The Emanuel Harman Farm: Gettysburg’s Unknown Battlefield

The Emanuel Harman Farm: Gettysburg’s Unknown Battlefield Jeff Denman Gettysburg Magazine, Number 54, January 2016, pp. 41-50 (Article) Published by University of Nebraska Press DOI: https://doi.org/10.1353/get.2016.0010 For additional information about this article https://muse.jhu.edu/article/605536 The Emanuel Harman Farm Gettysburg’s Unknown Battlefield Jeff Denman With the 2011 acquisition of a tract of woodland and fields just west of Willoughby Run to the eastern slope of Herr Ridge, the Gettysburg story, one of the most heavily documented in American history, just became a little longer and more involved. What used to be a nine-hole golf course and not listed on tourist maps of the battlefield is now an integral part of experiencing the first day’s battle. What happened on the Harman farm on July 1 had a significant effect on the Confederate and Union fortunes of the first day and throughout the rest of the battle. It should be noted for the reader that this is a civilian history as well as a military history. The two women who occupied this farm were in the direct crosshairs of battle; and their story, not unlike those of other civilians in other battles, is indicative of how the movement of armies and the fortunes of war created mass destruction of property and almost the loss of life for two innocent people. It should also be noted that the action that follows is contained within the Harman farm and Willoughby Run and the ground immediate adjacent to it. Most action on the battlefield is heavily documented, such as the defense of McPherson’s Ridge, so there is no need to repeat it here. The geography of the area is most important, because this new tract of land is the new western boundary of the battlefield. The Harman farm was located between the Chambersburg Pike on the north and the Fairfield Road to the south. The farm itself was located on the right-hand side of the Mill Road alongside a farm lane. What is now known as the Springs Hotel Woods lies along what is now known as Country Club Lane and makes up the western boundary of the property. At the Gettysburg’s Unknown Battlefield far eastern end is Willoughby Run. From the base of the Springs Hotel Woods, looking east toward Willoughby Run, it is a far cry from what it was like in 1863. Today, one sees a huge, overgrown field interspersed with clumps of trees. Roughly a quarter mile to your front is a slight rise in the land that then falls away into Willoughby Run. Lines of vision are interrupted by the trees and tall grass; but in 1863, when the Confederates launched attacks across this ground and into the high ground of McPherson’s Ridge on the opposite bank, it was a different story. The famed Herbst Woods lie to the northeast opposite Willoughby Run from the Harman farm, while the Herbst farm lies to the southeast opposite the run from the Harman farm. The property where the Harman farm once stood went through several phases of ownership. In 1817 Rev. Charles G. McLean, a pastor who was called to serve at the United Presbyterian Church in Freedom Township, purchased the property for an unheard-of amount of money at the time, $10,000.1 Over the next several decades, many improvements were made to the property, and it was eventually sold to Emanuel Harman in 1857.2 Harman’s daughter Amelia, a seventeen-year-old, attended school while she lived at the house, though Harman himself did not live at the farm during the time of the battle. Amelia lived at the house with her Aunt Rachel (Finnefrock) and a tenant farmer by the name of William Comfort. By 1863 the Harman farm was fully functioning, described as being 1 Kathleen Georg Harrison, “The Significance of the Harmon Farm and the Springs Hotel Woods,” 1991, Harman Farm Vertical File, Gettysburg National Military Park (hereafter gnmp), 3. 2 Harrison, “Significance of the Harmon Farm and the Springs Hotel Woods,” 5. 41 about one mile and a half from the Borough of Gettysburg, on a Public Road, containing 124 acres, more or less, 22 acres of which said land are covered with good timber, and the remainder all under cultivation . . . on which are erected a large brick dwelling house, smoke barn, a good stone bank or Swiss barn with a corn crib, Wagon Shed, and other Improvements. There is also on the premises an orchard of choice fruit.3 Also included were a cellar and an attic, which would play a prominent role in the first day’s action. The house itself had “four rooms on the first floor and five on the second.”4 The story of the Harman farm and its occupants began on the morning of July 1, 1863. With Pettigrew’s advance on Gettysburg the previous day without much consequence due to the presence of Buford’s cavalry, Maj. Gen. Henry Heth’s division began its advance at 5:00 a.m. accompanied by Pegram’s battery of artillery.5 