My Favorite Gettysburg Cavalry Regimental Monument

Don Caughey did an interesting post on his blog about his favorite Gettysburg cavalry regimental monuments. His favorite seems to be that of the 8th Pennsylvania Cavalry. I can’t help but wonder whether he missed my favorite.

A Tipton photo of the monument to the 6th Pennsylvania Cavalry appears with this post, courtesy of the Virtual Gettysburg web site. The monument features 6 full-scale, exact replicas of the lances carried by the men of the regiment for the first year and a half of the Civil War. The monument itself is made of granite, and has six sides, representing the numeric designation of the regiment. It also features the regiment’s logo, and is quite simple but elegant.

It also has architectural significance.

Born on November 11, 1839, Frank Furness was the son of a prominent Philadelphia clergyman and abolitionist, William Henry Furness. Frank elected to take up the study of architecture, apprenticing in New York under the famed architect Richard Morris Hunt. Instead of doing what most of his peers did, twenty-two year old Frank Furness did not flee to Europe to avoid military service. Instead, he enlisted in Company I of the Sixth Pennsylvania Cavalry and was quickly commissioned lieutenant. After a successful stint as a staff officer, on January 11, 1864, he was promoted to captain and assigned to command Company F.

Furness still commanded Company F in June 1864, when two divisions of the Cavalry Corps, now commanded by Maj. Gen. Philip H. Sheridan, went on an extended raid in the direction of Gordonsville, marching along the route of the Virginia Central Railroad. Departing from the main body of the Army of the Potomac on June 7, Sheridan’s force marched slowly west, arriving at Trevilian Station, in Louisa County, on the night of June 10. A heavy engagement on June 11 was indecisive, and the foes resumed the fighting on the afternoon of June 12.

The Confederate cavalry, positioned behind strong breastworks marked by a “Bloody Angle”, had a strong defensive position. The Federal cavalry launched seven desperate assaults on the Bloody Angle before a severe counterattack crashed into the Union flank, driving it from the field in confusion. The Sixth Pennsylvania Cavalry held the end of the Union line. Positioned among the various outbuildings of the Gentry farm, perched atop a ridge, Furness’s Company F was the endmost company on the Union line. What follows is Furness’s narrative of his deeds that day:

On the afternoon of June 12th, 1864, the Reserve Brigade was engaged dismounted shortly after midday near Trevilian Station, Virginia. The Brigade had been actively been engaged in the battle of Trevilian Station, on the day previous, June 11th, 1864.

With no other damages than this Captain Furness and Captain Mitchell regained the Main Line of Battle.

As before stated the regiment remained holding its position, in spite of shot and shell, for they were vigorously subjected to these annoyances, until long after dark, and it was not until long after dark (through some oversight on the part of the Brigade commander no orders for withdrawal were received by the Officer Commanding the 6th Penna. Cavalry) the men crouching down and carefully holding their sabres and carbines to avoid all rattle, so close was the proximity of the enemy, did the 6th Penna. Cavalry rejoin General Sheridan’s command, finding their remounts and taking up the line of march, continuing the same throughout the remainder of the night and until the afternoon of the next day.”

Furness served out his term of enlistment and was discharged from the 6th Pennsylvania Cavalry in the fall of 1864. Returning home to Philadelphia, he resumed his architecture career, designing nearly 650 buildings and becoming one of the highest paid architects of the time. Employing an approach based on the theory that architecture was more than just building, Furness employed a heavy Gothic style that was quite unique. Click here to see some of Furness’s works. In a Victorian Age noted for its aggressive architecture, Furness’s buildings were certainly among the most boisterous and challenging.

Working mostly between 1870 and 1895, his designs include some of Philadelphia’s most prominent structures such as the Philadelphia Zoo Gatehouses, the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, and the Merion Cricket Club. [links to the two books on Furness’s works] He co-founded the Philadelphia chapter of the AIA, and is known as the founder of the so-called “Philadelphia School” or architecture. One of his most interesting designs is the handsome monument to the Lancers that graces the battlefield at Gettysburg, and which features full-scale replicas of the lances carried by the men of the regiment for the first year and a half of the war.

In 1899, Furness applied for a Medal of Honor. With the ringing endorsement of Maj. Gen. Wesley Merritt and Col. Albert P. Morrow, two veteran cavalry officers, and St. Clair Mulholland, the former commander of the Irish Brigade, Furness was awarded the Medal in September 1899 in recognition of his gallant service at Trevilian Station on June 12, 1864. The citation reads:

On this occasion, a detachment occupying an exposed and isolated outpost having expended its ammunition, Captain Furness, carrying a box of ammunition on his head, ran to the outpost across an open space that was swept by a fierce fire from the enemy. This ammunition together with that carried by another officer who had responded to Captain Furness’s call for volunteers, enabled the detachment to hold its position until nightfall, thus saving the main line from severe loss.

Furness is the only American architect of note to win the Medal of Honor. He was also the only member of the Lancers to win the Medal.

Although he is considered the first “All-American” architect, Furness eventually fell from favor. When he died in 1912, his work was largely forgotten. He was buried in Philadelphia’s Laurel Hill Cemetery.

Furness designed the monument to the Lancers that appears with this post. The monument appears in every published catalogue of Furness’ work. It is the only monument on the Gettysburg battlefield that has architectural significance. It is, therefore, my favorite monument. Too bad it didn’t make your list, Don.