The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1901-09-22
NORTH CAROLINA
At GETTYSBURG
The Tar Heels Were Furih..
est to the Front.
THE POINT THEY REACHED
Thirty. One Yards Beyond Where
Armistead Fell.
He WAS THE FOREMOST OF PICKE rs MEN

dcneraI LongStreet ASSAULT dt oSuys-
burg on the Third Of July
! in 1863.
1t is not singular that students of his
tory should feel a deep interest in the
story of Gettysburg and especially of the
| final assault made by the Confederates
on the third day of the battle, the result
| of which foreshadowed the issue of the
! war between the States and the fate OF
the Southern IConfederacy. So much
| has already been written concerning 1T
that only urgent solicitations. from a
source which l cannot disregard, have
moved me to make this brief contribution
to the story.
The number Of Confederates engag-
ed in the assault was about $4,000, COM
posing nine brigades, Kemper's Gar
nett's and Armisteads of Pickett's Divi-
sion; Archer's, Pettigrew's (under COM
mand of Colonel J. X. MarshalD, Davis
and Brockenbrough's of Heth's Division,
commanded by General Pettigrew; and
Scales and Lanes of Pender's Division,
commanded by General Trimble. They
formed two lines of battle, The front line
composed of Kemper's, Garnett's Ar
cher's. Pettigrews (under MarshalD.
Davis and Brockenbrough' brigades in
| the order named from right to left; and
| the second or supporting line composed
of Armistead's, Scales and Lanes brig
Ntx.srs in
regiments and one battalion in Kemper' 5
| Garnett's and Breckenbrcugh's brigades;
| FIVE North Carolina regiments, four of
| them in Pettigrew's brigade tunder Mar
shalD and one Of them in Davis brigade;
three Mississippi regiments in Davis
brigade: three Tennessee and one Alaba-
ma regiment and battalion in Archer
| brigade, making twenty five regiments
and two battalions in this line. lie tho
second line were five Virginia regiments
| in Armistead's brigade and ten North
Carolina regiments in Scales and Lane s
| brigades, making fifteen regiments in this
| line.
| The ridge on which the Confederates
| formed their lines for the assault is call
ed Seminary Ridge and is 16O0 yards
| westward from Cemetery Ridge, which
was occupied by the Union Army. These
| ridges are parallel with each other, the
| last named being somewhat the higher of
| the two and between them are cultivated
| fields with many fences running hither
and thither about them. The Emmits-
burg road also passes obliquely in front
of the Union line enclosed OH both sides
by post and rail fences which are almost
| immovable and constitute a formidable
obstacle to the orderly advance of a
charging line of battle. COHORTS house
and barn just east of that road also dis
turbed the compactness and continuity
| Of Kempers line as he advanced.
| The Union position on Cemetery Ridge
was exceedingly strong and formidable.
Fem tho elevated plateau, called Gene
| terry Hill, where the National Cemetery
| is. the ridge extends southwark towards
| Round Top, distance of more than two
miles, and overlooks and dominates every
| foot of the ground over which the Con-
| federates charged. Along it's crest from
| Cemetery Hill to Round Top was a line
of Union batteries which General Hunt,
| Chief of Artillery, shrewdly divining what
the great cannonade meant, had kept
| in reserve until the crucial moment and
Confederate infantry begin it's advance.
All along the front where the assault was
made there was also a double line of
| Union infantry ready to resist the as
| sault, and the front line of that infantry
was posted behind stone fence which
served as an almost impregnable barrier
against assailants. Strong details of
skirmishers were out along the fences of
the Emmitsburg road and also along the
fence running westerly from that road
past the Confederate left flank. Another
point in relation to the Union defenses
| should be stated, which is, That the stone
fence above mentioned as a strong de-
| tense for the Union forces does not run
| in an unbroken straight line north and
south, but after running from it's south
ern terminus due north for several hun
bred yards, it turns due east at what is
called 1.-THE Angle" and runs so yards
in that direction, and then turns again
and runs due north for several hundred
yards to the<N yam Barn. It's length
from north to almost exactly equal
ed the length he Confederate front
line when it re there. The impor-
tant influence of singular course upon
the issue of the ederate assault will
be shown later on.
The cannonade preceding the advance
of the Confederate infantry opened about
one O'Clock p. m. and continued nearly
two hours. 1t was one of the greatest
cannonades Of modern times, but it new
ertheless failed to accomplish the re-
suits expected. Artillery will do to bat
ter down Notifications, she'll towns, sinh