The Attack and Defense of Little Round Top, Gettysburg, July 2, 1863

Front matter

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Contents

CHAPTER PAGE

I Introduction •-....*<»,•;•. ii II The Historians 15

III The Official Reports —

Foreword

The author and ccxnpiler of this book has been blind for many years. This infirmity has oUiged him to dq>end veiy much upon the assistance of others in the preparation of the volume. It doubtless contains many faults, for which he craves the reader's indulgence.

He acknowledges with gratitude his indebtedness to CafK tain Porter Farley for the loan of his admiraUe paper on the part taken by the One Hundred and Fortieth New York Volunteers on Little Round Top, the loan of personal letters to him from General Warren, General S^es, the Cbmte de Paris, and Lieutenant Roebling, with permission to publish them, and for many other courtesies.

To Captain Simeon H. Crane, for much valuable assistance in research work among the numerous books and documents relating to this battle.

To my secretary, Mr. Otis P. Swift, for constant, intelligent assistance to me during all the time which I have spent in writing this book.

To Miss Henrietta Hyde, who has been my personal stcnograi^er for more than twenty-five years, for her careful and painstaking work in taking my dictation of the book.

To Miss May Sturdevant, typewriter, for preparing the copy for the publisher.

To The Neale Publishing Company and Mr. William C.

FOREWORD

Oates, Jr., for permission to publish that part of General William C. Oates' book, " The War Between the Union and the Confederacy/' which relates to the attack on Little Round Top.

To General Joshua L. Chamberlain, for permission to publish his address on ** The Third Brigade at Appomattox."

Chicago, September, 1912.

Introduction

This is not a history of the Battle of Gettysburg, but an attempt to describe more fully and accuratdy than has heretofore been done that part of the battle which was fought on one comer of the fidd, where, more than in any other place, the fate of the contest between the two armies was decided. On July i, 1863, the battle was between portions of each army only. On July 2 both armies had arrived on the fidd. The main attack of the CcHifederates was directed against the left of the Union line. Much has been written in regBrd to the battle on and about Litde Round Top, with more contradictory statements by both Union and CcHifederate writers than about almost any other part of the battle.

The author, who was an eye-witness of the attack and took part in the defense on this part of the line, bdieves that it will serve to give a better idea of the fight on Little Round Top if in connection with what he saw and heard he presents the official reports of the Union and Confederate officers and extracts from the accounts of the leading historians which relate to this part of the battle, with his comparison and critidsm of these documents, together with some important letters and papers not heretofore pnUished.

It is nearly half a century since the battle was fought. The greater part of the armies which contended in diis, the greatest battle of the war, have passed over the river. It dionld be possiUe for those who remain, and to whom this battle is a memory only, to recognize the sincerity and the valor of their foes, to put aside all hatred and prej-

IX

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12 THE^AWA€k AND DEFENSE OF

udice, and, recognizing that we are all Americans, proud of our country, treat all with fairness and impartiality. In what the author has to say he hopes to do this.

This attitude will not oblige him, in cases where writers have in his opinion deliberately misrepresented the facts to cover their own misconduct, to refrain from pointing this out. On the other hand, he believes that where writers make statements with which he cannot agree, but which have no relation to their own conduct, these statements have been made in good faith as the result of the best information obtainable at the time they were written.

One reason why such incorrect accounts appear is probably that the commanders of the two brigades and the battery which fought the battle for the defense of Little Round Top, — Vincent, Weed and Hazlett, — were killed or mortally wounded; O'Rorke, who commanded the One Hundred and Fortieth New York, was killed, and Rice, who succeeded Vincent in his command of the brigade, was killed in battle a few months later. Had any of these lived until they had time to write their reminiscences after the war the accounts might have been very different.

General Warren played a most important part in this battle. The historians have credited to him much that he never claimed for himself. He made no official report, and died in 1882*, before any of the histories referred to in this book were published. A few months ago the author was permitted to see and copy a number of personal letters from General Warren relating mostly to the battle on Little Round Top, which the officer to whom they were written has kindly permitted the author to publish. These letters were never intended for publication, but it is from just such letters that true history is written. They reveal so much of the character of General Warren, his patriotism and his love for the men who died on Little Round

Top, that as a contribution to the history of that day they should be given to the public.

There is no part of the battle of Gettysburg, the greatest battle of the Civil War, the facts in r^;ard to which have been less understood, because more misrepresented, than the struggle for the possession of Little Round Top. Its capture by the G>nfederates during the battle of the second day would have forced Meade to abandon his strong position in disorderly retreat Its retention by the Union army made that position secure. There is a general agreement among historians and writers that this statement is true; but here the agreement ends. No two 'writers agree in their statements of what actually took place.

In order to give the reader a basis for a better understanding of the facts, I purpose to give all the official reports of the Um'on and Confederate officers engaged on this part of the fidd, extracts from the writings of leading historians and others, with my own account and some hitherto unpuUished letters and papers, which I think will convince a careful reader that in many respects the generally accepted accounts are erroneous.

I have no doubt that it will seem presumptuous in a private soldier to come forward nearly half a century after the battle and contradict the statements of so many writers much abler than himself. There is some justification for this attempt in the fact that these writers contradict one another. Although a private soldier, I was at the time of the battle of Gettysburg, and for some time before and after, on detached service at the Headquarters of the Third Brigade, First Division, Fifth Army Corps, commanded when the battle b^an by Colonel Strong Vincent I was brigade bugler, mounted, and bearer of the brigade headquarters flag. As such, it was my duty to keep near the brigade commander, following him closely whereever he went, when the army was on the march or moving about a battlefield.

Each brigade in the army had a distinctive headquarters flag, bearing the corps badge, and by a different arrangement of its red, white, and blue colors enabling a staff officer or any other person familiar with the system to tell from any distance at which it could be clearly seen the organization to which it belonged and where he could find its commander. This duty gave me a better opportunity than even the officers of the brigade staff enjoyed, to see what occurred and hear verbal orders given or received. The officers of the staff were frequently absent at intervals, conveying orders or seeking information, while I remained constantly with the brigade commander.

My recollection of what I saw and heard that day is as clear and distinct as that of any event in my life. Since the discovery by me, about a year since, of a large number of letters from General Warren, General Sykes, the Comte de Paris, and others never before published, throwing a new light on the subject, which the recipient has kindly gfiven me permission to publish, I have been making a careful examination of all the literature which I have been able to find relating to this part of the battle, with the purpose of collecting and presenting these various accounts to the public in convenient form for comparison and reference, in connection with my own recollections. The official reports are necessarily fragmentary. This is especially true of the Confederate reports. I have not been able to find any reports made at the time by the division commanders of either Hood's or McLaws' divisions. In my account of their movements it is necessary to depend on the few brigade and regimental reports which are available.

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