Heth’s objective was to determine the strength and size of the enemy in his front by making a “reconnaissance in force.”6 Heth remarked in his official report that he had no idea what type of force was in his front, thinking it was most likely cavalry supported by some infantry. By 8:00 a.m. Heth’s skirmishers had made contact with Union cavalry and had driven them south of the Chambersburg Pike. Amelia Harman was now alone with her aunt on her farm because Comfort and Finnefrock had taken their horses to South Mountain to hide them from the marauding Confederates. Amelia was about to bear witness to the fighting that would engulf her farm: “At nine A.M. the morning of July 1st came the ominous boom of a cannon to the west of us. We rushed to the window to behold hundreds of galloping horses coming up the road through the fields and even past our very door.”7 Harman related that the ridge (Springs Hotel Woods) was “alive with the enemy” and that men began to “find shelter behind the barn, out3 Adams Sentinel and General Advertiser, March 5, 1862, gnmp. 4 Harrison, “Significance of the Harman Farm,” 4. 5 U.S. War Department, The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies (Washington, dc: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1880–1901), ser. 1, vol. 27, part 2, 637 (hereafter cited as or and followed by the volume, part, and page numbers, with all subsequent citations referencing series 1). 6 Harrison, “Significance of the Harman Farm,” 7. 7 Gettysburg Compiler, July 3, 1915, Civilian Accounts, Adams County Historical Society (hereafter achs), Gettysburg, pa. 42 buildings, trees, even the pump, seeking to hold the enemy in check.”8 In fact, what she was seeing was the initial contact between A. P. Hill’s infantry and Buford’s cavalry. As Heth approached Herr Ridge, he deployed two infantry brigades, one north of the Chambersburg Pike (Davis) and one south of the pike, which happened to be Gen. James J. Archer’s Tennesseans and Alabamians. Archer’s brigade deployed in the northern half of the Springs Hotel Woods, north of what is now the parking area on Country Club Lane. The 7th Tennessee was the first regiment in line, followed by the 14th Tennessee, the 13th Alabama, and the 1st Tennessee on the right flank. It should be noted that at this point Heth felt the situation was well in hand, but Archer was about to advance across the Harman farm fields and had some reservations because he was lacking support behind him. According to Capt. J. B. Turney of the 1st Tennessee, “Archer suggested that his brigade was light to risk so far in advance of support.”9 Out in the field in front of Archer was a skirmish line located near a fence line that today no longer exists. The 5th Alabama Battalion and a detachment of the 13th Alabama was assigned the task.10 W. H. Moon of the 13th Alabama noted that in front of him was “an open field which extended down to and across Willoughby Run . . . a gradual slope with a dip about one hundred and fifty yards from the run.”11 With no support behind him and with Lt. John Calef ’s battery firing on him from McPherson’s Ridge near the Chambersburg Pike, Archer stepped out from the woods at about 9:30 a.m. and began his advance across the open fields of the Harman farm. Amelia Harman recalled that “a large timothy field between the barn and the woods concealed hundreds of gray crouching figures stealthily advancing under its cover, and picking off every cavalryman who appeared for an instant in sight.”12 Amelia Harman’s description of the action around her house makes the reader vividly feel the terror in her voice: 8 Gettysburg Compiler, July 3, 1915. 9 J. B. Turney, “The First Tennessee at Gettysburg,” Confederate Veteran 8 (December 1900): 535–37. 10 Andrew I. Dalton, Beyond the Run: The Emanuel Harmon Farm at Gettysburg (Gettysburg, pa: Ten Roads Publishing, 2013), 16. 11 W. H. Moon, “Beginning of the Battle at Gettysburg,” Confederate Veteran 33 (December 1925): 449–50. 12 Gettysburg Compiler, July 3, 1915. Gettysburg Magazine, no. 54 With the right vantage point, the entire countryside could be viewed, as seen in this William H. Tipton photograph. Courtesy of the Gettysburg National Military Park. Horses and men were falling under our eyes . . . and the confusion became greater every minute. Filled with alarm & terror we locked all the doors and rushed to the second floor—and threw open the shutters of the west window. One glance only and a half-spent minie ball from the woods crashed into the shutter close to my aunt’s ear leaving but the thickness of paper between her and death.13 As Archer’s men advanced, they were harassed by a Union skirmish line from the 8th Illinois Cavalry that was positioned on the western side of Willoughby Run. From the cupola of her house, Harman noted, The whole landscape for miles around unrolled like