The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1889-10-21
STEVENS KNOLL.
Maine Audience Entertained sy
Stories Of Actors In the Gettysburg
Drama
written for the Press. i

of Kennebec county commanded the Battery
and Is authority for that portion
of the battle which occurred before he was
wounded and compelled to leave the
field. Major Stevens tells the story
thus: "The Fifth Maine Battery
belonged to the First Corps of the Army
OF the Potomac reynolds Corps The bat
terry arrived at Gettysburg with the corps on
July LIST, 1868. The only Maine troops be-
longing to the corps were the Second Battery
(HalPs) the Fifth Battery (Stevens) and the
Sixteenth Regiment, Infantry (Col Tilden).
They were all the Maine troops that were
In the first days fight We marched 10
Gettysburg by way of Frederick City, Mary
land, and Emmittsburg. We arrived in sight
of Gettysburg about or 10o'clock in the
forenoon, and turning out of the Emmitts-
burg road about three fourths of a mile south
of Gettysburg halted near the southerly
point Of the woods south of the Seminary.
There we threw off the forage we were haul
ing on the guns and went into position in the
southerly end of the grove before mentioned,
but did no firing. We remained there two
hours or more when the fight commenced in
front of us, and near where Reynolds had
been killed and further to our right in good
earnest.
''We were then withdrawn, marched along
in the rear of our line and put in position
Immediately to the right of the seminary
with Cooper's Battery, the First Pennsyl-
vania, on our left. The firing was very heavy
in our front. Both batteries were obliged to
fire over the heads of our infantry, who were
on the lower ground in front. We held this
position until the infantry were pressed back
upon us, and our line of battle was out
fanked or overreached by the enemy, when
the whole line-infantry and artillery-gave
way. The artillery or the First Corps re-
treated down the Chambersburg Pike,
Cooper's Battery, Fifth Maine and Battery
B, Fourth United States Artillery, all came
down at the same time. l do not know
which way Halls Second Maine Battery
went He had been badly knocked earlier
in the day. We came down the Chambers
burg road into the town until we struck what
have now learned to be Baltimore street,
then marched through this street and up the
Baltimore pike, opposit- the cemetery gete,
where we met General Hancock. He called
for the captain of shat brass battery" |
heard what he said and put myself in to his
presence.
HE ordered me to take my battery on to
that hill, which has since been called Ste
vens's Knoll" where the earth-works are
| thrown up. We Immediately opened upon
| the enemy, who were sweeping around the
town, and up through the lowland about
Culp's barn. No infantry were on our right
in sight, and none on our left at that time
nearer than the hill opposite the cemetery
gate. Our vigorous fire attracted the atten.
ton of General Hunt, presume who came
over there before we had any support, ard
directed us to tear down gaps in the wall to
the rear and on the Baltimore pike, so as to
facilitate our retreat If we were driven out.
Next came Wadsworth's brigade. and went
in on our right and extended in the direction
of Culp's Hill. 1t wasn nearly six o'clock
Wadsworth was not engaged that night.
The rebel infantry had taken shelter behind
the stone fences in our front between the
Battery and Cups red barn.. Soon the
Twelfth Coros, General Slocum's) one of the
largest in the Army, made its appearance
coming up the pike, $4,000 strong, Geary's
division going to Little Round Top, while
Williams's division lay on Wolf Hill, both
moving over and coming into position on
Culp's Hill the next morning
This ended the first day with us. Hancock
had turned the ether troops out to the left
through the cemetery and had formed line
In the direction Of Round Top. Lieut.. C. o.
Hunt was wounded in the thigh in the fight
near the Seminary about2 o'clock p. m. as
near as i can tell, and several of our men
were killed and wounded. One man was
killed and several wounded ON the night of
the first after we had taken position on the
knoll near Culp's Hill. / was shot through
both legs below the knee on the afternoon of
the second, and the command of the Battery
fell to Lieut.. E. N. Whittier. This was
about four o'clock In the afternoon.
Lieutenant Whittier. now of Boston to
gave to the Maine visitors grouped around
the battery's monument graphic
that ended the second days battle.
Lieut.; Whittier was twenty-three years
old that day, "a young officer for the
important service about to be performed.
Soon after the change of command, the Con-
| federates ran full battery of six guns down
| over the slope of Benner's Hill which is
across Rock Greek, and 1900 yards from the
ale battery came down in full sight with
| timber chests and caiss0ns as ON parade
and taking position. opened a fierce fire en-
filadng the Union lines from Cemetery Hill
part of Cemetery Hill which faced towards
Benner's Hill, including Taft's 20 pound
PARROTS, quickly joined fire with the Fifth
Maine Battery at range of 1900 yards, with
such effect that in short time three of the
i COnfederates' ammunition chests exploded.
the battery was disabled and the men aban-
doned their guns, The wreck of this bat.
| terry was for months afterwards one of this
| notable features of the battlefield. The full
| object of this rebel battery fire did not APP
| pear until about dusk.
Lieutenant Whittier says of the next move.
| ment. "Orders came to me soon after Capt
| Stevens was wounded to determine the dis
| lance OF all important objects within range
whether on the outskirts of the town among
the windings of Rock Greek, or among the
| farm houses of the fields beyond. One OF
| the most prominent landmarks on our left
| front, and hear the edge of the town, was q
| farm house with its outlying buildings
| among which an old barn, surrounded by
fences and stone walls was conspicuous
The range of these fences and buildings
was obtained before dusk. 1t was 500 yards
just at dusk, when quiet seemed assured
| one of the cannoneers called OUT "See those
| men," pointing toward the edge of the town
There could then just be distinguished in
the early twilight line of Confederate in
fantry forming on our side of the fences anC
walls. Back of them in line and in column
were crowd that seemed in that light in
Vulnerable. AS quickly as could be, the
order was given, case shot, three degree.
elevation, two and half seconds time,
The cannoDeers sprang to their pieces, the
| gunners threw open the ammunition chests
the fuses were cut, and running to the guns
| the men loaded the pieces, and the whole
battery was fired as one gun: This ire
mendous outburst was the first warning
| that was gived that Hoke's and Hays brig.
| AIDE (the Louisiana Tigers bad begun the
movement which cultivated in an Intellectual
attempt to secure lodgment on the East end
| OF Cemetery Hill General Underwood who
came into the ravne between Cemetery and
Culp's Hills, says that this fire which seemed
| to him like the eruption of volcano, was
his first intimation that any battery was OF
the high ground over his head. The rebels
advanced, and in their advance making 6
right half wheel. exposed as they advanced
more and more of their charging line to an
en6lading fire, until they secured protection
from the guns on Cemetery Hill by the slope
But by that move they were all the more ex
posed to what soldiers dreaded more than
anything else, fire on the flank. Canister
solid shot, case and shell, all that the Fifth
Maine had left from the previous fights
were poured in ON this line. As the Lousi.
ana Tigers reached the protection of Gene.
terry Hill they were all the more exposed to
the Fifth Names fire. But when the oppor.
tunlty was grfatest, the rebel advance car
ried them out of range of three guns Under
a heavy fire from the rebel line, the battery
| changed front to fire to tile left In this man.
| oeuvre the only gun team that was partjc-
| ularly exposed, lost all its horses from tie
| last Confederate volley. Darkness at this
| time was so complete that the position of the
enemy could only be determined by the spite-
| tul fire of the muskets in their retreat!ng
| line. Then all was quiet.
After the conclusion of the fight with the
battery ON Benner's Hill Gen. Howard then
| in command of Cemetery Hill sent his aide
with his compliments TO the commanding Of