Georgetown
Civil War Walking Tour
The
Civil War. The very name conjures images of battles and
generals, of soldiers fighting, wounded, or dead. The names of Gettysburg,
Antietam, and Shiloh ring through our national conscience. But what
if we go beyond that? Beyond the battles and battlefields, beyond
the statistics of that awful conflict?
The
Civil War touched just about everyone who lived in the United States
at that time. Whether it was wives who watched their husbands march
off to war, or children who waited in vain for their fathers to
come back. The Civil War stamped both people and places with its
mix of bravery and cowardice, elation and sorrow, hatred and forgiveness.
In
1861 Georgetown was primarily considered a Southern town. Slavery
was legal and 90% of the population was from south of the Mason-Dixon
Line. After the fall of Fort Sumter, President Lincoln took quick
steps to ensure Georgetown's southern aspirations would not be realized,
especially considering its proximity to the Capitol.
The
genteel atmosphere of Georgetown was shattered by the presence of
7,000 to 15,000 troops that were quartered in the city during the
war. Troops were hurriedly brought into Washington to defend the
city against possible invasion. The first troops to arrive in late
April 1861 were part of the Irish Brigade, the 69th New York. They
stayed on the grounds of Georgetown College (now University). They
were quiet and well behaved. The 79th New York Highlanders followed
them. Unlike their predecessors, they displayed drunken behavior
and damaged college property.
Many
of the troops that followed continued the raucous behavior. The
Evening Star complained about the lack of morals exhibited
by the troops and wrote:
Is
it proper for the 1st Massachusetts to bathe in the canal at all
hours? What aggravates the matter is that the bathers range themselves
along the towpath in the costume of the Greek slave, minus the
chain and in attitudes anything but peaceful or becoming.
With
the arrival of northern troops, many of Georgetown's southern sympathizers,
or "secesh", crossed over into Virginia.
By
July of 1861, many thought the first battle, about to be fought
in Manassas, Virginia, would end the war. The citizens got caught
up in the carnival atmosphere that arose around the battle. Merchants
seized the opportunity by selling spyglasses, maps, and even canes
that turned into chairs to the people that wanted to see the skirmish.
The
festive atmosphere quickly turned to panic as the Union army was
routed. Long traffic jams of soldiers and spectators fleeing the
battle clogged the bridges into Washington. Along M Street remaining
"secesh" taunted Union troops coming back into Georgetown. Confused
and tired soldiers searched for lost units. Many collapsed in gutters
or on lawns. Some officers crowded into bars to drink.
The
realization set in that this was not going to be a quick war. The
government turned several Georgetown houses and businesses into
hospitals and morgues. Georgetowners were divided into Northern
and Southern sympathizers. Each side lived in fear of retribution
for its loyalties. The following tour will point out some of the
sites involved in the famous clash between North and South.
From
the Visitor Center turn left onto 30th street. Take 30th Street
a half block up to M Street. Cross M Street heading up 30th street.
Pause on the corner across from the Bank.
The
bank stands on the site of The Union Hotel and Tavern. Built in
1796, the hotel hosted many prominent citizens through the years
including Robert Fulton, George Washington, and John Quincy Adams.
By the time of the Civil War, this once glorious hotel had become
a boarding house catering to young clerks, poor families, and travelling
teachers. On May 6,1861, John Waters, the proprietor of the hotel,
was notified by the government to remove all occupants from the
building so it could be turned into a hospital. As the boarders
left the premises they took everything with them, including chamberpots,
leaving nothing for the government.
On
December 12, 1862 Louisa May Alcott arrived at the hospital as a
nurse. She came from her home in Concord, Massachusetts to help
the Union cause. The hospital was full of men wounded from three
different battles. Rushing about she was required to wash, dress,
and feed the men, difficult tasks for a gently bred young woman.
She wrote a book about her experiences at the Union Hospital called
"Hospital Sketches". In it she describes the scene on the streets
outside:
Long
trains of army wagons kept up a perpetual rumble from morning
until night. Ambulances rattled to and fro with busy surgeons,
nurses taking an airing or convalescents going in parties to be
fitted for artificial limbs. Strings of sorry looking horses passed,
saying as plainly as dumb creatures could, 'why in a city full
of them is there no horsepital for us?' Often a cart came by,
with several rough coffins in it and no mourners following; barouches,
with invalid officers, rolled round the corner and carriage loads
of pretty children, with black coachmen, footmen and maids.
