The Wheatfield Road is a

Gettysburg Battlefield The Gettysburg Battlefield is the area of the July 1–3, 1863, military engagements of the Battle of Gettysburg within and around the borough of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Locations of military engagements extend from the site of the first shot ...

crossroad from the

Peach Orchard The Peach Orchard is a Gettysburg Battlefield site at the southeast corner of the north-south Emmitsburg Road intersection with the Wheatfield Road. The orchard is demarcated on the east and south by Birney Avenue, which provides access tvario ...

east-southeastward along the north side of The Wheatfield (on the Peach Orchard-

Devil's Den Devil's Den is a boulder-strewn hill on the south end of Houck's Ridge at Gettysburg Battlefield, used by artillery and sharpshooters on the second day of the 1863 Battle of Gettysburg during the American Civil War. A tourist attraction since ...

ridge), north of the Valley of Death, and over the north foot of

Little Round Top Little Round Top is the smaller of two rocky hills south of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania—the companion to the adjacent, taller hill named Big Round Top. It was the site of an unsuccessful assault by Confederate troops against the Union left fla ...

. In addition to modern tourist use, the road is notable for

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 ...

use and postbellum trolley use associated with the 1892-1896 '' US v. Gettysburg Electric Ry.'' case of the

US Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point of ...

Route description

Wheatfield Road begins at an intersection with US 15 Bus. within

Gettysburg National Military Park The Gettysburg National Military Park protects and interprets the landscape of the 1863 Battle of Gettysburg during the American Civil War. Located in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, the park is managed by the National Park Service. The GNMP propert ...

in Cumberland Township, where the road continues west as Millerstown Road. From here, it heads east-southeast as a two-lane undivided road, heading through fields in the park. The road continues into wooded areas with some fields, passing to the north of

. Wheatfield Road comes to an end at an intersection with PA 134 in the community of

Round Top Round Top is an extinct volcano in the Berkeley Hills, just east of Oakland, California. The peak lies entirely within the bounds of Contra Costa County. In 1936, the area surrounding the peak was established as Round Top Regional Park, one of ...

, where the road continues east as Blacksmith Shop Road to

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 road ...

History

During the

, the dirt Wheatfield Road was used by various Union and Confederate troops (e.g., Crawford's Third Division of

Pennsylvania Reserves The Pennsylvania Reserves were an infantry division in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Noted for its famous commanders and high casualties, it served in the Eastern Theater, and fought in many important battles, including Antietam a ...

), and Union troops deployed artillery westward to the Peach Orchard using the road. In 1884, the

Round Top Branch The Round Top Branch was an extension of the Gettysburg and Harrisburg Railroad from the Gettysburg borough across the Gettysburg Battlefield to Round Top, Pennsylvania. The branch ran southward from the terminus of the railroad's main line (it ...

's wye with double spurs and station was built at the east end of Wheatfield Road, and in 1894 the

Gettysburg Electric Railway The Gettysburg Electric Railway was a borough trolley that provided summer access1991 Gettysburg Times to Gettysburg Battlefield visitor attractions such as military engagement areas, monuments, postbellum camps, and recreation areas (e.g., ...

was laid along a west portion of the road (trolleys also crossed the east end near Round Top Station). In 1895, the Commonwealth of

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

ceded jurisdiction of Wheatfield Road to the

War Department War Department may refer to: * War Department (United Kingdom) * United States Department of War (1789–1947) See also * War Office, a former department of the British Government * Ministry of defence * Ministry of War * Ministry of Defence * Dep ...

, and in 1900 two cast iron identification tablets were placed to label the road. "Outside Wheatfield Rd (past Rose farm): On August 14

893 __FORCETOC__ Year 893 ( DCCCXCIII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * Vladimir, ruler (''khan'') of the Bulgarian Empire, is dethroned by his fat ...

a Confederate avenue was surveyed, which was temporarily named the 'Outside Wheatfield avenue' beginning at the Emmitsburg road, 800 feet southwest of the crossroads at the Peach Orchard, running easterly to the lands of the Memorial Association, thence in a southeasterly direction by the lands of the Memorial Association, and terminating on a west line of the Crawford tract, near Devil's Den." The

tracks were removed from the Wheatfield Road in 1917 and the road was repaired in 1931. The Wheatfield Road was resurfaced with asphalt west of Sykes Avenue in 1933, and completed "from the Rosensteel pavilion to the Taneytown road" in 1940 by the

McMillan Woods McMillan Woods is a Gettysburg Battlefield forested area used during the 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 ...

Civilian Conservation Corps The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was a voluntary government work relief program that ran from 1933 to 1942 in the United States for unemployed, unmarried men ages 18–25 and eventually expanded to ages 17–28. The CCC was a major part of ...

camp.

Junction list

References

External links

{{Attached KML, display=title,inline Historic trails and roads in Pennsylvania Gettysburg Battlefield