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Monuments at Gettysburg – 153rd Pennsylvania Infantry
Posted By Norman Gasbarro on April 27, 2015
The 153rd Pennsylvania Infantry Monument at Gettysburg is located north of the town of Gettysburg along Howard avenue on Barlow’s Knoll. It was dedicated in 1889 by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and is the second monument to this regiment at Gettysburg; the first monument is located at Wainwright Avenue and was dedicated in 1884 by the regiment’s survivors.
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 153rd Pennsylvania Infantry.
A full description of the second monument, its GPS Coordinates, additional photographs, and some of the history of the 153rd Pennsylvania Infantry, can be found on the Stone Sentinels Web Site. There is also a picture and information about the first monument.
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There is some difficulty in transcribing the text from the Philadelphia Inquirer article of 11 September 1889 due to a portion of the left side being cut off:
In Three Bloody Fights.
The 153rd was organized at Camp Curtin, October 1862, Charles Glanz as Colonel, Jacob —– as Lieutenant Colonel and John F. —–, Major. Colonel Glanz, enfeebled by hardships of his late imprisonment, was unable to assume command when the march set — the sound of the enemy’s guns toward Gettysburg. In the first day’s brief engagement, this regiment lost 9 officers, 93 men wounded and 82 milling. After the retreat to Cemetery Hill it went into position before the cemetery gate, where the exhausted troops — undisturbed. Here at 4 o’clock on the — and shell inflicted merciless slaughter — men on every hand were writhing in — of death. The shots and shells of — preceding day and the hand-to-hand en— at the stone wall were equally terrible — victory was won from what seemed to be — defeat.
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Major John F. Frueaff was commander of the 153rd Pennsylvania Infantry at Gettysburg. He was mustered into service on 11 October 1862 as Major of the regiment. At the time of his muster, he was a lawyer in Bethlehem, Northampton County, Pennsylvania, and was about 25 years old. He was wounded at Chancellorsville on 3 May 1863, but not seriously enough to lose command of his regiment at the time of the Battle of Gettysburg. He was mustered out of service with his regiment on 24 July 1863.
Since he moved to Colorado some time after the war, very little has found about him in Pennsylvania newspapers. From the Pension Index Card found on Fold3, it is known that during his lifetime he did not apply for pension, but in 1890, his widow did apply.
When he died in 1886, the Harrisburg Patriot conveyed the news to its readers in its 11 November edition, but erroneously reported Frueauff’s regiment as the 152nd Pennsylvania Infantry:
Death of a Pennsylvanian.
Special Dispatch to the PATRIOT.
LITITZ, Pennsylvania, 10 November 1886 — Word was received here this morning of the death of Major John F. Frueauff, of Leadville, Colorado, yesterday. Major Frueauff was born at this place. He was a member of the Lancaster bar. He went to Colorado ten years ago and was elected Probate Judge in Leadville. He commanded the 152nd [sic] Regiment at the Battle of Chancellorsville, and was wounded during the engagement. He was twice married and his second wife and a large family of children survive him.
Nothing was mentioned in the death notice of his leadership of the regiment at Gettysburg, nor was a place of burial given.
Note: Frueauff’s surname is also found as Freuauff and Fruecauff in the records.
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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 plaques for the 153rd Pennsylvania Infantry are pictured below. By clicking on a 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 153rd Pennsylvania Infantry, but was not part of the regiment during its days at Gettysburg. There could also be errors on the plaque.
Two tablets for the 153rd Pennsylvania Infantry:
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