Welcome to
Valley Arts Publishing

The 91st Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Joseph H. Sinex, reached the Gettysburg area late on July 1, 1863, after a grueling march; arriving around midnight, the men rested on their arms until early morning on July 2 before resuming movement.  Initially positioned on the right of the Union line, the regiment saw limited action there for about an hour before shifting leftward to support the center as the battle intensified on the Union left.  By mid-afternoon, Confederate General James Longstreet’s assault threatened to roll up the Union flank.  Gouverneur K. Warren, the Army’s chief engineer, recognized the vulnerability of Little Round Top and orchestrated reinforcements.  Col. Strong Vincent’s brigade (20th Maine, 83rd Pennsylvania, 44th New York, and 16th Michigan) rushed to the southern and western slopes first, bearing the brunt of the fighting against Confederate brigades under Evander Law and others.  As part of General Stephen H. Weed’s 3rd Brigade, 2nd Division (under General Romeyn Ayres), the 91st Pennsylvania reinforced the critical position on Little Round Top helping secure the Union left flank after the intense fighting by Vincent’s brigade.

 

Captain Charles Hazlett, commanding Battery D, 5th U.S. Artillery, had arrived on Little Round Top just minutes before the Confederates began assaulting the Federal position.  As Federal infantry reinforced the position, one of the brigades arriving was commanded by General Stephen Weed, a friend of Hazlett's.  As the fighting intensified, Weed was mortally wounded by musket fire.  As Hazlett knelt and leaned over to hear Weed’s last words, he was shot in the head and died later that night.  

 

This original monument to the 91st was erected by veterans of the regiment and was later modified to become a tribute to General Weed and Captain Hazlett.  When state funds became available to build a larger monument in 1889, the original was moved thirty feet to the east to a nearby boulder already inscribed to Hazlett, and new inscriptions were added to honor both Hazlett and Weed.