles them to approbation and praise.

There have however been instances of forgetfulness on the part of some, that they have in keeping the yet unsullied reputation of the army, and that the duties expected of us by civilization and Christianity are not less obligatory in the country of the enemy than in our own.

The commanding general considers that no greater disgrace could befall the army, and through it our whole people, than the perpetration of the barbarous outrages upon the unarmed, and defenceless [sic] and the wanton destruction of private property that have marked the course of the enemy in our own country.

Such proceedings not only degrade the perpetrators and all connected with them, but are subversive of the discipline and efficiency of the army, and destructive of the ends of our present movement.

It must be remembered that we make war only upon armed men, and that we cannot take vengeance for the wrongs our people have suffered without lowering ourselves in the eyes of all whose abhorrence has been excited by the atrocities of our enemies, and offending against Him to whom vengeance belongeth, without whose favor and support our efforts must all prove in vain.

The commanding general therefore earnestly exhorts the troops to abstain with most scrupulous care from unnecessary or wanton injury to private property, and he enjoins upon all officers to arrest and bring to summary punishment all who shall in any way offend against the orders on this subject.

R. E. Lee
General

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

SOURCE: Clifford Dowdey, editor, The Wartime Papers of R. E. Lee (New York: Bramhall House, 1961), pages 533-534.

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Last night at York's Patriot Days celebration panel discussion at the York County Heritage Trust, four authors with York ties along with author and newspapermen Jim McClure briefly discussed whether York should have surrendered to Maj. Gen. Jubal Anderson Early of the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia. There was no military reason to defend York, and the army did what it felt was prudent tactically to withdraw to the Susquehanna River, which they had been ordered to defend. The key issue was the controversial decision of York's leaders to seek out the Rebels and negotiate for the safety of the town, as act some Yorkers of that day felt was treasonous, while others strongly believed it saved the town from destruction.

One important point brought up by the panelists was that Jubal Early would likely have been court-martialled had he wantonly torched a Northern town against Robert E. Lee's orders. Targets of military value such as warehouses, railroads, bridges, telegraphs, etc. were allowable, but private property was not to be touched. Lee has issued very stern (for him) orders regarding his men's behavior, and it is incomprehensible to me that a major general, one of Lee's personal acquaintances and most trusted fighters, would have taken such a daring risk. True, Early had burned Congressman Thaddeus Stevens' Caledonia Iron Works, but Early had rationalized that this was fair game in retaliation for Stevens' open encouragment of the destruction of property in the South.

Here is the text of Lee's General Orders #72, which governed the behavior of his troops while in Pennsylvania. Read them, and you decide if Jubal Early would have been in trouble had he burned down York...

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I used to work for a couple of decades for office products and self-adhesive labelstock giant Avery Dennison when I lived in the greater Cleveland area. One of their largest factories was in Fort Wayne, Indiana, a town I frequented on many business trips to run trials there or to meet with paper suppliers. Fort Wayne is also the home of the Lincoln Life Insurance Company, which for many years has managed an excellent museum on the life of the 16th President, Abraham Lincoln.

Recently, the insurance company announced plans to close the Lincoln Museum on June 30 and they are trying to give away the collection. It's a great little museum and an outstanding collection of documents and artifacts, and, to me, it's the passing of an era for Fort Wayne. The curators are trying to find a suitable institution or group that will exhibit the collection in a larger and better venue, hopefully in time for the Lincoln celebrations that are coming up in a couple of years.

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York during the American Civil War era was an attractive, prosperous town, one that almost universally brought compliments from the soldiers that passed through it. For at least one soldier, the charms of the town offered another opportunity that was too good to pass up - the chance to slip away from the Union army and desert.

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An 1861 woodcut of the Confederate Stars and Bars fluttering over the Marshall House hotel in Alexandria, Virginia. Two years later, a later version of the Confederate banner floated in the breeze over York, Pennsylvania, the largest town in the North to be occupied by the Rebels during the Civil War.

This Wednesday night, June 25, the York County Heritage Trust and the York Civil War Roundtable will co-host a Civil War panel discussion on the occupation of York during the Gettysburg Campaign. As part of the city-sponsored Patriot Days, this event has been evolving for several months, but has now been finalized. A panel of four speakers will join moderator Jim McClure of the York Daily Record to present a series of brief talks on various aspects of the town, its people and buildings, its defenders, and its uninvited guests from Dixie.

