The fighting began July 1, 1863, and ended two days later on July 3. “It was the battle with the largest number of casualties in the American Civil War and is often described as the war's turning point. Union General George Meade's Army of the Potomac defeated Confederate General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia, ending Lee's invasion of the North.”1
"At the end of the first day's fighting, the Union forces had been pushed out of the town [Gettysburg, Penn.], and occupied the ridge east of the town, extending towards the south, ending at a hill known as Little Round Top.
The First Minnesota, commanded by Colonel William Colvill, arrived the next morning after marching all night, and the men were sent to rest near the top of the hill near where the [First Minnesota Memorial] statue stands today. Two companies, C and F, were detached for guard duty, leaving 262 men remaining.
Colonel William Colvill3
On July 2, General Lee ordered two Confederate Brigades (about 1600 men
each) to attack the Union line on Cemetery Ridge. As the Union line was
extremely thin at that time (troops were still arriving), there was immediate
danger of a Confederate breakthrough, with disastrous results should that
occur.
Union Major General Winfield Scott Hancock, seeing the danger, immediately went to the [First] Minnesota, and pointing to the attacking rebels, said, "Charge those lines." Colonel Colvill immediately formed up his unit, ordered them to fix bayonets, and charged the nearest of the two Confederate brigades, Wilcox's Alabama Brigade (commanded by General Cadmus M. Wilcox). Despite being outnumbered five to one, and running through a hail of Confederate fire, the men of the [First] Minnesota crossed 200 yards of open ground to reach the Alabama Brigade.
The force of the bayonet attack into the Confederate units surprised them, and after sharp, hand-to-hand fighting, the Confederate units withdrew. Yet the [First] Minnesota proudly held their position until nightfall, returning only then back to the Union line. When the fighting stopped, the First Minnesota had lost 82 percent of its men, either killed or wounded, the highest percentage loss of any single unit in a single engagement, ever, in the history of the American Army. Of the 262 men before the battle, only 47 were still available that evening.
The morning of July [3], the First Minnesota was reinforced by the two companies that had been detailed the previous day and had missed the fight. Now numbering about 150 men, they were assigned to defend a position of the line about 400 yards north of where the [First Minnesota Memorial] statue now stands. That day, July [3], Lee attempted to send Major General Pickett's Division through the center of the Union line, the attack known as Pickett's Charge. Again, despite their severe loss of the previous day, the [First] Minnesota was ordered to charge the attacking Confederate Division, which they did, suffering another 55 casualties.
At the end of the battle, the evening of July 3, the First Minnesota had suffered 80 killed, 149 wounded, for a total two day loss of 70 percent of the entire unit. Colonel Colvill was severely wounded, and turned over command to the next senior surviving officer, Captain Henry C. Coates.
On July 2, 1897, the [First Minnesota Memorial] statue, sculpted by Jacob Fjelde, was dedicated at Gettysburg. A few years later, a small obelisk was dedicated at the site where the First Minnesota had repelled Pickett's Charge.
Cemetery Ridge4
Union Major General Winfield Scott Hancock, seeing the danger, immediately went to the [First] Minnesota, and pointing to the attacking rebels, said, "Charge those lines." Colonel Colvill immediately formed up his unit, ordered them to fix bayonets, and charged the nearest of the two Confederate brigades, Wilcox's Alabama Brigade (commanded by General Cadmus M. Wilcox). Despite being outnumbered five to one, and running through a hail of Confederate fire, the men of the [First] Minnesota crossed 200 yards of open ground to reach the Alabama Brigade.
Union Major General Winfield Scott Hancock5
The force of the bayonet attack into the Confederate units surprised them, and after sharp, hand-to-hand fighting, the Confederate units withdrew. Yet the [First] Minnesota proudly held their position until nightfall, returning only then back to the Union line. When the fighting stopped, the First Minnesota had lost 82 percent of its men, either killed or wounded, the highest percentage loss of any single unit in a single engagement, ever, in the history of the American Army. Of the 262 men before the battle, only 47 were still available that evening.
The morning of July [3], the First Minnesota was reinforced by the two companies that had been detailed the previous day and had missed the fight. Now numbering about 150 men, they were assigned to defend a position of the line about 400 yards north of where the [First Minnesota Memorial] statue now stands. That day, July [3], Lee attempted to send Major General Pickett's Division through the center of the Union line, the attack known as Pickett's Charge. Again, despite their severe loss of the previous day, the [First] Minnesota was ordered to charge the attacking Confederate Division, which they did, suffering another 55 casualties.
At the end of the battle, the evening of July 3, the First Minnesota had suffered 80 killed, 149 wounded, for a total two day loss of 70 percent of the entire unit. Colonel Colvill was severely wounded, and turned over command to the next senior surviving officer, Captain Henry C. Coates.
On July 2, 1897, the [First Minnesota Memorial] statue, sculpted by Jacob Fjelde, was dedicated at Gettysburg. A few years later, a small obelisk was dedicated at the site where the First Minnesota had repelled Pickett's Charge.
First Minnesota Memorial Monument6
The battle is described in the book, "The Last Full Measure"
by Richard Moe. (bio by: Kit and Morgan Benson).”
Do you have an ancestor who fought in the Civil War with the First Minnesota?
LLet me help you find out what parts of Minnesota history your family played a role in.
Discover your roots and watch the branches of your family tree begin to grow.
For more information on my Family History Research services, visit TheMemoryQuilt.com and click on Family History Research in the left-hand column.
The
First Minnesota at Gettysburg, Penn., July 2, 18637
Do you have an ancestor who fought in the Civil War with the First Minnesota?
LLet me help you find out what parts of Minnesota history your family played a role in.
Discover your roots and watch the branches of your family tree begin to grow.
For more information on my Family History Research services, visit TheMemoryQuilt.com and click on Family History Research in the left-hand column.
The Minnesota History Center in St. Paul currently has a
wonderful exhibit on “Minnesota and the Civil War” running until Sept. 8, 2013.
http://www.minnesotahistorycenter.org/exhibits/minnesota-and-civil-war
http://www.minnesotahistorycenter.org/exhibits/minnesota-and-civil-war
1https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Gettysburg
2http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=6935558
3http://www.1stminnesota.net/1st.php?ID=0779
4http://gettysburg-battle.wikispaces.com/Terrain
5http://www.civilwar.org/education/history/biographies/winfield-scott-hancock.html
6http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:1st_Minnesota_Monument_Gettysburg.jpg
7http://www.nationalguard.mil/resources/photo_gallery/heritage/firstminnesota.html
2http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=6935558
3http://www.1stminnesota.net/1st.php?ID=0779
4http://gettysburg-battle.wikispaces.com/Terrain
5http://www.civilwar.org/education/history/biographies/winfield-scott-hancock.html
6http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:1st_Minnesota_Monument_Gettysburg.jpg
7http://www.nationalguard.mil/resources/photo_gallery/heritage/firstminnesota.html
No comments:
Post a Comment