Life
in the hospital was a tremendous strain on Miss Alcott and she succumbed
to typhoid fever. Six weeks after it began, her nursing career came
to a close when her father came to Washington and took her home.
Continue
up 30th street until you reach N Street. Cross N Street. Look across
30th Street to the long white brick building.
From
1820 to 1861 this was "Miss English's Seminary for Young Ladies".
Many of the daughters of Washington's elite families were educated
here under the direction of Miss Lydia Scudder English.
The
seminary was three floors high and contained 19 bedrooms, a library,
several parlors, and porches on the wings. It even had running hot
water. The union army confiscated the seminary in 1861 and turned
it into a hospital for officers. It is believed that Mary Walker,
the famous doctor, served here. She was the first woman to receive
the Medal of Honor. Miss English, however, was one of Georgetown's
most ardent secessionists. She could not stand to see the United
States flag flying over her building so she moved out of sight around
the corner to 2812 N Street.
Look
at 1300 30th Street
This
was the home of another Southern sympathizer, Dr. Grafton Tyler.
He was so aghast at the sight of the flag flying over the seminary
across the street that he slammed his shutters closed and kept them
boarded throughout the remainder of the war, including the dog days
of summer.
Dr.
Taylor was physician to many of the town's most notable "secesh"
including Miss English and the cousin of Mrs. Robert E. Lee. Dr.
Taylor's wife had a brother, Walter Bowie, who was a notorious guerilla
and spy. Bowie was captured and sent to the Capitol prison to await
death by hanging. Mrs. Taylor paid him a visit in jail. As she kissed
him goodbye, she slipped a note hidden in her mouth into his mouth.
It told him that she had bribed a guard. That night he was able
to escape.
When
Richmond was captured in April of 1865, a newspaperman from the
Evening Star was reporting on the festivities around Georgetown.
He recorded the following about Dr. Taylor's house:
The
house appeared unusually dark with all its windows and doors tightly
shut. Upon suspicion it was because of sympathy for the rebel
cause, soldiers in the vicinity of the Seminary Hospital and the
young men living near there became excited and put the house in
mourning, hanging crepe on the knobs. Then they illuminated around
the door with candles and put up national colors around the doors
and Serenaded the house with national songs.
Continue
on N Street.
The
block of N Street between 30th and 31st Streets housed some of the
town's most stubborn "secesh".
3014
N Street.
This
was the home of Judge James Dunlop, the Chief Justice of the Circuit
Court of the District of Columbia. Dunlop was related to Mrs. Robert
E. Lee by marriage. President Lincoln removed him from the bench
because of his Southern sympathies. Ironically, Robert Todd Lincoln,
the president's son, later owned this house.
3017
N Street
Owned
by William Redin, a lawyer and Union sympathizer. He was offered
Judge Dunlop's old position on the circuit court but refused because
of his friendship with Dunlop.
In
1963, Jacqueline Kennedy bought the house and lived here for one
year before moving to New York City.
Continue
to 3041-3045 N Street.
These
three buildings comprise Wheatley Row, finished in 1859. The Wheatley
and Gordon families lived here during the war. Although both families
had southern sympathies, William Gordon Sr. remained in his U.S.
government job. He was commended upon retirement as being "one of
the oldest and most valuable of government employees".
His
oldest son, William Gordon, Jr. had a Ph.D. and taught mathematics.
Although he longed to help the rebel cause, he respected his parents'
wishes and initially refrained from fighting. One day he got into
an altercation with a federal officer. Because he refused to take
the oath of allegiance to the government, he was jailed in Baltimore.
He was exchanged for a Union prisoner and sent south. He became
a lieutenant with the Confederate army and worked as an engineer.
At war's end he returned to D.C. His brother, J. Holdsworth Gordon,
recounts an interesting experience they had shortly after his return:
He and I went to the theatre. As he had not brought much
clothing with him on his return he had a short gray coat, his uniform
coat, minus military buttons. The theatre was crowded, the audience
being mainly made up of Union soldiers returning to their homes.
As we approached at the head of the aisle Will's gray caught the
eye of the men and a yell went up 'Come down here Johnnie and we
will give you as seat!' I was deadly uneasy, but we accepted the
invitation, the soldiers made room for us, and we were treated grandly.
