USA > Pennsylvania > York County > Shiloh > The Seventy-seventh Pennsylvania at Shiloh. History of the regiment. The battle of Shiloh > Part 2
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No. 453. AN ACT
To provide for the erection of a monument to commemorate the services of Pennsylvania troops in the battle of Shiloh, and the appointment of a commissiou to carry into effect the provisions of this Act, and making appropriation therefor.
Section 1. Be it enacted, &c., That immediately after the passage of this Act, the Governor shall appoint a commission of seven persons from amongst the survivors of the said Seventy-seventh regiment of infantry. . That the said commission shall be known as "The Shiloh Battlefield Com- mission." That the Governor shall fill all vacancies that may occur in said commission, and it shall serve without compensation, except actual neces- sary expenses incurred in the performance of its duties; and its duties shall be to select and decide upon location, design, materials and inscriptions for one monument, to commemorate the services of the said Seventy-seveuth regiment of infantry during the battle of Shiloh, and to enter into contract for the construction and erection of said monument: Provided, Said monu- ment shall not exceed in cost the sum of five thousand dollars; and when such shall have been completed and erected, the Auditor General shall, upon properly, specifically itemized vouchers, draw his warrant upon the State Treasurer, in favor of the said Shiloh Battlefield Commission, for the sun of five thousand dollars, or so much thereof as may be necessary, for the
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Shiloh National Park.
payment of said monument, and for the further sum of one thousand dollars for the payment of the necessary expenses of the said commission.
For the purposes herein mentioned the following sums, or so much thereof as may be necessary, are hereby specifically appropriated: For the erection and completion of a monument as aforesaid, the sum of five thousand dollars, or so much thereof as may be necessary. For the payment of the neces- sary expenses of the said Shiloh Battlefield Commission, and of such officers of the State as may be designated by the Secretary of War of the United States and the National Shiloh Battlefield Commission to represent this Commonwealth in the dedicatory ceremonies, the sum of one thousand dollars, or so much thereof as may be necessary.
July 18, 1901-This bill is approved except as to the following items:
I approve the item appropriating $5,000 for the construction and erection. of a monument in the sum of $4,000, and withhold my approval from the balance of said item.
. I withhold my approval of the item appropriating $1,000 for the expenses of the commission.
I have made the reduction aforesaid because of insufficient State revenue. WILLIAM A. STONE.
The foregoing is a true and correct copy of the Act of the General Assembly No. 453.
W. W. GRIEST, Secretary of the Commonwealth.
. Governor William A. Stone, in compliance with the afore- said Act of the Legislature, appointed the following persons, all survivors of the Seventh-seventh Regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteers, viz:
Samuel T. Davis, Lancaster,
Henry P. Krebs, Pittsburg,
John W. Kreps, Allegheny,
Michael McNally, Philadelphia,
John Obreiter, Lancaster,
William A. Robinson, Pittsburg,
George W. Skinner, Scotland,
as Commissioners to carry into effect all the provisions of the said Act of Assembly.
These Commissioners met for organization, on the 15th day of October, 1901, at the Soldier's Orphans Industrial School, Scotland, Pennsylvania.
The meeting was called to order by Captain Skinner, and the following permanent organization effected all being unani- mously chosen:
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Seventy-seventh Pennsylvania Regiment.
John Obreiter, Lancaster, Chairman.
Samuel T. Davis, Lancaster, Secretary.
George W. Skinner, Scotland, Treasurer.
These officers were, on motion of General Robinson, ap- pointed as an Executive Committee, and given full power to act for the Commission in all cases.
It was decided to have one monument constructed and erected, as provided by law, the same to be of a combina- tion of bronze and granite; all inscriptions, as far as practica- ble, to be on bronze, in raised capital letters, it being the unanimous opinion, that inscriptions on bronze were more legible, more durable and less liable to injury from the ele- ments and other causes, than those inscribed on stone.
The monument to be of granite, surmounted by a statue, in bronze, of a private soldier, in the uniform, and equipments as worn by the regiment at the battle of Shiloh, and that the principal events, in the history of the regiment in that battle, be shown by bronze bas-relief panels on the sides of the monu- ment, and the Pennsylvania Coat of Arms in bronze bas-relief on its front.
