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 Souvenir of the Dedication 
 
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 ON THE 
 
 BATTLEFIELD OF GETTYSBURG, PA. 
 
 OCTOBER 19th, 1SS7. 
 
 1^ £ to - 1) r h : 
 
 HENRY BESSEY, PRINTER, 
 No. 47 Cedar Street. 
 
 1887. 
 
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4 
 
 The Fourteenth Regiment 
 GETTYSBURG MONUMENT. 
 
 On June 4th, 1885, a resolution was adopted by the 
 14th Regiment War Veteran Association, appointing a 
 Committee to take action in reference to placing monu- 
 ments on the battlefield of Gettysburg, Pa., to desig- 
 nate the position of the "Brooklyn 14th" in that 
 decisive struggle with the great rebellion. 
 
 The Committee consisted originally of Gen. E. B. 
 Fowler, James Whitlock, James Woodhead, Anthony 
 Barrett and John Jochum. At their first meeting, Gen. 
 Fowler, Chairman, appointed John Jochum Secretary 
 of the Committee. It was then decided to add forr 
 War Veterans, then serving in the active Regiment, to 
 secure their co-operation. Other additions were made 
 as were found necessary, until the Joint Committee 
 numbered fourteen members. The details of the work 
 performed by this Committee, aided by the State of 
 New-York and patriotic citizens, can only be measured 
 by the glorious success of the enterprise, culminating 
 in the erection of a Monument which has been pro- 
 nounced by the highest authorities equal if not suj)erior 
 to any now existing on that memorable battlefield. It 
 consists of an 8-foot granite statue of a soldier in the 
 
c 
 
 Chasseur uniform worn by the 14th Regiment, N. Y. 
 S. M., in the act of "handle cartridge." The pedestal 
 is nearly ten feet high, which, together Avith the base 
 and foundation stones, give an aggregate height of over 
 twenty feet. The die has four bronze plates let into 
 discs, which represent the Corps badge of the Regiment 
 in the field, those on the front and rear containing New- 
 York State and Brooklyn coats of arms, and on the 
 sides the name of Regiment, 2d Brigade, 1st Division, 
 1st Army Corps. Full historic data appear on the four 
 sides of base in raised polished letters, as follows : 
 
 "On Tnis SPOT, at 10.30 A. M., July 1, 1863, this Eegiment tak- 
 
 TICIPATED IN THE REPULSE OB^ DaVIS' MISSISSIPPI BRIGADE AND THE 
 CAPTURE OP A LARGE PORTION OF THAT COMMAND. TOOK INTO TOE 
 ENGAGEMENT 356 OFFICERS AND MeN, AND, BY THE WaR DEPARTMENT 
 RECORDS, LOST DURING THE THREE DAYS 217." 
 
 Another one has the following : 
 
 "JuLYl. First engaged the enemy between the McPuerson 
 House and Reynolds' Grove ; subsequently moved to this place 
 and engaged Davis' Brigade ; remained at the railroad cut on 
 Seminary Ridge unt^l the final retreat ; had a running fight 
 through Gettysburg to Gulp's Hill. On the evening op the 2d, 
 and again on the morning of the 3d, went to support Greene's 
 Brigade, and was heavily engaged." 
 
 On another side : 
 
 " Erected and Dedicated A. D. 1887." 
 
 On the 4th side : 
 
 " The 14tii Regiment New-York State Militia (84th New- York 
 Volunteers) entered the TJ. S. Volunteer service April 18, 1861, 
 participated in 22 engagements with the enemy, and "WAS dis- 
 charged on expiration of term of service, Juke 6, 18C4." 
 
It is to commemorate tlie dedication of this beautiful 
 Monument at the railroad cut referred to that this 
 souvenir is offered, that future generations may know 
 of the heroes who gave up their lives that the Union 
 might live, and sometimes give a thought to the suffer- 
 ings and privations endured by the survivors of that 
 terrilic charge. Nor did their services end there ; for 
 on the second and third days, with shattered ranks but 
 stout hearts, they were assigned to other severely 
 threatened points along the line, keeping up the fight 
 until the routed enemy abandoned the field and treason 
 received its death wound. It is intended to designate 
 these positions by smaller granite markers, and the 
 Committee are now engaged in that important work. 
 