The panel discussion is free of charge, and will be at YCHT's auditorium at 250 E. Market Street in downtown York at 7:00 p.m.. Parking is also free. This presentation deals with a very interesting and controversial subject, one that elicits numerous opinions.

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Among the many damage claims filed after the Civil War by York Countians are depositions regarding thievery of the Confederate soldiers. York resident William Ross reported that, on July 1, 1863, a squad of Rebel cavalry rode up to his farm, escorting a train of empty supply wagons. When the "Johnnies" departed, the wagons were now filled with 75 bushels of corn and other items taken from Ross's farm.

Dover resident Mary Roth had been visited a day earlier by William A. French's 17th Virginia Cavalry, which served under Major General Jubal A. Early. Confederate troopers confiscated 40 pairs of horseshoes and 50 pounds of horseshoe nails, as well as stealing 9 bushels of coal.

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For you Cannonball readers that may not be aware, there are some excellent on-line resources available from The Guilder Lehrman Institute of American History. The organization is sponsoring a temporary exhibit at the new Gettysburg Visitors Center at Gettysburg National Military Park, displaying several dozen "Letters from the War" in their gallery. Many are poignant and illuminating, shedding some light on the lifestyles of the average Civil War soldier.

Complete text of those letters can be found on-line at their website, which also features complete transcripts of many other epistles. Website visitors may listen to several audio versions of selected stories and other documents from the Battle of Gettysburg and other ACW events and campaigns. Also, they make available webcasts and podcasts from a number of leading contemporary ACW historians, professors, and lecturers.

The site is interesting and well worth bookmarking for future repeated visits.

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Robert E. Lee remains one of the most revered figures in U.S. history, particularly in the South where his birthday remains a holiday in certain places. While Lee never set foot in York, some of his subordinate officers later claimed he planned to fight the decisive battle of the summer campaign here, concentrating his army in and around York. Indeed, he was on his way to York when plans changed late on June 28, 1863, and he instead assembled his forces to the west to meet an unexpected Union threat.

Complete and up-to-date schedule for the meetings of the York Civil War Round Table

Old Granny. The King of Spades. Bobby Lee. Marse Robert. The succession of Robert E. Lee's nicknames traces his progression in the Civil War from a relatively old former U.S. Cavalry officer to the man in charge of digging earthworks to protect such out-of-the-way places as Honey Hill, South Carolina, then to the beloved leader of the Army of Northern Virginia, and finally to one of the most legendary figures in American military history. Shrouded in myth and legend, viewed by many through rose-colored glasses, and idolized by scores of followers who waged a campaign during Reconstruction to cement his place in history, Robert E. Lee has come down to today's generation as a symbol of the Confederacy and the "Lost Cause."

Come to the York County Heritage Trust this Wednesday evening, April 16, at 7:00 p.m. to hear a long-time scholar of the Lee family, Ken Miller, present a talk on "The Personal Side of Robert E. Lee." Admission is free, as is parking. YCHT is at 250 E. Market Street in York, just a few blocks east of Centre Square. This is one of a continuing series of talks presented by the York CWRT in cooperation with YCHT.

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During the weeks following the Battle of Gettysburg, thousands of wounded soldiers passed through tiny Hanover Junction in southern York County, passing through the railroad intersection eastward on the Hanover Branch RR en route to Baltimore, Harrisburg, Philadelphia, Washington and other towns where they could receive medical care. A temporary medical facility at the junction provided assistance for soldiers in need of treatment before they could be reloaded onto cars of the Northern Central Railway. In addition, a few cars contained coffins of soldiers killed in the battle, men whose families had arranged for transport home for burial.

Hundreds of civilians also passed through Hanover Junction. Most were sightseers on an excursion to visit the now famous battlefield. Others were relief agents, medical personnel, nurses and aides, and newspaper correspondents seeking a story. Cars were overcrowded and unsanitary, with people often crowding into freight cars. Here's one story of how some clever sorts made a little extra room on one train from Hanover Junction as it passed through York County.

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J. W. Greathead was a merchant in the Fulton County town of McConnellsburg. With his father, the 29-year-old co-owned a thriving general merchandise store, which had been cleaned out during a Confederate raid in the fall of 1862. Undaunted, the two men had restocked their inventory and resumed operations. During the 1863 Gettysburg Campaign, Confederate troops occupied McConnellsburg on several occasions. On June 29, Rebel cavalry chased off a company of the First New York Lincoln Cavalry and entered town. Fearful that the shop would be raided again, John Greathead asked an officer to post guards at the door to prevent looting. The Rebel assigned three men to the post, ordering them to "see that this man and his property are not molested."

