George "Pop" Greene

[tlyne]

The hero of Culp's Hill.

 

[donna]

Nice photos.

 

[tlyne]

Thank you, it was overcast. They are a bit dark.

 

[frontrank2]

Truly, he doesn't get the credit he deserves for protecting Culp's Hill. BTW, his second cousin was Gen. Nathanael Greene of the Continental Army, who successfully forced Gen. Cornwallis to abandon the Carolinas and head to Yorktown.

 

[Tom Elmore]

Francis Vinton Greene, the son of Brig. Gen. George Sears Greene, was only 13 years of age when he accompanied his father on the campaign until they reached Frederick, Maryland on June 29, when his father left him behind, probably with the wagon train. Francis was an astute observer, and he recorded some minute and unique details of the march northward. For instance, in his June 15 entry, Francis wrote that the "heat was excessive, a great many falling out, although we halted very often - 3:08 to 3:20, 4:10 to 4:30, 4:50 to 5:00, 5:30 to 5:45, reached Fairfax Court House and encamped ... at 8 p.m. Marched 20 miles." On June 19, Francis wrote that they encamped at Fort Evans near Leesburg, Virginia: "Gen. Geary has his quarters at Col. Evan's [Ball's?] house about 1/2 mile from here ... Leesburg [contains] a court house and about 60 or 70 houses." On June 27, Francis wrote, "Hooker passed us but did not receive a cheer from the 12 A.C. [Army Corps]. Francis' diary ends on June 29, but resumes from July 19-31. [Diary of Francis Vinton Greene, University of Virginia, Manuscript Collections, MSS-5267]

 

[Northern Light]

Greene and his adventures on Culps' Hill are truly worth reading about, but no one knows his name, well except we die-hard fanatics. He needs a better PR person. He should have used the same one as Chamberlain. Oh wait.... maybe not.

 

[Bruce Vail]

The carnage in front of Greene's breastworks was terrible.

Steuart's Brigade (CSA), made up of Marylanders, North Carolinians and Virginians, was decimated. So severe were the casualties among his men that Gen. George Steuart is said to have broken down and wept, wringing his hands and crying "my poor boys."

 

[Bruce Vail]

Get a load of these veterans of Green's Division:

http://localhistory.morrisville.edu/sites/3d-brigade-reunion.html

 

[JPK Huson 1863]

Great photograph! You always wonder how surreal it was for them to be there again- it had to be.

If Pop Green had had the good sense to order a bayonet charge, that end of the line would have a movie, too. ( That's a joke, no one please yell at me all about his defense ). You know the ' Killer Angels ' perspective of the battle, where everyone arrives at Gettysburg, heads for LRT, the entire Confederate army is faced down there so they try again at Pickett's Charge? Most unhelpful thing in the world to the rest of the line- which is mentioned only in the word ' line'.

" Corps commander Maj. Gen. Henry Slocum attributed "the failure of the enemy to gain possession of our works . . . entirely to the skill of General Greene and the heroic valor of his troops." "

BRIGADIER GENERAL GEORGE SEARS GREENE

 

[Virginian Sharpshooter]

The Fight Greene's Men put up on the night of July 2nd ranks among the Best of any Civil War Brigade.

 

[Bruce Vail]

Tom Elmore contributed this related anecdote from Culp's Hill about John Futch, a CSA enlisted man who was executed for desertion about two months after Gettysburg, to a related thread last month:



John Futch (vice Fulch) served as a private in Company K, 3rd North Carolina. He was with his brother Charles at Gettysburg. During the assault on Culp's Hill on the evening of July 2, the brothers were lying down loading and firing when Charles was struck on the top of his head by a minie ball - the 149th New York regiment was in their front at the time. The ball did not penetrate the skull and Charles remained conscious, but he was unable to speak. John carried his brother back across Rock Creek to a field hospital, and remained with him until he died, around 2 p.m. on July 3, and then buried him. Grief stricken over the loss of his brother, John was intensely homesick and also concerned about his wife's financial problems. In a letter to his wife from Orange Court House on August 6, 1863, Futch wrote: "You can't imagine how much I want to see you. It seems I would give everything I possibly [could] to be with you, if only for a short while." This father of two children, a devoted husband, son and brother, who had faithfully served two years in the ranks, was labeled a vile traitor and executed. What a sad and tragic fate.

(Futch's letters can be found online in North Carolina Digital Collections, State Library of North Carolina. See also Valgene Dunham's Allegany to Appomattox, The Life and Letters of Private William Whitlock, of the 188th New York Volunteers, p. 151.)

