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When monuments were being erected on the Gettysburg battlefield the contractor would go out about one month ahead of time before the actual dedication and erect the monument. As soon as the monuments are elected, photographers would take photos of them. Such photographers such as Tipton gallery. This would be done not only to document the monuments placement and date but also as a business opportunity so that when the veterans would arrive for the official dedication ceremony’s, the photographer could then sell them plates or prints. Since the dedication of the 23rd Pennsylvania monument took place on August 5, 1886 it is most likely that the monument was directed around July 1st 1886. Fauxtography her‘s such as Tipton galleries would then venture over to Culp’s Hill antique plates of the monument by it self. I believe the first three photographs of the 23rd Pennsylvania monument were taken in July 1886. Then as soldiers of the regiment begin to arrive on August 4 of 1886 a small group of them most likely went up to the hill on the evening of the fourth and wrapped the stack of cannon balls with the American flag. The next photograph is the men of the regiment around the monument as it is draped by the American flag, I believe this is the first photograph taken on the day of August 5, 1886. I believe as well as the professional photographer there that day there was also an amateur photographer on site. As the man began to get into position I believe the amateur photographer took a shot of them gathering around the monument. It was then followed by the official photographer. The original location of the cannonball topped monument was near the earthworks ,on a boulder where the 137th New York volunteer monument sits today. Proof of this fact lies within the next photo, which appears to feature the seventh Ohio monument that was dedicated in 1887. That photo was also taken by a professional photographer who is highlighting the dedication of the seventh Ohio monument. What was recorded in the image of that photo in the background to the left was the 23rd Pennsylvania monument in its original location topped by a set of granite cannon balls. This photo could not have been taken in 1886 since the 7th Ohio’s monument was not placed yet, and in June of 1888,the 23rd Pennsylvania re-dedicated their altered monument across the road in the reserve position. In February 1887 the survivors of the 137 New York volunteers had an exploratory committee that wanted to place a monument on the Gettysburg battlefield where they fought. When they arrived on the field they noticed that the 23rd Pennsylvania volunteers had placed a monument exactly where they were. They took the issue up before the Gettysburg battlefield memorial association and stated that they thought their monument should be placed on that spot and that the 23rd Pennsylvania volunteers monument should be moved to the reserve position since during the battle of Gettysburg they fit her in that area and the 23rd was brought in reserve. So the GBMA gave the 23rd Pennsylvania volunteer regiment survivors association one year to move their monument across the street in the reserve position. In that time William J Wray Was able to come up with additional funds to add to the monument with a statue of a zouave soldier of the regiment. William had become very popular within the survivors association being elected as the president of the 23rd Pennsylvania survivors association. He would later be awarded the Congressional medal of honor for his bravery at Fort Stevens during the Civil War in 1864 and he was a tireless leader and a lawyer who fought for veterans benefit. However since he lost an eye at the battle of Fredericksburg and was disfigured he decided not to be the model for the soldier on top of the monument. A compromise was made Where the soldier on top of the monument would be modeled after William Wray but the head would be of corporal Matthew Spence. This is a very important piece of historical information and is back by the fact that the soldier depicted on the monument is wearing private trousers of a Bernie’s a while which only had one small bead of red wool piping going down the seam.
With the $1500 given by the state of Pennsylvania and the additional funds that William raised, the 23rd Pennsylvania got a contractor to alter the monument and place the statue of the zouave on top.
On June 12, 1888 the 23rd Pennsylvania survivors came back to Gettysburg to re-dedicate their monument in the reserve position. I believe they started off with the photos of the men around the monument. Next they took a photo of the ladies of Philadelphia around the monument and finally a few men from Company B lingered after and had an image on glass struck of them around the monument, an image which later was broken. These are the 1888 photos. The photos taken in 1889 had another month or day attached to them. It appears that the one taken from the front had very bad lighting. The one taken from the left side of the monument also shows the huge boulder that still sits there today. Member was the photo taken in 1893 for a Gettysburg battlefield guidebook and then William Tipton came back in 1897 and took another professional photo. These photos ended the photographs taken in the 19th century. The May 16, 1906 photograph is a very interesting one. I have an original print from the glass plate negative which is dated on the rear. Also, in that photograph reappears the highly polished stack of cannon balls that were on the original monument. Sometime between 1897 and 1906 the cannon balls were placed behind the monument. I would suppose with the veterans, many who were still alive in 1906 wondered about and wanted to see a part of the original monument on display. I have not been able to find out when the cannon balls were removed again but the next vintage photograph of the monument that shows up is a 1948 and they are no longer there. Most of the veterans were dead by 1920 , Only a few lived until the 1930s. I would suppose after most of the men of the regiment word to see that the park remove the cannon balls off the ground for some reason, maybe theft. It was Karmin door in both world wars that matter was Upton scrap for the war effort but since these cannonball we’re made of granite they were worthless to any war effort. About 15 years ago I finally tracked down where the cannon balls are. They sit in our barn on the north side of Gettysburg which today is the park office is for the national Park service. It would be cool to see them placed on the ground as depicted in the 1906 photograph once again I may be secured by anchor as well.
I would be interested in any comments that anybody wants to provide. Or if anybody has any other vintage photographs of the 23rd Pennsylvania monument other than the 17 that I have displayed and dated here. Maybe we could get a chain of phone calls made to the national Park to get the monument and cannonballs reunited. This is such a neat story on a most important part of the Gettysburg battlefield.
The monument tells the story of the battle at Culp’s Hill, in detail. A young man of 19 has just arrived on the field, tired and weary. He has just climbed the hill at "Trail Arms" and suddenly comes under fire. In an instant he grabs his musket in shock with his other hand. The broken tree stump behind him is represenitive of the hard fighting and deadly artillery pounding the hill for several days. Trees were literally cut down by the heavy fire. It is a very beautiful monument and one that should be visited when at Gettysburg. The monument sits right along the auto tour road and there is a small dirt pull off to the right. Behind the Monument is a small wooded area. On the left and right of the monument about 100 feet on each side are the regimental flank markers, marking the spot of the line the men formed. Here is a list of details Pertain to the 23rd Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry Monument located on North Slocum Avenue, Culp’s Hill, at Gettysburg National Military Park.
CreditsThe information to put this write-up together was taken from the following sources:
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History 23rd PA Monument David Bell Birney Original Photos Uniform 23rd PA Flag Virtual Cemetery Pension Records Submit a Burial Monument Rededication Regimental History |
© January 19th 2019
- "Birney's Zouaves" The 23rd PA Infantry Volunteers
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