Seminary Ridge
Encyclopedia
Seminary Ridge is a dendritic ridge
which was an area of Battle of Gettysburg
engagements during the American Civil War
and of military installations during World War II
.
Watershed on the west and the Rock Creek Watershed (east). At the south end of Oak Ridge
(the northernmost portion of the divide), the north-south McPherson and Seminary ridges bifurcate southward at the triple watershed point of Willoughby and Pitzer runs (southward tributaries of Marsh Creek) with a Rock Creek eastward tributary. From the triple point, Seminary Ridge extends southward to an area with eastward drainage into the Rock Cr tributary (Stevens Creek
), with the borough of Gettysburg, and with the TBD. Farther south into the Gettysburg National Park, Seminary Ridge continues as far as a branch of Pitzer Run, which divides the ridgeline (39.808173°N 77.255516°W), around which the drainage divide curves to the east. The ridgeline continues south of the branch, crossing the Millerstown Road. Between the Millerstown and Emmitsburg road crossings, the west side of the ridgeline is an elevated area ( hornfel along the northwest edge of a diabase sheet) about 1 mile wide along the Emmitsburg Road. Along this east side of this elevated area, the ridgeline is Warfield Ridge, the southernmost portion of Seminary Ridge near the south end of the Gettysburg Battlefield
. South of the tip of Seminary/Warfield Ridge tip, the Marsh/Rock creeks' drainage divide continues about 4 miles to near the Mason-Dixon Line
at their confluence to form the Monocacy River
.
The portion of Seminary Ridge on the western side of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
includes the railroad cut behind houses north of Buford Avenue and the historic Gettysburg Armory
. Extending south are Schultz Woods, Spangler Woods, Berdan Woods, the McMillan Woods Youth Campground, Pitzer Woods, Biesecker's Woods, and the 1895 Longstreet Tower, which provides an observation platform for the "southern end" of Seminary Ridge (Warfield Ridge). The Eisenhower National Historic Site
on the west of the ridge is visible from the tower.
Seminary Ridge Avenue and the sections of West Confederate Avenue (northwest and southwest) generally extend along the landform's ridgeline and provide access to numerous battle monuments on the ridge, including the prominent Virginia Monument
. Seminary Ridge is crossed by Buford and Springs avenues, as well as West Middle Street.
landform south of an east-west branch of Pitzer Run
, which separates South Seminary Ridge from a separate landform to the north on the west of Gettysburg with the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg
. South of the Pitzer Run branch, the ridgeline of South Seminary Ridge extends from Pitzer Woods, across the Millerstown Road, past the Longstreet Tower to the Emmitsburg Road and on to the southernmost state memorial on the battlefield (Alabama), which is just west of the right flank marker for the Confederate Line. Warfield Ridge is a portion of South Seminary Ridge southward to the Alabama Memorial, and the ridge landform continues southward out of the Gettysburg National Park to where Ridge Road is on the crest.
" being established on the ridge on August 1, 1926. In 1832, Old Dorm (now Schmucker Hall) was built, and Pennsylvania College (now Gettysburg College
) was started on the east side of the ridge. On the ridge along the Chambersburg Pike, the Thaddeus Stevens
building near the seminary (used for Robert E. Lee
's 1863 headquarters) was built in 1834. At the time of the battle, the section of the ridge at the extension of West Middle St (the Hagerstown Rd) was known as "Haupt's Hill".
. Robert E. Lee
established his headquarters on the ridge just north of the Chambersburg pike, and the ridge also served as the Confederate
line of battle
for July 2 & 3 attacks against Union Army
positions on Cemetery Ridge
. On July 3, 500 men in George Pickett
's division were killed/wounded on Seminary Ridge (including 88 lost in one regiment of Kemper's Brigade) from the Federal artillery counterfire prior to Pickett's Charge. The last hospital patient of the seminary's Old Dorm left on September 16, 1863.
