On June 3, 1863, flush with a number of victories, Gen. Robert E. Lee moved his army toward the Shenandoah Valley, intent on taking the battle to the north.
Lt. Gen. Richard Ewell commanded Lee’s Second Corps. On June 22, Lee sent a letter to Ewell telling him, “If Harrisburg comes within your means, capture it.”
Lee’s northward push, of course, was stopped at Gettysburg, where one of the most famous battles in modern warfare was fought on July 1 to 3. However, Confederates advanced far beyond that crossroads town in Adams County, hoping to lay the ground for an assault on Harrisburg, the state capital and a major logistics hub.
Today, the 36 miles between Gettysburg and Harrisburg are dotted with reminders of the northern reach of Confederate troops. The 150th anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg offers the perfect time to visit some of these lesser-known sites to gain a deeper understanding of Lee’s invasion of the north.
June 24 to 27, 1863: Carlisle Occupied
By June 24, Ewell’s infantry occupied Chambersburg, and, on the afternoon of June 27, Gen. Robert Rodes’ division arrived in Carlisle. Ewell and Rodes established their headquarters at Carlisle Barracks, ironically where Ewell had been assigned years earlier.
The Cumberland County Historical Society, located at 21 N. Pine St. in Carlisle, sponsors an excellent Civil War Walking Tour of Carlisle, highlighting the traumatic days of June 27 to July 1. Retired history teacher, Dennis Minik, presented our group with a 45-minute summary of events, then escorted us on the two-hour walking tour, telling fascinating stories of the occupation.
Among the interesting things are a number of houses that still contain marks from the Confederate shelling of July 1. “The residents labeled those shell marks ‘July First,’ and that has been handed down over the years almost as a badge of courage,” said Minik.
The guided walking tours will continue throughout the summer, and the Society’s museum is well worth a few hours of your time.
June 27 to 28, 1863: Surrender of Mechanicsburg
Gen. Albert Jenkins, Ewell’s calvary commander, moved forward on June 27 to perform reconnaissance and report back to Ewell if Harrisburg could be taken. On Sunday morning, June 28, Jenkins arrived at Mechanicsburg, which holds the distinction as the northernmost town to surrender to the Confederate army during the campaign.
Gov. Andrew Curtin assigned Maj. Gen. Darius Couch the task of defending Harrisburg. Couch did the best he could with his ill-trained New York and Pennsylvania militias. I suggest you stop at the Civil War and More in Mechanicsburg for an orientation and a map to key sites of the attack.
“To commemorate the 150th anniversary of the invasion, the town of Mechanicsburg will host a reenactment from June 28 to June 30,” said Jim Schmick, owner of the Civil War and More. “Events include an evening gala at the Orris house Inn the evening of June 28, then, on Saturday morning, re-enactors will act out the surrender of the town.” (For more information, visit www.DowntownMechanicsburg.com.)
Hummels Heights, now called Washington Heights, covers about 60 acres on the west shore of the Susquehanna River. Fort Washington was located on this site along what is now Cumberland Road in Lemoyne. It’s fun to just park your car and let your gaze follow the Market Street Bridge toward the state Capitol building. If the Confederate Army had captured this hill, imagine their ability to lob artillery shells directly into the city.
Next, drive along Cumberland Road past Negley Park to Fort Couch. Located on the corner of 8th Street and Indiana Avenue, about 800 yards west of the former site of Fort Washington, you can observe the only remaining breastworks built to support the defense of Fort Washington. On the back of the Fort Couch monument is a sketch showing the proposed defenses of Harrisburg.
June 28 to 29, 1863: Onto Camp Hill
After capturing Mechanicsburg, Jenkins continued his advance toward Harrisburg. He arrived at Oyster Point, approximately three miles west of the Susquehanna River, on June 28. Once called White Hall, we now know this area as Camp Hill.
The skirmish at Oyster Point on June 29 between Confederate soldiers and Union defenders turned out to be the farthest advance of the Confederate army towards Harrisburg. Jenkins’ purpose in this attack was to divert attention from his reconnaissance of Harrisburg from Slate Hill and New Cumberland. A state marker highlighting this event is located at 31st and Market streets in Camp Hill.
Peace Church, located at the corner of St. John’s Church Road and Trindle Road in Camp Hill, was used by the Confederates as an artillery position and outpost during the June 28 and 29 campaign. After his reconnaissance, Gen. Jenkins returned to Peace Church and dispatched a messenger to Gen. Ewell advising him that Harrisburg could be taken. Not only did Ewell’s Second Corps consist of 21,000 soldiers, but they were battle-tested, highly trained veterans.