 Respectfully, 
 
 Gen. E. B. Fowleh, Chairman^ 
 Gen. James McLefr, 
 
 Col. H. W. MiClIELL. 
 
 Lieut. Col. S. Clobiiidge, 
 
 Major JoiiTsr McNeill, 
 
 Capt. Ramon Cakdina, Treasurer, 
 
 Lieut. Alfred Cranston, Finari'l Sec y, 
 
 Lieut. Alex. Barnie, Jr., Cor. Secretary, 
 
 James Wiiitlock, 
 
 James Woodiiead, 
 
 Anthony Barrett, 
 
 John W. Easox^, 
 
 John Jociium, Recording Secretary, 
 
 Committee. 
 
ORDER OF PROCEEDINGS. 
 
 IXVOCATION BY THE REV. J. O. PECK, D. D., CHAPLAIN FOIKTEENTH 
 I5EGIMEKT, N. G. S. N. Y. 
 
 O Lord ! Father of the spirits of all men, and 
 strength of nations, behold us in adoration and suppli- 
 cation and thanksgiving before Thee. 
 
 We reverently thank Thee for Thy good will and 
 Providential protection toward and over this Republic. 
 Our fathers found their refuge and strength in Thee, as 
 they founded and defended and triumphantly estab- 
 lished our nationality. On Thee they leaned in sore 
 distress, and by Thy right arm were they delivered in 
 dark and j)erilous hours. 
 
 And when in our generation danger beset our Na- 
 tional Union, Thou wert again our refuge and deliver- 
 ance. We thank Thee that the patriotism of the sires 
 lived in vigor in the sons. Thou didst give us a heritage 
 worthy of the sacrifice of noble citizens, and Thou didst 
 give us noble citizens ready to make a sacrifice worthy 
 of our heritage. And here this day, as we meet to 
 commemorate the devotion and death of those of out' 
 number who fell on this field of conflict, w^e invoke Thy 
 benediction upon our consecration of this Monument. 
 Let Thy blessing rest upon these living veterans, by 
 whose affection and comradeship^ they were moved to 
 cause the erection of this lasting and speaking memo- 
 rial. xA^ccept their offering, O Lord, as a tribute to 
 Thy glory. The God of this nation, as w^ell as to the 
 manhood and heroism of their fallen comrades. 
 
 May Thy blessing rest upon the widows and orphans 
 of those who fell on this spot, now consecrated to the 
 
9 
 
 patviotism of their dead. May this Monnment ever 
 speak to future generations of the sacredness of Liberty 
 and the worth of native land ! Add Thy blessing to 
 the further services of this hour. Grant that the words 
 of him Avlio shall voice the great thoughts of this hour 
 maj^ be wise and inspiring of noble sentiments in all 
 who hear. Mercifully look uix)n us in our frailties, 
 and graciously assist us to live in obedience to Thy holy 
 will, that we, finally, may be accepted in Thy glorious 
 kingdom, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. 
 
 Music. 
 
 INTRODUCTOnV REMARKS BY THE CIIATRMAX OF THE MOXCMENT 
 COMMITTEE, GEX. E. C. FOWLER. 
 