Longstreet Tower (No. 2 of five at Gettysburg)
was built on the ridge by the War Department in 1895. West Confederate Avenue was built at the turn of the century for Seminary Ridge tourism, while Sharpshooters Avenue (named Berdan
Av by 1930) was extended from W Confederate Av in 1917 for access to a Pitzer Woods
monument. In 1918, various military camp sites (e.g., Camp Colt
) were located in the "Field of Pickett's Charge" between the Seminary and Cemetery ridges. The North Carolina Monument
was placed on the ridge in 1929.
The Civilian Conservation Corps
(CCC) built the 1938 Civil War veteran's camp for the 75th Anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg and performed Gettysburg Battlefield
landscaping through 1941. Construction had begun for Gettysburg CCC camp "NP-2", which opened May 26, 1934 on Seminary Ridge and closed in 1941. Renamed from "MP-2", camp NP-2 was in McMillan Woods, while a different CCC camp was in Pitzer Woods ("MP-1"/"NP-1") from 1935 until closing in April 1937. The Pitzer's Woods camp was for reforestation and a 1933 "cyclone" blew all 45 tents down (200 trees were downed at the Round Tops). The "Gettysburg Company 1355, C.C.C." celebrated their 8th anniversary in 1941.
at the former Pitzer Woods CCC camp NP-1 trained soldiers for psychological operations in the European Theater of Operations
, and adjacent to Camp Sharpe was a 1944-6 POW camp at CCC camp NP-2 in McMillan Woods
. Following the 1950 purchase of the Eisenhower farm, the US Secret Service monitored the tourists using the top of the nearby Longstreet Tower, and the Pitzer Woods amphitheater was constructed in the 1960s The Adams County Historical Society moved to the seminary's Old Dorm on the ridge in 1961, and the National Register of Historic Places
added Old Dorm in 1974 (the Gettysburg Armory
in 1990).
In 1982, the Tennessee State Memorial on West Confederate Avenue was the last confederate state memorial to be dedicated, and the memorial to James Longstreet was erected in Pitzer Woods in 1998 after being planned in 1941. The ridge's Historic Preservation Foundation at 61 Seminary Ridge Av was formed on April 29, 1999.
Ridge
A ridge is a geological feature consisting of a chain of mountains or hills that form a continuous elevated crest for some distance. Ridges are usually termed hills or mountains as well, depending on size. There are several main types of ridges:...
which was an area of Battle of Gettysburg
Battle of Gettysburg
The Battle of Gettysburg , was fought July 1–3, 1863, in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The battle with the largest number of casualties in the American Civil War, it is often described as the war's turning point. Union Maj. Gen. George Gordon Meade's Army of the Potomac...
engagements during the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
and of military installations during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
Geography
Seminary Ridge is a northern portion of the drainage divide between the Marsh CreekMarsh Creek (Monocacy River)
Marsh Creek is a tributary of the Monocacy River in south-central Pennsylvania and north-central Maryland in the United States. Marsh Creek and Rock Creek join below Gettysburg and the Gettysburg Battlefield to form the Monocacy River...
Watershed on the west and the Rock Creek Watershed (east). At the south end of Oak Ridge
Oak Ridge, Adams County, Pennsylvania
Oak Ridge is the landform of the Gettysburg Battlefield where the Eternal Light Peace Memorial was dedicated by President Franklin D. Roosevelt during the 1938 Gettysburg reunion. 1863 Battle of Gettysburg, Whitworth rifled cannon fired from Oak Hill at Culp's Hill and Cemetery Hill. The ridge...
(the northernmost portion of the divide), the north-south McPherson and Seminary ridges bifurcate southward at the triple watershed point of Willoughby and Pitzer runs (southward tributaries of Marsh Creek) with a Rock Creek eastward tributary. From the triple point, Seminary Ridge extends southward to an area with eastward drainage into the Rock Cr tributary (Stevens Creek
Stevens Creek
Stevens Creek is a creek in Santa Clara County, California. The creek originates in the Santa Cruz Mountains on the western flank of Black Mountain in the Monte Bello Open Space Preserve, then flows southeasterly through the Stevens Creek County Park before turning northeast into Stevens Creek...
