160 years ago, the Battle of Gettysburg marked a critical turning point in the American Civil War. Taking place around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, the three-day engagement pitted 85,000 Union soldiers against 75,000 invading Confederates, resulting in devastating casualties on both sides. Artifacts linked to this pivotal battle are some of the most revered items in Civil War collecting, and examining the stories behind these treasures can provide a broader perspective on the battle that changed American history.

The Berdan's Sharpshooters skirmish line at Gettysburg was the first line of defense against the Confederate forces of Major General John B. Hood's division as they assaulted the Union left. This example of a Berdan's Sharps rifle, arguably the finest known, sold for $115,000 at Rock Island Auction Company in September of 2021.

The Battle of Gettysburg

On July 1st, 1863, General Robert E. Lee's Confederate Army of Northern Virginia collided with a portion of the Union Army of the Potomac at Gettysburg, surprising the Union cavalry. Both sides gathered reinforcements, with the Union fortifying a series of hills and ridges south of town.

In early 1863, Robert E. Lee sent almost every Confederate bronze 6-pound cannon to the Tredegar Arsenal to be melted down for 12-pound Napoleons, and Confederate Secretary of War James A. Seddon supported this strategy. Most of the surviving Columbus Arsenal pieces are still located at Gettysburg. This 1863 dated, Confederate Columbus Arsenal bronze 9-pound cannon sold at RIAC for $661,250 in May of 2021 and is the only known example of its kind.

July 2nd saw tens of thousands of new arrivals at Gettysburg, including Union General George Meade, who'd only been appointed to command the Army of the Potomac three days earlier. General Daniel Sickles, commander of the Army's III Corps, had arrived too late the previous day to make a difference in the fighting, but his choices and his rivalry with General Meade would play a crucial role in the second day of fighting.

Ordered to hold a 1,600-yard line along the southernmost end of Cemetery Ridge, Sickles argued he had insufficient strength to cover the position and instead advanced his two divisions about a mile ahead to the higher ground near Emmitsburg Road where he thought he could better utilize his artillery. Instead, Sickles was forced to stretch his divisions thin and threatened the integrity of the Union line, creating a salient that left the III Corps vulnerable to fire from three directions. The subsequent Confederate assault resulted in heavy losses for the III Corps, with Sickles himself losing his right leg to an artillery shell, ending his military career though not his involvement with the Gettysburg battlegrounds.

Colonel Emory Upton was another late arrival to Gettysburg, reaching the battlefield with his 121st New York Regiment after a grueling 16-hour march. Upton's unit was set to work by General Meade reinforcing the Union's left flank. Ironically, Sickles' position had extended the Confederate line and allowed the Union to retain the key grounds of Little Round Top and Cemetery Ridge. In a letter to his sister, Upton wrote: “For about ten minutes I watched the contest, when it seemed that the weight of a hair would have turned the scales. Our men fought most gallantly. The rebels began to give way, and soon retreated in utter confusion.”

Two Colt revolvers from two men who fought on opposing sides at the Battle of Gettysburg, Confederate Captain William Conner (left) and Union Colonel Emory Upton (right) were auctioned at RIAC in December of 2021.

On the opposing side of the field, Brigadier General Paul J. Semmes of Georgia led a Confederate assault on the Little Round Top, where he fell mortally wounded. Semmes passed away eight days later, asking to hold his sword and his bible with his final breath.

Norm Flayderman, an author, collector, dealer, and revered authority in the antique arms field, explained,

"There are few Confederate edged weapons that can compare to the silver and diamond-studded sword of Brig. Gen. Paul Jones Semmes. His treasured sword by Ames, the Rolls Royce of American sword makers, embodied all that was dear to a Southern patriotic gentleman - stature, elegance, duty, and valor. He was mortally wounded in the Wheatfield at Gettysburg while wielding it. He died grasping it."

Robert E. Lee wrote that Semmes, "died as he had lived, discharging the highest duty of a patriot with devotion that never faltered and courage that shrank from no danger."

Confederate General P.J. Semmes's Ames presentation sword, one of the most storied and documented artifacts from the Battle of Gettysburg, sold for $176,250 during Rock Island Auction Company's December 2022 Premier Auction.

Gettysburg Day 3: The Battle Turns

On the third and final day of the bloody battle, 12,500 Confederate infantry assaulted the Union center on Cemetary Ridge, an action known as 'Pickett's Charge.' Confederate Major William Gustine Conner of the Jefferson Davis Cavalry Legion fought in a fierce cavalry assault as General J.E.B. Stuart tried to draw Union forces away from the center of their line to assist in General Pickett's efforts. Conner was a wealthy cotton grower who had served the Confederacy since the start of the war.

The Mississippi Historical Society has documented testimony that Conner rode into the fray “amid the rattle of pistols and clashes of sabers, he seized a guidon (a cavalry standard or flag) of the enemy, and when ordered to surrender drew his pistol and killed two of his assailants before being killed himself.”

