First Day at Gettysburg: Crisis at the Crossroads

9. The Advent of Early, and His Fight with Schurz

CHAPTER 9 The Advent of Early and His Fight with Schurz THE UNION DEFEAT AT CHANCELLORSVILLE WAS ALL THE ELEVenth Corps' fault-so said many of the critics of this unfortunate body of troops; and 0.0. Howard and Fighting Joe Hooker were the particular malefactors in that dreadful fiasco. The Eleventh Corps had been stationed on the extreme right wing of the Army of the Potomac at Chancellorsville in early May of 1863, and had been overwhelmed by the ferocious flank attack of Stonewall Jackson. It had, fairly or unfairly, received a bad name in the press and in the army for its inability to stay Jackson's thunderbolt. Now, on July I, two divisions of Howard's corps, commanded by Schurz, were again to encounter a mighty onslaught against the right flank of a Union line of battle, this time on the plain to the north of Gettysburg. Could these illstarred Federals-composed of large numbers of German-American soldiers-repel the surging grayclads, or would they again cave in and thereby endanger the entire National battle position? The decision would soon be forthcoming. While Doubleday'S First Corps was contending with the Confederate divisions of Heth, Rodes, and then Pender, the Eleventh Corps was seeking to rout Doles to the north of town. The fate of the field, however, was to be decided by the fortuitous arrival on the Union right flank of Early's First Division, Ewell's corps. "Old Jube," marching via the Harrisburg road, came onto the field a little before 3:00 p.m./ with about 6,300 effectives under his command.2 Early's advance had been detected by Devin's blue cavalry vedettes sometime 75 before in the afternoon,3 causing Howard to throw two of his three Eleventh Corps divisions onto the plain north of town. Unfortunately for the Federals, owing to the presence of Doles' and O'Neal's Confederate brigades and two enemy batteries on the eastern slope of Oak Hill, Howard and Schurz were unable to make connection of their left with Robinson's right on Oak Ridge. Early deployed his brigades-facing southwestward-across the Harrisburg road, north of the bridge over Rock Creek. On his right was Brigadier General John B. Gordon's Fourth Brigade, to the right (west) of the road. Gordon aligned his regiments from right to left as follows: the 60th Georgia (Captain W.B. Jones), the 31st Georgia (Colonel Clement A. Evans), the 13th Georgia (Colonel James M. Smith), the 61st Georgia (Colonel John H. Lamar), and the 38th Georgia (Captain William L. McLeod).4 Gordon's 26th Georgia regiment (Colonel E.N. Atkinson) was detached to support Jones' artillery battalion.5 Posted on Gordon's left was Brigadier General Harry T. Hays' First Brigade, which was deployed as follows from right to left: the 5th Louisiana (Major Alexander Hart), the 6th Louisiana (Lieutenant CONFEDEDATE ~ UNION 330pm ,JULY I ~' W- -'+' -E SCALE I I I I o Yo '14 VZ MI~£ S Colonel Joseph Hanlon), the 9th Louisiana (Colonel Leroy A. Stafford ), with its right wing to the west of the Harrisburg road and its left wing to the east of the road, the 7th Louisiana (Colonel D.B. Penn), and the 8th Louisiana (Colonel T.D. Lewis).6 On the left of Hays' brigade was Brigadier General Robert F. Hoke's Second Brigade, commanded in this battle by Colonel Isaac E. Avery. Avery threw his regiments into line of battle on the left (east) side of the Harrisburg road in the following order from right to left: the 6th North Carolina (Major S.M. Tate), the 21st North Carolina (Colonel W.W. Kirkland), and the 57th North Carolina (Colonel A.G Godwin).7 In reserve, supporting the division artillery batteries, and not actively engaged, was the Third Brigade, commanded by Brigadier General William ("Extra Billy") Smith. Smith deployed his regiments on the left of the Harrisburg road, well to the rear of Hays' and Avery's brigades, in the following manner from right to left: the pnd Virginia (Lieutenant Colonel James H. Skinner), the 49th Virginia (Lieutenant Colonel J. Cattlett Gibson), and the 31st Virginia (Colonel John S. Hoffman).8 Accompanying Early's infantry was his divisional artillery battalion , commanded by Lieutenant Colonel H.P. Jones. Jones' batteries went into position on the eastern side of the Harrisburg road, about one-half mile north of the bridge over...