), with the borough of Gettysburg, and with the TBD. Farther south into the Gettysburg National Park, Seminary Ridge continues as far as a branch of Pitzer Run, which divides the ridgeline (39.808173°N 77.255516°W), around which the drainage divide curves to the east. The ridgeline continues south of the branch, crossing the Millerstown Road. Between the Millerstown and Emmitsburg road crossings, the west side of the ridgeline is an elevated area ( hornfel along the northwest edge of a diabase sheet) about 1 mile wide along the Emmitsburg Road. Along this east side of this elevated area, the ridgeline is Warfield Ridge, the southernmost portion of Seminary Ridge near the south end of the Gettysburg Battlefield
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 4 acre site of the first shot & at on the west of the borough, to East...
. South of the tip of Seminary/Warfield Ridge tip, the Marsh/Rock creeks' drainage divide continues about 4 miles to near the Mason-Dixon Line
Mason-Dixon line
The Mason–Dixon Line was surveyed between 1763 and 1767 by Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon in the resolution of a border dispute between British colonies in Colonial America. It forms a demarcation line among four U.S. states, forming part of the borders of Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, and...
at their confluence to form the Monocacy River
Monocacy River
The Monocacy River is a free-flowing tributary of the Potomac River, which empties into the Atlantic Ocean via the Chesapeake Bay. The river is long, with a drainage area of about...
.
The portion of Seminary Ridge on the western side of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
Gettysburg is a borough that is the county seat, part of the Gettysburg Battlefield, and the eponym for the 1863 Battle of Gettysburg. The town hosts visitors to the Gettysburg National Military Park and has 3 institutions of higher learning: Lutheran Theological Seminary, Gettysburg College, and...
includes the railroad cut behind houses north of Buford Avenue and the historic Gettysburg Armory
National Register of Historic Places listings in Adams County, Pennsylvania
This is a list of the National Register of Historic Places listings in Adams County, Pennsylvania.This is intended to be a complete list of the properties and districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Adams County, Pennsylvania, United States...
. Extending south are Schultz Woods, Spangler Woods, Berdan Woods, the McMillan Woods Youth Campground, Pitzer Woods, Biesecker's Woods, and the 1895 Longstreet Tower, which provides an observation platform for the "southern end" of Seminary Ridge (Warfield Ridge). The Eisenhower National Historic Site
Eisenhower National Historic Site
Eisenhower National Historic Site was the home and farm of General and President of the United States Dwight D. Eisenhower and Mamie Doud Eisenhower. Located adjacent to the Gettysburg Battlefield in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, the farm served as a weekend retreat for the President and a meeting...
on the west of the ridge is visible from the tower.
Seminary Ridge Avenue and the sections of West Confederate Avenue (northwest and southwest) generally extend along the landform's ridgeline and provide access to numerous battle monuments on the ridge, including the prominent Virginia Monument
Frederick William Sievers
Frederick William Sievers was an American sculptor, born in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Sievers moved to Richmond, Virginia, as a young man, furthering his art studies by attending the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Rome and the Académie Julian in Paris...
. Seminary Ridge is crossed by Buford and Springs avenues, as well as West Middle Street.
South Seminary Ridge
South Seminary Ridge is a Gettysburg BattlefieldGettysburg 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 4 acre site of the first shot & at on the west of the borough, to East...
landform south of an east-west branch of Pitzer Run
Pitzer Woods
Pitzer Woods was used during the Battle of Gettysburg and for Gettysburg Battlefield camps after the American Civil War.-History:Pitzer Woods was the site of July 1st & 2nd fighting on the 1863 Gettysburg Battlefield. The Civilian Conservation Corps established the June 15, 1933, Pitzer Woods CCC...
, which separates South Seminary Ridge from a separate landform to the north on the west of Gettysburg with the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg
Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg
The Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg is America's oldest Lutheran seminary and a site of 1863 Battle of Gettysburg military engagements.-History:...
. South of the Pitzer Run branch, the ridgeline of South Seminary Ridge extends from Pitzer Woods, across the Millerstown Road, past the Longstreet Tower to the Emmitsburg Road and on to the southernmost state memorial on the battlefield (Alabama), which is just west of the right flank marker for the Confederate Line. Warfield Ridge is a portion of South Seminary Ridge southward to the Alabama Memorial, and the ridge landform continues southward out of the Gettysburg National Park to where Ridge Road is on the crest.
