The late Gettysburg historian and author Elwood (Woody) Christ wrote this excellent account of a smaller battle that occurred during the battle of Gettysburg on July 2 and 3, 1863. The Bliss Farm was a peaceful average farm located near Gettysburg, PA, where the Bliss family farmed for many years. This small farm would be placed in no mans land between both the Army of the Potomac and the Army of Northern Virginia and had strategic value for both armies during the battle. Regiments from Connecticut, New Jersey, Delaware. Ohio, and Pennsylvania would fight for possession of the farmstead against the regiments from Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia. The engagements between the Union and Confederate regiments consisted of small scale skirmishes that involved hundreds of men at any given moment which the farm buildings would change hands at least ten times. Woody Christ says between sunrise of July 2 and the early afternoon of July 3 approximately 2160 Union and 2310 Confederate soldiers fought around the Bliss Farm which resulted in 360 Union and 470 Confederate casualties. Though small compared to the larger battles around them during the Battle of Gettysburg, this is still a lot of soldiers who perished or were seriously wounded. The actions of the regiments around the farm directly affected the strategies of both armies during Gettysburg. Impromptu artillery barrages between both armies, which wasted precious long-range ammunition that Confederate Colonel E. P. Alexander would need to support Picketts Charge. The actions around Bliss Farm would help the Union later on have devastating actions on Picketts Charge due to Ohio Regiments being strategically placed to fire upon Picketts soldiers during the charge during the afternoon of July 3. Confederate General William Dorsey Pender would be mortally wounded while trying to reconnoiter the farmstead for possible troop placements. The effects of the actions around the farm would force the withdrawal of Confederate Regiments that could of been of better support of Generals Pettigrews and Trimbles troops on the left of Picketts Charge. Woody Christ accurately summarizes that because of the actions of Bliss Farm and the holding of the farm ultimately by Union regiments that Picketts charge on July 3, 1863 could have met with greater success. The Bliss Farm was totally devastated when Union troops set fire to the barn and buildings to drive out Confederate sharpshooters and skirmishers. The family was one of the few families in and around Gettysburg to have lost everything due to the battle. After the war Bliss family members would spend their entire lives trying to receive compensation from the U.S. Government because of the destruction of their farm. They were never compensated. Woody Christ wrote a fascinating, in-depth, yet easy to understand account of the small battle of Bliss Farm during the Battle of Gettysburg. Excellent maps, photos of the key soldiers both Union and Confederate are included, order of battle enhance this great read. It is unfortunate that this was the only book this Gettysburg Historian would write. His prose and accuracy are outstanding and he undoubtedly had more history about the battle that he could write. This is a rare book to find and not that many were published, thus it is a little expensive to purchase. However, it is DEFINITELY worth acquiring and studying for anyone interested in the Battle of Gettysburg. Woody Christs excellent book definitely shows that small actions during the Battle of Gettysburg had a definite effect overall in the outcome of the battle. A great book that hopefully will be republished to a wider audience who can learn about these small battles within the large Battle of Gettysburg. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!
Posted on: Sun, 13 Jul 2014 12:34:47 +0000
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