In General Stuart's report of the Battle of Gettysburg, he writes, "Among the killed was Major Conner, a gallant and efficient officer of the Jeff. Davis Legion."

Captain William Gustine Conner's Civil War Colt revolver sold for $138,000 in RIAC's December 2021 Premier Auction.

Gettysburg swords and firearms owned by generals and officers are rightfully revered, but the documented arms of the common soldier can be equally valued among Civil War collectors. Union sharpshooter Private Robert John May served as a marksman in Company D of the famous 149th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry Regiment, which is honored today with three monuments on the Gettysburg battlefield.

Private May recorded his experiences at Gettysburg in detail, including a July 3, 1863 diary entry that reads, “Remained all last night on picket - had no sleep - a most disagreeable duty we lay on the Battlefield with dead and dying on all sides- the suffering of the wounded was terrible... This morning the enemy opened on our lines with their [artillery] - very soon they got their answer and more - the nearest Reb Battery was only about 500 yds. in front of us where we sat at the picket line....we lay under the fire of both lines of artillery for nearly two hours - our own guns came very near ruining us several times - dropping shells within a few feet of us..."

This documented Civil War Union sharpshooter's cased William Craig Pittsburg percussion target rifle with Morgan James scope, accessories, powder horn and diaries of R.J. May of Company D of the 2nd Bucktail Regiment and the Sharpshooter Battalion sold at Rock Island Auction Company in September of 2021 for $69,000.

Sharpshooting rifles weren't the only advanced firearms to aid the Union victory at Gettysburg. Ordnance records of the 5th and 6th Regiments Michigan Cavalry, part of General George Armstrong Custer's "Wolverines," indicate that the two regiments fielded 572 Spencer rifles between them during the Battle of Gettysburg and carried around 10,000 rounds of ammunition. The 5th and 6th Michigan put their "Spencer seven shooters" to the test as they engaged Jeb Stuart's calvary behind the Union right and helped drive back the Confederate assault.

A Civil War Spencer Model 1860 repeating rifle.

Gettysburg Aftermath

160 years ago, Robert E. Lee's invasion of Pennsylvania was repelled at the Battle of Gettysburg, sending the Confederate army reeling back to Virginia and crippling their prospects for future offensives. As many as 51,000 men were killed, injured, or lost to action at Gettysburg, the bloodiest single engagement of the Civil War.

President Lincoln delivered the Gettysburg Address on November 19, 1863, part of the commemoration ceremony for the Gettysburg National Cemetery.

On November 19th, President Lincoln visited the battlefield and delivered one of his defining speeches with the Gettysburg Address, declaring, "...we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain—that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom—and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth."

Gettysburg National Military Park

In the years following the Civil War, Gettysburg became a site of national mourning and remembrance. Daniel Sickles became an advocate for preserving the Gettysburg battlefield, and in 1894 a now Congressman Sickles introduced legislation to create Gettysburg National Military Park, which President Cleveland signed into law the following year.

A closeup of the monument to Captain Andrew Cowan's 1st New York Artillery at Gettysburg National Military Park.

Daniel Sickles spent the rest of his life leading the New York Monuments Commission for the Battlefield of Gettysburg, raising money for memorials that honored New York's regiments and making sure they were property located. Today, Gettysburg National Military Park includes 1,328 monuments, memorials, markers, and plaques that commemorate the men who fought and died during the Battle of Gettysburg.

Collecting the Civil War

The 160th anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg is a solemn reminder of the sacrifices made during a devastating Civil War that touched nearly every family in America. The Union victory halted General Lee's advance and solidified President Lincoln's resolve to preserve the Union at any cost. As Lincoln noted when commemorating the Gettysburg National Cemetery, "The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced."

The historic Gustave Young engraved and inscribed Colt Model 1855 Sidehammer pocket revolver of former Secretary of State Edward Everett, "America's Greatest Orator", sold at RIAC for $149,500 in December of 2019. Edward Everett was chosen to deliver the main oration at the dedication of the National Cemetery at Gettysburg on the day that Abraham Lincoln delivered his monumental Gettysburg Address.

‘History Lives Here’ isn't just a slogan at Rock Island Auction Company, it's an appreciation for the items we curate and an acknowledgment of the immense responsibility that comes with handling weapons and militaria associated with some of the most pivotal events that have shaped our world today. Civil War arms collecting can help bridge the gap between the past and the present and ensure that these immensely historic arms and the stories behind them are preserved for generations to come.

An incredibly historic and extremely well-documented Civil War presentation cased pair of deluxe factory-engraved Colt Model 1860 Army percussion revolvers with hand-engraved cylinder scenes and presentation inscription from Philo Parsons to Union Colonel Lewis B. Parsons.