History
The 1761 Samuel Gettys tavern was built near the ridge at the crossroads east of Stevens Creek, and it preceded both the construction of the Chambersburg Pike across the ridge and the nearby "Gettysburg Theological SeminaryLutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg
The Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg is America's oldest Lutheran seminary and a site of 1863 Battle of Gettysburg military engagements.-History:...
" being established on the ridge on August 1, 1926. In 1832, Old Dorm (now Schmucker Hall) was built, and Pennsylvania College (now Gettysburg College
Gettysburg College
Gettysburg College is a private four-year liberal arts college founded in 1832, in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, United States, adjacent to the famous battlefield. Its athletic teams are nicknamed the Bullets. Gettysburg College has about 2,700 students, with roughly equal numbers of men and women...
) was started on the east side of the ridge. On the ridge along the Chambersburg Pike, the Thaddeus Stevens
Thaddeus Stevens
Thaddeus Stevens , of Pennsylvania, was a Republican leader and one of the most powerful members of the United States House of Representatives...
building near the seminary (used for Robert E. Lee
Robert E. Lee
Robert Edward Lee was a career military officer who is best known for having commanded the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia in the American Civil War....
's 1863 headquarters) was built in 1834. At the time of the battle, the section of the ridge at the extension of West Middle St (the Hagerstown Rd) was known as "Haupt's Hill".
Civil War and postbellum
Seminary Ridge was the site of Battle of Gettysburg fighting on July 1, 1863, as well as a Pitzer Woods engagement on July 2Battle of Gettysburg, Second Day
The Battle of Gettysburg, Second Day was an attempt by Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee to capitalize on his first day's success. He launched the Army of Northern Virginia in multiple Gettsyburg Battlefield attacks on the flanks of the Union Army of the Potomac, commanded by Maj. Gen. George G...
. Robert E. Lee
Robert E. Lee
Robert Edward Lee was a career military officer who is best known for having commanded the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia in the American Civil War....
established his headquarters on the ridge just north of the Chambersburg pike, and the ridge also served as the Confederate
Confederate States Army
The Confederate States Army was the army of the Confederate States of America while the Confederacy existed during the American Civil War. On February 8, 1861, delegates from the seven Deep South states which had already declared their secession from the United States of America adopted the...
line of battle
Line of battle
In naval warfare, the line of battle is a tactic in which the ships of the fleet form a line end to end. A primitive form had been used by the Portuguese under Vasco Da Gama in 1502 near Malabar against a Muslim fleet.,Maarten Tromp used it in the Action of 18 September 1639 while its first use in...
for July 2 & 3 attacks against Union Army
Union Army
The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...
positions on Cemetery Ridge
Cemetery Ridge
Cemetery Ridge is a geographic feature in Gettysburg National Military Park south of the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, that figured prominently in the Battle of Gettysburg, July 1 to July 3, 1863. It formed a primary defensive position for the Union Army during the battle, roughly the center of...
. On July 3, 500 men in George Pickett
George Pickett
George Edward Pickett was a career United States Army officer who became a general in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War...
's division were killed/wounded on Seminary Ridge (including 88 lost in one regiment of Kemper's Brigade) from the Federal artillery counterfire prior to Pickett's Charge. The last hospital patient of the seminary's Old Dorm left on September 16, 1863.
Longstreet Tower (No. 2 of five at Gettysburg)
Cope Truss
The Cope Truss is a tall square frustum of four structural cells used for 2 lattice towers on the Gettysburg Battlefield: Culp's Hill Observation Tower and Confederate Avenue Observation Tower. The high observation towers have stairways with corner landings along the interior sides to form a...
was built on the ridge by the War Department in 1895. West Confederate Avenue was built at the turn of the century for Seminary Ridge tourism, while Sharpshooters Avenue (named Berdan
Hiram Berdan
Hiram Berdan was an American engineer, inventor and military officer, world-renowned marksman, and guiding force behind and commanding colonel of the famed United States Volunteer Sharpshooter Regiments during the American Civil War...
