What  Happened Here   :   Little  Round Top

  
  • 4:00 - 4:00 pm - Little Round Top (LRT) is occupied by only Union Signal Corpsmen.
  • 4:00 - 5:10 am - The 147th PA and 5th OH regiments (Candy's brigade, Geary's division, 12th Corps), along with Kinzie's 5th US Battery K (Muhlenberg's battalion, 12th Corps), are bivouacked on the northwest fringes of LRT, near where the Wheatfield Rd. crosses.
  • 8:15 am - Noon - Co. H of the 2nd US Sharpshooters (Ward's brigade, Birney's division, 3rd Corps) takes up a skirmish line position on the western face of southern end of LRT. They remain there until around Noon when they head west with the rest of the regiment, to the fields near the George Bushman farm, east of the Emmitsburg Rd.
  • 4:00 pm - Gen. Meade, after hearing "a little peppering in the direction of that little hill" orders Gen. Warren to ride to see if "anything serious is going on" at LRT. Gen. Warren arrives about 4:00 pm and discovers the hill is unoccupied except for the Union Signal corpsmen. He immediately begins an hour of activity to get the hill protected by Union forces.
  • 4:15 - 4:30 pm - The first fruits of Warren's effort is the arrival, and deployment of Vincent's brigade (Barnes' division, 5th Corps). The regiments take up a position on the SW end of LRT, from L to R: 20th ME, 83rd PA, 44th NY, 16th MI. The regiments deploy skirmishers to the SW.
  • 4:40 - 4:45 pm - The Union skirmishers, except for Co. B of the 20th ME, return to the main line almost immediately as they encounter three regiments from the intermixed brigades of Robertson and Laws (both from Hood's division, Longstreet's Corps) rapidly approaching from the west. The regiments are, L to R, 4th and 5th TX (Robertson's brigade) and the 4th AL (Laws' brigade).
  • 4:45 - 5:05 pm - The Confederate line, 4th & 5th TX and 4th AL charges Vincent's position hitting primarily the center two Union regiments, the 83rd PA and 44th NY; and are subsequently repulsed. This becomes the first of three such advances.
  • 5:00 pm - Hazlett's 5th US Battery D (Martin's battalion, 5th Corps) begins the arduous ascent up the back side of LRT.
  • 5:05 - 5:20 pm - The three Confederate regiments make their second assault, this time a little further N engaging the 3 Union regiments on the R, including this time the 16th MI. Again they are repulsed, and return to the woods on the "saddle" (Saddle) between LRT and Big Round Top (BRT).
  • 5:10 - 5:15 pm - In the midst of the 2nd Confederate assault, the two R-wing regiments of Laws' brigade, the 15th AL & 47th AL arrive in the Saddle woods, fresh from their unproductive trek up BRT's west slope and down BRT's north slope. They slide to the right and attack the 83rd NY and the 20th ME.
  • 5:20 pm - As the 4th TX, 5th TX and 4th AL withdraw, ending their 2nd assault, the L of the 47th AL is exposed and pulls back. In an attempt to relieve the pressure on the 47th AL, the 15th AL shifts their attack to the R. The 20th ME counters by extending their line accordingly to the L.
  • 5:25 pm - Both Confederate and Union lines are briefly disengaged, setting the stage for the next assault.
  • 5:26 - 5:35 pm - The 4th TX, 5th TX and 4th AL charge the entrenched line of Vincent's brigade for a third time. This time, joined on their R by the 48th AL (Laws' brigade), they almost succeed to breaking thru the Union line. The 16th MI mistakenly believes an order to withdraw has been issued, and before the mistake is caught a significant portion of the regiment has rushed to the rear. This chaos occurs simultaneous with the 48th AL flanking the disorganized 16th MI on their R.
  • 5:28 - 5:40 pm - Concurrent with the 3rd Confederate charge to the L, the 15th AL renews its aggressive assault on the R, sliding the thrust of their attack to the right, making the 20th ME extend their line further and thinner to their left. The 20th ME counter charges. Back and forth, the two units go at each other.
  • 5:30 - 5:35 pm - Gen. Warren succeeds in diverting more support to LRT, commandeering the 450-man 140th NY from the head of Weed's brigade (Ayres division, 5th Corps) moving east along the Wheatfield Rd. They double quick up the back side of LRT with the lead companies (A & G) arriving ahead of the rest of the regiment.
  • 5:30 - 5:50 pm - One by one Hazlett's guns go into position atop LRT. They have been muscled over impossible terrain, littered with boulders and steep slopes; nearby infantry assisting the artillerymen when the battery horses proved ill-suited to the task of reaching the top.
  • 5:35 pm - Companies A & G of the 140th NY charge down the slope into the flank of the 48th AL. They do not stop to form a line of battle but rather attack in column of 4's. The balance of the regiment arrives behind them atop the hill and takes valuable time to organize into a formal line of battle.
  • 5:40 - 5:50 pm - The courageous company A & G are finally joined by the charging line of the balance of the 140th NY, and together with the re-energized remnants of the 16th MI, they push back the nearly victorious 48th AL.
  • 5:45 pm - The 20th ME's Col. Chamberlain (20th ME) pulls 2 companies from the R of his decimated line, moving them all the way to the L in an attempt to thwart the 15th AL's movement in that direction. The 83rd PA pulls back slightly in an effort to tighten the line and support the weakened R flank of the 20th ME.
  • 5:45 - 5:55 pm - As the 48th AL falls back, so to does the 4th TX, followed quickly in turn by the 5th TX & 4th AL. The Confederates have expended everything they had in three assaults. They withdraw to the edge of the woods on the Saddle between the Round Tops.
