5th New Hampshire Infantry Monument - Gettysburg, PA
Posted by: Groundspeak Regular Member Math Teacher
N 39° 47.704 W 077° 14.511
18S E 308056 N 4407416
This monument represents one of four in the park to New Hampshire commands @ Gettysburg and marks spot where Colonel Edward Cross fell mortally wounded on July 2, 1863. This is one of the most unique monuments at the battlefield.
Waymark Code: WMFGK2
Location: Pennsylvania, United States
Date Posted: 10/17/2012
Published By:Groundspeak Premium Member iconions
Views: 6

The 5th New Hampshire Infantry was also known as The Bloodless Fifth. During the battle of Gettysburg, it served as a member of Cross’ Brigade in Caldwell’s Division of the Second Corps, Army of the Potomac, a Fighting 300 Regiment. The regiment has the unfortunate distinction of having sustained the greatest total loss in battles of any infantry or cavalry regiment in the Union Army, with a total of 295 killed and 756 wounded, for a total of 1,051 men. The infantry was commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Charles Hapgood (1830-1909). Under Hapgood''s command, his unit brought 182 men to the Gettysburg battlefield and among them 27 were killed, 53 were wounded. Information on Hapgood is scarce. All I could recover was he was a merchant in Amherst and was wounded at Petersburg.

The 5th New Hampshire Infantry Monument is located on the right or southern side of Ayers Avenue, just east, northeast of the Sickles Avenue intersection, if traveling northeast along the road. The front of the monument faces the west, parallel with the road. Parking is available at small, cutout shoulders along the road, some wide, some narrow. Be sure to stay off the grass or you will be ticketed by park police. I visited this monument on Thursday, July 5, 2012 at 1:57 P.M. I was at an elevation of 616 feet, ASL. I used a Canon PowerShot 14.1 Megapixel, SX210 IS digital camera for the photos.

The Draw the Sword site helped out by the NPS narrative and the SIRIS site offers the following description: Costing just $600.00, the monument was designed by Major Frank Rice of the 31st Massachusetts. Although simple and perhaps unimpressive to modern visitors, the monument is meant to symbolize the men of the Granite state who were, in the words of the regimental scribe William A. Child, “hard, enduring, patient, and unmovable.” Monument comprised of an octagonal mid-section with bronze text plaques, topped by a large boulder. Here July 2, 1863, from 5 p.m. till 7 the 5th N.H. Vols. stood and fought. Total engaged 182. Killed or mortally wounded 31. Total killed and wounded 81. On this spot fell mortally wounded Edward E. Cross, Col. 5th N.H. Vols. Comdg. 1st. Brigade, 1st. Division, 2nd Corps. July 2nd, 1863.

The monument was erected on July 2, 1886 on the twenty-third anniversary of the Battle by the State of New Hampshire. The monument is composed of granite with some bronze elements and a bunch of huge stone/boulders. The monument has the following dimensions: Height 6 feet 6 inches x 8 feet x 3 feet. The monument was fabricated by J.F. Hunton & Thos. Nahn Granite. There are inscriptions on seven separate bronze plaques, all of which read:

(Text Displayed on Plaques, presented counterclockwise)
(First Plaque):
Here July 2, 1863, from 5 p.m. till 7
the 5th N.H. Vols. stood and fought.
Total engaged 182.
Killed or mortally wounded 31.
Total killed and wounded 81.

(Second Plaque):
Killed or Mortally Wounded
2nd Lieut. Ruel G. Austin.
Sergeant Oscar D. Allen.
Sergeant Samuel Dolbear.
Sergeant Charles H. Phelps.
Sergeant William B. Welch.
Corporal Charles F. Burrell.
Corporal Edwin B. Gilley.

(Third Plaque):
Corporal George H. Hackett.
Corporal Warren M. Parker.
Corporal George W. Sylvester.
Corporal Edward G.F. Stinson.
Corporal Joseph Tricky.
Private Byron Bennett.
Private Horace Bolio.
Private Joseph Bond Jr.

(Fourth Plaque):
Private George H. Bucknam.
Private James Burns.
Private Joseph Craig.
Private Charles A. Damon.
Private Lucius Feeney.
Private Andrew J. Foss.
Private Samuel R. Green.
Private Charles Kimball.

(Fifth Plaque):
Private George W. Kimball.
Private Charles A. Lovejoy.
Private Nathan B. Osmer.
Private Eliph B. Stevens.
Private Roland Taylor.
Private Nathan B. Thompson.
Private Otis Thompson.

(Sixth Plaque):
The State of New Hampshire
erected this monument
July 2nd 1886
to commemorate the valor of her sons

(Seventh Plaque):
On this spot fell mortally wounded
Edward E. Cross, Col. 5th N.H. Vols.
Comdg. 1st. Brigade, 1st. Division, 2nd Corps.
July 2nd, 1863.


The 5th New Hampshire 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 MN131-B.

From the Nomination Form:
Marks spot where Colonel Edward Cross fell mortally wounded on July 2, 1863. 1 of 4 mns in Park to New Hampshire command at Gettysburg. Located on Ayres Ave near Wheatfield.

Short Physical Description:
Mn, 1 flank & 1 position marker. Base of 4 boulders w/4'H inscribed boulder on top; octagonal apex monument rests on base 1'8" h, 3' w. Bronze tablet on each of 8 faces. Flank marker, 1'2'x6"x10". Position marker, base 2'2" sq. Shaft 1'7" sq. 4'10" h

Long Physical Description:
Monument that has one flanking marker and one position marker. Monument is an octagonal apex resting on a base of four native granite boulders with a four foot high inscribed boulder on top. Each of the octagonal sides contains a bronze tablet. Designed by the veterans of the 5th New Hampshire. Flanking marker is 1.2x6 foot. Position marker is a 1.7 foot square shaft on a 2.2 foot base with an overall height of 4.10 foot. Located on Ayres Avenue near the Wheatfield. Marks the spot where Colonel Edward Cross fell.


My Sources
1. NRHP Nomination Form
2. SIRIS
3. Stone Sentinels
4. Virtual Gettysburg
5. Draw the Sword
6. Historical Marker Database
7.
8.
Find a Grave

Website pertaining to the memorial: [Web Link]

List if there are any visiting hours:
8:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M.- November 1 through March 31 8:00 A.M. to 6:00 P.M.- April 1 to October 31


Entrance fees (if it applies): 0

Type of memorial: Monument

Visit Instructions:

*(1.)* Please submit a photo(s) taken by you of your visit to the location (non-copyrighted photos only). GPS photos are also accepted with the location in the background, and old vacation photos are accepted. If you are not able to provide a photo, then please describe your visit or give a story about the visit.
*(2.)* If you have additional information about the memorial which is not listed in the waymark description, please notify the waymark owner to have it added, and please post the information in your visit log.
Search for...
Geocaching.com Google Map
Google Maps
MapQuest
Bing Maps
Nearest Waymarks
Nearest Specific Veteran Memorials
Nearest Geocaches
Create a scavenger hunt using this waymark as the center point
Recent Visits/Logs:
Date Logged Log User Rating  
Searcher28 visited 5th New Hampshire Infantry Monument - Gettysburg, PA 06/18/2016 Searcher28 visited it
ChapterhouseInc visited 5th New Hampshire Infantry Monument - Gettysburg, PA 04/05/2015 ChapterhouseInc visited it
NorStar visited 5th New Hampshire Infantry Monument - Gettysburg, PA 09/02/2014 NorStar visited it

View all visits/logs