 My Comrades : I congratulate you that here on this 
 spot, once red with the life-ljlood of our brave com- 
 rades, now rises an enduring Monument that for centu- 
 ries to come will tell of the part taken in the great 
 decisive battle of the war by the Fourteenth Brooklyn. 
 We are honored at its dedication to-day by the presence 
 of official representatives of our State and City, and 
 comrades and fellow-citizens not only from Brooklyn, 
 but from all parts of our country. We are indebted to 
 the liberality of the State of New- York and our pat- 
 riotic fellow-citizens of Brooklyn for the funds to erect 
 this structure, and now, at its completion, our best 
 thanks are due to them that they have enabled us to 
 finish it while so many of us are living to be present at 
 its dedication. We welcome all, ladies and gentlemen, 
 comrades and civilians, and heartily thank them for 
 assisting us in the ceremonies by their presence here. 
 These beautiful flowers, in memory of a brave comrade 
 who died in yonder town from wounds received here, 
 have just been handed me. I knew him well. He was 
 one of three brothers who were my neighbors. Two of 
 
10 
 
 them were mustered in with the Regiment ; the third, 
 then at sea, joined us immediately on his return. Two 
 of the brothers gave their lives to their country in the 
 ranks of this Regiment ; the third is now limping 
 through life with an enemy's bullet in his knee. 
 
 I accept these flowers to be placed on the Monument 
 in memory of the comrade whose name appears on the 
 card, and I accej^t them as a symbol in memory of all 
 our brave comrades who died on this held. 
 
 Music — Diege. 
 
 Gen. Fowler then introduced the orator of the day, 
 the Hon. Setli Low. 
 
 ORATIOK BY THE HON. SETH LOW. 
 
 Veterans of the Brooklyn Fourteenth, Widows and 
 Wives and Daughters of "Veterans, you who endured at 
 home, while those whom you loved dared everything at 
 the front. Members of the Regiment, Gentlemen of the 
 Brooklyn City Government, and Fellow-citizens : 
 
 Standing here at Gettysburg, we seem to be standing 
 on one of the mountain- tops of history. Cemetery 
 Ridge is but a little eminence, yet from its consecrated 
 summit the eye commands a vision wider and more 
 wonderful than any to be seen from the loftiest Sierra. 
 Here, looking backwards, we seem to see not alone the 
 nation's past, s^^reading beneath us like a map, but out 
 of the shadowy distance we seem to see, converging 
 here, the multitudinous roads along which men have 
 struggled, during all the ages, towards the conception 
 of a free State, existing for and maintained by a fr«e 
 people. Here, looking forwards, ' ' the distance beacons ' ' 
 to a glowing future, bright with hope for the multitudes 
 
11 
 
 of men. 'Not in vain have tliey fought and died whose 
 fortunate mission it was to inteq^ret the past and to 
 bless the future. 
 
 Neither does it lack significance that this battle 
 should have been fought on the soil of Pennsylvania. 
 The popular faculty, which so often gives names with a 
 deej) insight into the real significance of things, long- 
 ago called Pennsylvania the Keystone State. Histori- 
 cally, no less than geographicall}^ the name applies. 
 In the majestic arch formed by this Union of independent 
 States, Pennsylvania always has been the keystone. 
 Upon the soil of Pennsylvania met the first and the 
 second Continental Congress. Upon the soil of Pennsyl- 
 vania, George Washington was commissioned Commander 
 in Chief of the Continental Armies. Upon the soil of 
 Pennsylvania was made the immortal Declaration of In- 
 dependence. Upon the soil of Pennsylvania the Liberty 
 Bell first of all rang out the joyful peal of liberty through- 
 out the land. It was here that Franklin drew lightning 
 from the sky, and it was here were forged the thunder- 
 bolts which made the Colonies independent States. 
 Again, at Gettysburg, in our own generation, were 
 hiirled the bolts which have made the Union free. 
 
