1st Michigan Infantry

The 1st Michigan was raised at Ann Arbor from the counties of Jackson, Washtenaw, and Wayne.

Like most of Michigan’s infantry monuments, this one features a bas relief on the front of the die. The monument is located on “The Loop” near the Rose Farm and the Wheatfield. It “marks the position where the regiment fought” on the afternoon of July 2.

The regiment was commanded by Col. Ira C. Abbott (1824-1908), a grain dealer from Burr Oak. Abbott was wounded on July 2 and Lt. Col. William A. Throop took command. Throop (1838-1884) was a bookseller from Detroit.

1st Michigan Infantry

5th Corps, 1st Division, 1st Brigade

261; 5 killed, 33 wounded, 4 missing

Monument: Sickles Avenue

24th Michigan Infantry

The 24th Michigan was a member of the famous “Iron Brigade.” The “junior” regiment it was raised in the summer of 1862. Its monument stands in the woods on west McPherson Ridge where the regiment fought on July 1, 1863. The monument features a granite carved staute of a soldier loading his rifle. The soldier wears the famous “Black Hat” of the Iron Brigade. Other features include the state seal and crossed flags.

Raised mainly from Wayne County, the 24th Michigan was commanded at Gettysburg by Col. Henry A. Morrow (1829-1891), a lawyer from Detroit with Mexican War experience. Morrow was wounded carrying the regimental colors on July 1 and was succeeded by Capt. Albert M. Edwards (1836-1909), an editor in Detroit. The regiment numbered just under 500 at Gettysburg and suffered over 300 casualties.

24th Michigan Infantry

Members of the 1st Corps, 1st Division, 1st Brigade

Commanded by: Col. Henry A. Morrow (1829-1891)

Engaged: 496; 67 killed, 210 wounded, 86 missing

Monument: Meredith Avenue, McPherson’s Ridge [Alternate Image]

3rd Michigan Infantry

Engaged on July 2 at the Peach Orchard, the 3rd Michigan was commanded at Gettysburg by Col. Byron R. Pierce (1829-1924), a dentist from Grand Rapids.  Wounded in action at the Peach Orchard, Pierce’s left leg had to be amputated; he was later promoted to brigadier general in 1865.  Lt. Col. Edwin S. Pierce (1831-1912) took command from his brother.  The regiment formed the right of De Trobriand’s brigade.

Raised from the counties of Ionia, Kent, Muskegon, and Ottawa, there were almost 300 members at Gettysburg.

The monument features a bas relief carving of two soldiers in action at Gettysburg.  The monument also features a bronze state crest on the top and a diamond — symbolic of the Third Corps.

3rd Michigan Infantry

Members of the 3rd Corps, 1st Division, 3rd Brigade

Commanded by:  Col. Byron R. Pierce (1829-1924)

Engaged: 286; 7 killed, 31 wounded, 7 missing

Monument: The Peach Orchard

5th Michigan Infantry

The 5th Michigan Infantry fought at the Wheatfield.

The nearly 300 men of the 5th Michigan were commanded at Gettysburg by Lt. Col. John Pulford (1837-1896), a hotel owner in Detroit.  Raised from the counties of Livingston, Macomb, Oakland, Sagniaw, and St. Clair, the regiment suffered over 100 casualties at Gettysburg in action at the Wheatfield.

The regimental monument is rather simple.  It features the state crest in bronze.  A granite relief of a soldier loading his musket is the monument’s main feature.  Many (but not all) Michigan monuments at Gettysburg feature reliefs.

5th Michigan Infantry

Members of the 3rd Corps, 1st Division, 3rd Brigade

Commanded by: Lt. Col. John Pulford (1837-1896)

Engaged: 283; 19 killed, 86 wounded, 4 missing

Monument: Sickles Avenue, the Wheatfield near the Loop

4th Michigan Infantry

Like several other Michigan monuments on the field, the 4th Michigan monument features a bas relief carving on the front of the die. The carving is of the regiment’s Col. Harrison H. Jeffords (1834-1863), a lawyer from Dexter. Jeffords died on July 3 as a result of wounds the day before. While defending the colors from capture in the swirling malestorm of the Wheatfield, Jeffords was bayoneted through the body.¹ The regiment was able to rescue their colors and carry it to safety. Jeffords was succeeded by a Hillsdale lawyer named Lt. Col. George W. Lumbard (1830-1864) who was himself killed in the Wilderness.