a panorama below us. What a spectacle! It 13 Gettysburg Compiler, July 3, 1915. Gettysburg’s Unknown Battlefield seemed as though the fields and woods had been sown with dragon’s teeth, for everywhere had sprung up armed men. . . . We saw a detachment of Rebels file out from the fringe of woods [Archer’s advance], a quarter mile distant to meet a body of Federals advancing rapidly from the direction of the town and in a few moments we were witnessing the quick, sharp engagement in which Gen. Reynolds fell.14 Harman also witnessed Meade’s army as it advanced through the town and fields in support of Reynolds’s men, who had occupied the hilly, wooded ground on the east bank of Willoughby Run. According to Capt. J. B. Turney, Archer “advanced about two hundred yards, when we met with stubborn resistance, having encountered the 14 Gettysburg Compiler, July 3, 1915. 43 The view from the seminary cupola looking west, photograph by Tipton. Courtesy of the Gettysburg National Military Park. enemy’s line of battle. For thirty minutes, the firing was severe, and the smoke of battle hovered near the ground, shutting out from view the movements of the Federal forces.”15 Nonetheless, Archer advanced to Willoughby Run. According to Lt. Col. S. G. Shepard of the 7th Tennessee, “There was a small creek with a fence and undergrowth, which was some disadvantage to our line in crossing, but the brigade rushed across with a cheer, and met the enemy just beyond. We were not over 40 or 50 yards from the enemy’s line when we opened fire.”16 Unfortunately for Archer and his men, the Iron Brigade of Gen. Solomon Meredith was filing into Herbst Woods. Archer’s men slammed headlong into the 2nd and 7th Wisconsin regiments. As they did, the 19th Indiana and the 24th Michigan moved across the field between Seminary Ridge and McPherson’s Ridge, across the Herbst Farm, and started to outflank the 13th Alabama and the 15 Turney, “First Tennessee at Gettysburg,” 535–37. 16 Lt. Col. S. G. Shepard, Seventh Tennessee, or, 27.2:646–47. 44 1st Tennessee. The 24th Michigan got around and behind the unsuspecting flank of Archer’s brigade.17 Archer, being overwhelmed, was forced to retreat back across Willoughby Run. The repulse was quick, over in about forty-five minutes. Unfortunately for Archer, he was captured, and the rest of his men fled to the rear, to the safety of the Herr Ridge Woods. Capt. J. B. Turney recalled, “During the excitement attending the capture of General Archer, I succeeded in escaping with the major part of my company, falling back some two hundred yards to the skirt of timber. Archer’s brigade, under command of Colonel (later Brigadier General) Fry, Thirteenth Alabama, was then withdrawn to the right of Lee’s army.”18 Col. Henry Morrow’s 24th Michigan moved quickly across the creek, capturing many Tennesseans.19 At the other end of the Iron Brigade’s position 17 Philip Laino, Gettysburg Campaign Atlas, 2nd rev. ed. (Dayton: Gatehouse Press, 2009), 93. 18 Turney, “First Tennessee at Gettysburg,” 535–37. 19 Dalton, Beyond the Run, 20. Gettysburg Magazine, no. 54 Location where General Reynolds was killed, photograph by Tipton. Courtesy of the Gettysburg National Military Park. in the Herbst Woods, Maj. John Mansfield of the 2nd Wisconsin “continued to advance the regiment to near close quarters, when the line of the enemy in our immediate front yielded, a portion seeking cover in a deep excavation, the balance seeking refuge behind trees and a slight elevation of the ground. . . . I ordered a charge . . . the enemy breaking in confusion to the rear, escaping from the timber into the open fields beyond [Harman farm].”20 Soon, the entire brigade had crossed to the west bank of Willoughby Run and had ascended the slope up to the rise of ground that marked the spot where the Harman house was located. Colonel Morrow of the 24th Michigan noted, “After advancing to the crest of the hill beyond the run, we were halted, and threw out skirmishers to the front and also to the left, near a brick house [Harman].”21 Morrow also recounted that cavalry now occupied the left flank and that the 24th Michigan occupied 20 Maj. John Mansfield, or, 27.2:274. 21 Col. Henry Morrow, or, 27.1:267–68. Gettysburg’s Unknown Battlefield the extreme left of the brigade, while the 19th Indiana were on the right.22 Across the Harman farm fields, skirmishers now faced each other at a short distance, and the fortunes of the Iron Brigade were about to change. Col. John Brockenbrough’s brigade of Virginians had arrived in the Herr Ridge Woods, which consisted of the 55th Virginia, 47th Virginia, 40th Virginia, and 22nd Virginia Battalion. The Iron Brigade withdrew under orders of General Wadsworth to consolidate a line on McPherson’s Ridge. Brockenbrough’s arrival had very little, if any, significance on this withdrawal. Pettigrew arrived first, around 11:30 a.m., followed by Brockenbrough. The Iron Brigade had a new alignment, the 19th Indiana on the left flank, followed by the 24th Michigan, 2nd Wisconsin and 7th Wisconsin. The brigade’s skirmishers remained on the Harman farm along a north–south fence line. Supporting the left flank of Meredith’s brigade 22 Col. Henry Morrow, or, 27.1:267. 