The New Gettysburg Campaign Handbook: Facts, Photos, and Artwork for Readers of All Ages, June 9 - July 14, 1863

253 Pages·2011·11.07 MB·English

by  Petruzzi

© Text 2011 by J. David Petruzzi
© Maps 2011 by Steven A. Stanley All rights reserved. No part of this
publication may be reproduced, stored in a
retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic,
mechanical,
photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of
the
publisher.
Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available from the Library of Congress.
ISBN 978-1-61121-078-1
Digital Edition ISBN: 9781611210798
05 04 03 02 01 5 4 3 2 1
First edition, first printing
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Table of Contents
FOREWORD
DID YOU KNOW?
Where Were They?
Weather Conditions During the Battle of Gettysburg
Medal of Honor Awardees
Gettysburg Trivia
Controversies, Myths, and Misconceptions about the Gettysburg Campaign and
Battle
GETTYSBURG VOICES
Federal and Confederate Quotes from the Gettysburg Campaign and Battle
THE GETTYSBURG CAMPAIGN
The Road to Gettysburg, June 9 - June 30
The Battle of Gettysburg, July 1
The Battle of Gettysburg, July 2
The Battle of Gettysburg, July 3
The Retreat from Gettysburg, July 4 - July 14
Order of Battle, July 1 - July 3
The Gettysburg Address
IMAGES OF GETTYSBURG
Union Officers and Soldiers
Confederate Officers and Soldiers
Battlefield Photographers
Gettysburg Civilians
GETTYSBURG TODAY
Visiting Gettysburg
Must See Places
Gettysburg on the Web
Gettysburg Books

Cover image: The Battle of Gettysburg by Paul Philippoteaux (c1883) courtesy
of the National Park Service.
Page background: The paper image used for the page background in this book
was created from high resolution scans of Jedediah Hotchkiss’s Virginia map
book courtesy of the Library of Congress.
Photo credits: Unless otherwise noted, all photos are courtesy of Steven Stanley.
Foreword
GETTYSBURG
Almost everyone in the Western world who hears that single word thinks about
the American Civil War and the titanic battle that raged for three days. Many
may not know where or even exactly when the battle was fought or even who
won, but most appreciate the fact that the fighting was important to the outcome
of the war.
The battle, fought on July 1–3, 1863, was part of a wide-ranging six-week
campaign that included a score of engagements large and small. The defeat of
Gen. Robert E. Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia was a significant blow to the
fortunes of the Confederacy. Unfortunately for the South, the bloody defeat was
accompanied on July 4 by the fall of the Confederate fortress and its defending
army at Vicksburg, Mississippi, and the surrender of yet another army and
stronghold a short time later at Port Hudson, Louisiana. These stunning Western
Theater victories opened the final stretch of the Mississippi River to Federal
forces and effectively sliced the Confederacy in two. Vicksburg and Port Hudson
were preceded by the nearly bloodless Union capture of Middle Tennessee that
June when a Federal army maneuvered its Confederate counterpart all the way
south to the Georgia border. Because of these nearly simultaneous losses,
Gettysburg has led many historians to conclude that the summer of 1863 was a
major turning point in the entire war.
Gettysburg has been the focus of intense study and interest since the guns fell
silent in 1863. The interest is certainly justified because the campaign has so
many fascinating facets to study, ponder, and argue: the most successful
Confederate army commander (Robert E. Lee), engaged in his grandest
movement of the war, challenged by the thus-far luckless Army of the Potomac;
three bloody days of battle involving all three branches (infantry, artillery, and
cavalry); innumerable key moments on all three days upon which teetered
victory or defeat; major controversies (including Dan Sickles’ movement of his
Federal III Corps to the famous Peach Orchard, Jeb Stuart’s audacious cavalry
ride around the Union army, and Richard Ewell’s July 1 failure to capture
Cemetery Hill and/or Culp’s Hill); thousands of firsthand accounts of nearly
every aspect of the fighting; the largest artillery duel ever waged in the Western
world; a heart-pounding retreat and pursuit following the battle—and so much
more.
When Ted Savas, our publishing company’s managing director, approached us
with the idea for this handbook and explained what he envisioned, our first
reaction was to wonder why no one else had thought of producing such a work.
To the best of our knowledge a book like this—with its varied stories, facts,
statistics, photos, illustrations, original maps, and so much more—did not exist.
Herein, a reader can find out what the weather was like in Gettysburg during the
battle, read about the Gettysburg Medal of Honor recipients, discover capsule
biographies of the primary leaders, explore an itinerary of the campaign, ponder
many of the campaign’s controversies, digest a recommended reading list—and
even ascertain the various Gettysburg sites available online—all between one set
of covers. This book also features the most complete, accurate, and up-to-date
Order of Battle for all units of both sides at the Battle of Gettysburg.
Because of the format and purpose of this volume, we acted primarily as
compilers and secondarily as authors. We are first and foremost in debt to the
legion of participants, scholars, students, and amateur sleuths who recorded the
material that has allowed us to bring it to light in one useful resource. Many of
the works we relied upon are listed in the chapter entitled “The Gettysburg
Bookshelf.” (We recommend this list as a good starting point for readers new to
the study of this campaign.)
We hope The New Gettysburg Campaign Handbook will be a ready and
welcome companion whether you are walking the hallowed fields or reading
other Gettysburg books while reclining in your favorite easy chair. We hope
teachers, parents, students, and scholars will refer to its narratives, photographs,
maps, lists, orders of battle, and charts and tables time and time again. It is our
sincere wish that this original presentation of the war’s greatest campaign adds
something of significant value to the voluminous reference shelf of the campaign
—especially as we enter the war’s sesquicentennial (the commemoration of the
150th anniversary of the Civil War). Finally, we hope this new book will
encourage people, young and old alike, to read about this always fascinating
portion of our painful history as a country, and plant the seed of interest deeply
within them for the rest of their lives.
Acknowledgements

