19th Indiana

The 19th Indiana’s monument is a prototypical Indiana regimental monument: simple in design. It is located in the woods near Willoughby Run off of Meredith Avenue. It marks where the regiment fought on July 1, 1863.

The regiment was part of the famous Iron Brigade. It was recruited from the counties of Delaware, Elkhart, Johnson, Madison, Marion, Owen, Randolph, and Wayne.

The commander at Gettysburg was Col. Samuel J. Williams (1831-1864), a farmer in Selma. He was killed on May 6, 1864 at the battle of the Wilderness.

19th Indiana

1st Corps, 1st Division, 1st Brigade

339; 27 killed, 133 wounded, 50 missing

Meredith Avenue

7th Indiana Infantry

Indian’s monuments at Gettysburg are quite simple, with exception of the large state monument raised in the 1970s that stands at Spangler’s Spring. The 7th Indiana monument does not vary from that rule. It is located at the base of the Culp’s Hill tower at the summit.

Raised from the counties of Dearborn, Decatur, Johnson, Hendricks, Marion and Ohio (county), the regiment was commanded by Col. Ira G. Grover (1832-1876), a lawyer from Greensburg.

This simple monument marks the regiment’s position on July 1, 2, and 3, 1863. The only real feature of the monument is the state seal.

7th Indiana Infantry

1st Corps, 1st Division, 2nd Brigade

Col. Ira G. Grover (1832-1876)

Engaged: 437; 2 killed, 5 wounded, 3 missing

Monument: Culp’s Hill summit

3d Indiana Cavalry

The 3d Indiana Cavalry, like all the Indiana units, has a very simple monument. It is a white granite obelisk located off Reynolds Avenue a short distance from the infamous “Railroad Cut.”

The regiment had 6 companies (A-F) at Gettysburg. It was raised from the counties of Dearborn, Fayette, Jefferson, Harrison, and Switzerland during the summer of 1861. It was also known as the “45th Volunteers.” The commander at Gettysburg was Col. George H. Chapman (1832-1882), a lawyer from Indianapolis.

The monument along Reynolds Avenue marks the unit’s position on the cavalry battle line on the morning of July 1, 1863.

3d Indiana Cavalry

Cavalry Corps, 1st Division, 1st Brigade

Col. George H. Chapman (1832-1882)

Engaged: 369; 6 killed, 21 wounded, 5 missing

Monument: Reynolds Avenue

20th Indiana Infantry

At Gettysburg, you cannot generally tell from the ornateness of a monument whether the regiment was nearly slaughtered here or whether it simply sat in reserve. Such a case is the 20th Indiana: a very simple monument that hides the fact that the regiment suffered terribly on July 2, 1863.

Raised from the counties of Cass, Lake, Laporte, Marion, Marshall, Miami, Porter, Tippecanoe, and White in the summer of 1861, the 20th was commanded at Gettysburg by Col. John Wheeler (1825-1863), an editor from Crown Point. The monument stands near where he was killed. Command then fell to Lt. Col. William C.L. Taylor (1836-1901), a lawyer from Lafayette. The monument is located on the edge of the Wheatfield along Cross Avenue.

This monument was dedicated on October 28, 1885.

20th Indiana Infantry

3rd Corps, 1st Division, 2nd Brigade

Col. John Wheeler (1825-1863)

Engaged: 496; 32 killed, 114 wounded, 10 missing

Monument: Cross Avenue between Devil’s Den and the Wheatfield

27th Indiana Infantry

The monument to the 27th Indiana is a “small, unpretentious granite shaft” that was erected in 1885 near the first monument on the battlefield, that of the 2nd Massachusetts. Nearby is the much larger and newer Indiana state monument. The boulder the monument was erected upon was used to shelter the wounded on July 3. This monument cost $500.00 and is made of Bedford limestone. It is located on the edge of the Spangler Field.

The 27th Indiana came from the counties of Daviess, Dubois, Jennings, Johnson, Lawrence, Monroe, Morgan, and Putnam. Their commander was Col. Silas Colgrove (1816-1907), the state prosecutor. He was succeeded in command by Lt. Col. John R. Fesler (1835-1920), a merchant from Morgantown.

27th Indiana Infantry

12th Corps, 1st Division, 3rd Brigade

Col. Silas Colgrove (1816-1907)

Engaged: 339; 23 killed, 86 wounded, 11 missing

Monument: Carman Avenue; edge of Spangler’s Spring field.  Advanced position marker near monument.

The Indiana State Monument

All of the Confederate states present at Gettysburg have state memorials. A few of the Federal states have them as well, including Indiana.

Located in Spangler’s Meadow near where the 27th Indiana charged and suffered tremendous casualties in the battle of Culp’s Hill, the Indiana State Memorial was dedicated on July 1, 1971.

The monument consists of two ten foot phyl0ns that rise up between a die. The terrace, walkway, and the benches were constructed of Indiana bedford limestone. It was designed by Al Yeager.

Originally, the state of Indiana had appropriated $3,000 towards construction of regimental monuments at Gettysburg. This allowed most regiments to only raise simple markers. Over the years, many Hoosiers expressed dismay at their state’s monuments on the battlefield.

This led to the formation of a monument comission in 1968.

The company chose a design submitted by a Gettysburg memorial company and the monument was erected in the Spangler Meadow in the fall of 1870. The memorial cost $17,000.00 and weighs in at 28,000 pounds.

The image to the left shows a close up of the die and lettering on the Indiana State Monument.