45 was that of Col. Chapman Biddle’s first brigade, consisting of the 80th New York Volunteers and the 121st, 142nd, and 151st Pennsylvania Volunteers. According to Col. Theodore Gates of the 20th New York State Militia (8th New York), the brigade “took position in line of battle on the easterly slope of the ridge [McPherson’s] and nearly the opposite the seminary facing west. Remaining here a few minutes only, we moved forward over the ridge and down into the ravine through which Willoughby’s Run flows, the right of the brigade passing near the grove where General Reynolds fell.”23 Gates was shortly moved back to the ridge, where some twenty minutes later he “was ordered to throw out a company of skirmishers to occupy the [Harman] house . . . and now on our left and some 30 rods in advance of us, Captain Baldwin, Company K, was detailed for that duty, and soon gained possession of the buildings.”24 With thirty-eight men and under intense fire, Baldwin advanced through the ravine and up the slope to the Harman farm, engaging enemy skirmishers.25 The occupation of the Harman house made the structure a bull’s-eye for Confederate forces. Lt. Jack Young, Baldwin’s second in command, was ordered to make a situational report to Colonel Gates, which required additional men to hold the farm. But what Baldwin witnessed next quickly changed his idea of holding the house. Amelia Harman and her aunt had not yet experienced the full effect of the tumult that engaged her farm. In her recollection, Amelia stated what happened next: A sudden, violent commotion and uproar below made us fly in quick haste to the lower floor. There was a tumultuous pounding with fists and guns on the kitchen door and loud yells of ‘open, or we’ll break down the doors’ which they proceeded to do. We drew the bolt and in poured a stream of maddened, powder blackened blue coats, who ordered us to the cellar, while they dispersed to the various west windows throughout the house.26 23 Col. Theodore Gates, or, 27.1:320. 24 Col. Theodore Gates, or, 27.1:320. 25 Seward R. Osborne, Holding the Left at Gettysburg: The 20th New York State Militia on July 1, 1863 (Hightstown, nj: Longstreet House, 1990), 8. 26 Gettysburg Compiler, July 3, 1915. 46 While in the cellar, Harman vividly heard the sounds of war moving around her. She described the sound of guns, horses moving to and fro, orders moving back and forth between men, and the discharge of cannon to the west of the house. The uncertainty of being caught in between the lines and the dread of what might happen next are best described in her own words: “We could hear the beating of our own hearts above all the wild confusion. How long this lasted I know not. Of a sudden there came a scurrying of quick feet, a loud clattering on the stairway above, a slamming of doors and then for an instance—silence. With a sickening dread we waited for the next act in the drama.”27 At around 2:30 in the afternoon, the next act in the drama commenced. Amelia Harman heard a swish like the mowing of grass on the front lawn, then a dark shadow darkened the low grated cellar windows. It is the sound of feet and the shadow of hundreds of marching feet. We can see them to the knees only but the uniforms are the Confederate gray! Now we understand the scurrying feet overhead. Our soldiers have been driven back, have retreated, left the house, and left us to our fate!28 What Harman was witnessing was the advance across her farm fields of Pettigrew’s 2,500-man brigade, one of the largest in Lee’s army.29 The units of the brigade, from left to right were the 26th, 11th, 47th, and 52nd North Carolina. To the north of Pettigrew was Brockenbrough’s Virginians, and to Pettigrew’s right flank was Archer’s reformed brigade, now commanded by Col. Birkett D. Fry of the 13th Alabama. This heavy force, about one mile long, supported by Pender’s division in the rear, began its assault across the Harman farm fields. Amelia and her aunt made their way out of the cellar into the kitchen. The barn was in flames and cast a lurid glare through the window. The house was filled with Rebels and they were deliberately firing it. They had taken down a file of newspapers for kindling, piled on books, rugs and furniture, applied 27 Gettysburg Compiler, July 3, 1915. 28 Gettysburg Compiler, July 3, 1915. 