Medals of Honor for a Squad from the 6th Pennsylvania Reserves on July 2

Tom Elmore

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Sergeant George Washington Mears of Company A, 6th Pennsylvania Reserves, was awarded a Medal of Honor for his actions at Gettysburg on July 2. The citation, dated 16 February 1897, states: “With five volunteers he gallantly charged on a number of the enemy’s sharpshooters concealed in a log house, captured them, and brought them into the Union lines.”

I have long pondered about the location of this log house. The 6th Pennsylvania Reserves (also known as the 35th Pennsylvania Regiment) was on the far right of Brig. Gen. Samuel Crawford’s line when it charged from Little Round Top in a westerly direction on the early evening of July 2. The regiment bore to the right as it advanced and thus wound up north of the Wheatfield road, where it took shelter behind a rock wall bordering the east end of Trostle woods. That is where its monument stands.

A post-war article published in The National Tribune supports the contention that the log house in question was one of the outbuildings of the John T. Weikert place, located nearby, about 150 yards north of the Wheatfield road. According to the article, “When the 6th Reserves charged from Little Round Top down through the historic Wheatfield, Col. [Wellington H.] Ent noticed a number of rebel sharpshooters located in a log house over to the right, who were picking off officers and men of his regiment by their well-directed fire. The Colonel asked Serg’t Mears to call for volunteers and drive the rebels out of the house. Serg’t Mears, at the head of five men, charged the house, and captured about a dozen Johnnies and brought them into our lines prisoners. This was the act that gained him the medal, it being worked up by his comrades at one of the Reunions of the 6th Regiment. … Mears enlisted in Co. A, 6th Pa. Reserves, at the age of 17, in 1861, and served with distinction until the Mine Run movement under Meade, in November, 1863, when a piece of shell shattered his shoulder, and he lost his left arm. He was said by the Surgeon to be the worst wounded man in the division who recovered – [signed] One of His Friends.” The article noted that Mears was then working as the Railroad Agent in Rupert, Pennsylvania.

Given the above explanation, it seems likely that the 6th was already halted behind the wall when they came under fire. Company A is often the far right company in a regiment, so it is logical that a seasoned enlisted man from that company would be tapped to clear out the enemy on that flank. Corporal Chester S. Furman, who was awarded a Medal of Honor for the same action on 3 August 1897, was likewise a member of Company A. However, Corporal Levi D. Rousch, also part of this group, was from Company D; his medal citation date is the same as Furman’s.

As for the identity of the Confederates, given the location, they were most likely Georgians from the brigade of Brig. Gen. William T. Wofford, who had reached that point in their farthest advance just minutes before the Pennsylvania Reserves charged down upon them. More specifically, they were probably from one of the two Legions, which were posted on the left of the brigade and north of the Wheatfield road. My guess would be Phillips’ Legion on the far left, or possibly Cobb’s Legion next to them. The multi-volume Confederate Casualties of Gettysburg was consulted, and it turns out that only one man is listed as captured (unwounded) from Cobb’s Legion, while quite a number were captured (unwounded) from Phillips’ Legion. Therefore I think it reasonable to conclude that most if not all of the dozen or so Confederates who were brought in by Sergeant Mears and his squad are included among the following 16 individuals who were captured (without extenuating circumstances noted) from Phillips’s Legion on July 2:

Private David N. Leverett, A
Private Albert Monroe Robins, A
Private Marcellus Franklin, Broyles, B
Private J. M. Starnes, C
Private R. F. Stephenson, E
Private Thomas F. Downing, E
1st Corporal Timothy Harrigan, E
Private John E. Ray, L
4th Corporal William O. Waters, L
Private Francis Marion Hardman, M
Private William T. Mason, M
1st Corporal Cornelius T. Murdoch, M
Private Isaac K. Robertson, M
Private John Wylie, M
4th Sergeant F. Calaway Scott, O
Private Matthew Marion “Bob” Womack, O

Sources:
The National Tribune, June 24, 1897, p. 3
http://www.pacivilwar.com/cwmohb.html (no longer active)
https://www.americancivilwar.com/medal_of_honor3.html (Furman)
https://www.americancivilwar.com/medal_of_honor7.html (Rousch)
Confederate Casualties of Gettysburg, compiled by John W. Busey and Travis W. Busey, 3:529-534
 
Incidentally, Matilda "Tillie" Pierce (afterwards Mrs. Alleman) observed the charge of the Pennsylvania Reserves from the John T. Weikert house, which she described in her book, At Gettysburg, or, What a Girl Saw and Heard of the Battle, a True Narrative:

http://digital.library.upenn.edu/women/alleman/gettysburg/gettysburg.html

Note one of the illustrations, "Charge of the Pennsylvania Reserves." One of the regiments depicted in the foreground would represent the 6th Pennsylvania Reserves, although they were probably not quite so close as shown. Many wounded occupied the grounds.
 
Interesting. This is the first that I've heard of the log house on the Wiekert property. I find it hard to fathom how both McCandless' and Nevin's brigades could even see in the increasing darkness as they advanced through that area.
 
I figure Crawford (McCandless) charged around sunset, leaving about 20 minutes of sufficient light to still fight.

I don't know much about period architecture, but during that time period around Gettysburg it seems that simple log dwellings could still be found among the poor, but most others had upgraded to larger timber/wood frame houses.

The log house does not appear to be one of the three structures depicted in Tillie's book. It happens that three structures also appear on the Bachelder maps of 1876, but I don't know if they all match with those in her book. I wonder if an original log house - a fourth structure - stood at the time of the battle that was perhaps being used for another purpose, which might not have survived the war or else for very long after the war.
 
I just found this earlier thread:

https://civilwartalk.com/threads/the-log-house.103872/

The answer is in that thread, see #13! According to LBG Gary Kross, the log house was indeed the original John T. Weikert house and was located northwest of the current house and barn. That would place it to the right rear of the 6th when it was behind the wall. Post #6 in that thread also lists three of the other medal winners.
 
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It's public domain in Hathitrust, downloadable. Civilian accounts seem awfully good because unlike soldiers, these places were at least somewhat familiar to them.

tillie weikert farmhouse.jpg
 
You just know somewhere, a civilian or soldier's account is going to mention that old, log house. You know, the gazillion post war books published? There are so many, not necessarily about Gettysburg alone, you just never get through them. The other source which tends to mention things without knowing what they're seeing is, the different relief workers who poured into town. Quite a few walked the battlefield or went out looking for wounded men who may have been missed.

Not saying Gettysburg scholars do not know perfectly well every nook and awful cranny, post battle! It's just funny, what you run into sometimes, following those relief workers around.
 
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