Human Interest Stories of the Gettysburg Campaign

This volume provides another series of fascinating behind-the-scenes stories to enrich the readers' understanding of this historic event - beyond the tactics familiar to many students of the battle. The descriptive incidents in this work detail the terror and suffering encountered by civilians and soldiers alike, as well as provide tales of lighter moments. These anecdotes humanize the participants and infuse a greater appreciation of their struggles. This carefully selected collection is presented in chronological order and immerses the reader into the unfolding drama of events. Here are some examples: South of Gettysburg, over 90,000 Federal soldiers marched towards an encounter with Robert E. Lee's oft-victorious Confederate army. However, the Yankees' morale was high, and northern Maryland residents eagerly supported the Union cause. For many soldiers, the road to Gettysburg passed through the small seminary town of Emmitsburg. One infantryman later recalled, "Small flags waved and dipped from the tower of the old Lutheran Church, used as a signal station by the army. Bearers of dispatches and squads of cavalry dashed madly through the town. The long roll of drums and the blood-stirring bugle calls filled the air; the fields were alive with soldiers. To the untrained eye, it looked like a great mob. ** As one Union brigade was marching through a town, the drum corps struck up lively music. The colonel noticed that one drummer boy was not beating his drum. He asked his adjutant to find out why the boy was not playing. Riding up to the musicians, the adjutant, with a deep frown on his face, shouted at the boy, "The colonel wants to know why you are not beating your drum?" In a whisper loud enough to be enjoyed some distance down the line, the culprit replied, "Tell the colonel that I can't beat my drum now. I have two live turkeys in my drum-and one of them is for the colonel!"