Draw the Sword

Location: Chambersburg Pike across from the McPherson Barn.

Commanded: First Division, Cavalry Corps.

Monument Specifications: A standing portrait of General Buford looking out to the west as he did in 1863 when three thousand cavalrymen of his division prepared to meet the advance of Robert E. Lee’s army. He holds a pair of binoculars in his raised proper right hand. The monument was funded by Jerome B. Wheeler. The Buford Memorial Association was formed in 1888 and during design discussions, John Calef, who had commanded a horse artillery battery under General Buford, suggested that the design incorporate four ordnance rifles that were in the battery. One of the ordnance rifles was number 233, the rifle that fired the first Union artillery shot of the battle under Buford’s direction. The Army Chief of Ordnance located the rifle tubes and donated them to the monument committee. At the dedication ceremony, Major Calef symbolically spiked the four rifle tubes.

Dedication Date: July 1, 1895.

Sculptor/Artist/Company: Kelly, James Edward, 1855-1933, sculptor. Henry-Bonnard Bronze Company, founder.

Other Monuments and Memorials: None.

Brief Bio: John Buford, Jr. (March 4, 1826 – December 16, 1863) was a Union cavalry officer during the American Civil War, with a prominent role at the start of the Battle of Gettysburg. Professional soldier, USMA 1848. Buford died just six months after the battle from Typhoid Fever. The bronze statue to cavalry division commander John Buford is located near the Reynolds equestrian on the Chambersburg Pike. This seems especially appropriate because Reynolds and Buford worked closely together to choose this ground as the battlefield.