 The Civil War, in which the battle of Gettysburg 
 was the turning point, became inevitable when the 
 Constitution of the United States recognized and per- 
 mitted slavery within our borders. Whatever other 
 issues of constitutional interpretation w^ere involved, 
 they all hinged upon slavery, as that which gave to 
 them all their chief meaning and consequence. At the 
 outbreak of the war men did not see this clearl}^, as they 
 see it now. The preservation of the Union was the 
 rallying cry ; and men said it oftentimes without at all 
 realizing how^ grand a cr}^ it was. The preservation of 
 the Union by no possibility could involve only the life 
 of the nation. It involved necessarily the freedom of a 
 race and the best hopes of mankind. Without slavery 
 
12 
 
 the national life never would have been in danger. 
 Without the abolition of slavery the preservation of the 
 Union was a dream. Yet the war began with the most 
 emphatic declarations that slavery should not be dis- 
 turbed. In the beginning, one hundred years ago, the 
 Fathers admitted slavery into the Constitution, because 
 without it the Union could not have been formed. For 
 seventy years, compromise after compromise was made 
 with reference to slavery, for the preservation of the 
 Union, in the vain hojoe of preserving a political fabric 
 undisturbed, which had within itself forces as antagonis- 
 tic as light and darkness. At last it was open w^ar, and 
 defeat followed defeat for the soldiers of the Union, until 
 it became certain that the Union, when preserved, would 
 be a Union Avhollyfree. At Gettysburg were discerned, 
 for the first time, the faint beginnings of the longed-for 
 end. Here were pronounced at last, to the wild, swelling 
 waves of slavery's great sea, the words of Omnipotence, 
 "Hitherto shaft thou come, but no further." 
 
 Most fittingly, the army through which this decree 
 was uttered was the Army of the Potomac. For two 
 long, weary years that magnificent body of soldiers 
 had endured defeat and disaster. Not always being 
 worsted in isolated encounters, they still were exposed 
 constantly to the most trying of all military experi- 
 ences, where defeat brought disaster and victory 
 brought small advantage. Still, though defeated often, 
 they were invincible. 
 
 " Trampled and beaten were they as the sand, 
 And yet unshaken as the Continent." 
 
 Commanders there have been sometimes, who, by 
 their overpowering genius, have led their conquering 
 legions without a defeat from the first small victory to 
 the complete triumi)h. Others, again, after a career of 
 dazzling success, have marched to humiliating over- 
 throw. Still others, bj^ their intrepidity and unyielding 
 
13 
 
 courage, have held their shattered troops aboi\i; them 
 until despair turned into victory. But I can think of 
 no other case where the army was of itself superior to 
 the fate of its leaders. Commanders might come and 
 commanders might go, but the Army of the Potomac 
 could not be beaten. It could not, indeed, subdue its 
 enemy, until a leader worthy of itself was at its head, 
 but that enemy dashed itself in vain against its heroic 
 columns until, under the lead of the great Commander, 
 the Army of the Potomac ground even its valiant 
 antagonist to powder. 
 
 Here, at Gettysburg, the tide of war began to turn. 
 The presence of these regimental monuments, in large 
 numbers, reveals the popular recognition that this, in a 
 sense peculiar to itself, was the pivotal battle of the 
 war. Step with me for a moment to yonder cemetery, 
 " where the bones of heroes rest." There you shall 
 see the graves of men from eighteen of our States, from 
 Maine, on the East, to Minnesota, on the West. Side 
 by side with the graves over whose heads the name of 
 their State appears, breathing, as it were, a benison from 
 home, you shall see almost one thousand graves of the 
 nameless dead. Comrades, how hard it seems ! To die 
 for one's country; to yield this last full measure of a 
 patriot's devotion ; and not even to have it known that 
 you have died ! Not known ; not known, indeed, here, 
 but well known, I like to think, by Him who seeth in 
 secret that He may reward openly. 
 
 Y ou may have heard the anecdote of the Southern man 
 who saw the great review of the Union armies in Wash- 
 ington at the end of the war. As the trooi^s went 
 marching by, carrying the banners of Michigan, Wis- 
 consin, Iowa, Minnesota, the regimental numbers indi- 
 cating the multitudes of soldiers that had come from all 
 these States, he rubbed his eyes, and asked where those 
 States were. When he had studied geography, he 
 said, there were no such States. Soon he identified 
 
