Battery D, 2nd U.S. Artillery - US Regulars Tablet - Gettysburg, PA
Posted by: Groundspeak Regular Member Math Teacher
N 39° 47.925 W 077° 13.770
18S E 309124 N 4407798
This monument represents 1 of 45 Civil War US Regulars tablets in the park and generally locates the position occupied by Williston's Regular Battery in the park & reserve during the Battle of Gettysburg, July 2-3, 1863.
Waymark Code: WMF3H8
Location: Pennsylvania, United States
Date Posted: 08/17/2012
Published By:Groundspeak Premium Member iconions
Views: 9

The 2nd United States Artillery, Battery D was also known as Williston’s Battery. During the battle of Gettysburg, it served as a member of Tompkin’s Brigade in the Sixth Corps, Army of the Potomac. The unit was commanded by Lieutenant Edward B. Williston (1836-1920), a native of Norwich, Vermont and graduate of Norwich University. In 1861 he was a civil engineer in San Fransisco, California. He was awarded the Medal of Honor at Trevilian Station in 1864. He then stayed in the post-war regular army. Williston is buried in Arlington National Cemetery. Under his command, his battery has 112 men and 6 Napoleons at Gettysburg and of course suffered no losses as his unit was not engaged with the enemy.

The Battery D, 2nd U.S. Artillery - US Regulars Tablet is located on Taneytown Road (State Highway 134), on the right when traveling north. Parking is not available and I did something kind of risky, parking on the side of the narrow road. I seriously doubt this monument gets any visitors as it is secluded and far away from the battlefield, in the front of and on the side of someone's yard, near the road. There is also a US boundary marker which delineates the various sections of the battlefield. I visited this monument on the afternoon of Monday, August 13, 2012 @ 1:47 P.M. and was at an elevation of 537 feet ASL. I used a Canon PowerShot 14.1 Megapixel, SX210 IS digital camera for the photos.

The monument work was completed under the direction of the Gettysburg National 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 then transferred to the National Park Service in 1933. SOURCE

Draw the Sword, with descriptive help from the NPS site, offers the following description: One of 45 monuments erected to units of the United States regular army on the battlefield. A red polished Jonesboro granite monolith that is set upon a concrete foundation with a descriptive 3’6'x3’7' bronze tablet with the coat of arms of the United States in bronze (this is separate from the bronze tablet). At the top of the tablet, just above the inscription and on the same tablet is the Greek cross symbol of Sixth Corps. Generally locates position occupied by Williston’s Regular Battery in park & reserve during Battle of Gettysburg, July 2-3, 1863. The inscription reads:

Army of the Potomac
Sixth Corps
Artillery Brigade
Battery D Second U.S. Artillery

Four Light 12 Pounders
Lieut. Edward B. Williston commanding

July 2 Arrived with the Corps and took position and remained on Taneytown Road.

Not engaged.

There are hundreds of non-sculpted monumentation for the various Confederate States & Union units which fought at Gettysburg. There are about 10 different variations of tablets, markers & monoliths by my reckoning. Six designs represent brigade (2), division (2), corps (2), & army headquarters (2), each different in a subtle way so as to distinguish between armies. Battalion/battery/advance position markers & regimental monuments for U.S. Regulars & Confederate have their own distinct design (2), bringing the total to 10 designs at the battlefield. The bronze tablets were created by Albert Russell & Sons Co. of Newburyport, Mass. The granite bases which accompany the various tablets were created by the Van Amringe Company from Boston, Mass. The cast iron tablets were manufactured by Calvin Gilbert. The 1910 Gettysburg Commission report lists the awarded contracts to these companies (not Gilbert) for the tablets. All of these tablets were designed by architect Colonel Emmor Bradley Cope (July 23, 1834 - May 28, 1927). He designed pretty much every tablet for both the Union & Rebel armies, each one distinct, w/ several different varieties. He is buried in Evergreen Cemetery in Gettysburg, as well he should be as this park and most of the things seen here today were designed by him and as such, are his legacy. These monuments were erected just after the turn of the century during the first & beginning of the second decade of the 20th century. Each one has since been preserved or restored at least twice since the turn of the 21st century. The plaques & tablets were erected by the Gettysburg Park Commission (established by the War Dept.). The Gettysburg Park Commission is also referred to as the Gettysburg National Military Park Commission or the Gettysburg National Park Commission, to clear up any confusions, especially my own.

On October 1, 1898, the Gettysburg National Park Commission in a letter to the Secretary of War set gave recommendations for continuing the task of organizing & progressing the work of the Gettysburg National Military Park. Every November they wrote their annual report which outlined the work of the GNPC for that year. The following is an excerpt from that report relevant to this waymark. The link at the end of the paragraph will take you to the entire report. The method of marking the positions of troops on this field, as approved by the War Department, is to place the principal tablet or monument of each command at the position occupied by the command in the main line of battle, and to mark the several important positions subsequently reached by each command in the course of the battle by subordinate and ancillary tablets, with appropriate brief inscriptions giving interesting details and occurrences and noting the day and hour as nearly as possible. SOURCE

Most of the Commission reports have been digitized and can be found HERE. The initial 1893 report up to & including 1921 can be found here. 1922 to 1926 are missing & have yet to be discovered. The years 1927 to 1933 were discovered in 1996 and are also included. To my knowledge this is the most comprehensive list of documents that illustrated the development and formation of the park.

Information about these specific types of monuments:
UNITED STATES REGULARS TABLETS
Forty-two monuments honor units of the regular army who fought at Gettysburg. Other sources have the amount at forty-four tablets while I have personally counted 48 of these monuments. These regiments and batteries were designated as United States Regulars as opposed to the state volunteer forces. These polished granite monuments with bronze plaques affixed to the front were fabricated by the Van Amringe Granite Company, of Boston and authorized in 1907. They were completed in the autumn of 1908. Each consists of Jonesboro granite, 24 by 50 inches and 7 feet high, set upon concrete foundations, and upon each is fastened a descriptive bronze tablet and the coat of arms of the United States. They are similar in appearance to and often mistaken for headquarter markers, since they have the same curved-and-scrolled top on the bronze tablet as corps and army headquarters. The difference is that instead of being square, the stone comes to a peak in the center on the U.S. Regulars monuments, with a brass Great Seal of the United States centered within the peak. On each inscribed bronze tablet, there is also a Corps, Artillery or Engineering symbol above the inscription. SOURCE & SOURCE


The Battery D, 2nd U.S. Artillery - US Regulars Tablet 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 designated as structure no. MN668.

From the Nomination Form:
1 of 45 Civil War US Regular Tablets in Park. Generally locates position occupied by Williston's Regular Battery in park & reserve during Battle of Gettysburg, July 2-3, 1863.

Short Physical Description:
Red granite monolith w/rough-hewn sides & back, 4'2"x2', 7" high. Gable top. Bronze inscription tablet, 3'6"x3'7", mounted on polished face. Bronze seal of US Coat of Arms, 1' in diameter, on face above tablet. Located on E side of Taneytown Rd, between Wheatfield Rd & Granite Schoolhouse Rd.

Long Physical Description:
N/A

My Sources
1. NRHP Nomination Form
2. Stone Sentinels
3. Virtual Gettysburg
4. Draw the Sword
5. Historical Marker Database

Date Installed or Dedicated: 07/01/1907

Name of Government Entity or Private Organization that built the monument: Gettysburg National Military Park Commission

Union, Confederate or Other Monument: Union

Rating (1-5):

Related Website: [Web Link]

Photo or photos will be uploaded.: yes

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