What  Happened Here   :   The Wheatfield

  
  • Noon - Ward's brigade (Birney's division, 3rd Corp) briefly occupies the eastern end of the Wheatfield.
  • 12:30 pm - Ward's brigade departs for the Devil's Den area to the south, while DeTrobriand's brigade (Birney's division, 3rd Corp) traverses the Wheatfield en route to Stoney Hill to the west.
  • 12:45 pm - Winslow's (3rd Corp) battery unlimbers in the Wheatfield.
  • 4:15-4:30 pm - The 8th NJ (Burling's brigade, Humphrey's division, 3rd Corp) followed a bit later by the 17th ME (DeTrobriand's brigade), occupy the Stone Wall on the south edge of the Wheatfield.
  • 4:45-5:00 pm - The 8th NJ, 17ME, and 115th PA (Burling's brigade) defend the Stone Wall and the SW corner of the Wheatfield against a strong attack by Anderson's brigade (Hood's division, Longstreet's Corp).
  • 5:15-5:30 pm - Anderson's 2nd assault against the Wheatfield stone wall succeeds in pressuring Union troops back from the wall. But Winslow's battery keeps the Rebels at bay.
  • 5:30-5:45 pm - Anderson, along with regiments from Kershaw's brigade (McLaws' division, Longstreet's Corp) from the Stoney Hill, and portions of regiments from Benning's & Robertson's brigades (Hood's division) at the SE border of the Wheatfield, take control and pressure Winslow to withdraw.
  • 5:35 pm -  Caldwell's division (2nd Corp), led by Cross' brigade, intent on relieving the Union troops in the Wheatfield, is rapidly approaching from the north.
  • 5:35-5:40 pm -  Birney orders the 17th ME and 5th MI (DeTrobriand's brigade) back into the Wheatfield toward the Stone Wall to buy time, pushing Anderson back behind it, as Cross' brigade forms behind a wall in Trostle's Woods along the Wheatfield Road. Meanwhile, the 115th PA buys time for Winslow's withdrawal by charging Kershaw on the Stoney Hill.
  • 5:45-6:15 pm -  Cross' brigade followed closely by Zook's, Kelly's and finally Brooke's brigades (all from Caldwell's division) advance from Trostle's Woods and sweep the Wheatfield in a south to SW direction. They push Kershaw off Stoney Hill back to the Rose Farm area, and regiments of Semmes, Anderson, Robertson and Benning (west to east respectively) back to the edges of Rose's Woods.
  • 6:05-6:20 pm -  Burbank's brigade and, shortly thereafter Day's brigade (both Ayres' division, 5th Corp), take up supporting position behind a wall on the eastern edge of the Wheatfield at the northern end of Houck's Ridge.
  • 6:15-6:30 pm -  Sweitzer's brigade (Barnes' division, 5th Corp) is ordered to support Caldwell from the now vacant Wheatfield. It takes Sweitzer much to long to carry out the order and get into a supporting position.
  • 6:30 pm - After a fierce 15-minute fight on the western edge of Rose's Woods, Semme's brigade (McLaws' division), supported by Anderson from the south, begins to push back Brooke. Meanwhile, Kershaw, at the Rose Farm, now supported by Wofford's brigade (McLaws' division) to the north via the Peach Orchard area, is pressuring Zook and Kelly from the west.
  • 6:30-6:45 pm - Sweitzer advances thru the Weatfield to the Stone Wall just as Caldwell's entire division is being driven off Stoney Hill and thru Rose's Woods, back thru that same field. Wofford and Kershaw are pressing from the west over the Stoney Hill as Semmes and Anderson are advancing from the SW and south respectively.
  • 6:35-6:45 pm - Now it's Sweitzer's brigade at the Stone Wall, momentarily halting Anderson's third attack against the Wheatfield; but Kershaw's left wing surprises first the 4th MI and the 62nd PA with heavy fire against their right rear. Both regiments change front to the west in an attempt to halt Kershaw.
  • 6:40-7:05 pm -  Burbank's brigade joins the chaotic fight for control of the Wheatfield, wheeling left from their position behind the wall at the eastern edge of the field. After brief initial success, their fate is much that same as Sweitzer's as both brigades are driven back by the massive onslaught of the converging Confederate line of regiments, now led by the fresh troops of Wofford's brigade
  • 7:10 pm - The Confederates have completely cleared the Wheatfield of Union troop, and now turn their attention to the ever increasing Union numbers on the NW slope of Little Roundtop. Their control of the casualty laden field will be short lived.
  • 7:30 pm - Longstreet has concluded that further fighting will be fruitless. He orders his line, which has been heavily engaged for nearly 3 hours, to begin to fall back. Added pressure from McCandless' fresh brigade (Crawford's division, 5th Corp), charging from the slopes of NW Little Roundtop to the eastern edge of the Wheatfield, punctuates the point.
  • 8:00 pm - As darkness sets in the fight for control of the Wheatfield is over. The field is a no man's land. The Union has a strong line at the eastern edge of the field, while the Confederate's occupy the Stony Hill on its western edge. No further significant fighting takes place here for the rest of the battle.