Cemetery Ridge

Cemetery Ridge
Sculpture: signed Stephens.Photo: Robert Swanson (en:User:Ryssby) · Public domain · source
Name	Cemetery Ridge
Location	Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
Coordinates	39.8189°N 77.2350°W
Nearest city	Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
Built	1863 (landform); fortifications 1863
Battles	Battle of Gettysburg
Governing body	National Park Service

Cemetery Ridge is a gently sloping north–south ridge south of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania that formed the principal defensive line held by Union forces during the three-day Battle of Gettysburg in July 1863. The ridge anchored a contiguous Union position that linked key points such as Cemetery Hill, Little Round Top, and the Copse of Trees; it became the focus of repeated Confederate assaults culminating in the afternoon infantry assault known as Pickett's Charge. As terrain, position, and leadership converged, the ridge influenced command decisions by figures including George G. Meade, Robert E. Lee, Winfield Scott Hancock, James Longstreet, and George Pickett.

Background and location

The ridge lies within Adams County, Pennsylvania just south of the Gettysburg National Cemetery, which had been established near the Soldiers' National Cemetery and the Mummasburg Road. It is part of a series of ridges and hills including Cemetery Hill to the north and Seminary Ridge to the west across Willoughby Run. The area had been agricultural land in the antebellum period and was intersected by routes such as the Baltimore Pike and the Emmitsburg Road, which influenced troop movements by units of the Army of the Potomac and the Army of Northern Virginia during the campaign.

Role in the Battle of Gettysburg

During the Battle of Gettysburg, the ridge served as the primary Union defensive spine from which corps such as the II Corps, V Corps, and III Corps fought to repel Confederate attacks. After the first day’s fighting around McPherson Ridge and Oak Ridge, Union commanders consolidated on positions including Cemetery Hill and the ridge itself, enabling commanders like Abraham Lincoln’s field leaders—most notably Winfield Scott Hancock—to form a defensive line that would contest frontal assaults by divisions under commanders such as Henry Heth, J.E.B. Stuart, and later the corps led by James Longstreet.

Military actions and key engagements

Key episodes on and adjacent to the ridge include the repulse of Confederate probes on July 2 involving brigades under John Bell Hood and Richard S. Ewell’s forces, intense skirmishing in the vicinity of the Copse of Trees and the Angle, and the climactic assault on July 3 often termed Pickett's Charge. Units such as the 1st Minnesota Volunteer Infantry Regiment, 20th Maine Volunteer Infantry Regiment, and the I Corps elements played pivotal roles in counterattacks and stabilization efforts. Artillery duels involving batteries commanded by officers like Samuel K. Zook and Daniel Butterfield supported infantry defenses, while Confederate artillery under commanders such as Henry J. Hunt—although Hunt was Union, Confederate artillery directors including Edward Porter Alexander coordinated bombardments intended to soften the ridge’s defenses prior to the infantry assault.

Terrain and fortifications

Topographically, the ridge is a low, elongated elevation offering clear fields of fire to the north and east and commanding views toward Seminary Ridge and the Town of Gettysburg. Union engineers and line officers organized fieldworks including short stone walls, log breastworks, and improvised abatis; earthworks were sparser than at later Civil War sites, but the natural rise provided substantial defensive advantage. Vegetation features such as the Gettysburg copse (commonly called the Copse of Trees) and orchards near the McAllister farm affected visibility and created focal points for assaults. Supply and casualty evacuation were facilitated by nearby thoroughfares including the Baltimore Pike and the Taneytown Road.

Aftermath and historical significance

Following the Confederate withdrawal on July 4, the ridge’s role in the Union victory at Gettysburg Campaign was cited by contemporaries and historians as decisive in blunting Robert E. Lee’s invasion of the North. Political and military figures, including Abraham Lincoln, later referenced the battle in speeches and reports that helped shape national memory; Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address consecrated portions of the nearby national cemetery established for those killed on the ridge and adjacent fields. Scholarly debates about tactical responsibility—centering on figures such as James Longstreet and George G. Meade—often hinge on actions taken on and around the ridge during the three days.

Preservation and commemoration

The ridge is preserved within the Gettysburg National Military Park under the stewardship of the National Park Service and is the focus of monuments, tablets, and unit markers placed by veterans’ organizations such as the Grand Army of the Republic and state commissions from Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Georgia, and other states. Notable memorials include regimental monuments, artillery plaques, and the broadly visited High Water Mark of the Rebellion area near the Angle that commemorates the high-water mark of Confederate assault. Annual reenactments, guided tours organized by Civil War Trust affiliates, and educational programs by institutions such as the American Battlefield Trust and local historical societies maintain public interpretation. The ridge remains a locus for scholarly research, battlefield archaeology, and commemorative events tied to national observances.

Category:Battle of Gettysburg sites Category:National Park Service areas