The most important Roundtable, in the most important small town, at the most important battlefield, in the most important country in the world. Joe Mieczkowski, past president The MAY/JUNE 2016 ANGLE A bimonthly publication of the Civil War Roundtable of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania Visit us online at www.cwrtgettysburg.org ImpendingActions Information and details about upcoming Gettysburg Roundtable presentations. MAY 26 TH On A Great Battlefield : The History of Gettysburg National Military Park 1863-2015 We will explore 150 year history of the Gettysburg battlefield. Historians have devoted minimal attention to the history of the landscape itself and the complicated, divisive, and controversial nature of preserving, interpreting, and commemorating America s most hallowed ground. Ultimately the Gettysburg landscape is significant beyond the events of July 1-3, 1863. Dr. Murray s program explores the first preservation and commemorative efforts of the Gettysburg Battlefield Memorial Association and the U.S War Department, with a particular focus on the National Park Service administration. The National Park Service acquired the battlefield in 1933 and the ensuing eight-decades highlights the complicated nexus between preservation, tourism, popular culture, interpretation, commemoration, and memory. The Park Service s management of the battlefield occurs not in a vacuum, but within a larger realm of political, social, and academic trends. Decisions made by park officials simultaneously influence the interpretive story at Gettysburg, the narrative presented to thousands of park visitors, and shape more broadly the Gettysburg experience. The history of the Gettysburg battlefield from 1933 to the present underscores the complicated relationship between race and reunion, public and private interests, between preservation theories and utilitarian uses, between the National Park Service and the American people, and between fact and fiction. Jennifer M. Murray is an Assistant Professor of History at the University of Virginia s College at Wise. She is the author of On A Great Battlefield: The Making, Management, and Memory of Gettysburg National Military Park, 1933-2013. This book won the 2014 Bachelder-Coddington Award and was named one of the best Civil War books of 2014 by the Civil War Monitor. She is currently working on a biography of George Gordon Meade, titled Meade at War. In addition, Murray worked as a seasonal interpretive park ranger at Gettysburg National Military Park for nine Jennifer M. Murray summers....while politicians contend, and men are swerved this way and that by conflicting tides of interest and passion, the great cause of human liberty is in the hands of one...who shall not fail nor be discouraged... harriet beecher stowe OFFICERS AND SUPPORT Lynn Heller... 717.398.2072 President... lynnheller7577@gmail.com Roger Heller... 717.398.2072 Vice President... rdh1948@gmail.com Fred Hawthorne...717.515.2428 Recording Secretary... fwhawthorne@embarqmail.com Linda Seamon...717.359.7339 Membership Secretary... llseamon@aol.com David Diner... 717.420.5730 Treasurer... davidndiner@gmail.com Dave Joswick...717.877.3975 Newsletter... art-masters@comcast.net Linda Joswick...717.253.5477 Webmaster... linda_joswick@yahoo.com BOARD MEMBERS Hilda Koontz, Larry Korczyk, Dale Molina, Larry Plymire, Ron Rock, Don Sangirardi, Linda Seamon, Kendra Debany (past president) JUNE 23 RD Life and death at the George Spangler Farm For five weeks following the battle of Gettysburg the home and farm of the George Spangler family served as the field hospital of the Eleventh Army Corps. Over 1,900 Union and Confederate wounded were cared for on the property, making it one of the largest field hospitals established following the battle. Join Gettysburg National Military Park Supervisory Historian Christopher Gwinn for an in-depth and behind the scenes look at the history of the Spangler Farm, discover the people whose lives are forever connected with the site, and marvel at the pristine nature of one of the best preserved hospitals and farms associated with the battle and campaign of Gettysburg. Meet at the Gravel Parking Lot across from Power s Hill on Granite School House Rd. at 6:00 PM. Christopher Gwinn is a seven year veteran of the National Park Service. Born in Amesbury, Massachusetts he graduated from Gettysburg College in 2006 and received his Master Degree in Public History in 2008. He has worked as an Park Ranger at Antietam National Battlefield, Boston National Historical Park, and the National Mall and Memorial Parks where he created some of the first interpretive programming conducted at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial. He is currently the Supervisory Ranger for Interpretation and Education at Gettysburg National Military Park and lives just south of the battlefield with his wife Allyson and his two dogs. Christoher Gwinn Photo by Lynn Heller
