The date is July 2, 1863. The United States Civil War has been going for over 2 years. While the rest of world looked on (although England and France took a bit of an interest), the United States seemed consumed by this War. Or was it?
The USS Constellation built in 1854 as warship saw only limited blockade duty. Instead, in its wisdom, the Navy sent her to “show the Flag” around the Mediterranean. (Wikipedia) Her sister ships were capturing prizes and having battles off the coasts of the Carolinas and up the Rappahannock. She was cruising around the Med. To be precise on July 2, 1863 she was somewhere in the Ligurian Sea (northern Italy) near the Island of Gorgona. (Constellation Deck Log)Her precise location is unknown as the watch had stopped recording the latitude and longitude in the log book. Only a mention of Gorgona in the entry itself a few days before showed where the ship was.
The Constellation was commanded by Captain Thatcher. The handwriting in the logbook makes his full name and exact rank difficult to decipher. A fuller examination of the ship’s records at a later time may make it clearer. That day the Midnight to 0400 watch (the watchstander’s name here and on all entries for July 2 are likewise difficult to decipher). recorded a “light breeze from the west and pleasant.” This would be the weather for the remainder of the day. It seemed a boring day aboard ship. A port had been made probably because they received aboard 4 bolts of cotton canvas for sails in the mid morning watch. An inpsection of the 5th division was made during that time. Both the big guns and small arms were inspected.
The big excitement of the day however was that a Court Martial was convened. Three sailors were to be tried. The log book does not describe the charges. Nor is the outcome of the Court Martial given in the log book. Further research is warranted to find out what these men did and what happened to them.
Meanwhile, in a small town in Pennsylvania, Franklin Horner of Cameron County, PA was wrote in his diary “Now we expecting to march onto the battlefield soon.” (35 Days to Gettysburg by Mark Nesbitt). He was part of Sykes’ 5th Corp and lined up on the Taneytown Road. Later than day he was moved to the Wheatfieield Road from which he could see Little Round Top. At which point, Horner who had been captured at Cold Harbor, held at the notorious Belle Island Prison, exchanged and then and wounded at Antietam, wrote in his diary “We are on the battlefield and in line of battle. The battle is raging fiercely now. We will soon be it." The battle he was speaking of was the notorious Devil’s Den.
Devil’s Den should not have happened. The plan was to run the Union line from Cemetary Hill, to Culp’s Hill, along Cemetary Ridge and then anchor Cemetary Ridge with Little Round Top and Round Top. (Gettysburg Campaign June-July 1863 by Carol Reardon and Tom Vassler) General Sickles however, moved out of position, dangerously exposing the Union line with gaps from the Peach Orchard to the Wheatfield and then South to the Devil’s Den. There just weren’t enough men to go around. At 2 p.m. on July 2, 1863, the Union left flank was in a dangerous position. The Rebels aimed for this left flank, believing Little Round Top completely unoccuppied. At 4 p.m. Lee ordered the attack. This occurred right when General Meade was reaming out Sickles for moving without permission. But its too late, if Sickles moves back where Meade done told him to be, it will look like a retreat. Which would only encourage the Rebels to concentrate their attack. The gaps would cause the line to collapse. So Sickles is told to hold.
The Rebels know there is artillery in the rocky area known as the Devil’s Den. They detach two regiments to go deal with it. They are met by the gunfire of the 4th Maine. Then the Orange Blossoms (the 124th New York) gets in on the action. They actually counter attack down slope against the Rebels. This does go well ofr the 124th New York and they are forced to retreat back to the safety of the rocks. The rebels keep coming. The undermanned Union Troops in the Devil’s Den cannot hold and fall back. This part of the battle goes to the Rebels.
But Little Round Top holds.