On the 23d day of November, 1901, the Chairman and Sec- retary, together with Captains McNally and Kreps and Ser- geant Krebs, of the Pennsylvania Commission, met on Shiloh battlefield for the purpose of locating a proper site on which to have the monument erected; upon the arrival of this Com- mittee at Pittsburg Landing, they were met by Colonel Cadle, Chairman; Major Reed, Secretary, and Colonel Patterson, of the National Commission, also Mr. Atwell Thompson, Engi- neer in charge, his assistant, Mr. William S. Keller, and Gen- eral Lew Wallace, who was on a visit to the battlefield.
The purpose of our visit, with the able assistance of Major Reed and Mr. Thompson, was soon accomplished in a very satisfactory manner, the location decided upon is, on the Park plan, on line 96, station 73-30, 45' east, on the Hamburg and Purdy road, in an open field, known as the Review Field, in this field the Regiment rendered most efficient services during the battle.
No visitor to the Park will fail to see the Pennsylvania monument, and there learn from it, if he has not previously known, that Pennsylvania had one regiment there to take part
CAPT ST DAVIS CAPT JW KREPS
SERGT HPKREBS GENLEWWALLACE ATWELL THOMPSON COLJOSIAH PATTERSON
CAPT M MENALLY
JOHN OBREITER
WORDWREED W S KELLER COL CCADIE
CHAIRMAN
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Shiloh National Park.
in the struggle, which took place on that ground on the 7th day of April, 1862.
The following are the rules adopted by the Secretary of War and the National Park Commission to govern the erec- tion of monuments or other memorials on the Park:
"RULES GOVERNING SHILOH PARK.
"War Department, "Shiloh Battlefield Commission,
"Pittsburg Landing, Tenn., March 1, 1896.
"In accordance with the Act of Congress, approved December 27, 1894, establishing the Shiloh National Park, the following regulations are pub- lished for the information and guidance of all interested in the erection of monuments, tablets or other methods of indicating lines of battle or · positions within the limits of the Park:
"1. Statements of the proposed dimensions, designs, inscriptions upon, and materials for all monuments, tablets or other markers, must be sub- mitted, in duplicate, to the Commissioners of the Park, and in the case of monuments, plans and elevations showing exact measurements, and a close estimate of weight must also be submitted. The Park Commissioners will report upon these to the Secretary of War, and upon his approval, such monuments, tablets, or markers may be erected, but not until such approval has been obtained.
"2. Monuments, markers and other permanent memorials must be con- structed of bronze or granite, or a combination of these two materials. The number of markers shall be limited to such, as in the judgment of the Secretary of War may be necessary to designate important positions.
"3. Inscriptions must be purely historical, and must relate only to the Battle of Shiloh. They must also be based upon, and conform to, the official reports, or competent testimony, where reports are missing or not complete, and must be submitted to the Secretary of War, through the Park Commis- sioners, for his approval, before being inscribed upon monuments, tablets or other markers.
"4. Regimental monuments shall be placed on brigade lines, or on ground where the regiments did their most notable fighting. However, in case a regiment concerned became separated from its own brigade, and most distinguished itself while alone or attached to another, its monument may be so placed as to show this fact. General memorial monuments, erected by States, must be located on grounds upon which some of the troops of the State erecting the monument were engaged. Where troops fought outside of the limits of the Park, their monuments may be placed at such points within the Park as the Commissioners of the Park may designate, with the approval of the Secretary of War.
"5. The location proposed for each monument, marker or other perma- nent memorial must be submitted to the Secretary of War, through the Park commissioners, for his approval, and none shall be erected until suck approval shall have been obtained.
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Seventy-seventh Pennsylvania Regiment.
"6. The foundations of all State monuments will be constructed without cost to the States, under the direction of the Park Engineer.
"7. The Commissioners will designate the width of tire to be used upon trucks hauling monuments over the roads built by the Government, and in case of wet weather such hauling will not be permitted. The width of tire will be regulated by the weight of the monument, permission for moving monuments to points designated for their erection must be obtained from the commission.
"8. Work upon monuments or other markers or tablets within the Park or its approaches, will not be allowed on Sundays.
"9. Brigades and Divisions may be designated in the inscriptions by their numbers, where that method was used, or by the names of their respective commanders, or both. The numerical designation alone would be meaningless to most visitors.
"For the Commission, .
"CORNELIUS CADLE, "Chairman."
The various monument builders, throughout the country, were accordingly invited to submit designs to the Commis- sion, on or before December 16, 1901, for one monument, con- structed on the lines indicated, and erected on Shiloh National Military Park, to cost for materials, construction and erec- tion, exclusive of foundation and all other expenses, a sum not exceeding three thousand dollars.