2 Hello Friends! Well Mother Nature has not disappointed the battlefield and town are filled with signs of Spring and beckoning us to go out and enjoy. Inside our GAR Hall, we are ready to host our last indoor meeting until September, with Dr. Jennifer Murray on May 26th. Her presentation will be on the history of Gettysburg by Lynn Heller National Military Park. And then comes summer! We have three outstanding field programs to look forward to, conducted by Christopher Gwinn, Scott Hartwick, and John Hoptak. ( Make sure your membership has been renewed for 2016 so that you can attend! These programs are for members only.) Speaking of our indoor meetings, would you like to be more involved in our programs? Do you have a Civil War related artifact you can Show and Tell? How about sharing your thoughts about from the a CW battlefield or site you have visited. Maybe you could come to a meeting prepared to ask a Trivia Question! It s fun to get involved, and it helps us all to know each other a little better. If anyone has time at the conclusion of the meeting to help clean up the refreshment table dump out the coffee, or put the sugar, creamer etc. into the plastic bin, or wipe off the tablecloth etc., it would really be appreciated. Many of you have already done this, and thank you for that! Again, we encourage you to contact Linda Seamon by phone or email, to switch your mailed newsletters over to full color, emailed newsletters. Thanks for your dedication to our roundtable! Lynn May 1, 2016 Dear Members, With this letter I would like to attempt to give you a clear picture of the financial status of our roundtable. When I assumed the Office of President, I reviewed the by-laws, and realized that we are required to have an annual audit. As I reviewed the Board and Meeting minutes, it was clear we had not had an audit in 10 years, and I could find no evidence of a budget. Because of this, we did not have a good understanding of our financial picture. These things happen. We had a substantial sum of money in the bank, we were paying our bills, and we made frequent preservation donations. The Board took immediate action, creating a Financial Committee, completing an audit, creating a budget, and establishing separate bank accounts for the Operating, Investment, and Preservation Funds. While the audit revealed no irregularities, the budget showed that we are running on a deficit, and predicts a $900.00 deficit for the fiscal year 2016. We may have been running on a deficit for many years without knowing it. We are not in bad shape, but our picture looks healthier than it really is, and over time, if we don t address this, we will not demonstrate a healthy financial status. The bulk of our income seems to have come from a mass sale of Life Memberships years ago, and from the large sale of many plaques, which swelled our Operating Fund. The Board had voted in 2015 to discontinue the Life Membership option, because almost no one was opting for this in recent years. Plaque sales average 2-3 per year. So these income sources are essentially no longer available, and we rely on our dues to support our expenses. We do have a cushion of funds in our Operating Fund, and running on this deficit will not immediately be a major problem, but the budget shows clearly that our dues are not currently covering our expenses. If a large expenditure should become necessary, such as the pending purchase of costly plaques, our deficit will increase. The Board has decided that it is necessary to address this; to establish a sound, stable financial picture, with a balanced budget. To accomplish this, an increase in dues will become necessary in 2017. As you are probably aware, there has not been a dues increase for at least 10 years or more. Therefore, when membership renewals come due for 2017, the dues structure will be: Individual... $30.00 Family... $45.00 Thank you for your understanding, and we continue to value your membership.