I then learned that the man who fights is generally magnanimous
and never bears ill will toward the brave foe he has met on the
battlefield.
William
Gordon Jr. received his pardon August 8th, 1865. His brother also
told how the war affected his neighbors the Wheatley's.
When
the war had been going on for a year or two, my neighbor Walter
Wheatley who was a strong, powerful fellow, decided he would run
away and join his brothers Charles and Francis, they being with
Lee in the Army of Northern Virginia. I well remember the secrecy
with which we purchased pipes, tobacco and other such belongings
to army life and the deep sorrow I felt when we bade each other
goodbye. He had to steal through the lines, but was successful
and became a courier in Mosby's Command. Shortly after he reached
Virginia, his brother Francis was killed in a cavalry fight, and
Walter conceived the idea of bringing his watch and picture home
to Mrs. Wheatley. He reached home safely and startled his family
by appearing in their midst one evening. It was necessary to conceal
him until he got ready to return to his command as if captured
he might be executed as a spy. I was informed of his presence
and lost no time in joining him at his home.
On
the next day after his arrival he and I were in his room, listening
to the startling stories he was telling of his army experiences
when one of the family appeared at his door with blanched face,
exclaiming 'run, run and hide, the house is surrounded!'
I
immediately ran out of the room jumping onto a back porch and
then to the roof of our house, down and out the front door, joining
the growing crowds on N Street to see what the soldiers were after.
It was a company of German troops who were part of the provost
squad in charge of Georgetown. A slave of Mr. Wheatley's had seen
Walter come in and running off to the guard, had given the information.
Walter ran from his room and crawled up into a large empty water
tank, when the same slave appeared and pointing out the hiding
place, exclaimed 'he's in
there!' The soldiers thereupon began poking their bayonets into
the dark tank, and Walter
had to come out or be stabbed to death. He was seized and subsequently
incarcerated in the old Capitol Prison. Fears were entertained
that he would be hung as a spy, but thanks to the influence of
friends of the family he was allowed to give parole and was released.
This he did reluctantly, but it was just as well as the war soon
ended."
From
Wheatley Row continue straight to 29th street, cross over to the
Baptist church and head up 29th street, cross over Dunbarton Street
and continue to the corner of the next street.
This
is Christ Episcopal Church, Christ
Episcopal Church was THE church of Georgetown's southern segment.
The original church was destroyed by fire in the late 1880's and
the one you see before you was built in 1889.
The
church went through a rough time during the Civil War. The church
made money to operate by subscripting (or renting) pews. Most of
the church's members were southerners who left the area during the
war. To try to make ends meet the church tried lowering subscription
costs and renting out the rectory. Several times the church was
turned into a hospital to treat wounded Union soldiers. Boards were
placed over the pews to make stretchers, beds, and operating tables.
The
rector of the church, Dr. William Norwood, was an ardent secessionist.
His cat was one of the first causalities of the war. When hostilities
broke out, he headed south for a visit. He left his cat in the rectory
with enough food for ten days. He didn't return as expected and
his cat starved to death. Although it was a sad story, it was so
much better than most of the news at the time that the Evening
Star published it to lighten the mood of the paper denominations.
Dr.
Norwood abandoned his post when he was ordered by the Bishop of
Maryland to pray for a Union victory and President Lincoln. Since
the church needed a minister, one would be sent weekly to conduct
services. Every week the ladies of the church protested the prayers
for Lincoln and the armies by walking out of the church with a pompous
air.
However,
at war's end the community realized that President Lincoln was the
best hope for reconciliation without much punishment for the south.
They openly mourned when the president was assassinated. Dr. Grafton
Taylor
Resolved
that in the death of our late President A. Lincoln, we have sustained
an irreparable loss, and that our horror of the atrocious deed,
which has brought affliction and sorrow upon the whole people is
all that the heart can bear and more than the tongue can utter.
Christ
Church remained draped in black crepe for 30 days. On the day Lincoln
was buried in Springfield, Illinois, the bell of this church, devoted
to the southern cause and attended by those who believed in the
south's way of life, tolled for 2 hours in his honor.