29 Harry W. Pfanz, Gettysburg: The First Day (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2001), 269. Gettysburg Magazine, no. 54 The Iron Brigade alignment as it faced Pettigrew’s and Brockenbrough’s brigades. Courtesy of Phil Laino. Gettysburg’s Unknown Battlefield 47 matches to ignite the pile. . . . We both jumped on the fire in the hope of extinguishing it, and plead with them in pity to spare our home. But there was no pity in those determined faces. They proceeded to carry out their full purpose and told us to get out or we would burn it.30 The Confederates wanted to make sure the Harman farm could not be used by Union forces for cover.31 Amelia and her aunt fled west toward the Confederate rear. Maj. John T. Jones of the 26th North Carolina described what he saw in front of him as they began their assault. “In our front was a wheat field about a fourth of a mile wide, then came a branch [Willoughby Run] with thick underbrush and briers skirting the banks. Beyond this again was an open field with the exception of a wooded hill [McPherson’s Woods] directly in front of the 26th regiment, and about covering its front.”32 Modern visitors would be puzzled by these descriptions because of the enormous undergrowth that exists today. The tree growth alone completely obscures Willoughby Run and the field beyond. The ridge near the location of the Harman farmhouse is somewhat detectable, but the landscape has been altered by golf course construction, so it is difficult to see. Nevertheless, the advance continued with Heth’s division moving across the fields with Pender’s division in support with about five thousand men. On the right of the Confederate line, the 47th North Carolina was hit immediately by Federal artillery. The men of the 26th North Carolina advanced steadily through the field of oats, all the while within rifle range of the Iron Brigade in McPherson’s Woods. Ahead lay the 24th Michigan and the 19th Indiana. “Except for one fence that crossed the Confederate front, there were no obstacles in the attackers’ path short of Willoughby Run.”33 But Willoughby Run presented a further challenge. One Confederate soldier recalled, “Here the briers, reeds and underbrush made it difficult to pass and there was some crowding in the centre, and the enemy’s 30 Gettysburg Compiler, July 3, 1915. 31 D. Scott Hartwig, “‘I Have Never Seen the Like Before’: Herbst Woods, July 1, 1863,” National Parks Service, last updated July 19, 2014, https://npshistory.com/ series/symposia/gettysburg_seminars/10/essay5.pdf. 32 Walter Clark, ed., Histories of the Several Regiments and Battalions from North Carolina in the Great War 1861–’65 (Wilmington, nc: Broadfoot, 1991), 2:349. 33 Pfanz, Gettysburg, 280. 48 artillery (Cooper’s battery) on our right, getting an enfilade fire upon us, our loss was frightful; but our men crossed in good order, and immediately were in proper position again, and up the hill we went, firing now with better execution.”34 Heth also noted in his official report that “Archer’s brigade, on the right, after advancing a short distance, discovered a large body of cavalry [the 8th Illinois cavalry] on its right flank. Colonel Fry judiciously changed his front, thus protecting the right flank of the division during the engagement.”35 The 26th North Carolina took the full brunt of the Iron Brigade, and the fighting was intense and particularly brutal. The 26th lost 549 men out of the 843 who had crossed the Harman farm, and the regimental flag went through thirteen sets of hands.36 The 19th Indiana, on the left flank, was about to collapse due to the onslaught of the 11th, 47th, and 52nd North Carolina. Biddle’s brigade, posted in back of McPherson’s Ridge and to the left of the 19th Indiana, was no match for the Confederates. Brockenbrough’s brigade, on the Confederate left, advanced toward the 150th Pennsylvania, which was posted between the Herbst Woods and the McPherson farm buildings. Again, as in Archer’s failed attempt in the morning, Brockenbrough failed to carry through with his assault. After crossing the creek, he ran into the quarry where some of Archer’s men had been captured. Above the quarry lay the open field. Instead of moving out with the rest of his attack, Brockenbrough’s attack stalled out, and thus Pettigrew became the main assault force. However, an unreinforced Iron Brigade was forced out of Herbst Woods and joined Biddle’s brigade on Seminary Ridge for what would amount to a final stand before the collapse of the Federal line was complete. The charge had lasted nearly two hours, and the effects were devastating on the Federals in the Herbst Woods. The 24th Michigan had started the day with 496 officers and men and left with only 97 on the field, a casualty rate of 80 percent.37 The 19th Indiana had started with 288 men and left with 78 remaining, a casualty rate of 73 percent.38 34 Clark, Histories of the Several Regiments and Battalions, 351. 35 Maj. Gen. Henry Heth, or, 27.2:639. 36 Allen C. Guelzo, Gettysburg: The Last Invasion (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2013), 196. 