After a while, a thankful Greathead sat down on the doorstep with one of the guards and began talking. The borough of York was among the topics of the friendly conversation.

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“Gettysburg’s Untold Struggle for Freedom”

The incredible drama of the Underground Railroad in the Gettysburg area will be the topic of the March 3 meeting of Historic Gettysburg Adams County. Dr. Charles Teague, president of the society, will be the presenter for this 7:30 p.m. program. The location is the GAR Hall at 53 East Middle Street, Gettysburg. There is no charge to attend, and reservations are not required. Simply show up at the GAR Hall.

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Background post - Yorktown Square: York has produced its fair share of high-ranking naval officers.

Many leading Civil War generals who were quite famous in the 19th Century have slipped into obscurity, and today are only remembered by hard-core Civil War buffs. Ignored by the popular media, their contributions are largely forgotten. One such man was Maj. Gen. William B. Franklin, a York native who rose by the autumn of 1862 to be one of the most powerful men in the Army of the Potomac, and yet, by the time of the Gettysburg Campaign, was an backdrop to the unfolding action.

General Franklin is the subject of an excellent book published in 2002 by another York native, Dr. Mark Snell, the chair of Shepherd University's Civil War Studies program. This outstanding biography, From First to Last: The Life of William B. Franklin, brings Franklin's contributions (and failures) back to life for the modern reader.

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One of the previously misidentified photographs

Background post: New photo of Lincoln at Gettysburg Address

Museums and archives around the country contains millions of documents, photographs, recordings, files, and other historic material. Some of these are in modern, environmentally-controlled atmospheres such as the $7.5 million dollar storage area Pennsylvania is constructing at the State Library. Others are kept in poorly controlled office, library or warehouse space, where humidity and temperature swings are deteriorating the collections.

At times, these historic collections are so large that no one is really sure what they contain, especially if they are misidentified with the wrong captions. Such was the recent case of some Lincoln-related photos at the Library of Congress. A sharp-eyed researcher found "new" photos of Lincoln's Second Inauguration (March 4, 1865).

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Lt. Gen. Richard Stoddard Ewell, CSA

Several Confederate soldiers in the Gettysburg Campaign had family or personal ties to this region. It was not uncommon in the mid-19th century for people to move around quite a bit, despite the lengthy transportation requirements of the day. As a result, they often knew folks in other towns, and letter writing became an art form. York was typical – several citizens had extensively traveled through Maryland and Virginia; many had attended school with people from the South; and some had antebellum military connections with the Rebels.

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In a recent post, I mentioned the cryptic comments from Confederate records in the Louisiana State Archives that a soldier from that state was "supposed to have been killed by the citizens of Penn." In scanning through old CSA letters, diaries, journals, etc. from men in the Gettysburg Campaign, I have found dozens of accounts of Keystoners hiding in out-of-the-way places to take potshots at passing columns of troops, and one account of two Rebel stragglers being apprehended by McConnellsville residents and murdered.

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The Louisiana Tigers left the Willoughby Run / Oak Hill area northwest of Gettysburg on June 27, 1863, and marched through East Berlin into western York County, finally camping late that afternoon near Big Mount. The roads were "exceedingly muddy," and scores of men straggled in the slop and mire. A few never rejoined the ranks, taking the opportunity to slip away and desert. An old book has a cryptic entry for Private Charles Brown of the 8th Louisiana, who was "supposed to have been killed by the citizens of Penn[sylvania]."

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Licensed Battlefield Guide and well regarded writer and researcher Timothy H. Smith will present what should be a fascinating talk on "The Gettysburg Civilians" this upcoming Tuesday evening, January 8, at 7:30 p.m. in the Valentine Auditorium of the Gettysburg Lutheran Seminary. Take Route 30 through downtown Gettysburg and turn left as you crest Seminary Ridge (opposite the Lee's Headquarters museum / Appalachian Brewing Company). Parking and admission are free.

Why not make an evening of it and have a relaxing dinner in Gettysburg, drive around the battlefield to see the most recent tree cuttings, and then learn more about the residents and farmers during the summer campaign of 1863?

