The Gettysburg National Park Commission [The Commission is also referred to as the Gettysburg National Military Park Commission or the Gettysburg Park Commission], established by the United States Department of War, after they took over the administration of the park from the Gettysburg Battlefield Memorial Association (whose funds had expired) on March 3, 1893, and whose stewardship was later transferred to the National Park Service in 1933 (SOURCE), took a pictorial inventory of many of the existing monuments in the eventual historic district (a majority of them seem to have been Pennsylvania monuments being there are over one hundred of them). These pictures were included in their yearly Commission reports. I have found hundreds of these pictures on Virtual Gettysburg, a comprehensive website which pictorially inventories all the monuments and provides minor narratives as well. All the photos look the same as if they were taken by the same camera and in the same approximate time period. Even the angles are all the same, positioning the monument at a slight right angle (standing to the left), revealing a little of the left side of the monument. The entire park looks so young and immature when the photos were taken. After all, the Battle of Gettysburg was thirty-seven years old at the time and war veterans were only in their fifties. I have never been able to find any photo credits (I have a sneaking suspicion some of the photos may have been snapped by members of the Park Commissions and published in their annual November report to the War Department) but I know they are public domain because their copyrights have all expired. This picture represent the efforts of the Commission well into the Commission period. Most of my pictures I use come from a website called Virtual Gettysburg. It seems however, all the pictures of the New York monuments were either borrowed from or shared with a New York monuments website. That site, The New York State Division of Military & Naval Affairs can be found HERE. This picture was found on the Virtual Gettysburg site which can be found HERE, and also on the New York Site. I used the pic from the New York site as it shows more and it appears to have been untouched.
Clearly it is evident, through a survey of historical pictures and other archival information (such as the annual Commission reports), much change has occurred at Gettysburg Battlefield. With the passage of legislation affording historical status to this site as well as placing it under the auspices of the National Park Service, its patrons and caretakers had to groom and prepare the area to make it more authentic as well as educational. Today the battlefield has managed to maintain an authentic 1863 feel, but back then, as evident in the many photos, it was a desolate, empty place of brown and green fields broken only by the occasional farmstead, their outbuildings and fields of crops. With the emergence and dedication of hundreds of monuments during the commemoration period and all the other dedications prior to 1900, and the development of farmland, some change has occurred but for the most part, nothing too dramatic. This picture was taken from Final Report on the Battlefield of Gettysburg (New York at Gettysburg) by the New York Monuments Commission for the Battlefields of Gettysburg and Chattanooga. Albany, NY: J.B. Lyon Company, 1902, making the tandem 110 years old. Although the monument is unchanged in 110 years, the background is drastically different. The United States Regulars monuments which today line Pleasonton Avenue are all missing as they were yet to be erected and would not be for another 17 years. Additionally, there are buildings which no longer appear and the southern side of the road, to the rear of the monument, is now lined with mature trees, obscuring that once open view.
The 15th & 50th New York Engineers Monument is located on the north or left side of Pleasanton Avenue if traveling east, northeast of the Pennsylvania State Monument, (which is located on the east or right side of Hancock Avenue), near the Hummelbaugh farm & East of Hancock Avenue. Both monuments being south of Gettysburg. This particular monument is roadside and easily accessible. The front of the monument faces the west so one would need to face east to read. This location is a hot-bed of activity and one of the best examples of a hands-on history lesson of the Civil War one could hope to find. All along both sides of the road are these types of tablets, memorials, monuments, sculptures, and all manner of cannons, rifles and guns. Parking is available at enlarged shoulder cutouts on the right side of the road, directly across from the various monuments. Be sure to keep vehicles off the grass or you will be ticketed by park police. I visited this monument on Thursday, July 5, 2012 approximately 6:15 P.M. I was at an elevation of 575 feet, ASL. I used a Canon PowerShot 14.1 Megapixel, SX210 IS digital camera for the photos. As already stated, the monument faces west. I faced the southeast to match up my photo, placing the monument at a slight angle, revealing part of the left side. I was about 10 feet away when I took my picture.