A brief history of the beautiful, historic GAR Hall contributed by Lynn Heller Built in 1822 by the Methodist Episcopal congregation, it is Gettysburg s oldest standing church building that continues to serve the community. It s membership grew over the years, and it prided itself in paying more attention to African Americans than any other church in the area, and they were welcomed into the congregation. During the battle, it served as a hospital, as did most other buildings in town. The Citizen hero of Gettysburg, John Burns, was a staunch Methodist, and he and his wife Barbara were members. From Tim Smith s book John Burns, the Hero of Gettysburg according to Oscar D. McMillin, who lived on Seminary Ridge, when Burns attended church, he had his place under the Gallery; he wore a swallow tail coat with gilted buttons. By 1874, as the membership grew, they built a larger church, and put the old church and the graveyard up for sale. It stood empty until 1888, when a group of local Civil War veterans, who belonged to the National Organization of the Grand Army of the Republic, purchased it for $600.00. The official name given is Corporal Johnston H. Skelly Post #9, GAR Hall. Skelly was a Gettysburg resident who had enlisted with the 87th Pa. Infantry, and who was mortally wounded at 2nd Winchester, June, 1863. In 1918 Gettysburg suffered a devastating Spanish Flu epidemic, and the GAR Hall From September to May, we meet on the fourth Thursday of the month at the GAR Building, 53 East Middle Street. Light refreshments and conversation starting at 7:00 PM., and the featured program beginning at 7:30 PM. Our June, July, and August summer meetings are in the field starting at 6:00 PM, with the meeting location announced in the bi-monthly newsletter and on the roundtable website: www.cwrtgettysburg. org. Whenever treacherous weather is predicted, the CWRT President and Vice President shall determine by 3:00 PM on that day whether the program should be cancelled or not. Announcements will be made on WGTY 107.7 FM and ESPN Radio 1320 AM. The next scheduled board meeting begins at 6:30 PM on Thursday, May 12, 2016 at the Hoss s Restaurant. Simpson receives the Grand Army award At the Grand Army Republic Museum and Library s Annual Preservation Luncheon in Philadelphia on March 19th, Dick Simpson received their Grand Army Award named for Samuel P. Town. Dick received this award for his many efforts at education and preservation service to the Civil War Community. Beginning in 2004, Dick has given over 150 lectures on the Civil War throughout the Northeast. With his six lectures he has raised over $10,000 for battlefield preservation through donations and his Civil War book raffles. For many years Dick has been the Advisor and has given financial support to the local Boy Scout Explorer Post 1863. This is a high school Civil War reenacting group made up of young boys and girls in the Lancaster area. Dick is a civilian Civil War reenactor portraying Governor Frederick Holbrook, the Civil War Governor of Vermont. He is an active member of dozens of Civil War organizations in Pennsylvania, Vermont and New Jersey. housed the coffins of Captain Dwight Eisenhower s Camp Colt s men who had perished of the disease. By 1930, there were only six GAR members left, and the building was turned over to Camp 112, Sons of the Union Veterans. Over the years, their numbers also dwindled, and the building and cemetery was purchased by Historic Gettysburg Adams County in 1988. Remaining the current owners, HGAC is dedicated to preserving all things historic in Gettysburg and Adams County. The beautiful murals on the walls were painted in 1991 by the folk artist Virginia Jacobs McGlaughn, of Fairfield, PA. We are lucky indeed, to have such a beautiful and historically memorable building in which to hold our meetings. Hugh Boyle (left), President of the Grand Army of the Republic Museum and Library, presenting the Grand Army award to Dick Simpson. 3 Photo by Lynn Heller
4 TURNING A JACK The skirmish fire now became murderous. Having found that the enemy kept close to the ground so as to afford an uncertain target, owing to his dun clothes, we began, as the boys called it, to be scientific, in our fire. In this way four or five neighbors in the line would load and, seeing a puff of smoke rise from some spot in front, would watch for it. Being ready as soon as the smoke would rise, they would all aim and fire together, Generally, the poor Johnny was hit by this device. This was called Turning a Jack, and continued amongst us. Private Thomas Galwey, Eighth Ohio Infantry The skirmishing was of that steady nature that comes from acquaintance with the ground and with the enemy s manner of fighting. The firing was rapid enough, and yet there was not much random work. It was almost as much as a man s life was worth to rise to his height from the ground. The advance of our line in the early morning had strewn the ground with our wounded, who, in our retreat to the fence, were necessarily left where they fell, now between the two fires. About thirty yards in front of my