Jenkin’s headquarters during the battles of Oyster Point and Sporting Hill was located in the Rupp House at 5115 East Trindle Rd. There, you will find a plaque providing a biography of Jenkins, as well as a listing of the five cavalry regiments and two artillery batteries in his command. The house will be open on Saturday, June 29, from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m.
June 30, 1863: Turning Away from Harrisburg
Jenkins’ calvary engaged the Union forces in the battle of Sporting Hill on June 30. By the time the messenger from Jenkins arrived at Ewell’s headquarters, Ewell had already received orders from Lee to withdraw from Carlisle and move south towards Gettysburg.
I asked Wayne Motts, CEO of the National Civil War Museum, why Lee ordered Ewell back from Carlisle.
“Gen. Lee had dispatched his cavalry commander, Gen. Stuart, to move behind Gen. Hooker’s Army of the Potomac to disrupt Union operations and to report on Hooker’s movements,” said Motts. “When Lee did not hear from Stuart that Hooker’s force was on the move, Lee assumed it was south of the Potomac River. Thus, Ewell could operate further east as Lee did not need to concentrate his army to face an immediate threat from the Army of the Potomac.”
“Well,” Motts continued, “it was not quite as Lee saw it. When Lee heard from a paid spy that the Army of the Potomac had crossed the Potomac River, headed north, Lee ordered Ewell to stop moving toward Harrisburg and to join Lee’s forces at Gettysburg.”
Role of Camp Curtin
I asked Jim Schmick, the founder and president of the Camp Curtin Historical Society, why Lee chose Harrisburg as a target at all. “Not only was Harrisburg a state capital and a major rail and road hub,” Schmick replied, “but Camp Curtin, the largest training camp in the Union, provided a steady supply of soldiers for the Union army.”
Located in the general area of N. 6th and Woodbine streets, Camp Curtin consisted of almost 80 acres during the Civil War.
Today, there isn’t that much to see on the site of the old military grounds. A state marker commemorates the fact that, between 1861 and 1865, more military units were organized there than in any other camp in the north, training more than 300,000 soldiers. Nearby, the beautiful old Camp Curtin Memorial-Mitchell United Methodist Church was the first memorial to the Civil War in the nation and now is a national landmark and historical site.
Camp Curtin’s land is divided up into city blocks now. Still, a visit is necessary to fully grasp the Harrisburg campaign, as that’s where Lee wished to end up. Standing at the site at the church and marker, it’s unsettling to imagine the carnage that may have resulted there if Lee had succeeded in his goal of invading the capital city.
“Obviously, Harrisburg’s capture would have struck a severe blow to the Union’s war effort,” Schmick said.
The Camp Curtin Historical Society is planning a Civil War trails program commemorating the various events during the Harrisburg campaign. It begins on June 30 at 3 p.m. with the unveiling of a memorial plaque at 8th and Indiana streets in Lemoyne.
References
There are three excellent references for more information about the Confederate advance toward Harrisburg. These books may be purchased at the Civil War and More in Mechanicsburg, and the map is free.
- “The Confederate Approach on Harrisburg,” by Cooper H. Wingert.
- “Civil War Harrisburg,” by James E. Schmick and Lawrence E. Keener-Farley
- “The Civil War on the West Shore,” by the Cumberland Valley Visitors Bureau
Don Helin published his first thriller, “Thy Kingdom Come,” in 2009. He recently published his second, “Devil’s Den.” Don lives in central Pennsylvania and is hard at work on his next thriller. Contact him at www.donhelin.com.
GOING THERE
Civil War and More
10 S. Market St., Mechanicsburg
Hours: Monday to Friday 10:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Saturday 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.www.civilwarandmore.org
National Civil War Museum
1 Lincoln Circle, Harrisburg
Hours: Monday to Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. (Wednesday until 8 p.m.); Sunday noon to 5 p.m.
]www.nationalcivilwarmuseum.org
Cumberland County Historical Society
21 N. Pitt St., Carlisle
Hours: Monday 4 p.m. to 8 p.m.; Tuesday to Friday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Saturday 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
www.historicalsociety.com
Camp Curtin Historical Society and Civil War Roundtable
www.campcurtin.org