The first book we did together was The Complete Gettysburg Guide (Savas
Beatie, 2009), an enjoyable project that convinced us how much fun it was to
have carte blanche to craft a full color book with dozens of detailed maps,
illustrations, and tours. Therefore, when our publisher approached us with this
title, we jumped at the opportunity to do it again in a different way. We both owe
a debt that can never be repaid to the many Gettysburg Licensed Guides, park
rangers, scholars, and friends who have taught us so much over the years about
Gettysburg and the campaign. Their personal tours and talks, coupled with their
own published and unpublished works, are found in some form or another on
nearly every page.
Phil Laino is the cartographer for The Gettysburg Magazine and
author/cartographer of the indispensable Gettysburg Campaign Atlas (Gatehouse
Press, 2009). Phil and his order of battle compiler, Dr. Steve Floyd, graciously
and generously held a roundhouse email discussion with us for several days as
we worked out the Gettysburg Order of Battle you find in this title. Likewise, my
good friend Eric J. Wittenberg, with whom I have written two previous books
—Plenty of Blame to Go Around: Jeb Stuart’s Controversial Ride to Gettysburg
(Savas Beatie, 2006), and, with Michael Nugent, One Continuous Fight: The
Retreat from Gettysburg and the Pursuit of Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia,
July 4–14, 1863 (Savas Beatie, 2008), was of great assistance in developing the
orders of battle for several of the other combats of the campaign.
Theodore P. Savas of Savas Beatie has become a creative partner over the
years. He is a true friend who offers guidance, motivation, and sage advice while
giving us the latitude we desire to frame each project. We hope we have lived up
to that trust. The amazing work by the rest of the Savas Beatie marketing team—
marketing director Sarah Keeney, Veronica Kane, Kim Rouse, and Helene
Dodier—keeps us motivated and inspired.
Finally, we want to thank our significant others.