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In mid-1862, George W. Welsh was a 21-year-year-old butcher living in the rural village of York Sulphur Springs (later shortened to York Springs) in Adams County. He decided to join the army and, on October 8, enlisted in the 127th Pennsylvania Infantry, a nine-months’ regiment. He was mustered in five days later as a private in Company I. The colonel of the regiment was William W. Jennings, later the sheriff of Dauphin County and a wealthy industrialist.

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Coward. Yellow. Uncourageous. Turn-tail. Deserter.

Harsh words indeed; certainly words that the majority of us would never want associated with our character. Going AWOL or deserting from the military for generations has been frowned upon by the authorities, not to mention the effects on families and friends. There are legal ramifications, as well as moral and ethical questions.

In the Civil War, deserters were often rounded up and publicly hung or shot, at times by their friends and colleagues who were ordered to serve in firing squads. Imprisonment was also common. In Adams County following the war, the shame of public humilation was added to the ruined reputation of its deserters.

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In a recent entry in this blog, I discussed Charles Lutz, one of the few black soldiers enlisted in the ranks of the Louisiana Tigers. The ranks of that brigade were filled with European immigrants (Scandinavia, France, Germany, and particularly Ireland), Caribbeans, Creoles, and natives of other U.S. states. Few were born in Louisiana.

By sharp contrast, the ranks of John Gordon's brigade were nearly all native-born Georgians. Several were not Caucasians, however, including Sam Jackson.

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I spent the day today browsing through the collection of the U.S. Army Military History Institute library just outside of Carlisle, researching old records and files for my manuscript I am working on regarding the Louisiana Tigers during the Gettysburg Campaign. I found a cryptic comment in an old, obscure letter in the Robert L. Brake Collection of Confederate Civil War letters. Perhaps some of you Yorkers could help me identify the individuals mentioned in this letter????

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Typical York County farmland, Library of Congress

The Pennsylvania Germans of the mid-19th Century, as a general rule, were a hard-working, thrifty people that often did not readily embrace outsiders or admit them into their social circles. They were content to be at peace with their neighbors and families, and derive a good life from the fruits of the soil and their labor. A fair number of them were rather ambivalent to the Union war effort, preferring to be left alone to mind their crops and livestock. And, they really wanted nothing to do with the invading armies. When the Confederates rolled through York County, several soldiers commented on this perceived lack of hospitality of their "hosts."

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Ask the average person on the street about their typical image of a Civil War Confederate soldier and quite often the reply will be some stereotype of a backwoods, illiterate, gun-happy "hillbilly," or some slave-owning plantation gentleman fighting for "states rahts." However, such was more often than not atypical. The Confederate Army of Northern Virginia, a part of which was here in York County, was a diverse mixture of people from all factions of life. Rich and poor, educated and ignorant, skillful in the outdoor sports and store clerks who had never fired a gun before, secessionist and politically ambivalent, and slaveowners and abolitionists all combined into one of the greatest fighting forces in American history to that time.

What is not often recognized are those free black men who willingly enlisted in the Confederate service, one of whom visited York County in the waning days of June 1863.

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A typical World War II PX in Europe

Veterans of the armed forces will recognize the significance of the two-letter acronym, PX. Short for Post Exchange, the PX was the name given to the base or camp's mercantile store. There, a soldier could spend part of his paycheck on personal sundries, stationary and stamps to write home, refreshments and beverages, and gift items. During the Civil War, with the armies normally out in the field on campaign, the sutlers and merchandisers had to take their goods to where the buyers were. They hitched up teams of mules or draft horses, piled their goods and trinkets into wagons, carts, or buggies, and followed the armies into the field. Sometimes, their proximity to the front lines created problems for both the soldiers and sutlers.

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Civil War-era locomotive from the PRR

York County has long been known as a town that cares for its military service personnel. Over the past few years, the local news on WGAL TV-8 has frequently shown clips of National Guardsmen and other soldiers returning from overseas assignments, often to joyous receptions and parties with all kinds of good food. Jim McClure's excellent book on local World War II history describes some of the homecomings after that conflict, and I have read similar accounts for other wars.

During the Civil War, as regiments left Camp Scott on the old fairgounds on York's east side, they were often treated to showers of flowers as they marched through the principal streets to the train station to go off to the front. At times, Southern Pennsylvania's hospitality even extended to soldiers merely passing through York.

