The ‘Historicus’ Account of the Battle of Gettysburg
In an attempt to manage the narrative of the events at Gettysburg on the afternoon of July 2, an anonymous letter appeared in the March 12, 1864, edition of the New York Herald, exaggerating and misinterpreting Dan Sickles' role in the battle.
from The New Yok Herald , March 12, 1864
Mr. Sickles Goes to Washington
In February 1864, the Joint Congressional Committee on the Conduct of the War called upon Dan Sickles who was eager to cooperate. During his testimony, the one-legged general presented his biased account of the events of July 2, 1863.
from Report of the Joint Committee on the Conduct of the War, 1865.
Sickles Seizes the Initiative, July 5, 1863
A staff officer recall the tale of when President Abraham Lincoln visited Dan Sickles’ sick bed on July 5, 1863.
from Lincoln and Sickles, 1910
“The Whole Confederate Army Was Assembled”
Any study of the Sickles-Meade saga must begin with the account of Brigadier General Henry Jackson Hunt, who served as chief of artillery in the Army of the Potomac. Hunt was uniquely positioned and unbiased to describe the events that would remain contested for the next couple decades.
from “The Second Day at Gettysburg,” Battles and Leaders, V. 3
A Sanitary Commissioner Meets the Rebs
In a telling narrative, James Gall of the United States Sanitary Commission had the unique opportunity to observe the Confederate army just days before the Battle of Gettysburg. Mr. Gall, advancing in whatever direction contact between the two armies was likely, happened upon units of General Ewell's corps stationed in York, Pennsylvania. He arrived at nine o'clock in the morning on Sunday, June 28, 1863, to discover the Confederate army at rest, breaking camp near the old Fair Grounds.
James Gall, U.S. Sanitary Commissioner
An Awful Universe of Battle
Frank Haskell, an aide on the staff of General John Gibbon, was positioned on July 3, 1863 at perhaps the salient point on Cemetery Ridge at Gettysburg.
By Frank Haskell (1908)
“I Would Have not Missed this for Anything”
An account of the July 3 assault on Cemetery Ridge by a British observer who witnessed the aftermath of the battle.
By Arthur Fremantle (1863)