Day 12 - Gettysburg

Today we explored more of the battlefield park and kicked off the morning looking for the other monuments dedicated to Michigan units who fought at Gettysburg. (The day before we had located those memorials to the 3rd, 4th and 5th Michigan Infantry regiments.)

Located in the East Cavalry Field on the eastern side of Route 15 and out of the normal flow of tourists to the park, you can find the memorial dedicated to the Michigan Cavalry Brigade under Brigadier General George A. Custer.

relief depicting the Michigan Cavalry Brigade engaging confederate general J.E.B. Stuart's forces on 3 July 1862

Returning to the main portion of the park we found two monuments down the front slope of Little Round Top, overlooking the "Valley of Death" and Devil's Den: the one dedicated to the Michigan Sharpshooters is not accessible except by scrambling over rocks and through the underbrush; anyway the park asks one to remain on the paths since they are presently restoring the landscape here.

The memorial to the 16th Michigan Infantry is accessible by a path that winds downhill. (Rather than returning uphill continue on the path that goes back around Little Round Top where you can see the memorial dedicated to Col. Strong Vincent.)

Close to the 5th Michigan Infantry monument is the memorial to the 1st Michigan Infantry.

The monument dedicated to the 9th Michigan battery is along Hancock Avenue almost directly opposite the Pennsylvania memorial.

The memorial dedicated to the 7th Michigan Infantry is just west of Hancock Avenue and south of the "Copse of Trees."

Copse of Trees to the far right

 You can find the memorial to the 24th Michigan Infantry just west of Gettysburg on Meredith Avenue.

Our mission complete -- all Michigan monuments located and photographed -- we turned our attention to the confederate lines.

Note that there are some 1,200 monuments and memorials throughout the park; we focused on only a handful that struck us as particularly poignant and evocative of the moment.

Located on West Confederate Avenue is the monument dedicated to the men who served for the state of North Carolina:

detail

 Just across West Confederate Avenue from the North Carolina memorial is the monument dedicated to the 11th Mississippi:

Also located on West Confederate Avenue is the monument dedicated to the men who served for the state of Virginia:

detail - there is also a larger-than-life size statue of Robert E. Lee on his horse Traveler on top

 A personal favorite of ours is the statue dedicated to Confederate General James Longstreet who warned Lee about the foolishness of attacking at Gettysburg:

Steve Hawks has put together an incredibly comprehensive website that provides details of the memorials including inscriptions, locations and much more.

Maryland

Berdan's Sharpshooters - New Hampshire

After the Peach Orchard, our most favorite place in the park is the "copse of trees" that highlights what has been described as the literal and figurative "high water mark" of the Confederacy. The assault by Longstreet's forces, euphemistically referred to as Pickett's Charge, failed at this very point. The confederates could go no further.

106 Pennsylvania just to the rear of the copse of trees

Within the cemetery is also another popular monument, this one dedicated to John Burns, a 70-something local citizen who grabbed his musket and joined the federal forces.

detail of the William Wells memorial

Memorial to Major William Wells who led the 1st Vermont Cavalry in a daring charge against confederate forces, for which action he was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor.

Father William Corby, chaplain of the 88th New York

We broke for lunch and head off to Panera, which as it turned out was right across from our hotel. After lunch we went back to our room and spent an hour or so on some needed downtime. Then it was back to the park for one last visit. We stopped first at the visitor center one last time and Susan hung out with an old Illinois friend.

they don't make 'em like this anymore

15th and 50th New York Engineers

relief depicting a typical pontoon bridge constructed by the engineers during the war

42nd New York

one last visit to the copse of trees

Longstreet's forces charged across this field straight to this position

72nd Pennsylvania in the Angle

Longstreet's assault

copse of trees from the Angle - confederates attacked from the right

the Angle

 71st Pennsylvania in the Angle

1st Pennsylvania Cavalry just behind the Angle

After leaving the park for the very last time we decided to let our inner flâneur and flâneuse take over. 

While looking over one of the tourist area maps Susie had found the Hauser winery located a few miles outside of Gettysburg that claimed to have not only locally produced wine and hard cider but gorgeous mountain views from their terrace. We decided to check it out and were not disappointed. We each had a flight of four of their wines for tasting (preferring the white and rosé over the two reds and then opted for a glass while we sat outside on the terrace taking in the view of the valley below.

It was getting on to supper time so we left the winery and headed back into Gettysburg. We recalled seeing a small restaurant along Chambersburg Street near the square, Food 101. We parked along the street -- using our credit card to pay the meter -- and then walked to the restaurant. There was a short wait and they suggested if we wanted a bottle of wine with dinner to walk across the street to the Knob Hill Winery (from Clear Spring, Maryland) and pick one up.

So we did.

The food was wonderful, the service delightful, altogether a much more pleasing supper than the one at the Dobbin House the night before.

Knob Hill Winery

Food 101

Tomorrow, it's off to Corning, New York and rendezvous with Dick and Dorothy!