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Evergreen Cemetery gatehouse (1855) is a historic building located at 799
Evergreen Cemetery occupies a hill just south of Gettysburg Borough, between Baltimore Pike and Tanneytown Road. The Ever Green Cemetery Association of Gettysburg was chartered in 1853.
''For the Senate bill committed earlier, see'' It remains a private cemetery to this day. Philadelphia architect
George
an
Henry Chritzman
constructed the brick building in less than 3 months, at a cost of $1,025. The gatehouse served as the cemetery's office, and as the residence of its caretaker.
File:Pennsylvania, Gettysburg, Gateway of Cemetery - NARA - 533313.jpg, Evergreen Cemetery gatehouse in July 1863, following the battle
File:Early's Charge on East Cemetery Hill.jpg, Battle of East Cemetery Hill, in an 1884 engraving
File:Evercemadams gh w cannons.jpg, The 1885 lodge addition is in the background, right
Baltimore Pike
The Baltimore Pike was an auto trail connecting Baltimore, Maryland, with Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Today, parts of the road are signed as U.S. Route 1 (US 1), US 13, and a small portion of Pennsylvania Route 41 (PA 41). A section of the ro ...
in Adams County, Pennsylvania
Adams County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 103,852. Its county seat is Gettysburg. The county was created on January 22, 1800, from part of York County, and was named for the secon ...
. During the American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...
, the gatehouse played an important role in the July 1 to 3, 1863 Battle of Gettysburg
The Battle of Gettysburg () was fought July 1–3, 1863, in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, by Union and Confederate forces during the American Civil War. In the battle, Union Major General George Meade's Army of the Po ...
. It is a contributing structure in Gettysburg Battlefield Historic District
The Gettysburg Battlefield Historic District is a district of contributing properties and over 1000 historic contributing structures and 315 historic buildings, located in Adams County, Pennsylvania. The district was added to the National Reg ...
.
History
Evergreen Cemetery
Evergreen Cemetery occupies a hill just south of Gettysburg Borough, between Baltimore Pike and Tanneytown Road. The Ever Green Cemetery Association of Gettysburg was chartered in 1853.''For the Senate bill committed earlier, see'' It remains a private cemetery to this day. Philadelphia architect
Stephen Decatur Button
Stephen Decatur Button (June 15, 1813, in Preston, Connecticut – January 7, 1897, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) was an American architect and a pioneer in the use of metal-frame construction for masonry buildings. He designed commercial buildin ...
designed the cemetery's gatehouse in mid-1855, and its cornerstone was laid by Reverend Samuel Simon Schmucker
Samuel Simon Schmucker (February 28, 1799 – July 26, 1873) was a German-American Lutheran pastor and theologian. He was integral to the founding of the Lutheran church body known as the General Synod, as well as the oldest continuously operatin ...
on September 1. Local masonGeorge
an
Henry Chritzman
constructed the brick building in less than 3 months, at a cost of $1,025. The gatehouse served as the cemetery's office, and as the residence of its caretaker.
Battle of Gettysburg
Recognizing the enormous strategic advantage of the cemetery's high ground, Major-GeneralOliver Otis Howard
Oliver Otis Howard (November 8, 1830 – October 26, 1909) was a career United States Army officer and a Union general in the Civil War. As a brigade commander in the Army of the Potomac, Howard lost his right arm while leading his men agains ...
lined his artillery along what came to be known as " Cemetery Hill," facing north and west. On the opposite side of Baltimore Pike, his artillery faced north and east. Howard made the cemetery's gatehouse into XI Corps (Union Army)
The XI Corps (Eleventh Army Corps) was a corps of the Union Army during the American Civil War, best remembered for its involvement in the battles of Battle of Chancellorsville, Chancellorsville and Battle of Gettysburg, Gettysburg in 1863.
For ...
headquarters, and occupied the building for all three days of the battle.
On July 1, Gettysburg Borough was evacuated, and the telegraph key
A telegraph key is a specialized electrical switch used by a trained operator to transmit text messages in Morse code in a telegraphy system. Keys are used in all forms of electrical telegraph systems, including landline (also called wire) ...
from Gettysburg Railroad Station
The Gettysburg Lincoln Railroad Station, also known as the "Gettysburg Train Station," "Lincoln Train Station" or "Western Maryland Railroad Station," is a historic train station with depot, platform, museum and offices on Carlisle Street in Gett ...
was moved to near the gatehouse, to keep communications open. That night, Elizabeth Thorn, wife of the cemetery's caretaker, prepared a fine dinner for General Howard, General Sickles, and General Slocum.
At dusk on July 2
Events Pre-1600
* 437 – Emperor Valentinian III begins his reign over the Western Roman Empire. His mother Galla Placidia ends her regency, but continues to exercise political influence at the court in Rome.
* 626 – Li Shimin, t ...
, 5 Louisiana regiments under Brigadier-General Harry T. Hays
Harry Thompson Hays (April 14, 1820 – August 21, 1876) was an American Army officer serving in the Mexican–American War and a general who served in the Confederate Army during the American Civil War.
Known as the "Louisiana Tigers," his brigad ...
and 3 North Carolina regiments under Colonel Isaac E. Avery commenced the Battle of East Cemetery Hill
The battle of East Cemetery Hill during the American Civil War was a military engagement on the second day of the Battle of Gettysburg, in which an attack of the Confederacy's Louisiana Tigers Brigade and a brigade led by Colonel Robert Hoke ...
, charging the Union artillery batteries from the east. Historian Frederick Hawthorne wrote of Howard's successful defense: “Lying in reserve in the Evergreen Cemetery, they ( 73rd Pennsylvania Infantry) rushed out through the cemetery gateway to help drive the Confederates away from Rickett’s and Weidrich’s batteries.”
Post-battle
Evergreen Cemetery gatehouse survived theBattle of Gettysburg
The Battle of Gettysburg () was fought July 1–3, 1863, in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, by Union and Confederate forces during the American Civil War. In the battle, Union Major General George Meade's Army of the Po ...
. In the battle's aftermath, Elizabeth Thorn buried approximately one hundred fallen soldiers in the vicinity. Structural repairs were made to the building in 1885, when the "lodge" addition was built.
In 1972, the "Evergreen Cemetery archway house" was designated an historic district contributing structure
History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...
by the Gettysburg Borough Council (1 of 38 outside of the borough).
References
{{Battle of Gettysburg Gettysburg Battlefield American Civil War cemeteries Arches and vaults Cemetery Hill Italianate architecture in Pennsylvania Houses in Adams County, Pennsylvania Gates in the United States Gatehouses (architecture) 1855 establishments in Pennsylvania Buildings and structures completed in 1855