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Monuments at Gettysburg – 116th Pennsylvania Infantry
Posted By Norman Gasbarro on March 23, 2015
The 116th Pennsylvania Infantry Monument at Gettysburg is located south of the town of Gettysburg on Sickles Avenue. It was dedicated in 1889 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 116th Pennsylvania Infantry.
A full description of the second monument, its GPS Coordinates, additional photographs, and some of the history of the 116th Pennsylvania Infantry, can be found on the Stone Sentinels Web Site.
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The Philadelphia Inquirer of 11 September 1889 reported the following about the regiment:
The Programme of the 116th.
The 116th Regiment, composed of Philadelphians and those of neighboring counties, was formed 11 June 1862, Colonels Dennis Heenan, St. Clair A. Mulholland; Lieutenant Colonels, Richard C. Dale, David Megraw; Major, George W. Bardwell. It was in service three years and participated in the battles of Fredericksburg, Wilderness, Spottsylvania, Five Forks, Gettysburg, and many others.
The ceremonies will include, first, a reunion of the survivors of the 116th Regiment P. V., at the McClellan Hotel at 12 M. At 4 P.M., 11 September 1889, the survivors will march out of the Emmittsburg Road to the Rose farm and cross over to the wooded farm between the Rose barn and little Round Top, to the spot on which they fought, between 5 and 6 o’clock P.M. on 2 July 1863.
The dedicatory ceremonies will consist of prayer by Chaplain Sayers of the G.A.R. Lieutenant Emsley on behalf of the Monument Committee, will turn over the monument to the Survivors’ Association. Colonel Edmund Randall will deliver the address upon the presentation of the monument to the Gettysburg Battlefield Association, and Colonel Chil Hazard will receive it on behalf of the association.
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Major St. Clair A. Mulholland was the commander of the 116th Pennsylvania Infantry at Gettysburg.
Mulholland, who is also found as Mulhollen in the records, was born in Ireland in 1839 and was living in Philadelphia when he enrolled in the 116th Pennsylvania Infantry on 1 September 1862. In early February 1863, he was re-mustered as Major of the regiment, the rank he held at the Battle of Gettysburg.
In 1895 he received the Medal of Honor for his action at Chancellorsville, May 1883, where he was wounded: “In command of the picket line held the enemy in check all night to cover the retreat of the Army.” After Gettysburg, he was wounded three times in 1864 battles including the Wilderness and Po River.
Mulholland was discharged by Special Order on 3 June 1865 and on 11 July 1865, he applied for a disability pension which he received. In 1869 the U.S. Senate approved his brevet rank of Major General, the last such Civil War honor bestowed on any commander from that war. In his later years he served as Pension Agent at Philadelphia, was active as a Catholic layman, and chaired the commission to erect the Pennsylvania Memorial at Gettysburg. He died in Philadelphia on 17 February 1910 and is buried in the Old Cathedral Cemetery there. His widow continued receiving pension benefits until her death.
More information about St. Clair A. Mulholland can be found at his Findagrave Memorial. A excellent biographical sketch of him appeared in the Philadelphia Inquirer on 18 February 1910 as part of his obituary. See also a prior post on this blog entitled Pennsylvanians in the Irish Brigade.
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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 116th 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 116th 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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