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Monuments at Gettysburg – 107th Pennsylvania Infantry
Posted By Norman Gasbarro on March 2, 2015
The 107th Pennsylvania Infantry Monument at Gettysburg is located northwest of the town of Gettysburg on Doubleday Avenue.
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 107th Pennsylvania Infantry.
A full description of the monument, its GPS Coordinates, additional photographs, and some of the history of the 107th Pennsylvania Infantry, can be found on the Stone Sentinels Web Site.
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The Philadelphia Inquirer gave a brief history of the regiment at Gettysburg in its 11 September 1889 article:
Where the 107th Fought.
The 107th regiment, on reaching the field of Gettysburg where Reynolds had fallen, went into position on Cemetery Ridge to the right of the Chambersburg and extending the Mummasburg Road. When the 107th had reached the foot of the ridge at its open part between the woods on the right and left the brigade was thrown into the line of battle, moved at double-quick up the hill, met the enemy at the summit, where he at once surrendered. In the second charge, which immediately followed, Lieutenant Colonel MacThompson had a horse shot under him and Major Sheafer was severely wounded. Outflanked and overborne the command retired rapidly through the town to Cemetery Hill near Bryan’s house, where it lay on its arms all night, momentarily expecting an attack. At the height of the cannons’ storm on the 3rd it was moved to the left of Cemetery Hill under a perfect shower of shells, where it assisted in staying the enemy’s fierce attack. Many of this regiment’s men, taken prisoners at Gettysburg, were the victims of terrible barbarity in the rebel prisons.
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Two persons are associated with the command of the 107th Pennsylvania Infantry at Gettysburg: (1) Lieutenant Colonel James McThomson, who was wounded on 1 July 1863; and Captain Emanuel D. Roath, who took over command after McThomson was wounded.
James McThomson, who is also found in the records as MacThompson and McThompson, joined the 107th Pennsylvania Infantry as Captain of Company B on 20 February 1862. He was promoted to headquarters at the rank of Major on 19 October 1862, and on 23 February 1863, the rank he held at Gettysburg. McThomson recovered from his Gettysburg wounds to return to the regiment and and led it through its discharge on 13 July 1865. On 13 March 1865, he was breveted as Colonel and Brigadier General.
Emanuel D. Roath
Roath’s service began with the 107th Pennsylvania Infantry at Harrisburg on 5 March 1862 where he became Captain of Company E. He served with the regiment through a full 3-year term which ended with his discharge on 5 March 1865. At that time he was breveted as Major.
Emanuel D. Roath kept a diary of his Civil War experiences in 1864. The description of the diary states that it includes “details of combat actions and life in confederate prisons.”
According to pension records, the 107th Pennsylvania Infantry was Roath’s only Civil War Service.
In 1887, Roath was part of a committee of survivors of the 107th Pennsylvania Infantry who decided upon a design for the Gettysburg monument to the regiment.
Colonel Roath died on 12 September 1907 and is buried in Marietta Cemetery, Marietta, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. More information about him can be found at his Findagrave Memorial.
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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 107th 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 107th 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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