company stood a solitary tree which, I suppose, had been left as a shade for men in the harvest field. During the morning this tree became conspicuous on account of the well-aimed shots that came from it. We soon became aware that a couple of bold enemy sharpshooters had crawled up to it and we re now practicing on any thoughtless man who offered himself as a mark. About the middle of the forenoon a cry of, Don t fire, Yanks! rang out, and we all got up to see what was coming. A man with his gun slung across his shoulder came out from the tree. Several of our fellows aimed at him but the others checked them, to see what would follow. The man had a canteen in his hand and, when he had come half-way to us, we saw him (God bless him) kneel down and give a drink to one of our wounded who lay there beyond us. Of course we cheered the Reb, and someone shouted, Bully for you! Johnny! Whilst this was going on, we had all risen to our feet. The enemy too, having ceased to fire, were also standing. As soon as the sharpshooter had finished his generous work, he turned around and went back to the tree, and then at the top of his voice shouted, Down Yanks, we re going to fire. And down we lay again. - Private Thomas Galwey, Eighth Ohio Infantry, skirmishing in front of Cemetery Ridge at Gettysburg THE NATIONAL M U S E U M in association with the Smithsonian Institution The National Civil War Museum announces their living history schedule for the 2016 spring/summer season. Encampments include Confederate & Union infantry units, loading and firing demonstrations and much more! 2016 LIVING HISTORY SCHEDULE* June 11 & 12... 2nd US Sharpshooters, Co. C June 18 &19... Cooper s Battery July 9 & 10... 21st North Carolina July 23 & 24... 1st MD Battalion, Co. A July 30 & 31... 15th NJ, Co. B August 6 & 7... 4th VA, Co. F August 13 & 14... 14th TN, Co. B August 20 & 21... 2nd SC Co. I, Palmetto Guard August 27 & 28... Red Rose Minutemen Museum visitors will see the flash and smell the smoke of Civil War muskets and rifles. Visitors are encouraged to visit the camps and ask living historians questions about their attire, food rations and daily life. Most infantry groups perform loading and firing demonstrations each day. Saturday demonstrations are at 11 a.m., 1 p.m. & 3 p.m. and Sunday demonstrations are at 1 p.m. & 3 p.m. CWRT field trip this July Check out the attached flyer for all the details. *Programs are weather contingent. Visitors should check the Museum s website for more information and updates to this schedule, as they are subject to change. Center Shot : Private Jacob Miller of the 9 TH IN Vol. Inf. By Michael Lee Kelley, reprinted with permission from Civil War News Of the 24,430 wounded Union and Confederate soldiers who fought in the Battle of Chickamauga, in Georgia, one veteran stands out as the most unusual survivor of the bloody battle. Private Jacob Miller, of Naperville, Illinois, was serving with Company K, 9th Indiana Volunteer Infantry, part of Major General William Rosecrans Army of Cumberland, when he was shot in the head by a Confederate sniper of Major General Braxton Bragg s Army of Tennessee, near Brock Field on the morning of September 19, 1863. The bullet struck him between the eyes and lodged inside his skull. According to historical information provided by the Cass County Historical Society, Private Miller enlisted into Company K from Logansport, Indiana at the age of 23. The 9th Indiana Regiment was mustered on April 25, 1861, at Laporte, Indiana for three months of active service and was commanded by Colonel Robert H. Milroy, who was commissioned on April 26, 1861. The 9th saw action in West Virginia at Grafton, Philppi, Laurel Hill, and Corrick s Ford. It was mustered out on July 29th, 1861. The 9th was reorganized for three years of active service in August, 1861 and saw action at the battles of Shiloh, Perryville, Stones River, Chickamauga, and participated in Sherman s Campaign across Georgia. Private Miller s active combat service ended the day he was shot in the head and left for dead. His remarkable story of survival was told by Miller and recorded in the Daily News of Joliet, Illinois in June of 1911. After the war, he joined the Grand Army of the Republic, a veterans organization much like today s American Legion. When he attended the encampments, his fellow war veterans nicknamed him Center Shot for the open bullet wound in his forehead. According to Miller, I was in a semi-reclining position and raised up my elbow to take aim, when I was hit by a rebel bullet. His Company Commander, Captain McConnell, was standing behind him and Miller thinks that the sniper was trying to shoot his Captain, but the bullet was aimed too low and struck him instead. When Company K fell back from that position in retreat, his comrades had given him up for dead. He went on to say, When I came to my senses some time after I found I was in the rear of the Confederate line. So not to become a prisoner, I made up my mind to make an effort to get around their line and back on my own side. I got up with the help of my gun as a staff, then went back some distance, then started parallel with the line of battle. I suppose I was so covered with blood that those that I met, did not notice that I was a Yank. JACOB MILLER continued on page 5