After careful examination and full consideration, by the Commission, of the various designs submitted. It was de- cided that the one submitted by the Harrison Granite Com- pany, of New York City, was, in all respects, the best, and gave the greatest value for the sum named; therefore, after making a number of modifications and changes in the design, which were accepted by that company, the award was made to them and the following contract entered into:
ARTICLES OF AGREEMENT,
Made and entered into this 27th day of February, A. D. one thousand nine hundred and two, by and between the Harrison Granite Company, duly incorporated, of New York city, and Barre, Vermont, of the first part; and the State of Pennsylvania by its The Shiloh Battlefield Commis- sion, appointed under Act of the Legislature approved July 19, 1901, of the second part.
WITNESSETHI, That the said party of the first part do hereby, for themselves and their successors and assigns, covenant, promise and agree to and with the said party of the second part, that they the said party of the first part, their successors or assigns, shall aud will, for the consid-
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Shiloh National Park.
eration hereinafter mentioned, on or before the 15th day of September, A. D. 1902, well and sufficiently erect, finish and deliver completed in a true, perfect and best workmanlike manner, one monument on the site desig- nated by the said Shiloh Battlefield Commission on Shiloh National Military Park, at Pittsburg Landing, in the State of Tennessee, commemorating the services of the 77th Regiment of Pennsylvania Volunteers in the battle of Shiloh, agreeably to, and in accordance with the specifications and drawings prepared for said monument by the said party of the first part. and to the entire satisfaction of the Shiloh National Park Commission and the Shiloli Battlefield Commission of Pennsylvania, said specifications and drawings shall be part of this contract, any work or details shown in either specifications or drawings, or both, shall be executed as if it were fully shown in both specifications and drawings.
The contractors or party of the first part, at their own proper cost and charge, shall provide all manner of labor materials, utensils, cartage and transportation of every description, and everything else needful for the due performance of all the work required in the construction and erection of said monument.
In consideration for which, the said party of the second part, does covenant, promise and agree to and with the said party of the first part, their successors, and assigns, that the said party of the second part, after a thorough and satisfactory inspection by the said Shiloh Battlefield Com- mission, of the completed work, as soon as practicable after the above covenants and agreement have been strictly executed, kept and performed as specified, and after properly executed releases for all demands whatsoever furnished by the said party of the first part, will well and truly pas, or cause to be paid unto the said party of the first part, their successors or assigns, the sum of three thousand dollars, lawful money of the United States, being in full for all claims or demands whatsoever, incidental to the erection and construction of said monument.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the said parties to this agreement have hereunto set their hands and seals the day and year first above written.
HARRISON GRANITE CO., W. H. HARRISON, Pres.
Witness present: S. P. Draa.
For the State of Pennsylvania, By its Shiloh Battlefield Commission, JOHN OBREITER, Chairman.
Martha II. Davis. Phares Auxer.
S. T. DAVIS, Secretary.
KNOW ALL MEN BY THESE PRESENTS,
That, We, the Harrison Granite Company of New York City, and Barre, Vermont, are held and firmly bound unto the State of Pennsylvania,
.
ARCTY OF HE OHIO
ERECTED 1302
PRINT JULIUS BEN & CO. NEW YORK
77 TH PA. MONUMENT S. E. VIEW SHILOH.
..
PRINT: JULIUS BIEN & CO. NEW YORK
77 TH PA. MONUMENT N. W. VIEW SHILOH.
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Shiloh National Park.
General Conditions :
The material shall be of the most select Barre, Vt., granite of finest quality, free from flaws, iron, sap and other objectionable features, and in every way the best available material for the purpose intended. It is to be jointed and surface cut, as shown by the drawings, the beds to be set perfectly level and true with jointings of sheet lead.
Finish :
The granite shall be rock-faced on vertical surfaces where so indicated in the design, all the washes, mouldings and margins being fine hammer dressed.
The carved Keystone on two sides of die shall be not less than 1' 10" across widest part.
Sizes :
Upper Die, 3' 6" x 3' 6" x 4' 1"
Lower Die, 4' 4" x 4' 4" x 2' 31/2"
Third Base, 5' 0" x 5' 0" x 1' 01/2"
Second Base, 6' 3" x 6' 3" x 1' 0"
Bottom Base, 8' 0" x 8' 0" x 1' 6"
Approximate weight of granite, 40,640 Ibs.
Approximate weight of bronzes, 950 Ibs.
