Gettysburg Greg
First Sergeant
- Joined
- Jun 6, 2010
- Location
- Decatur, Illinois
The initials etched into a stone on the McPherson Barn in 1889 are now familiar to many Gettysburg enthusiasts. However, I suspect far fewer people know the fascinating story behind their rediscovery in 2004.
Exposed to the elements for well over a century, the carvings gradually faded into obscurity. Thousands of visitors, battlefield guides, historians, and photographers passed the barn without recognizing their significance.
That changed in 2004 when Jesse Richards, the son of Gettysburg Licensed Battlefield Guide Dave Richards, noticed what appeared to be unusual markings in the stonework while examining the barn's south wall. He pointed them out to his father, who immediately suspected they were hand-carved rather than natural imperfections in the stone.
Further research confirmed that the carvings matched the initials of veterans of the 143rd Pennsylvania Infantry who had visited Gettysburg for the dedication of their regimental monument on September 12, 1889. What had long been dismissed as random scratches turned out to be authentic signatures left by soldiers who had fought at Gettysburg and returned twenty-six years later to commemorate their service.
The remarkable rediscovery was later featured in Civil War Times, accompanied by a photograph of Jesse Richards pointing to the location of the inscriptions just above the louvered vent on the McPherson Barn. Although the carvings remain faint today, they are among the battlefield's most intriguing examples of surviving veteran "graffiti" and serve as a tangible reminder that Gettysburg's history continued long after the guns fell silent.
Below is the photograph of Jesse Richards that appeared in the magazine, along with a close-up of the etched initials as they appear today.
Exposed to the elements for well over a century, the carvings gradually faded into obscurity. Thousands of visitors, battlefield guides, historians, and photographers passed the barn without recognizing their significance.
That changed in 2004 when Jesse Richards, the son of Gettysburg Licensed Battlefield Guide Dave Richards, noticed what appeared to be unusual markings in the stonework while examining the barn's south wall. He pointed them out to his father, who immediately suspected they were hand-carved rather than natural imperfections in the stone.
Further research confirmed that the carvings matched the initials of veterans of the 143rd Pennsylvania Infantry who had visited Gettysburg for the dedication of their regimental monument on September 12, 1889. What had long been dismissed as random scratches turned out to be authentic signatures left by soldiers who had fought at Gettysburg and returned twenty-six years later to commemorate their service.
The remarkable rediscovery was later featured in Civil War Times, accompanied by a photograph of Jesse Richards pointing to the location of the inscriptions just above the louvered vent on the McPherson Barn. Although the carvings remain faint today, they are among the battlefield's most intriguing examples of surviving veteran "graffiti" and serve as a tangible reminder that Gettysburg's history continued long after the guns fell silent.
Below is the photograph of Jesse Richards that appeared in the magazine, along with a close-up of the etched initials as they appear today.
Bringing the