37 Rod Gragg, Covered with Glory: The 26th North Carolina Infantry at Gettysburg (New York: HarperCollins, 2000), 144. 38 Gragg, Covered with Glory, 144. Gettysburg Magazine, no. 54 The 19th Indiana monument, photograph by Tipton. Courtesy of the Library of Congress. After driving the Iron Brigade out of Herbst Woods, Heth’s attack lost steam, with massive casualties and no ammunition to resume the attack; but Pender’s men were not far behind. Perrin’s brigade advanced across the Harman farm, noting the burning house as they moved across the fields. Scales’s brigade moved across the Harman and Spangler farms north of Perrin’s brigade. As they passed through Pettigrew’s line and carried on the attack toward Seminary Ridge, the day had finally ended for Heth’s division, and some of the most savage fighting at Gettysburg was over. Amelia Harman and her aunt, after their escape west through the Confederate lines, had been placed in an empty cottage in the vicinity of General Lee’s headquarters. They had been provided rations and protection during their stay; but upon Lee’s retreat from Gettysburg on July 4, they were once again alone. After a brief stay at the home of the Gettysburg Compiler, they made their way toward their farm. Amelia noted, “We footed the Gettysburg’s Unknown Battlefield distance across the fields, for there was not a horse or vehicle to be found in all the country. I will not describe the sickening sights of the ground over which we passed. I would that myself could forget them.”39 Harman does not go into detail about what she saw, as the horrors of war must have made an indelible mark on her. She finishes her recollection with a simple yet poignant series of lines: “When we reached the site of our home, a prosperous farm house five days before, there appeared only a blackened ruin and the silence of death. The chapter is closed. Here I draw the curtain and allow the scene to fade into the shadow of the past.”40 After the war, the Harman house lay in ruins until the 1880s or 1890s before being dismantled, and later the Gettysburg Country Club purchased the property in 1947.41 Today, there is no trace of the house or outbuildings, and modern houses have been built on the site. 39 Gettysburg Compiler, July 3, 1915. 40 Gettysburg Compiler, July 3, 1915. 41 Dalton, Beyond the Run, 57. 49 The Harman farm was also the scene of scores of Confederate burials. On the west side of the run, S. G. Elliot’s 1864 burial map confirms this, as during the afternoon attack on July 1, the 11th and 26th North Carolina Regiments were in the area identified on the map. Even decades after the war, human remains were still being discovered on the original farm. The significance of the Harman farm lies in the fact that with such clear and open land, with the exception of two fences on the Harman farm between the woods and the run, the Confederates could advance fairly quickly; but at the same time, that openness left them vulnerable to considerable Federal firepower upon leaving the safety of the Springs Hotel Woods. However, the devastation of the Harman farm was a microcosm of the greater community. The farm was laid to waste, and the adjoining woods were littered with the remnants of battle, including burials.42 The story of Amelia Harman is an extraordinary story. Many civilians were witness to battle, but 42 Kathleen Georg Harrison, “Brief History and Significance of the Gettysburg Country Club Tract (Emanuel Harman Farm),” 2011, Harman Farm Vertical File, gnmp. 50 Harman’s story brings the sights and sounds of battle to life for the reader. Caught between the lines, with her house occupied by Union and Confederate soldiers alike, she captivates the reader with the running action and the terror and fear that civilians feel when they become part of the field of battle. The Emanuel Harman farm is a key part of the Battle of Gettysburg, even though this part of the field has remained, until the present day, a secondary part of the first day’s battle. The vicious fighting, the high casualty rates, the stepping-off point of Heth and Pender’s divisions, and two innocent civilians caught in the maelstrom of battle, all bring the western side of Willoughby Run into its rightful place in the Battle of Gettysburg. Jeff Denman is a middle school world geography teacher in the Brookline Public Schools, Brookline, Massachusetts, and has also taught U.S. history in grades seven and eight. He has written articles on topics ranging from the American Revolution to World War II. His interests include writing, biking and hiking, and exploring battlefields. This article was inspired by an National Endowment for the Humanities grant opportunity that he had at Gettysburg and a tour of the Harman farm by Scott Hartwig during the summer of 2014. Gettysburg Magazine, no. 54