The original manuscript was self published by Tillie (Matilda) Pierce Alleman in 1889. It is her personal observation of the battle from the prespective of a 15-year-old girl.
Tillie Pierce was a 15-year-old girl when the battle erupted in her hometown of Gettysburg. Just before the battle began, Tillie was sent by her worried parents to what they thought was the safety of a farm outside of town: the Jacob Weikert farm, 3 or so miles down the Taneytown road, on the east side (or behind) the round tops. This was a relatively good place to be on the first day of battle. But on the second day (and, to a certain extent, the third), it was a terrible place. On the second day, with the battle rolling toward the Union left and centering in the wheat field, the peach orchard, and especially the round tops, the Weikert farm became a vast field hospital. Tillie saw her share of dead and wounded men--her description of the amputation benches and piles of severed limbs is hair-raising--and lived through the peril of sniper bullets and artillery shells. She gave a drink of spring water to a grateful General Meade and talked with General Stephen Weed, desperately wounded on Little Round Top, the night before he died. She tended wounded soldiers, fed hungry and exhausted ones, and in general saw and experienced more violence than any teenager ought to. Although written when she was in her 40s, Tillie's memoir captures the innocence and wide-eyed amazement of a teenager. Of the 80-some firsthand accounts of the battle written by inhabitants of Gettysburg, Tillie's ranks as a favorite. Historians have only begun to explore the impact of the Civil War on children, both the boy-soldiers who actually served in combat and the children left at home while dad went off to war or caught up in the total warfare into which the war sunk during its final two years. Tillie's memoir is a valuable resource in this new line of research.
Long considered one of the most vibrant and compelling accounts of the battle of Gettysburg by a young resident of the town. Fifteen year old Matilda "Tillie" Pierce saw Union general Buford enter town with his cavalry, saw the rout of the first day of fighting, and the Confederates streaming through the town. She gave water to many Union soldiers, including General George Gordon Meade, the new commander of the Army of the Potomac. She went on to help the nurses and surgeons care for wounded at a house down on Taneytown Road, sitting to comfort the dying General Stephen Weed. Tillie saw the mangled bodies of men and horses, and the incredible destruction of the fields and farms. A quarter-century later, Tillie, now married and a mother, sat down and penned this remarkable account for her family. Every memoir of the American Civil War provides us with another view of the catastrophe that changed the country forever. For the first time, this long out-of-print volume is available as an affordable, well-formatted book for e-readers, tablets, and smartphones. Be sure to LOOK INSIDE by clicking the cover above or download a sample.
Includes Gettysburg Map and Illustrations Pack – 30 additional maps, plans and illustrations “The experience of a little girl, during three days of a hard fought battle, as portrayed in this volume is certainly of rare occurrence, and very likely has never been realized before. Such a narrative as the following, is worthy of preservation among the pages of our nations literature. The story is told with such marked faithfulness, such honesty of expression, such vividness of portrayal, that those who lived in, and passed through those scenes, or similar ones, will at once recognize the situations, and surroundings, as natural and real. While perusing its pages, the veteran will again live in the days gone by; when he tramped the dusty march, joined in the terrible charge, or suffered in the army hospital. The Heroine of this book, performed her part well; but it is doubtful whether, at the time, she fully realized the heart-felt thanks, and noble thoughts that sprang from the "Boys in Blue," in response to her heroism and kindness. How vividly is presented the weary march to the field of conflict; our eagerness to quaff the sparkling water, as she handed it to us, fresh from the cooling spring. We thanked her, but she did not hear the full gratitude that was in our hearts.”-Preface.
The original manuscript was self published by Tillie (Matilda) Pierce Alleman in 1889. It is her personal observation of the battle from the prespective of a 15-year-old girl.