Raised from Hillsdale, Lennawee, Monroe, and Washtenaw counties, the 4th Michigan numbered just over 400 at Gettysburg and lost heavily.

The monument cost $1,350.00 and is made of granite. It was dedicated on June 12, 1889 and stands at over 13 feet tall.

4th Michigan Infantry

Members of the 5th Corps, 1st Division, 2nd Brigade

Commanded by: Col. Harrison H. Jeffords (1834-1863),

Engaged: 403; 25 killed, 64 wounded, 76 missing

Monument: De Trobriand Avenue, the Wheatfield

1. Jeffords may have been the highest ranking officer killed by baynoet in the War. [↩]

1st, 5th, 6th, 7th Michigan Cavalry

Located on the East Cavalry Battlefield, this tall monument is to the “Wolverine Brigade.”

A few regiments at Gettysburg don’t have individual regimental monuments, but rather are honored with a single larger monument to the brigade. Such is the case of the 1st, 5th, 6th, and 7th Michigan Cavalry Regiments. Members of Custer’s Brigade, their monument is located near the center of the East Cavalry battlefield, along a grass avenue known as “Custer Avenue.”

The 1st Michigan Cavalry was commanded by Colonel Charles Town (1828-1865) and lost 10 killed, 43 wounded, and 20 missing out of a little over 500 engaged. The 5th Cavalry was commanded by Colonel Russell A. Alger (1836-1907) — who would later serve in the U.S. Senate, Governor of Michigan, and as the Secretary of War. The 5th lost 8 killed, 30 wounded, and 18 missing out of over 750 engaged.

The 6th Cavalry took just over 600 men into action under the command of Colonel George Gray, a Grand Rapids attorney. They lost 1 killed, 26 wounded, and 1 missing.

Detail of the Michigan Cavalry Brigade Monument

Finally, the smallest unit at about 460 men, the 7th Michigan took ten companies into battle at Gettysburg under Colonel William D’Alton Mann of Sandusky Ohio (1839-1920). It lost 13 killed, 48 wounded, and 39 missing.

The monument was erected by the spring of 1889 and stands along a swath of cut grass known by an iron park sign as “Custer Avenue.” Note the detail of the horse heads along the top of the monument.

Members of the Cavalry Corps, 3rd Division, 2nd Brigade

Brigade commanded by General George A. Custer

Engaged: 1,934

Casualties: 32 killed, 147 wounded, 78 missing

Monument: “Custer Avenue,” East Cavalry Battlefield

Focus: The 7th Michigan Infantry

Members of Hancock’s famous II Corps, the 7th Michigan’s simple monument stands just south of the famous Angle. The regiment saw hard-fighting on both July 2 and in the July 3 repulse of Pickett’s Charge.

Raised from the counties of Monroe, Lapeer, Tuscola, and Oakland, the 7th Regiment was mustered in during August 1861. At Gettysburg, it was commanded by Lt. Col. Amos Steele,Jr. Born in New York in 1834, Steele became a farmer in Mason, Michigan. He was killed in the July 3, 1863 fighting on Cemetery Ridge. Of the 165 men it took into battle, the 7th lost 21 killed and 44 wounded at Gettysburg.

The monument is located near the stonewall along Hancock Avenue, as mentioned just south of the famous Angle. It is a simple monument, the main feature of which is the crossed rifle muskets overlaid on the Second Corps badge — the trefoil.

Members of the 2nd Corps, 2nd Division, 3rd Brigade.

Commanded at Gettysburg by Lt. Col. Amos Steele (1834-July 3, 1863)

Took 165 men into battle; lost 21 killed and 44 wounded

Monument location: Hancock Avenue, just south of the Copse of Trees and Angle