Av by 1930) was extended from W Confederate Av in 1917 for access to a Pitzer Woods
Pitzer Woods
Pitzer Woods was used during the Battle of Gettysburg and for Gettysburg Battlefield camps after the American Civil War.-History:Pitzer Woods was the site of July 1st & 2nd fighting on the 1863 Gettysburg Battlefield. The Civilian Conservation Corps established the June 15, 1933, Pitzer Woods CCC...
monument. In 1918, various military camp sites (e.g., Camp Colt
Camp Colt, Pennsylvania
Camp Colt was a military installation near Gettysburg, Pennsylvania used for Tank Corps recruit training prior to deployment in World War I. The camp used the Gettysburg Battlefield site of the previous Great Reunion of 1913 and the preceding 1917 WWI recruit training camp for U. S. troops along...
) were located in the "Field of Pickett's Charge" between the Seminary and Cemetery ridges. The North Carolina Monument
North Carolina Monument
The North Carolina Monument is a North Carolina memorial of the American Civil War commemorating the 32 Carolina regiments in action at the Battle of Gettysburg...
was placed on the ridge in 1929.
The Civilian Conservation Corps
Civilian Conservation Corps
The Civilian Conservation Corps was a public work relief program that operated from 1933 to 1942 in the United States for unemployed, unmarried men from relief families, ages 18–25. A part of the New Deal of President Franklin D...
(CCC) built the 1938 Civil War veteran's camp for the 75th Anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg and performed Gettysburg Battlefield
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 4 acre site of the first shot & at on the west of the borough, to East...
landscaping through 1941. Construction had begun for Gettysburg CCC camp "NP-2", which opened May 26, 1934 on Seminary Ridge and closed in 1941. Renamed from "MP-2", camp NP-2 was in McMillan Woods, while a different CCC camp was in Pitzer Woods ("MP-1"/"NP-1") from 1935 until closing in April 1937. The Pitzer's Woods camp was for reforestation and a 1933 "cyclone" blew all 45 tents down (200 trees were downed at the Round Tops). The "Gettysburg Company 1355, C.C.C." celebrated their 8th anniversary in 1941.
World War II and post-war
During 1943-4, Camp SharpeCamp Sharpe
Camp Sharpe was a World War II military installation on the Gettysburg Battlefield that trained soldiers for psychological operations in the European Theater of Operations Camp Sharpe was a World War II military installation on the Gettysburg Battlefield that trained soldiers for psychological...
at the former Pitzer Woods CCC camp NP-1 trained soldiers for psychological operations in the European Theater of Operations
European Theater of Operations
The European Theater of Operations, United States Army was a United States Army formation which directed U.S. Army operations in parts of Europe from 1942 to 1945. It referred to Army Ground Forces, United States Army Air Forces, and Army Service Forces operations north of Italy and the...
, and adjacent to Camp Sharpe was a 1944-6 POW camp at CCC camp NP-2 in McMillan Woods
McMillan Woods
McMillan Woods was used during the Battle of Gettysburg and for Gettysburg Battlefield camps after the American Civil War, including the WWII POW camp at Gettysburg...
. Following the 1950 purchase of the Eisenhower farm, the US Secret Service monitored the tourists using the top of the nearby Longstreet Tower, and the Pitzer Woods amphitheater was constructed in the 1960s The Adams County Historical Society moved to the seminary's Old Dorm on the ridge in 1961, and the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places listings in Adams County, Pennsylvania
This is a list of the National Register of Historic Places listings in Adams County, Pennsylvania.This is intended to be a complete list of the properties and districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Adams County, Pennsylvania, United States...
added Old Dorm in 1974 (the Gettysburg Armory
Gettysburg Armory
The Gettysburg Armory is a former military facility listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The 61x96 ft facility was constructed as a $43,331 Works Projects Administration project for the local National Guard unit The Gettysburg Armory is a former military facility listed on the...
in 1990).
In 1982, the Tennessee State Memorial on West Confederate Avenue was the last confederate state memorial to be dedicated, and the memorial to James Longstreet was erected in Pitzer Woods in 1998 after being planned in 1941. The ridge's Historic Preservation Foundation at 61 Seminary Ridge Av was formed on April 29, 1999.