Minnesota Book Award Winner! Now in paperback. The smoke had just cleared from the last volley of musketry at Gettysburg. Nearly 70 percent of the First Minnesota regiment lay dead or dying on the field--one of the greatest losses of any unit engaged in the Civil War. The significance of this July 2, 1863, battle at Gettysburg is widely known, but the harrowing details of the First's heroic stand that stopped a furious rebel assault have long been buried. In Pale Horse at Plum Run Brian Leehan brings the full story of the First at Gettysburg to light as he examines personal accounts, eyewitness reports, and official records to construct a remarkably detailed and compelling narrative. "Brian Leehan's account of the First Minnesota on Cemetery Ridge is the most detailed and complete I have read. His exhaustive research and compelling narrative are impressive and offer a much fuller understanding of the regiment's extraordinary feats." -- Richard Moe, author of The Last Full Measure: The Life and Death of the First Minnesota Volunteers
The words Abraham Lincoln spoke at the dedication of the Soldiers' National Cemetery at Gettysburg comprise perhaps the most famous speech in history. It has been quoted by popes, presidents, prime ministers, and revolutionaries around the world. From "Four score and seven years ago..." to "government of the people, by the people, for the people," Lincoln's words echo in the American conscience. Many books have been written about the Gettysburg Address and yet, as Lincoln scholar Gabor Boritt shows, there is much that we don't know about the speech. In The Gettysburg Gospel he reconstructs what really happened in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, on November 19, 1863. Boritt tears away a century of myths, lies, and legends to give us a clear understanding of the greatest American's greatest speech. In the aftermath of the bloodiest battle ever fought in North America, the little town of Gettysburg was engulfed in the worst man-made disaster in U.S. history: close to 21,000 wounded; very few doctors; heroic women coping in houses, barns, and churches turned into hospitals; dead horses and mules rotting in farmyards and fields; and at least 7,000 dead soldiers who had to be dug up, identified, and reburied. This was where Lincoln had to come to explain why the horror of war must continue. Planning America's first national cemetery revitalized the traumatized people of Gettysburg, but the dedication ceremonies overwhelmed the town. Lincoln was not certain until the last moment whether he could come. But he knew the significance of the occasion and wrote his remarks with care -- the first speech since his inauguration that he prepared before delivering it. A careful analysis of the Address and the public reaction to it form the center of this book. Boritt shows how Lincoln responded to the politics of the time and also clarifies which text he spoke from and how and when he wrote the various versions. Few people initially recognized the importance of the speech; it was frequently and, at times, hilariously misreported. But over the years the speech would grow into American scripture. It would acquire new and broader meanings. It would be better understood, but also misunderstood and misinterpreted to suit beliefs very different from Lincoln's. The Gettysburg Gospel is based on years of scholarship as well as a deep understanding of Lincoln and of Gettysburg itself. It draws on vital documents essential to appreciating Lincoln's great speech and its evolution into American gospel. This is an indispensable book for anyone interested in the Gettysburg Address, Abraham Lincoln, the Civil War, or American history.
Although he took command of the Army of the Potomac only three days before the first shots were fired at Gettysburg, Union general George G. Meade guided his forces to victory in the Civil War's most pivotal battle. Commentators often dismiss Meade when discussing the great leaders of the Civil War. But in this long-anticipated book, Kent Masterson Brown draws on an expansive archive to reappraise Meade's leadership during the Battle of Gettysburg. Using Meade's published and unpublished papers alongside diaries, letters, and memoirs of fellow officers and enlisted men, Brown highlights how Meade's rapid advance of the army to Gettysburg on July 1, his tactical control and coordination of the army in the desperate fighting on July 2, and his determination to hold his positions on July 3 insured victory. Brown argues that supply deficiencies, brought about by the army's unexpected need to advance to Gettysburg, were crippling. In spite of that, Meade pursued Lee's retreating army rapidly, and his decision not to blindly attack Lee's formidable defenses near Williamsport on July 13 was entirely correct in spite of subsequent harsh criticism. Combining compelling narrative with incisive analysis, this finely rendered work of military history deepens our understanding of the Army of the Potomac as well as the machinations of the Gettysburg Campaign, restoring Meade to his rightful place in the Gettysburg narrative.
Gettysburg has been written about and studied in great detail over the last 140 years, but there are still many participants whose experiences have been overlooked. In augmenting this incomplete history, Margaret Creighton presents a new look at the decisive battle through the eyes of Gettysburg's women, immigrant soldiers, and African Americans. An academic with a superb flair for storytelling, Creighton draws on memoirs, letters, diaries, and newspapers to get to the hearts of her subjects. Mag Palm, a free black woman living with her family outside of town on Cemetery Ridge, was understandably threatened by the arrival of Lee's Confederate Army; slavers had tried to capture her three years before. Carl Schurz, a political exile who had fled Germany after the failed 1848 revolution, brought a deeply held fervor for abolitionism to the Union Army. Sadie Bushman, a nine-year-old cabinetmaker's daughter, was commandeered by a Union doctor to assist at a field hospital. In telling the stories of these and a dozen other participants, Margaret Creighton has written a stunningly fluid work of original history -- a narrative that is sure to redefine the Civil War's most essential battle.