 

[Northern Light]

Tom Elmore contributed this related anecdote from Culp's Hill about John Futch, a CSA enlisted man who was executed for desertion about two months after Gettysburg, to a related thread last month:



John Futch (vice Fulch) served as a private in Company K, 3rd North Carolina. He was with his brother Charles at Gettysburg. During the assault on Culp's Hill on the evening of July 2, the brothers were lying down loading and firing when Charles was struck on the top of his head by a minie ball - the 149th New York regiment was in their front at the time. The ball did not penetrate the skull and Charles remained conscious, but he was unable to speak. John carried his brother back across Rock Creek to a field hospital, and remained with him until he died, around 2 p.m. on July 3, and then buried him. Grief stricken over the loss of his brother, John was intensely homesick and also concerned about his wife's financial problems. In a letter to his wife from Orange Court House on August 6, 1863, Futch wrote: "You can't imagine how much I want to see you. It seems I would give everything I possibly [could] to be with you, if only for a short while." This father of two children, a devoted husband, son and brother, who had faithfully served two years in the ranks, was labeled a vile traitor and executed. What a sad and tragic fate.

(Futch's letters can be found online in North Carolina Digital Collections, State Library of North Carolina. See also Valgene Dunham's Allegany to Appomattox, The Life and Letters of Private William Whitlock, of the 188th New York Volunteers, p. 151.)

By whom was he executed?

 

[theoldman]

George "Pop" Greene's middle name was Sears. IIRC the ACW author Stephen Sears is related to Greene. "Pop" is one of my favorite ACW and Gettysburg figures.

 

[Bruce Vail]

By whom was he executed?

He was executed by his fellow enlisted men in the 3rd North Carolina State Troops, following a Court Martial that sentenced Futch and nine other men to death on charges of desertion and murder. The ten men had deserted but were apprehended by a detail from the 3rd that had been sent to re-capture them. A gunfight erupted and the Lt. leading the the detail was shot to death. There is a thread from April 15
Executions Sept 5 '63 at Orange Court House? with the details.

 

[Northern Light]

He was executed by his fellow enlisted men in the 3rd North Carolina State Troops, following a Court Martial that sentenced Futch and nine other men to death on charges of desertion and murder. The ten men had deserted but were apprehended by a detail from the 3rd that had been sent to re-capture them. A gunfight erupted and the Lt. leading the the detail was shot to death. There is a thread from April 15
Executions Sept 5 '63 at Orange Court House? with the details.

Thanks, Bruce!

 

[cash]

Great photograph! You always wonder how surreal it was for them to be there again- it had to be.

If Pop Green had had the good sense to order a bayonet charge, that end of the line would have a movie, too. ( That's a joke, no one please yell at me all about his defense ). You know the ' Killer Angels ' perspective of the battle, where everyone arrives at Gettysburg, heads for LRT, the entire Confederate army is faced down there so they try again at Pickett's Charge? Most unhelpful thing in the world to the rest of the line- which is mentioned only in the word ' line'.

" Corps commander Maj. Gen. Henry Slocum attributed "the failure of the enemy to gain possession of our works . . . entirely to the skill of General Greene and the heroic valor of his troops." "

I'm not yelling at you, but I feel compelled to point out the 137th New York of Pap Greene's brigade did conduct a bayonet charge in their defense of Culp's Hill.

I guess they don't write novels and make movies about 60-something generals.

Edit to add: Davide Ireland, the commander of the 137th New York, didn't survive the war, so the couldn't spend the next several decades pushing his version of the battle and getting himself a Medal of Honor for his actions on July 2.

 

[Deleted User CS]

Charlie Fennel, a Gettysburg Licensed Battlefield Guide, wrote his PHD dissertation on General Greene's actions on Culp's Hill while a student at West Virginia University. It is an excellently researched and well written piece of civil war scholarship. Fennel also gives excellent battlefield tours and has spoken to numerous civil war roundtables. In my humble opinion, he is one of the best battlefield guides at Gettysburg.

 

[RI-Tom]

Francis' diary ends on June 29, but resumes from July 19-31. [Diary of Francis Vinton Greene, University of Virginia, Manuscript Collections, MSS-5267]

Tom, I realize you wrote this quite awhile ago but... Do you have any idea about WHY F.V.Greene has this big gap in his Diary? I understand he was left behind in Frederick on 6/29. At what point did he rejoin his father? Also, did you find a digital copy of his diary?

 

[Bee]

I tried to give Greene his due when I created this thread Battle of Gettysburg: General George Sears Greene at Culp's Hill

Most people have seen it -- feel free to ignore it if you have

 

[JohnW.]

Pop Greene is hands down my favorite Union general. Henry Baxter runs a close second.