** The complete 17-picture gallery for this monument can be found
HERE. **
A nine-month Regiment, Antietam was the 124th's first combat, they having been only about a month in service. They crossed South Mountain on 15 September without seeing action. Colonel Hawley was wounded and relieved by Major Haldeman who led the Regiment in their charge into and through the Cornfield as part of the Federal XII Corps on the morning of 17 September. The regiment's chain of command was 1st Brigade, 1st Division, XII Corps.
The sculpture/monument can be found is at the intersection of Starke Avenue and Dunker Church Road, on the right when traveling west on Starke Avenue. There is room on the side of the road for cars to pull over if you care to get a closer look. Otherwise, it is easily viewable from an open car window. This is actually a nice place to visit as there are lots of huge monuments in this immediate area.
The SIRIS site describes this beautiful monument and figurative sculpture of a soldier as a standing figure of an infantryman, his proper right hand holding a musket topped by a bayonet and his proper left hand resting on his belt. He is dressed in a heavy top coat and cape, and he carries a knapsack and blanket roll on his back. The sculpture stands atop a granite base carved on the front with a five-pointed star emblem of the Twelfth Army Corps. Below the emblem is a circular plaque bearing the regimental designation and below that is a bronze plaque bearing the Pennsylvania state seal. I realized this statue is different because the soldier topping the monument is bronze, not in granite, like the other PA infantry monuments with soldiers on top.
The sculpture is approximately 8 feet 4 inches height with a width of about 3 feet. The base is approximately 11 feet 6 inches in height with a width of 9 feet squared. The sculpture of the soldier is composed of bronze with the base constructed of Westerly, Rhode Island granite. The monument was sculpted by Pierre Feitu (born 1868), and contracted by the Van Amringe Granite Company. The monument was dedicated Sept. 17, 1904 by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The multi-sided inscription on this memorial lists the complete service history of this unit and reads as follows:
Colonel Joseph W. Hawley
(Right Plaque):Sept. 17, 1862
Antietam
Chancellorsville
May 1-2-3, 1863
(Lower Right Inscription):Recruited in Chester and Delaware Counties August 1862 for Nine Months Service
(Rear Plaque):Erected by State of Pennsylvania and Survivors Association 1904
(Lower Rear Inscription):Casualties at Antietam
Killed 5
Wounded 42
Missing 17
Total 64
(Left Plaque):1st Brigade
1st Division
12th Corps
(Lower Right Inscription):It was near this spot that the Regiment within Six Weeks after leaving home took an active part in this great battle.
From 1890s to 1960s veterans’ organizations erected monuments to commemorate the people and actions associated the Battle of Antietam (16-18 September 1862). The 124th PA Vol Infantry Monument contributes to the National Register District under Criterion A with the period of significance 1800-1899. The monument is designated as structure number 099.
The 124th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry Monument (1904) is significant under Criterion A because of its association with the commemoration of the Battle of Antietam. The monuments and markers at Antietam represent a wide sampling of late 19th and early 20th century military memorialization from the period when such monumentation was in its heyday.
This monument marks the location where the regiment engaged the Confederates on 17 September 1862. It honors those members of the 124th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry that died during the battle. The unit suffered 64 casualties at Antietam.The monument was funded by the Commonweath of Pennsylvania and Survivor's Association. It was designed by sculptor Pierre Fietu. The National Park Service cleaned and the monument and waxed its bronze components in 1990.
The 124th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry Monument was dedicated 17 September 1904, and listed on the National Register on October 15, 1966, with a confirmation National Register form updated and approved by the Keeper on February 10, 1982. There are a total of 19 monuments and markers dedicated to the Pennsylvania troops at Antietam.
Short Physical Description
The 124th PA Vol Inf Monument is located to the NW of the intersection of Starke Ave. and Old Hagerstown Pike. It consists of a 3-tier granite base supporting a pedestal capped with a bronze statue of a soldier holding a rifle. Bronze plaques are located on the front and sides of the monument.
The 124th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry Monument consists of a square three-tier rough-cut base supporting a pedestal and bronze soldier. It is located to the northwest of the intersection of Starke Avenue and Old Hagerstown Pike,
Long Physical Description
The three-tiered base measures 9’ x 9’ square and is made from rough-cut quarry stone. A bronze plaque of the Pennsylvania coat-of-arms is located on the south elevation of the base, and a smoothed surface on its east elevation bears the inscription: “RECRUITED/ IN CHESTER AND/ DELAWARE COUNTIES/ AUGUST 1862/ FOR NINE MONTHS/ SERVICE.”
A similar inscription on the west elevation of the base reads: “1ST BRIGADE/ 1ST DIVISION/ 12 CORPS/ IT WAS NEAR THIS SPOT THAT THE REGIMENT/ WITHIN SIX WEEKS AFTER LEAVING HOME/ TOOK AN ACTIVE PART IN THIS GREAT BATTLE.”
Another smoothed surface on the north elevation of the base reads: “ERECTED BY STATE OF PENNSYLVANIA AND SURVIVORS ASSOCIATION 1904.”
The 11’6’ pedestal is crafted from Westerly, Rhode Island granite and features a rough-cut dado with a smooth-faced plinth and capstone. The south elevation of the plinth is inscribed with “Colonel Joseph W. Hawley.” A bronze medallion located on the south elevation of the plinth reads: “124TH PENNSYLVANIA VOLUNTEER INFANTRY/ COLONEL JOSEPH W. HAWLEY.”
My Source
1.
NRHP Nomination Form
2.
SIRIS
3.
Stone Sentinels
4.
Virtual Antietam
4.
Historical Marker Database
5.
National Park Service
6.
Antietam on the Web