  • 5:50 pm - As the fighting on the western slope of LRT is dying down, the balance of Weed's brigade, (L to R) the 91st PA, 146th NY and 155th PA, arrives and takes position on Vincent's right. Their "late arrival" is due to first being directed to an area near Rose Woods before being rerouted back to LRT.
  • 5:50 - 5:55 pm - The fierce fighting between the 15th AL and 20th ME is approaching its climax. The 20th ME's L is a single line of soldiers bent past 90-degreees to the mainline. All the regiment is nearly out of ammunition. The 15th AL's Col. Oates dispatches Capt. Waddell with 45-50 men to move further to the R, and around the L flank of the 20th ME into the rear of the Union line.
  • 6:00 pm - Col. Oates (15th AL) receives reports that the Confederate line on his L has withdrawn and the there are Union troops to his R rear (True - Capt. Morrill's Co. B, 20th ME plus a few dozen men from the 2nd US Sharpshooter regiment) and Union Calvary in his rear (False). He elects to begin his withdrawal. Capt. Waddell's (15th AL) outlying unit gets the order late.
  • 6:05 - 6:15 pm - Concurrent with the 15th AL's withdraw, Chamberlain (20th ME) orders his famous charge beginning with the L end of the line "swinging like a door" coming abreast of the mainline, and the entire line then advancing down the slope sweeping into and past the 15th & 47th AL. The "Capt. Morrell's unit" joins the charge, flanking Oates' unit. Capt. Waddell's unit is caught behind the Union line and captured. A strong group of skirmisher from the 83rd PA joins in the rout.
  • 6:10 pm - One section of Gibbs' 1st OH Battery L (Martin's battalion, 5th corps) unlimbers on the western slope of LRT, at the R end of Weed's brigade line. Gibbs' two other sections are deployed north of LRT.
  • 6:15 - 6:30 pm - Fisher's brigade (Crawford's division, 5th Corps) arrives at the front and takes up a holding position at the north end of LRT on the N side of the Wheatfield Rd. McCandless' brigade (Crawford's division) arrives shortly after Fisher and takes up a similar holding position. Within minutes the two brigades deploy into lines of battle, at the N end of LRT, straddling the Wheatfield Rd.
  • 6:25 - 6:45 pm - After pushing the Confederates across the "Saddle" and partially up BRT, the 20th ME halts, waits briefly and then returns to their original position at the southern end of LRT.
  • 6:40 - 6:50 pm - Fisher's brigade is ordered to the R and moves into position at the S end of LRT taking position behind Vincent's brigade. The Fisher's 11th PA R remain behind and take the center position in the new front line formed as McCandless' brigade moves forward into Fisher's vacated location.
  • 6:55 - 7:00 pm - Gibbs' 3rd battery section moves up from a reserve position and joins Gibbs' 2nd section just to the N of LRT. The 98th PA (Nevin's brigade, Wheaton's division, 6th Corps) has somehow gotten well in front of the rest of the brigade and arrives early and eager to fight taking a position amongst the regiments in McCandless' line. A strong continuous line of infantry and artillery now exists across the western face of LRT, and the 6th Corps brigades have yet to arrive.
  • 7:05 - 7:15 pm - Down in front of the Union line on LRT they can see a massive line of surging Rebels pushing everything in their path out of the Wheatfield. Day's regiments, soon to be followed by Burbank's (both Ayres' division, 5th Corp) begin streaming up the west face of LRT impeding the firing lines of the Union infantry and artillery on the crest of the slope. The expended Rebel line comes to a halt at the base of LRT.
  • 7:10 - 7:20 pm - As the massed Confederate units of Semmes and Kershaw (McLaws' division, Longstreet's Corps) reach the banks of Plum Run at the foot of LRT and threaten Gibbs' battery section, the impetuous 98th PA R fixes bayonets and charges thru the L of McCandless' line down the face of LRT.
  • 7:25 - 7:30 pm - McCandless' PA Reserves follow the lead of the 98th PA, charging down LRT's western slope and triggering the withdrawal of Semmes and Kershaw. Meanwhile Day and Burbank have reformed their respective brigade lines back up on the crest of LRT. While fighting will continue in front of LRT on Houck's Ridge and in the Wheatfield for a little while longer, sunset is at 7:41 pm this day, the fighting on LRT is virtually over.
  • 8:05 pm - The 20th ME is ordered to the top of BRT. They leave their position at the southern tip of LRT and begin their tenuous trek up the mountain as a line of skirmishers.
  • 8:30 pm - Four of Fisher's 5 regiments, the 5th R, 9th R, 10th R and 12th PA R (the 11th PA R remains in the middle of McCandless' line on Houck's Ridge) begin to leave LRT. The 9th & 10th PA R take up positions on the "Saddle" while the 5th PA R & 12th PA R begin a disorganized ascent, in lines of battle, in the dark, up the northern slope of BRT.
  • 9:15 pm - The 5th PA R & 12th PA R come stampeding back to the southern tip of LRT after a wandering ascent and a chaotic brief stay at the top of BRT.
  • 9:55 pm - The 83rd NY departs LRT for BRT's summit, intent on supporting the 20th ME where the 5th PA R & 12th PA R had failed. They simply march up the unoccupied slope in column of 4's.
  • 10:10 pm - A detachment of the 44th NY leaves LRT, following the lead of the 83rd NY, up the north slope of BRT.
  • 10:35 pm - Now reorganized, and this time moving along the path of the other regiments and in column of 4's, the 5th PA R & 12th PA R leave LRT and move up the north slope of BRT.