JACOB MILLER continued from page 4 Major General Alexander P. Stewart s CSA Division (Buckner s Corps) routed the Union Brigades from the Brock Farm area but did not have enough forces to pursue the Union troops. Miller managed to stumble along, but on the way, he ran into a Confederate soldier who was out front scouting the lines and the rebel soldier took mercy on Miller s plight. He gave Miller a drink of water from his canteen and pointed in the direction of the Union Line. Miller continued saying, I struck an old by-road and followed it the best I could, as by this time my head was swelled so bad it shut my eyes and I could see to get along only by raising the lid of my right eye and look again and so on till I ran afoul of something, then would look again and so on till I came to the Lafayette Pike near the Kelly house and started towards the field hospital at the springs. I at length got so badly exhausted I had to lie down by the side of the road. At last some bearers came and put me on their stretcher and carried me to the hospital and laid me on the ground in a tent. A hospital nurse came and Pvt. Jacob Miller. Note the bullet wound in his forehead. put a wet bandage over my wound and around my head and gave me a canteen of water. I don t know what time of day they examined my wound and decided to put me on the operating table till after dark some time. The surgeons examined my wound and decided it was best not to operate on me and give me more pain as they said I couldn t live very long, so the nurse took me back into the tent. I slept some during the night. The next morning (Sunday), the doctors came around to make a list of the wounded and of their company and regiments and said to send all the wounded to Chattanooga that the ambulances would carry and told me I was wounded too bad to be moved, and if the army fell back those that were left there could afterwards be exchanged. Miller was determined not to be taken prisoner. As long as he could stand and drag one foot after another, he would make his way to safety. He had a nurse give him a canteen full of water and left the tent without being seen. He got behind some wagons near the road and then began to slowly walk away. His eyes were still shut and he had to lift his eyelid to see where he was going. He moved away from the sounds of the artillery and musketry fire. He recounted, I worked my way along the road as best I could. At one time I got off to the side of the road and bumped my head against a low hanging limb. The shock toppled me over, I got up and took my bearings again and went on as long as I could not drag a foot then lay down beside the road, to see if I could not rest so I could move. I hadn t lain long till the ambulance train began to pass. The ambulance drivers saw Miller and asked him if he was still alive. One of them stopped and placed Miller into the ambulance. Once he was inside the ambulance, he passed out. He said, On Monday, September 21st, I came to myself and found I was in a long building in Chattanooga, Tennessee, lying with hundreds of other wounded on the floor almost as thick as hogs in a stock car. Some were talking, some were groaning. I raised myself to a sitting position, got my canteen and wet my head. While doing it, I heard a couple of soldiers who were from my company. They could not believe it was me as they said I was left for dead on the field at the left of Brock Cabin. They came over to where I was and we visited together till then came an order for all the wounded that could walk to start across the river on a pontoon bridge to a hospital, to be treated ready to be taken to Nashville. I told the boys if they could lead me, I could walk the distance. Because of the heavy military convoys of wagon trains and troops crossing the river in retreat, the wounded men had to wait until sundown to cross over. Once across the river, they met up with a wagon teamster from Company K who got them some food, the first Miller had eaten since the morning of his wound. They laid down on a pile of blankets under the wagon to rest for the night. The teamster stayed awake all night to keep their wounds moist with water from a nearby spring. On Tuesday morning, September 22nd, they awoke to the sound of a crackling camp fire where a comrade had made coffee and some food for the wounded. Afterwards, they had their wounds cleaned and dressed by a doctor and then got aboard a wagon heading to Bridgeport where they would board a train for Nashville. The wagon ride was so rough, Miller s head began to hurt and he and his comrades got out and walked the 60 miles in four days to the train station. Along the way, Miller was able to open his right eye and could see to get around. They arrived at the train station and boarded a box car for the rest of their journey. They made it to the hospital at Nashville where Miller recalls, I remember I was stripped