Major General Winfield Scott Hancock commanded the Second Corps at Gettysburg.
About the Main Monument
When was it dedicated? June 5, 1896.
What is it made out of? Sculpture: bronze; Base: red Westerly granite.
What size is it? Sculpture: approx. H. 17 ft. x W. 9 ft. 6 in.; Base: approx. H. 17 ft. x. w. 10 ft. 2 in.
Who made it? Elwell, Frank Edwin, 1858-1922, sculptor. Bureau Brothers, founder. Smith Granite Company, fabricator.
What does it depict? An equestrian portrait of General Winfield Scott Hancock with his proper left hand holding the horse’s reins and his proper right hand extended at his side. The sculpture rests atop a rectangular base adorned with rectangular inscription plaques.
What does it honor? The sculpture is located where General Hancock rallied the retreating Union forces on the evening of July 1, 1863. Captain Henry Bingham of Hancock’s staff gave the oration at the dedication.
How is it inscribed? BORN-FEBRUARY-14-1824 DIED-FEBRUARY-9-1886/MAJOR-GENERAL/WINFIELD-SCOTT-HANCOCK/UNITED-STATES-ARMY
When was this photograph taken? February 8, 2009
Where is it located? Located Gettysburg National Military Park, Cemetery Hill, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania 17325.
Is this monument located along the NPS Auto Tour route? Yes, located along the extended Culp’s Hill tour.
Has this monument been moved or changed? This monument has not been moved or altered. In 1902, the monument was stuck by lightning; the pedestal damaged. It was repaired by the Van Amringe Granite Company.
Monument Details, Alternative Views, and Contextual Views
Secondary Monuments and Markers
Monument Title: Wounding Location Stone
Photographed: May 30, 2009.
Location: Hancock Avenue. Located on the west side of Hancock Avenue, near Pleasonton Avenue. Marked on the map above with a RED push pin.
Description: Monument is a tapered granite shaft of coursed rough cut stone except for the center stone and topped with a pyramidal finished stone cap and set on a 2.2 1/2 foot square base. Smooth and rough-hewn blue Westerly granite; base: concrete.It indicates the area where Major General Winfield Scott Hancock was wounded during the closing minutes of Longstreet’s assault on July 3, 1863. Erected between 1886 and 1893. Dedicated 1892. Smith Granite Company, fabricator.
Monument Title: Armistead and Hancock Monument
Photographed: May 30, 2009.
Location: George Spangler Farm on the Hospital Road. Located on the map above with a BLUE pushpin.
Description: Dedicated February 18, 2000 and erected by the Armistead Marker Preservation Committee. It is inscribed, Friends and fellow officers in the United States Army prior to 1861, the fate of Civil War made them foes on the battlefield at Gettysburg. Confederate Brig. Gen. Lewis A. Armistead and Union Maj. Gen. Winfield S. Hancock were both wounded in Longstreet’s assault (Pickett’s Charge), July 3, 1863. Here at the Union Army 11th Corps Field Hospital (George Spangler Farm), Armistead died of his wounds on July 5, 1863. Northwest of this marker is the site of the Granite School House, a Union field hospital, where Hancock was initially treated for his wounds. Hancock survived the war, and became a well-known military, political, and civic leader. He died on active military duty at Governor’s Island, New York, February 9, 1886.
At Gettysburg
Commanded: Second Corps of the Army of the Potomac.
General Information
Brief Biography: Winfield Scott Hancock (February 14, 1824 – February 9, 1886) was a career U.S. Army officer and the Democratic nominee for President of the United States in 1880. He served with distinction in the Army for four decades, including service in the Mexican-American War and as a Union general in the American Civil War. Known to his Army colleagues as “Hancock the Superb”, he was noted in particular for his personal leadership at the Battle of Gettysburg in 1863.
Equestrians at Gettysburg
George Meade :: John Reynolds :: Winfield Hancock :: John Sedgwick :: Oliver Howard :: Henry Slocum
One Comment
Nice piece on “The Superb” Jenny!
I love that monument, and the way that steadying hand reaches out. It is always the first place I visit when I go to Gettysburg.
I too have an absolute admiration for General Hancock. Special thanks for this one!