This gorgeous, stone house was used as a Union field hospital. The house is a two story granite building on a granite foundation. It has vertical board and batten on the gable ends. In 1863, the house was a one-story, two-bay stone house. In the later nineteenth century, it was modified to the current two-story. The gable roof is covered with wood shingles. Currently the house is used for Park Service staff housing. (Info found on NPS web site.) According to the NRHP narrative, the house was built in 1798.
Besides being a field hospital and really old, the farm itself saw significant fighting, some of it in the Weikert's yard. The house was located just in front of the main Union battle line throughout most of the battle (July 2-5), which made its use for hospital purposes limited. It was most likely used for shelter and concealment by Union skirmishers engaged with Confederate skirmishers near the Trostle buildings and Plum Run on July 2-4. On July 2, Brigadier General John C. Caldwell's division of Major General Winfield Scott Hancock's Second Corps rushed past the Weikert House on its way to the Wheatfield. George and his family left the farm during the fighting. Afterwards they returned to scenes of desolation familiar to many Gettysburg residents. The house was a field hospital, with wounded filling the parlor and amputated arms and legs piled outside the windows. According to family history, six men died just in the parlor, and the yard was filled with graves. When the buried were exhumed to be placed in the National Cemetery, the missing parlor rug was found, cut into strips as the top and bottom layers of the burial trench. I tried to get close to see all there was to see but thought it was private property. Little did I know (until I returned home) te George Weikert Farm is now owned by the National Park Service. Before the park service acquired the land, the farm was purchased by survivors of the New Jersey Brigade to presrve the land that the brigade held during the battle.
The George Weikert Farm House is at the corner where United States Avenue, Sedgwick Avenue and Slocum Avenue all come together. It is one of several Weickert farms in the area at the time of the battle, with three belonging to George's sons and another to a distant cousin. The farmstead in on the left or south side of the Avenue if traveling east along United States Avenue. The barn is about 150 feet from the road. I visited the interpretive on Thursday, July 5, 2012 @ 5:25 PM, EDT & @ an altitude of 555 feet, ASL. I used a Canon PowerShot 14.1 Megapixel, SX210 IS digital camera for the photos.
The George Weikert Farm House 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 101.
From the Nomination Form:
Extant Civil War housing still within park. It was sited between the 3rd and 4th Corps Army of the Potomac lines, used as field hospital 2nd Day fighting for Union casualties, occupied by Union all 3 days. Owned by Wiekert family to 1863.
Short Physical Description:
2 Story, 2 bay, gable roof internal end chimney, 20'x 27', board & batten gable ends w/ 5'x27' 1-story porch. Rectangular house, replaced log plank house. 1863, 1-story, 2 bay stone house, modified in latter 19th C to 2 story.
Long Physical Description:
House (1798) is a two-story, two-bay granite building on a granite foundation that measures 20.0 x 27.0 feet with a 5.0 x 27.0 foot one-story porch. It has vertical board and batten on the gable ends. In 1863, the house was a one-story, two-bay stone house. In the later nineteenth century, it was modified to the current two-story. The gable roof is covered with wood shingles. It was located just in front of the main Union battle line throughout most of the battle (July 2-5), which limited its usefulness for hospital purposes. It was most likely used for shelter and concealment by Union skirmishers engaged with Confederate skirmishers near the Trostle buildings and Plum Run on July 2-4. After the battle, the house was used for hospital purposes (66th NY Vols.). The interior of the house was altered in configuration of rooms and most fabric (1940s-1950s) for use as ranger station and rental housing by NPS
My Sources
1.
NRHP Nomination Form
2.
Stone Sentinels
3.
Draw the Sword
4.
Civil War Wiki
5.
Library of Congress