Wrightsville: March 2009 Archives

Jim Durney of Tampa Bay wrote on various Civil War and book review sites:

"Histories of the Gettysburg Campaign dismiss The Pennsylvanian response with no more than a page. The hapless state militia breaks at the first rumor of an attack, dropping all government issued equipment in their haste to run away. The Army of Northern Virginia's veterans make jokes about the militia's lack of performance while reequipping themselves at U.S. Government expense. Somehow, the local militia manages to burn the critical bridge over the Susquehanna River stopping the Army of Northern Virginia from capturing the state capitol. This piece of almost mindless good luck saves the Lincoln administration from a major embarrassment and contributes to the South's defeat. During the Battle of Gettysburg, only one man, John Burns, stepped forward to fight for his home.

The question is how do you turn 120 odd words into book of over 600 pages? More important, can you make that book a marketable product that people will want to buy? First, any book that is part of The Discovering Civil War America Series, merits consideration. This outstanding series of histories on the Civil War are informative, fun to read and inexpensive. This is a Gettysburg book and any Civil War person will automatically look at a book on Gettysburg. The opening paragraph is only half in jest. I have read a few books on Gettysburg but never read much more than a page on this operation. You might stop in York to look at the tablets saying Early took the town in 1863. Maybe you stop in some of the small towns on the way to the park from York. However very few of us know much about this area and we really want to get on the battlefield.

Scott Mingus Sr. makes an important addition to the story of Gettysburg by filling a void that we were unaware of by replacing our comfortable assumptions with a detailed study of the action from June 26 to 30, 1863. This is a rich layered story with unexpected complications. The first 90 pages set the stage as the author starts the invasion of 1863. While some of this is familiar territory, the focus moves us toward Pennsylvania and the state's building response. The balance of the book moves us from Gettysburg on June 26 to the Susquehanna River and back to Gettysburg on July 1.

With the publicity created by my recently released Flames Beyond Gettysburg: The Gordon Expedition, June 1863, I have received so many great e-mails from around the country. Among them is one from Georgia history buff Jerry Ivey, who sent me these photographs of his ancestors. These men were part of Brigadier General John B. Gordon's brigade that marched from Farmers to York, paraded through Center Square, and then on to Wrightsville for the skirmish against the Pennsylvania militia and the York Invalids.

James T. Branch had five sons [Jesse, David, Elias, James C., Jr. and William] in the army in the 61st Georgia, as well as his brother-in-law WIlliam Young. They would not all come home.

RiverTownes PA USA is a non-profit organization formed several years ago by several citizens of three southern Pennsylvania cities along the Susquehanna River, including Wrightsville here in York County and Columbia and Marietta across the wide river in Lancaster County. The organization works to promote the cities for tourism, newcomers, visitors, and current residents. Its mission is "promoting, preserving and enhancing the culture, heritage and related commerce and recreational activities in the Pennsylvania Susquehanna river towns of Columbia, Marietta and Wrightsville and surrounding areas."

The group's board of directors is equally represented by delegates from each of the three river towns, and they meet regularly to conduct their business. Claire Storm is the current president, and among her passions is the Civil War history of the region. The wayside interpretive marker shown above is located outside of the Susquehanna Valley Visitors Center just off U.S. Route 30, and Claire and the RiverTownes organization maintain close ties with the VC. Several other historical interpretive panels are planned or installed.

U.S. Congressman Joe Pitts (R - PA) and Pennsylvania author and wargamer Scott L. Mingus Sr. met on March 9 to discuss the Civil War in Lancaster and York counties. Here, the writer (right) presents Congressman Pitts with a personalized copy of Flames Beyond Gettysburg: The Gordon Expedition, June 1863. Pitts is a long-time supporter of Lancaster-area historical venues and in particular has been interested in the burning of the Columbia-Wrightsville Bridge during the American Civil War.

Two of Mingus's children graduated from Lancaster County colleges (Millersville University and Elizabethtown College), and Professor Scott L. Mingus, Jr. teaches World History at Harrisburg Community College's Lancaster regional campus.

Manchester Township author and historian Scott L. Mingus, Sr. will be the featured guest speaker at the March 18, 2009, meeting of the York Civil War Round Table. The meeting is FREE and open to the public, so everyone is welcome! It is at 7:00 PM at the York County Heritage Trust's auditorium at 250 E. Market Street in York (the historic Lincoln Highway).

One of the most strategically important parts of the 1863 Gettysburg Campaign today is virtually unknown to the modern battlefield tramper. In late June, Confederate Brig. Gen. John B. Gordon led a vital expedition through south-central Pennsylvania with a goal of seizing the mile-long Columbia-Wrightsville Bridge over the Susquehanna River. Along the way, Gordon had to deal with hastily recruited and barely trained state emergency militia whose mission was to delay the Rebels for as long as possible and then deny them the use of the river crossing.