14 
 
 them as part of the Northwest Territory and its neigh- 
 borhood, when he uttered this reflection : "If we could 
 but have known — if we could but have known." The 
 sagacity of Jefferson, he saw, in dedicating to Freedom 
 in 1787 this great Northwest Territory, after all had 
 brought to naught in the end the slavery permitted in 
 the Constitution. But if the new States did their part 
 heroically, the old States were equally worthy of their 
 traditions and their history. Yonder cemetery contains 
 more men from the State of New- York than from any 
 other Stace, and through the war she maintained her 
 primacy. The other day I was in the Adiron^^acks, 
 and in the little town of Keene, with its few hundreds 
 of iDopulation, I found a Grand Army post ntimbering 
 still 39 members. So they came from the hillside and 
 from the plain, from the forest and from the open, and 
 so, with equal devotion, they came from the great cities 
 of the State. The official records show that from 
 Brooklyn over 32,000 men went to the front, and the 
 Brooklyn of that day was a city of little more than 
 200,000 people. Among this number the first to enlist, 
 and the equal of any regiment in either army in gallantry 
 and heroic service, was the regiment in whose honor this 
 monument is erected. While known, also, as the S4th 
 New-York State Volunteers, it always has been best 
 known and best loved as the Brooklyn 14th. For this 
 reason, and by reason of its permanency as a militia 
 regiment, both before and since the war, it has come to 
 be looked upon as the typical Brooklyn AVar regiment. 
 Never did city have a grander regiment upon which to 
 bestow its affection and its pride. The fateful shot at 
 Sumter went hurling through the frightened air on the 
 12th of April, 1861. Just six days thereafter report 
 was made to headquarters that the 14th Regiment was 
 in readiness to be marched to the front ! This was its 
 answer to the call for volunteers — prompt, courageous, 
 patriotic. It meant business. When on the way to 
 Washington the Colonel, then Alfred M. Wood, received 
 
15 
 
 a desi3atcli from the Governor of New- York, asking 
 him by what authority he had talven his regiment out 
 of the State without orders. Colonel Wood replied : 
 " By authority of Abraham Lincoln, President of the 
 " United States, and we hope with your approval." 
 This reply suggests the remark which Lincoln himself 
 is said to have made to Secretary Chase at about the 
 same period. "These rebels are violating the Consti- 
 " tution to destroy the Union. I will violate the Con- 
 " stitution, if necessary, to save the Union." It needed 
 no prophet to foretell that such a regiment would acquit 
 itself with honor. It began its fighting at Ball Run. 
 There Colonel Wood was wounded and taken prisoner. 
 Colonel Wood's wound disabled him for further service, 
 even after he was exchanged, and from that time the 
 regiment fought under the command of our gallant and 
 modest friend. Colonel Fowler, except for a brief period 
 after the second battle of Ball Run, in which engage- 
 ment Colonel Fowler also was seriously wounded. 
 During this interval the Regiment was commanded 
 by Lieutenant-Colonel William H. Debevoise. Colonel 
 Wood's experiences as a prisoner w^ere exceptional. 
 About that time some Confederate privateersmen had 
 been made prisoners, and it was proposed by some that 
 they should be treated as pirates. In response to this 
 proposition the Confederate authorities took Colonel 
 Wood and others and held them as hostages in the County 
 jail. Others of the regiment, officers and men, found 
 themselves in Libby Prison. I have been much struck, 
 in reading a letter from one of this number, with the 
 dreariness of a military prisoner's life. Leaving aside 
 all questions of cruelty, the monotony and weariness of 
 it must have been almost beyond endurance to men full 
 of vigor. 
 
 I wish to pay my tribute of gratefal honor to the he- 
 roism which suffered in this form, no less than to the 
 gallantry which on field after field dared every chance 
 of Avar. Soon most of these first prisoners were ex- 
 
IG 
 
 changed, and one can Avell imagine the scene -when they 
 found themselves once more under the Stars and Stripes. 
 Of both those who were released and those who welcomed 
 them, the contemporary account says, "every eye was 
 dim with tears." So quickly did the Brooklyn Four- 
 teenth sound the whole deep meaning of that horrid 
 word, w^ar. 
 