and in a bath tub of warm water in a hospital at Nashville. I do not know what date it was, in fact, I didn t pay much attention to the dates from the Friday at noon when I got in the box car at Bridgeport to start to Nashville. After some length of time I was transferred to Louisville, Kentucky. From there to New Albany, Indiana. In all the hospitals I was in, I begged the surgeons to operate on my head but all refused. Miller suffered for nine months then got a furlough home to Logansport and went to see his local doctors, Doctors Fitch and Colman, and asked them to operate on his wound. They took out a musket ball and after he recovered from his operation, returned to the army hospital at Madison and stayed there until the end of his enlistment on September 17,1864. Miller went home and resumed civilian life despite his open wound. He had lost the vision in his left eye. Seventeen years after he was wounded, a buck shot dropped out of his wound and thirty one years later two pieces of lead came out of the wound. For sixty four years he lived with his open wound between the eyes that penetrated the skull three-quarters of an inch. It was large enough to place the end of his little finger into the wound, which caused him terrible pain and discomfort. During his post war life time he had bouts of side effects such as a stupor for two weeks, dizziness, delirium, and when he was sick with a bad head cold, the pressure on his brain would build up and cause intense pain in his skull. The bouts of delirium would cause him to imagine he was back on picket duty again and he would tramp back and forth on his beat, a stick on his shoulder for a musket, a pitiful object of the sacrifice for freedom. After the pieces of the bullet fell out of his open wound, he regained his normal health and continued living his life until the old age of 87. Miller said in his interview, Some ask how it is I can describe so minutely my getting wounded and getting off the battlefield after so many years. My answer is, I have an everyday reminder of it in my wound and constant pain in my head, never free of it while not asleep. The whole scene is imprinted on my brain as with a steel engraving. I haven t written this to complain of any one being in fault for my misfortune and suffering all these years, the government is good to me and gives me $40.00 per month pension. Miller was living testimony to one of the most remarkable constitutions ever possessed by a human being. His obituary was published in the Logansport Pharos Tribune on January 14, 1927 and reads: Funeral services for Jacob Center Shot Miller, age 87, a well known Civil War veteran, were held at the Presbyterian church in Braidwood, Illinois this afternoon. The Civil War veteran often visited in Logansport. His nickname is significant because of a bullet wound which he had carried from the time of the war until his death. The wound was directly above the bridge of his nose penetrated the skull. Private Jacob Miller was buried at the Oakwood Cemetery, Will County, Wilmington, Illinois. His unit, the 9th Indiana Volunteer Infantry Regiment was mustered out of federal service on September 28, 1865. Of the 2,141 men who served, 353 died in the war, 11 officers and 129 enlisted men were killed in action or died of wounds, and two officers and 220 enlisted men died of disease. Private Miller considered himself one of the lucky ones who survived the war and lived a long life. A most remarkable American hero. 5
6 NEW & Noteworthy Photo by Lynn Heller Eric Wittenberg (left) is presented with the 2015 Gettysburg CWRT Book Award by Larry Plymire, Chairman of the Book Committee. The awaed was presented to Wittenberg at the March Roundtable meeting for his fine 2014 work titled The Devil s to Pay : John Buford at Gettysburg. PURCHASE YOUR TICKETS NOW Tickets are being reserved quickly! Be sure to reserve your EXCLUSIVE-ACCESS CUPOLA TOUR and Museum Admission early. Click on this link for more information: https://tickets.seminaryridge museum.org/info.aspx?eventid=14 TEXANS AT GETTYSBURG: Blood and Glory with Hood s Texas Brigade by Joe Owens and Randy Drais The Texans from Hood s Texas Brigade and other regiments who fought at Gettysburg on 1-3 July 1863 described their experiences of the battle in personal diaries, interviews, newspaper articles, letters and speeches. Their reminiscences provide a fascinating and harrowing account of the battle as they fought the Army of the Potomac. Speeches were given in the decades after the battle during the annual reunions of Hood s Brigade Association and the dedication of the Hood s Brigade Monument that took place on 26-27 October 1910 at the state capital in Austin, Texas. These accounts describe their actions at Devil s Den, Little Round Top and other areas during the battle. For the first time ever, their experiences are compiled in Texans at Gettysburg: Blood and Glory with Hood s Texas Brigade. Mess Duties May 26... Deb Novotny WELCOME NEW MEMBERS: David Bowen Charles and Gabrielle Lee Civil War Roundtable of Gettysburg, PA PO Box 4236 Gettysburg, PA 17325-4236