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Monuments at Gettysburg – 93rd Pennsylvania Infantry
Posted By Norman Gasbarro on January 21, 2015
The 93rd Pennsylvania Infantry Monument at Gettysburg is located north of the Wheatfield at the entrance to the John Weichert farm. It was dedicated in 1888 by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
The drawing of the monument pictured above is from a Philadelphia Inquirer article of 11 September 1889.
A picture of the monument can be seen on Stephen Recker’s Virtual Gettysburg Web Site which has more information about the monument and the 93rd Pennsylvania Infantry.
A full description of the monument, its GPS Coordinates, additional photographs, and some of the history of the 93rd Pennsylvania Infantry, can be found on the Stone Sentinels Web Site.
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The Philadelphia Inquirer of 11 September 1889 reported some background of the 93rd Pennsylvania Infantry as well as information on the festivities of the day:
Marching and Fighting Without Food.
The 93rd, on the evening of 1 July 1863, had reached Manchester, Maryland, on its northward march when the news of the fight at Gettysburg was heard and at once took the lead of its corps in the march onward. At 9 next morning as they crossed the state line they could hear the booming of cannon. Footsore, hot and dusty they sang “Pennsylvania Again” as they marched, and at 2 P.M. reached Rock Creek by the Baltimore Pike just in rear of the line of battle at the cemetery. At 3 o’clock, Major John J. Nevin in command, led the regiment to the support of Sedgwick, who got in position just as the Union troops, beaten on the Emmitsburg Pike, were coming back in disorder, followed by the exultant enemy. Orders were given to lie down, and had this been heeded, the whole rebel line could have been captured, but the impatience got the better of the men. Their shots warned the enemy. The whole brigade then advanced and drove the rebels in tumult, the 93rd capturing twenty-five prisoners. They spent the night in removing the wounded who strewed the fields. During the cannonade of the 3rd, the men hugged the rocks and the trees. They marched 39 miles, fought three hours and passed the sleepless night of the 2nd without food. On the 5th the 93rd performed the onerous duty of taking the artillery across the mountains.
Their programme will include prayer by Comrade George A. Guensey, of Canton, Pennsylvania; address by Colonel C. W. Echman, delivering monument to State Commission; reply of General Gobin, accepting monument; historical address by Rev. J. S. Lane, of Cornwall, late chaplain of the regiment; with music at intervals by the Perseverance Band of 1861. The State Monument was erected in 1883.
The regiment has another monument on Battlefield Avenue which was erected by the survivors. It stands near where the 6th Corps’ headquarters were established during the Battle of Gettysburg.
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Commanding the 93rd Pennsylvania Infantry at Gettysburg was Major John I. Nevin, sometimes referred to John J. Nevin or John G. Nevin in the military records. Nevin first enlisted as a 2nd Lieutenant in Company G of the 28th Pennsylvania Infantry on 11 July 1861. He was taken prisoner on 29 February 1862 and after his release, he returned to the regiment and was promoted to Captain of Independent Battery H of the Pennsylvania Light Artillery. Just three months before the Battle of Gettysburg, he joined the 93rd Pennsylvania Infantry headquarters as a Major. While still with the regiment, he was wounded on 5 May 1864 at the Wilderness, which resulted in his discharge on 27 October 1864.
Of the few records available for John I. Nevin, the 1880 Census for Sewickley, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, gives his occupation as editor and his wife’s name as Ella. His first enlistment in 1861 was from Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, which he gave as his residence, and his first “muster in” was at White Sweet Springs, the same general location. Note: “Sewickley” is an Indian word for “sweet water.” Despite the fact that his wounds at the Wilderness were most likely the cause of his discharge, there is no record that he applied for a pension.
According to his Pension Index Card, John I. Nevin died on 5 January 1884 at Sewickley. For some unknown reason, his widow, Eleanor H. Nevin, did not apply for benefits until 17 September 1930.
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Around the base of the Pennsylvania Memorial at Gettysburg are a series of plaques which, by regiment and company, note the names of every soldier who was present at the Battle of Gettysburg. The plaque for the 93rd Pennsylvania Infantry is pictured below. By clicking on the plaque it should enlarge so the names can be more clearly read. If a name does not appear, it could be that the soldier did serve in the 93rd Pennsylvania Infantry, but was not part of the regiment during its days at Gettysburg. There could also be errors on the plaque.
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