This pyramid of cannon balls marks where Lieut. General Daniel H. Hill made his headquarters on the afternoon of September 20, 1863 during the
Battle of Chickamauga, fought September 19–20, 1863.
"Daniel Harvey Hill (July 12, 1821 – September 24, 1889) was a Confederate general during the American Civil War and a Southern scholar. He was known as an aggressive leader, and as an austere, deeply religious man, with a dry, sarcastic humor. He was brother-in-law to Stonewall Jackson, a close friend to both James Longstreet and Joseph E. Johnston, but disagreements with both Robert E. Lee and Braxton Bragg cost him favor with Confederate President Jefferson Davis. Although his military ability was well respected, he was underutilized by the end of the Civil War on account of these political feuds."
Source: Wikipedia -
Daniel Harvey Hill
Text:
Headquarters
Hill’s Corps.
Lieut. General Daniel H. Hill
Sept. 20th, 1863, Afternoon
From the marker located across the road at tour stop #2.
The second day begins
Morning brought repeated attacks on the Union breastworks here
By the morning of September 20, 1863, Gen. Braxton Bragg had organized his Confederate army into two wings -- Longstreet on the left and Polk´s here on the right. Bragg ordered Polk to attack at dawn. However, the attack was delayed, in the Federals used the first critical hours of daylight to strengthen their log breastworks.
Finally, at 9:30 a.m. Maj. Gen. John C. Breckinridge´s Confederate Division struck the Union breastworks at this point. Other Confederate units joined them as the attack spread southward along the line of monuments behind you. The pressure of these attacks forced Union commander Maj. Gen. William Rosecrans to move men from his center to stop the attack here on his left.
About noon the futile and costly Confederate charges ended, not be resumed until late afternoon. The federals stood firm behind their log wall, awaiting the outcome of the fighting still raging south of here.
From the NRHP nomination form:
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Structure Number: |
MT-484(see note) |
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LCS ID: |
003261 |
Historical Significance:
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National Register Status:
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Entered - Documented
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National Register Date:
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10/15/1966
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National Historic Landmark?: |
No
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Significance Level:
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Contributing
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Short Significance Description:
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Monument contributes to national significance of park under NR Criterion A because it represents the national movement among veterans & federal government to commemorate Civil War battlefields. This was the first U.S. national military park.
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Short Physical Description
6'2" square at base and 5' high, the monument consists of a pyramid of cannonballs set in cement & painted black, resting on a molded limestone base. Attached to base is a painted metal plaque identifying the headquarters site.
Long Physical Description
Pyramid is made up of artillery shells: 7 wide by 7 deep, and it is 7 layers high.
Monument located within the Chickamauga Battlefield in woods northwest of Tour Stop #2, map site #32.
Material(s)
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Structural Component(s)
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Material(s)
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1.
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Superstructure
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Iron
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2.
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Substructure
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Limestone
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3.
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Superstructure
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Limestone
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4.
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Superstructure
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Concrete
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Construction Period:
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Historic
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Chronology:
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Physical Event
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Begin Year
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Begin Year AD/BC
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End Year
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End Year AD/BC
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Designer
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Designer Occupation
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1.
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Built
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1893
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AD
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1895
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AD
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Betts, E. E.
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Engineer
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My Sources
1.
NRHP Narrative
2. Wikipedia -
Battle of Chickamauga
3. The Civil War Home -
The Chickamauga Campaign - Confederate Order of Battle
4. Wikipedia -
Daniel Harvey Hill
5. Civil War Battlefield Monuments -
Hill’s Corps. Headquarters Shell Monument
Note
Trailhead Graphics, Inc. has produced a map of the Chickamauga Battlefield showing the locations of all of the monuments and the markers on the battlefield. Each location on the map has a number associated with it that cross-references to an index on the back of the map that has the name of the marker (called the Chick-Chatt NMP monument numbering system). This number corresponds to the structure Number listed on the NPS List of Classified Structures that is normally prefixed with the letters MT for the Chickamauga Battlefield.