Bronzes :
There shall be a bronze statue surmounting the. monument, the same to be secured to the granite by bronze expansion bolts, 2' 4" square at plinth, and 6' 6" high, including plinth, approximate weight 500 to 600 Ibs.
There shall be one bronze bas-relief on the west side of the lower die, size of same to be 3' 5" x 1' 61/2" and weighing approximately 90 Ibs.
Subject: Charge on Battery.
There shall be one bronze bas-relief on the east side, size of same to be - 3' 5" x 1' 612", weighing 90 IDs.
Subject: Surrender of Col. Battle.
On the south side there shall be one bronze tablet, size of same to be 3' 5" x 1' 612", weighing 70 Ibs. and containing the following inscription :
77th Regiment Infantry, 2"
5tlı Brigade (Kirk's), .
2nd Division (McCook's), 2" Army of the Ohio,
.
Organized August 1, 1861 .- Discharged January 16, 1866, . 7/s" On the north side there shall be one bronze tablet, size of same to be 3' 5" x 1' 612," weighing 70 Its., and containing the following inscription:
The 77th Penna. arrived at Pittsburg Landing at 7 A. M. April 7, 1862. It was the only Pennsylvania regiment on the field.
About 2 P. M. the regiment charged upon, and captured two guns of a Confederate battery.
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Seventy-seventh Pennsylvania Regiment.
"Being now satisfied that the enemy had changed his point of attack from the right to my left, I ordered the 77th Penna. to take a position on my extreme left and repel the assault there being made. It immediately engaged the enemy. At this moment the contest along the whole line became terrible."
"This regiment, partially isolated from the division, moved steadily over an open field under a heavy fire, while here the enemy's cavalry charged it twice, but were each time repulsed with heavy loss.
Col. Stumbaugh had the satisfaction of receiving the sword of Col. Battle of the 20th Tenn., who surrendered as a prisoner."
General MeCook's report.
All inscriptions on bronze tablets shall be in raised capital letters.
There shall be a bronze State seal bas-relief on the front side of the upper die, approximate size 1' 8" x1' 2", weighing approximately 28 Is.
All these shall be skilfully modeled by an artist of repute, and satisfac- tory to the Battlefield Commission, and shall be cast in copper bronze; of United States standard composition, in every way high class, and fully equal to the best of its kind. .
All bronze tablets or panels shall be securely fastened with bronze expansion bolts, in recesses cut iu the stone, and shall be below the surface of the stone work.
Foundation: It is understood that the Park Commissioners shall furnish the foundation ready for the erection of the grauite work.
Ercetion: The delivery and erection shall be done by the contractor, and all work performed in a good and undamaged condition, and to the entire satisfaction of the Park Commissioners, and to the Battlefield Commission, and that all labor, attending the same, shall be in accordance with the requirements of the Shiloh Battlefield Commission.
All expenses incidental to the erection of this monument, including materials, transportation, labor, etc., shall be borne and paid by the con- tractor.
HARRISON GRANITE CO., by W. H. HARRISON, Pres.
Upon notice from the contractors, that the clay models for the bronze work were ready for the inspection by the Com- mission, a committee of two (Chairman and Secretary) of the Commission, on April 14, 1902, proceeded to New York City, for the purpose of examining them, at the studio of Julius C. Loester, Sculptor, where. after suggesting and making a number of changes, additions and alterations, they approved the designs.
The statue of the soldier to surmount the monument, was modeled after a portrait of the Chairman of the Pennsylva-
.
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Shiloh National Park.
nia Shiloh Battlefield Commission, which was taken in the field in 1862.
After being finally completed the clay models were de- livered to the Gorham Manufacturing Company of New York City, who made the bronze castings from them.
Shiloh Park is one of the most difficult points in the country to reach with heavy freight. It is about twenty miles from the nearest railway station, Corinth, Mississippi, and the roads between the two points are mere trails or wagon tracks, impassable for a considerable portion of the year, for even light vehicles, and utterly so, at all times for heavy hauling. Consequently all monument work must be shipped by rail- road to some point on the Tennessee river and there trans- ferred to barges, which are then towed up the river to Pitts- burg Landing, where they meet with still another difficulty in the form of bluffs, from eighty to one hundred feet high, all along the river banks, over which the monument must be moved in order to reach the Park. All these difficulties make the matter of transportation a very considerable item in the cost of monuments.
Even the river, at certain seasons of every year, becomes too low for navigation, and for this reason our contractors were unable to comply fully with the terms of the contract, as to the time limit allowed therein, for fininshing the work.