From
Christ Church retrace your steps to the Baptist Church at the corner
of N and 31st streets and take a right heading toward Wisconsin
Avenue. Look for the gray building with the GAP on it.
This
building was once known as Forrest Hall. Here Georgetown as a community
chose sides in the ensuing war. On January 2, 1861, William Tenny,
an ardent Unionist, stood at a town council meeting and stated:
Everyone
should consider the alarming state of the Union. South Carolina
has seceded. Mississippi, Alabama and Florida are sitting in convention
and will emulate her. Every city, town and hamlet ought to speak
out, even Washington City. Treason is no longer a snake in the grass,
but stalks abroad like a famished wolf, hungry for prey. Let ever
man speak out.
Although
some southerners wanted to wait and see what developed, Tenny fired
up the crowd. A meeting to determine Georgetown's allegiance was
set for January 21.
That
night a large crowd gathered in the hall. A band played patriotic
songs and a rifle team lined the front of the stage as a minister
prayed for guidance. Those invited to speak declined to do so. Many
attempts were made to get men to come forward for the vote, eventually
five men responded to the pleas. All were reluctant to say he was
a member of Lincoln's party. They claimed to be " One Whig, one
Tory, one Independent, one Democrat, and one Anti-Democrat"
The
five men met in a side room returned a short time later with Georgetown's
decision to stay in the Union. A hushed silence filled Forrest Hall
while their statement was read: "Resolved: By the citizens of Georgetown
in town meeting assembled that we can never admit of any state to
secede from the Union, and that the word secession is entrap the
unwary who might shrink from rebellion and revolution."
Forrest
Hall remained an active player in war related activities. Soldiers
as well as the Provost Marshall and his assistants lived here. Prisoners
and deserters were processed here. At war's end the building's owner
was compensated ten cents to the dollar for all the damage the troops
had done.
Other
Civil War sites in Georgetown
3133
Dumbarton Street
Dumbarton
United Methodist Church. This one of many public buildings used
as a hospital during the war. President Lincoln worshipped here
on March 7, 1863 and was observed weeping.
3108
P Street
Home
of Union General George Henry Thomas, a Virginian who was disowned
by his family because he stayed in the Union Army. Became known
as "The Rock of Chickamauga".
1644
31st Street between Q and R Streets
Tudor
Place. This beautiful home was built in 1816 by Martha Washington's
granddaughter, Martha Custis Peter.
During
the war it was owned by her descendent Britannia Peter Kennon. Mrs.
Kennon was a first cousin to Mrs. Robert E. Lee. Mrs. Kennon had
to allow Union soldiers to be quartered here or else her home would
have been turned into a hospital. The war was not permitted to be
discussed in her presence and she refused to rent a room to Julia
Grant, wife of General U.S. Grant.
During
the war her nephew Orton Williams resigned his commission in the
U.S. Army in order to join his cousins and uncle Robert E. Lee in
the Confederate Army. In the fall of 1863 he and a cousin, Gip Peter,
were captured behind enemy lines dressed in Union uniforms. Within
hours a drumhead court of officers, awakened in the middle of the
night, condemned them. They were hanged by morning. In 1864 Gips
brother Dr. Armistead Peter received permission to retrieve their
remains from Franklin, Tennessee and return them to Oak Hill Cemetery
in Georgetown for burial. In a letter written three years later
General Lee said of the event, "my blood boils at the thought
of the atrocious outrage against every manly and Christian sentiment."
3238
R Street
A.V.
SCOTT, from Alabama, built this house in 1858. During the war he
returned to the south and rented his house to Union General Henry
Halleck. President Lincoln consulted with the general here. General
U.S. Grant came here to escape the heat of the city. General grant
also spent the summer after the war here and continued to use it
as a retreat during his presidency.
30th
and R Streets
Oak
Hill Cemetery
Civil
War notables buried here include Secretary of War Edwin Stanton
and Union General Jesse Reno.
The
people, who lived in Georgetown one hundred and forty years ago,
were not that much different than us. They had hopes and dreams
of improving their lives, making the world a better place for themselves
and their children just as we do today. When we gaze at the silent
walls of the buildings here in Georgetown, we can hear the voices
of those families that lived so long ago tell us through their recollections
what actually happened here during that troubled time in American
History. Their voices echo ours as we wonder how they got through
that incredibly difficult period.
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more about Georgetown, click here.
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