From a previous waymark about this monument:
The 15th and 50th New York Engineers served as a member of Benham’s Brigade in the Army of the Potomac. This unit was not present at Gettysburg but participated peripherally in the battle. This memorial records that although the unit participated in Gettysburg campaign, they were not actually at the battlefield. There are several monuments @ Gettysburg for units who helped, aided or assisted but did not have a physical presence on the battlefield. The 15th and 50th helped lay pontoons over the Rappahannock and Monocacy Rivers in June of 1863 to facilitate troop movements.
The Draw the Sword site helped out by the NPS narrative and the SIRIS site offers the following description: Monument consists of three coursed piers connected by granite coursing. The center pier is shorter than the two flanking piers. A bronze tondo, relief and tablets are affixed to the piece. The monument was built with the combined state appropriations of these two units and cost $3,000.00. The bronze relief depicts the massive pontoon bridge erected to span the Potomac River to allow the Army of the Potomac to pursue the Army of Northern Virginia into the North. Monument is a miniature Corps of Engineers castle composed of coursed and rough cut granite set on a 14.3×4.9 foot base. The castle has bronze medallions, tablets, bas-reliefs, and excised inscriptions. Overall height is twelve feet. I learned the Corps Castle is the logo of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). The logo is typically a white castle with three towers set on a red background. I saw several monuments which took the form of a castle, presumably because they were a unit of engineers or performed similar tasks.
The monument was dedicated on September 17, 1890 by the State of New York. The monument is composed of granite with some bronze elements and has the following dimensions: The sculpture is approximately 11 feet 6 inches x 13 feet 7 inches x 3 feet 11 inches and the base is 14 feet 4 inches in with and 4 feet 9 inches in depth. The monument is so complicated and intricate, it took two fabricators to produce, namely Beattie & Brooks, and Frederick & Field. In my extensive investigations of the battlefield monumentation, I have run across these two fabricator companies scores of times. There are inscriptions on the front, right and left sides, all of which read:
(Front):15th and 50th
New York
Engineers
Head-quarters A.P.
(Right):15th New York Engineers.
Mustered in June 17th, 1861.
Mustered out July 2nd, 1865.
Participated in all the campaigns
of the Army of the Potomac,
Ending at Appomattox.
(Left):50th New York Engineers.
Mustered in Sept. 18th, 1861.
Mustered out June 13th, 1865.
Participated in all the campaigns
of the Army of the Potomac,
ending at Appomattox.
The 15th & 50th New York Engineers Monument is a contributing feature to the Gettysburg National Military Park Historic District which is nationally significant under NR Criteria A, B, C & D. Areas of Significance: Military, Politics/Government, Landscape Architecture, Conservation, Archeology-Historic. Period of Significance: 1863-1938. The original National Register Nomination was approved by the Keeper March 19, 1975. An update to this nomination was approved by the Keeper on January 23, 2004. The monument is identified as structure number MN258.
From the Nomination Form:
1 of 90 Civil War Monuments to New York of the GBMA Era (1863 - 1895). Indicates participation in Gettysburg campaign though not present during battles, laid pontoons over Rappahannock & Monocacy Rivers June 1863 to facilitate troop movements. Located N side Pleasonton Avenue.
Short Physical Description:
Mn base 14'3"x4'9", Minature Corps of Engineers castle. Composed of coursed, rough-cut & laid granite w/ bronze medallions, tablets, bas-reliefs & excised inscriptions. All 12' H.
Long Physical Description:
Monument is a miniature Corps of Engineers castle composed of coursed and rough cut granite set on a 14.3x4.9 foot base. The castle has bronze medallions, tablets, bas-reliefs, and excised inscriptions. Overall height is twelve feet. Located on the north side of Pleasonton Avenue.
My Sources
1.
NRHP Nomination Form
2.
SIRIS
3.
Stone Sentinels
4.
Virtual Gettysburg
5.
Draw the Sword
6.
Historical Marker Database
7.
New York State Military Museum
8.
New York State Military Museum