 Wheti Co]. Wood found himself free, and within the 
 Union lines again, the regiment w^as in camp near 
 Washington, He repaired at once to his command to 
 receive their congratulations upon his release. "The 
 regiment aj)peared," so says the chronicler, " in the 
 " peculiar chasseur dress for which it has become 
 " famous — the red pants, dark blue Jacket, with two 
 " rows of bell buttons, and red breast-piece, having 
 " also a row of bell buttons, and red cap." " Col. 
 " Wood assured the boys that they had established at 
 " Manassas a reputation which they might well strive 
 " to maintain, ' for,' said he, ' you are the dread of the 
 " enemy.' " " Everywhere he had been assured by 
 " Confederate officers that his regiment, the ' red legs,' 
 " had fought more desfverately than any other at the 
 " field of Bull Run." This testimony is supi)orted by 
 the praise the regiment received from the Union Com- 
 mander, by whom it was named, with special mention. 
 In General Orders. Thus, its first battle found the 
 regiment already the " fighting Fourteenth." I do not 
 propose to follow the regiment from field to field, but I 
 do desire at this time, as matter of historical record, to 
 name the different engagements in which the regiment 
 took part : 
 
 *1. 
 
 Bull Run. 
 
 6. 
 
 Sul]>hur Springs. 
 
 2. 
 
 Binn's Hill. 
 
 7. 
 
 Gainesville. 
 
 3. 
 
 Falmouth. 
 
 8. 
 
 Groveton. 
 
 4. 
 
 Spottsylvania, Aug. '62. 
 
 9. 
 
 Manassas Plains. 
 
 5. 
 
 Rappahannock Station. 
 
 10. 
 
 Chant illy. 
 
17 
 
 11. South Mountain. 17. Seminary Hill. 
 
 12. Antietam. 18. Gettysburg. 
 18. Fredericksburg. 19. Mine Run. 
 
 14. Port Royal. 20. Wilderness. 
 
 15. Fitzliugli Crossing. 21. Laurel Hill. 
 
 16. Cliancellorsville. 22. SjDottsylvania. 
 
 A roll of honor long enough and splendid enough to 
 satisfy the greatest caviler. 
 
 From contemporary newspaper accounts sent to the 
 journals of other cities than Brooklyn, Avhich I quote 
 as presumably impartial, as also by extracts from the 
 official records, I am able to show, in a measure, how 
 the regiment appeared at the time in the eyes of others. 
 
 Here is an item touching their services at Fredericks- 
 burg : " The brilliant feat of the Brooklyn Fourteenth 
 "in keeping up, without straggling, with the Cavalry and 
 " Artillery on a march of twenty-six miles, during the 
 " hottest day of the season, and then, with but three 
 " hours' rest, dashing on after the enemy's cavalry for 
 " four miles, is the subject of most flattering en- 
 " comiums." 
 
 The regiment led the advance at the capture of Fred- 
 ericksburg by Gen. Augur. After the battle had been 
 fought " anxiety was manifested," so reads the record, 
 " to know by whom the 14tli Regiment of Brooklyn 
 " was led during the gallant advance upon the town." 
 
 I need not tell you, men of the Fourteenth, that it was 
 led then, as so often on other lields, with equal bravery 
 and skill, by Col. E. B. Fowler, since General by brevet 
 for his services during the war. In the spring of 
 1863, Gen. Reynolds, that superb lighter, issued a 
 special order, thanking the Brooklyn l4th and the 24th 
 Michigan, for their splendid services on the expedition 
 to Port Royal. At South Mountain and Antietam, 
 when under the command of Lieut. -Col. Debevoise, the 
 regiment signalized itself as usual by its brilliant 
 
18 
 
 charges. And so we come with them to Gettysburg. 
 It was their fortune to be with Gen. Reynokls in the 
 heavy fighting of the first day, when a fragment of the 
 Union Army hekl the great body of Confederates in 
 check, until the Union forces could be brought up in 
 sufficient numbers to make a successful stand on Cem- 
 etery Ridge. They were among the first, if not them- 
 selves the first, to begin the infantry fighting of that 
 memorable struggle. 
 
