I have a strong feeling the Gettysburg Military Park Commission or whatever the equivalent of the National Park Service was in 1900 took an inventory of all the existing monuments in the eventual historic district. I have found hundreds of these pictures on Virtual Gettysburg, a nice website which inventories all the monuments. All the photos look the same as if it was the same camera and in the same approximate time period, this one included. The weather even looks the same in most of them, sometimes there are leaves on the trees, sometimes they are barren. The entire park looks so young and immature when the photos were taken. After all, the Battle of Gettysburg was only 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 but I know they are public domain. This picture can be found HERE
Clearly it is evident, through a survey of historical pictures and other archival information, 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 this place has the 1863 period feel, but back then, as evident in the many photos, it was a desolate, empty place of green fields with the emergence and dedication of hundreds of monuments. I see no real changes in the two pictures; the landscape continue unbroken and undeveloped.
The monument resides on East Howard Road, on the south side facing north. I faced south when I snapped my picture, capturing the monument full frontal. Dusk had already fallen about the great battlefield and the plain grew quiet and still. I stayed for while, trying to save a little more of the day before darkness settled in for the evening and enveloped us all, me and the monuments. My picture was taken Wednesday, April 20th, 2011 whilst I was on Spring Break from my middle school. I used my cr@ppy General Electric 10.1 megapixel model # A1050 digital camera. I hurriedly took several other photos of similar monuments all on this road. I noticed I have had to crop my pictures to get them to be the same frame size as the originals; this one was no exception. The 1900 picture was taken about earl summer, a few months after mine. My picture the trees can be seen emerging from their winter slumber but in the 1900s picture, we see full foliage.
From my previous waymark:
The monument to the Twenty Sixth Wisconsin Infantry Regiment is north of Gettysburg on Howard Avenue east of Carlisle Road The 26th Wisconsin Infantry served as a member of Kryzanowski’s Brigade in Schurz’s Division of the Elventh Corps, Army of the Potomac. A Fighting 300 Regiment who was commanded by Lt. Col. Hans Bobel (1829-1870) a printer from Milwaukee. He was wounded on July 1. Captain John W. Fuchs then took command.
The monument to the 75th Pennsylvania Infantry is north of Gettysburg on the south side of East Howard Avenue 430 feet east of Biglerville Road. The Draw the Sword site helped out by the NPS narrative and the SIRIS site offers the following description: Obelisk stands on a pedestal and two-tiered rough-hewn base. Base is three-part of which the lowest is six foot square. Overall height is 14.10 foot. Flanking markers are finished and polished with excised inscription, 1.4×1.2 foot. There is a relief of a crescent Corps insignia in the middle of the obelisk. The half moon on the monument is the symbol for the Union 11th Army Corps. It marks the position held by the 26th Wisconsin Infantry on July 1, 1863. The monument was dedicated on June 30, 1888 and fabricated by the Ryegate Granite Company. The dimensions are: Sculpture: approx. H. 114 ft. 10 in.; Base: approx. W. 6 ft. x D. 6 ft. The monument is composed of Sculpture: pink granite; Base: grey granite.
The text of the marker reads:
(Front):
Juy 1, 1863
On Cemetery Hill
July 2 and 3
Effective Strength 516
Killed 46
Wounded 134
Missing 37
26th Reg't.
Wis. Vol. Inf.(Left):Chancellorsville
Gettysburg
Wauhatchie
Chatanooga
Atlanta Campaign
To the Sea
Averysboro
Bentonville(Right):Mustered in
at Milwaukee
Sept. 17, 1862
Mustered out
June 28, 1865
Killed in Action 128
Died of wounds 56
Died of disease 63
(Back):2d Brig
3d Div
11th Corps
The 26th Wisconsin Infantry 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 MN063-B.
From the nomination form:
1 of 6 Monumnets to Wisconsin. Indicates position held by 26th Wisconsin right of Krzyzanowski's Brigade, Union XI Corps. Located S side E Howard Av., LF&RF markers at 46' & 126', respectively from Mn.
Short Physical Description:
Mn & 2 flank markers. 3 part base, fnd bottom 6' sq. Rough-cut design w/tooled polished edge from base thru shaft. Topped w/ finished pryamidal cap. All 14'10" H. Flank Mkrs 1'6"x1'2"x2'2"H, finished & polished w/ excised inscription.
Long Physical Description
Monument that has two flanking markers. Monument is rough-cut granite design with tooled polished edges from the base through the shaft, which is topped with a finished pyramidal cap. Base is three-part of which the lowest is six foot square. Overall height is 14.10 foot. Flanking markers are finished and polished with excised inscription, 1.4x1.2 foot. Located on the south side of East Howard Avenue.
My Sources
1.
Draw the Sword
2.
SIRIS
3.
Virtual Gettysburg
4.
Historical Marker Database
5.
Stone Sentinels
6.
NRHP Narrative