Prelude to Battle: The Gettysburg Academy

at the time of the battle the old academy building on west high street in gettysburg was already a local landmark built about 1813 1814 the building was designed for educational purposes it served as the first home of the lutheran theological seminary from 1826 to 1832 and pennsylvania college from 1832 to 1837. for many years afterwards it was a private boarding school in 1856 it was purchased by the reverend david eister who established the gettysburg female institute eister died in 1861 but his wife rebecca reynolds zeister continued to operate to school for many years rebecca was described as a lady of culture an administrative ability upon his graduation from pennsylvania college their son william reynolds oyster also taught here attending great popularity the girls of some of the finest families in town were amongst the students here today the adams county historical society preserves a pamphlet of rules and regulations of the institution and also a few diplomats here's an 1864 diploma for lilly mclean who was a student here undoubtedly at the time of the battle the old academy building is also one of the nine buildings in the borough of gettysburg today that still has an artillery shell sticking out of it from the actual fighting in 1863. we're here in the cupola of the historic ister academy building on high street in gettysburg this is a view that very few people have experienced and we're very thankful to the owner the english family for allowing us up here today tilly pierce was a 15 year old resident of the town she was attending school in this very building on the morning of june 26 1863 that day confederates of jubal early's division entered town to conduct a raid tilly wrote we were having our regular literary exercises on friday at our seminary when the cry reached our ears rushing to the door and standing on the front portico we be held in the direction of the theological seminary a dark dense mass moving toward us our teacher mrs eister once said children run home as quickly as you can it did not require repeating then in 1908 another student elizabeth mclean wrote while in the girls seminary in the old academy on washington and high streets we were pretending to study we heard a galloping horse and looking from the window saw mr harvey sweeney riding up washington street and calling out in a loud voice as he pointed to the seminary the rebels are coming and sure enough we could see them on the chambersburg pike there were horsemen riding single files slowly down the hill we did not wait for a formal dismissal of school but ran pell mel for our homes we are standing on the lawn at the gettysburg female institute at the intersection of west high street and south washington street about noon on june 30th 1863 two brigades of union cavalry under the command of general john buford rode up the emmitsburg road and into gettysburg some 3 000 troopers galloped northward along washington street past this very spot after days of uncertainty the local citizens were overjoyed that the vanguard of the union army had arrived to protect them the outpouring of spontaneous emotion was something that those who witnessed the event would never forget sally myers lived on west high street a short distance from us from her perspective the feet of buford's horses seemed shied with lightning according to an interview she gave in 1909 along the street we stood all the girls and women of the town we had prepared food in advance and had baskets and trays in our hands they came by snatching in their hasty passage whatever they could lay their hands on sandwiches pieces of pie cold meat bread cake cups of coffee and bottles of water and then we sang patriotic songs the eyes of the soldiers blazed they smiled and some joined in the song it was the last song many of those brave men ever heard and the bite we gave was the last many ever ate walking south along washington street lavina wyrick was in with another group of girls we sang our songs triumphantly e pluribus unum all hail to the union cheer boys cheer john brown's body and others echoed through the air a group of singers old and young stood at power's corner washington and high streets and our voices blended with theirs and the boys are marching and rally round the flag and maryland my maryland echoed all along the line as we watched the marching of buford's cavalry a way past the corner of breckenridge street which we had now reached they marched applauding the inspiring songs of both white and colored patriots tilly pierce who sang with a group of girls here at this very location remembered a crowd of us girls were standing on the corner of washington and high street as these soldiers passed by desiring to encourage them who as we were told would before long be in battle my sister started to sing the old war song or union forever as some of us did not know the whole the piece we kept repeating the chorus thus we sought to cheer on our brave men and we felt empty repaid when we saw that our efforts were appreciated their continences brightened and we received their thanks and cheers after the battle some of these soldiers told us that the singing was very good but they would have liked to have heard more than the chorus in their post-war writings the soldiers themselves recorded their feelings of the event william hermans of the 6 new york remembered we were met by young girls of that place who dressed in white and red and blue ribbons formed along the road and as we rode by they sang their patriotic songs that made the blood flow quicker in our veins theodore being of the 17th pennsylvania cavalry remembered the people of the town seemingly were all on the streets and a warm reception was given to the command groups of old and young men women and children stood into corners and at the churches and public buildings singing patriotic songs and indulging in demonstrations of joy that left no doubt of the painful anxiety felt by them and the sense of relief our presence afforded the reception received by beaufort's calvary men on june 30th 1863 would never be forgotten by the soldiers in 1903 during the 40th anniversary of the battle veterans of beaufort's calvary got the idea to assemble the singing girls once more they gathered 16 of them together and encouraged them to perform an impromptu concert for the veterans in 1913 at the 50th anniversary the girls were assembled one last time there were only six singing girls left to sing patriotic songs for the surviving veterans reflecting on the events years later captain hazelton of the 8th illinois summed up the feeling of many of beaufort's calvary men to receive such a reception under such circumstances as we did was an inspiration it awoke every feeling of chivalry in our souls it recalled to the memory all the dear and loved ones we had left at home it brought back with overwhelming force that love of country which had first impelled us to enlist it inspired us to heroic deeds

Channel: Adams County Historical Society at Gettysburg

Views: 3,604

Rating: 4.9702601 out of 5

Keywords: Civil War, Battle of Gettysburg, Gettysburg, Adams County, War

Id: O3RJ5vEMTpQ

Length: 8min 21sec (501 seconds)

Published: Wed Jun 30 2021