All the work of construction, however, was completed in due time, but could not be forwarded until February 23, 1903, on which day it was shipped from Barre, Vermont, it reached Pittsburg Landing on the 30th day of March follow- ing, and was finally completed and erected on the 24th day of April. Whereupon Mr. Thompson, sent us the following notice regarding the event.
"War Department,
"Shiloh National Military Park Commission, "Pittsburg Landing, Tenn., May 1, 1903.
"Mr. John Obreiter, Lancaster, Pa .:
"Dear Sir: Your letter of the 27th ulto., to hand. The 77th Penna. mon- ument is set, both granite and bronze. Mr. Lewis will complete the con- crete pavement to-day. Everything about the monument is precisely as specified. The granite is faultless and the workmanship as nearly perfect us any I have seen. You have a good monument, and you may pay for it at any time you please, and with an easy conscience.
.
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Seventy-seventh Pennsylvania Regiment.
I shall grade around it in a few days, putting in a crossing, so that vehicles can leave the main road, and drive about it, so as to examine it on all sides. The bronze figure is good.
"Yours very truly,
"ATWELL THOMPSON, "Engineer in Charge."
In order to be absolutely certain that the bronze work for monuments to be erected on Shiloh Park is of the proper standard and in every way correct, the National Commission- ers have borings taken from their inner surface as soon as such bronzes are landed at Pittsburg Landing. Before the bronzes are permitted to be erected, such borings are sent to competent chemists and assayers, and by them analyzed. Such analysis is made at the expense of the State Commis- sioners. It is a very wise and commendable precaution to take. Under this rule the 77th Pennsylvania bronze was duly analyzed, with the following very satisfactory result, proving it to be just what it was intended that it should be:
-
Analysis.
Copper,
88.5 per cent.
Tin,
3.5 per cent.
Lead,
0.3 per cent.
Zinc,
7.7 per cent. .
In addition to the analysis, the State Commissioners ex- acted the following releases: the one from the Bronze Foundry people, which, in addition to releasing the State and Commission from all charges, also guarantees the quality of the bronze composition:
The second is a release from the sculptor, giving an un- qualified release from all charges for his work.
"RELEASE AND GUARANTEE OF THE GORHAM MANUFAC- TURING CO.
"Know all Men by these Present, That we, The Gorham Manufacturing Company, of the city of New York, did cast in bronze and furnish one statue of a private soldier, in the position of 'At Rest,' six and one-half feet high, two bas-relief and two inscription panels, each three feet five inches by one foot and six and one-half inches, and one bas-relief Penn- sylvania State Coat of Arms, for the monument to the Seventy-seventh Pennsylvania Volunteers, constructed and erected on the battlefield of
النية: مـ
10
1862 ITWAS THE ONE PENNS
٠٠١
THERE BEIN
-..
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Shiloh National Park.
Shiloh, by the Harrison Granite Company, of the city of New York, for the State of Pennsylvania, by its Shiloh Battlefield Commission.
"We, the said Gorliam Manufacturing Company, do hereby guarantee that all of the above mentioned bronze work, as cast and furnished by us, is of full United States standard copper bronze composition: And further, We do hereby release the said State of Pennsylvania, and its Shiloh Battle- field Commission, from all claims or charges, either for material, labor or anything whatsoever furuished by us, incident to the construction or erec- tion of said monument.
"In witness whereof we have hereunto set our hand and corporate seal this 4th day of May, A. D. 1903.
"GORHAM MFG. CO., "By G. H. ROBINSON, P't."
Witness present,
I. C. Spencer.
"RELEASE FROM THE SCULPTOR.
"Know all Men by these Presents. That I, Julius C. Loester, of the city of New York, sculptor, did model in clay, the statue of a private soldier, two bas-relief panels and one Pennsylvania State Coat of Arms, for the Harrison Granite Company, of the city of New York. Said models were by me delivered to the Gorham Manufacturing Company, to be by them cast in bronze, for the said Harrison Granite Company, which bronze castings were to be used in the construction and erection of a monument to the 77th Pennsylvania Volunteers on Shiloh battlefield by the said Harrison Granite Company, for the State of Pennsylvania and its Shiloh Battlefield Commission. Be it known that I do hereby release the said State of Penn- sylvania and its Shiloh Battlefield Commission from all charges for labor, materials or any thing whatsoever, furnished by me, incident to the modeling of said statue, panels and coat of arms.
"In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal this first day of May, A. D. 1903.
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