November 30, 2016

** This blog published Mondays and Wednesdays **

 

Here’s the place where those epic Little Round Top scenes recreated in the “Gettysburg” movie took place . . . the site of the struggle between Joshua Chamberlain’s Mainers and the rugged Alabamians. As a Yankee I have no problem with giving the 20^TH Maine their due, but it seems to me as if the 15^TH Alabama doesn’t generate nearly as much admiration. Considering that they’d marched thirty miles with no water, then made multiple charges up the slopes before being repulsed, I think they ought to be equally praised. Just to the right of this photo is the 20^TH Maine monument which, judging by the amount of pennies left on the base, is visited quite often.

**HONORED TODAY**

PVT. DEGRASSE HANNESS

and

PVT. ELIAS HANNESS

 

Co. C, 147^TH New York Infantry

Pvt. DeGrasse and Pvt. Elias Hanness were father and son, both killed at Gettysburg. Elias was born c. 189 and died July 15 while DeGrasse was born c. 1843 and died on the first day of battle, July 1^ST. DeGrasse was described as being 5’10½” tall with blue eyes and dark hair. Both were farmers, and Elias also worked as a miller. Both men are buried in Gettysburg’s National Cemetery. Elias’s stone spells his surname “Hannis.”

(c) 2012-2016 Skies of Blue and Gray

November 28, 2016

** This blog published Mondays and Wednesdays **

A nice quiet walk from East Confederate Avenue down to Rock Creek yielded this autumn-y view of the 28^TH Pennsylvania. Dedicated in 1885, it has stood guard in this very place for 131 years. I had never seen this monument in person, so the walk was worth it even though the new fence keeping folks from falling into Rock Creek wasn’t particularly aesthetic. Most unnerving? Distant gunshots, which everyone insisted came from hunters, but which I found pretty eerie on Culp’s Hill on a lonely morning . . .

**HONORED TODAY**

COL. WILLIAM DABNEY STUART

56^TH Virginia Infantry

Born September 1830 --- Died July 29/30, 1863 age at 32

                                                                                                     

Col. Stuart graduated from the Virginia Military Institute in 1850 and later became a teacher in Richmond. He enlisted in September 1861. Mortally wounded during the Pickett-Pettigrew-Trimble Charge, he was taken to Staunton, Virginia, where he later died. Col. Stuart was buried at Thornrose Cemetery in Staunton. A photo can be found here.

(c) 2012-2016 Skies of Blue and Gray

November 23, 2016

** This blog published Mondays and Wednesdays **

Lee’s Headquarters, post #4 (final post in the series). Here we see a view which, except for the street sign at left, could be a colorized version of an 1863 photograph. For some reason, the barrel adds dimension and interest to the scene, and the pattern of the stone draws the eye. The Civil War Trust believes that the house may have been a duplex in 1863, but little is known of its history in that regard.

**HONORED TODAY**

CPL. ISAAC NORRIS

 

Co. H, 14^TH Indiana Infantry

Born January 02, 1842 --- Died July 02, 1863

                                                                                                     

Cpl. Norris, who enlisted in June 1861, was killed while carrying the colors. He was buried at Christian Cemetery in Patricksburg, Indiana.

(c) 2015-2016 Skies of Blue and Gray

November 21, 2016

** This blog published Mondays and Wednesdays **

Lee’s Headquarters, post #3. This is what you see from Route 30, and what an improvement it is. A quick glance at 1863 photographs shows a façade very similar to this one, even down to the white arbor and the doghouse at bottom left. You’ll notice that the color of the stone at the bottom of the house is lighter than the rest of the structure . . . that’s because the brick was only recently removed, showing a portion of the structure that had remained hidden for decades. It’s great to see the dormer windows removed, too. All in all, this is a beautiful house, made even more beautiful by its historical authenticity.

**HONORED TODAY**

SGT. JOSHUA C. HALLOWELL

Parker’s (Virginia) Battery

Born c. 1830/31 --- Died July 20, 1863

Sgt. Hallowell enlisted in March 1862. He suffered a mortal wound in the shoulder at Gettysburg and died less than three weeks later, eventually being laid to rest at Richmond’s Hollywood Cemetery. He was well-known among his comrades for his singing and guitar-playing.

(c) 2012-2016 Skies of Blue and Gray