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Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain
Library of Congress

Over the course of June 27 - June 30, 1863, perhaps more than any three-day period in York County's history, dozens of men who would later gain fame in the political arena would visit this area, all in the uniforms of American armies. I covered a few future governors in my previous blog post, and will look at a couple more in this installment, as well as some other late 19th Century notable lawmakers.

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Governor Fitzhugh Lee of Virginia, a veteran of the Battle of Hanover
Photo courtesy of the Library of Congress

Tens of thousands of soldiers, both those wearing blue and those wearing gray and butternut, tramped or rode through York County during the Gettysburg Campaign. Some were prominent in civilian life, although the majority were "common folks" who would disappear from the stage of history once their military service was over. Jubal Early's Confederate division, J.E.B Stuart's and Judson Kilpatrick's opposing cavalry, scores of Union infantry regiments in southwestern York County en route to Gettysburg, state militia, crews and officers from the U.S. Military Railroad, medical personnel - all spent at least some time in this area.

For some of these soldiers, the march through York County would lead them to death or injury at Gettysburg or on future battlefields. For others, it would be another step in life's journey that would lead them to post-war obscurity or fame and public awareness. A few of the men who traversed York County would go on to political fame, including holding their respective states' highest office.

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A Yankee and a Rebel meet

The Civil War has, at times, been termed the War Between the States. In some cases, perhaps it should be called the War Between the Brothers, as perhaps thousands of brothers fought on opposite sides of the conflict. York County was not immune to this tragedy. There are several known examples of local brothers split by the wearing of blue or gray, including the tragic story of the Hoffman boys.

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J. K. Duncan, CSA

The American Civil War was truly a war of brother against brother, family against family, and neighbor against neighbor. Such was also the case here in York County, where a number of local men served in the Southern forces, particularly in Maryland units. One brevet major general in the Confederate army hailed from this area. Johnson Kelly Duncan was born and raised in rural Chanceford Township, which borders the Susquehanna River in the southeastern part of the county.

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Horatio Gates Myers lived a relatively quiet life prior to the Civil War. He owned and operated a retail store in downtown Hanover, and was a known area merchant. He was married and had two children, a son Herndon and daughter Elizabeth. Like so many other young men in York County, with the outbreak of the Civil War, the 30-year-old Myers enlisted in the Union Army.

On April 25, 1861, he became the captain of the Marion Rifles (Company F) in the 16th Pennsylvania Infantry, a three-month regiment. He suffered from exposure at the regiment’s campsite at Verdant Meadow near Hagerstown, Maryland, and was left behind when the regiment returned to York in July to be mustered out of the service. Myers eventually died on August 7 from lingering effects of his illness. His widow Mollie eventually married a man named William Russell from Lewistown, Pennsylvania, and moved away from York County.

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The Medal of Honor was created during the Civil War to recognize unusual gallantry in combat. The first recipients were Ohio soldiers from the Andrews Raid (also known as the Great Locomotive Chase). A few soldiers from York County would receive the medal for their heroism during the Rebellion.

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In this second installment of a series of articles on Civil War personalities from York County, I want to shift the attention from officers such as Granville Haller to the enlisted men. Hundreds of boys and men from York County fought in the Civil War, the vast majority serving as common infantrymen. They were pre-war farmers, store clerks, mechanics, and students whose lives were "touched with fire" through their military service. Most came home to tell about their exploits around Grand Old Army (G.A.R.) halls and at other social gatherings. However, some gave their last full measure of devotion to their country. Others were wounded, maimed or invalided by the war.

Here is the story of one Paradise Township teenager, who was present at some of the war's fiercest combat. He escaped significant injury from Rebel bullets on Virginia battlefields, only to indirectly become a casualty of the Confederate invasion of York County.

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G. O. Haller, courtesy of USAMHI.

Several York Countians played important roles in the Civil War, the majority supporting the Union side, but with a few serving as officers in the Confederate army. Most of these men and women have receded into obscurity in today’s consciousness, but in the mid-1860s were well known and prominent. In the months to come in the Cannonball blog, I will introduce you to a few of these 19th Century personalities and provide resources for further study should you desire to dive a little deeper into these folks’ lives.

One of these long ago celebrities was Granville Owen Haller, a York native who became a postbellum millionaire in Seattle, Washington. A fashionable and intelligent man who loved the challenge of chess, Haller had a checkered military career that reached its apex during the first two years of the Civil War. The Gettysburg Campaign would be his final active service.

So, who was Granville Haller, and why was he important to York County during the Civil War?

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