 The sad duty fell to them of removing from the field 
 the body of the heroic Reynolds, when he fell directly 
 behind their lines. Nothing daunted even by this dis- 
 aster, they added lustre to their already glorious record. 
 They held their ground until flanked, and then, falling 
 back and changing front, all the time under fire, they, 
 in company with the 95th New- York and the 6tli 
 Wisconsin, all under command at the moment of Col. 
 Fowler, drove back the enemy in their front, Davis' 
 Mississippi brigade, and upon this ground where we 
 now stand compelled a large part of them to surrender. 
 It is recorded that they took more prisoners here than 
 the regiments engaged had men. Thus you will see this 
 is indt;ed the proper spot uiDon which to place the monu- 
 ment we have dedicated to-day. The life blood of many 
 of our brothers has enriched the underlying soil ; the 
 wounded in their agony have here looked up in prayer 
 to the bending sky ; and here the blessings of a grateful 
 nation have descended uj)on the brows of the living and 
 the dead. 
 
 " Whene'er a noble deed is wrought, 
 ' Whene'er is spoken a noble thought, 
 
 Our hearts, in glad surprise, 
 To higher levels rise. 
 
 " The tidal wave of deeper souls 
 Into our inmost being rolls, 
 And lifts us vinavvares 
 Out of all meaner cares." 
 
19 
 
 To commemorate and to perpetuate tlie memory of 
 not one but many such noble deeds, this monument to 
 the 14th Regiment of Brooklyn is dedicated to-day, by 
 the survivors of the Regiment, by their comrades and 
 friends, by the grateful State of New- York, and by their 
 fellow-citizens of Brooklyn. Still, let it be remembered, 
 that the services of the 14tli Regiment at Gettysburg 
 were not confined to the fighting about this railroad 
 cut. On the second day, and on the third, they engaged 
 the enemy in the vicinity of Gulp's Hill. After dark of 
 the second day they were proceeding to position to re- 
 inforce Gen. Greene on the right of our line, when Col. 
 Fowler was surprised to receive fire from a position 
 within our lines which he supposed to be held by Union 
 troops. Not being sure whether they were our own 
 troops or the enemy, volunteers were called for to ascer- 
 tain. One fell wounded, but one returned, reporting that 
 it was the 10th Virginia. A volley from the Fourteenth 
 caused the Virginia regiment to retire from the woods 
 in which they Avere, and where they occupied a position 
 in relation to our lines full of peril to our army. Thus, 
 through small incidents and through great, the battle 
 raged until the Union forces were everywhere success- 
 ful. 
 
 The loss of the 14th Regiment in the battle of Gettys- 
 burg was 217, out of 'S56 officers and men engaged. 
 
 A writer at the time to one of the New- York papers 
 says: "The heroic and gallant 2d, 9th and 14th Regi- 
 ments, N. Y. S. N. G., have been almost wiped out of 
 existence in the recent bloody confiicts on the soil of 
 Pennsylvania and Maryland. There remains but a 
 small band of them now ; but oh what scenes of courage 
 has that handful of veterans lived through. Always in 
 the front, fearless and unflinching, they have stood 
 where the havoc of war raged the wildest, and passed 
 on through fire and sword into the enemy's works. No 
 regulars that ever served on any field have won more 
 
^0 
 
 imperishable honor than these three regiments of militia. 
 Had a Napoleon lived and seen their deeds of daring, 
 he would have chosen them for his Imperial Guard." 
 
 And these men of the 14th Regiment, gentlemen, were 
 our neighbors and friends. 
 
 After Gettysburg, the Fourteenth served until the 22d 
 May, 1804, taking heroic part, as always, in all the 
 battles down to and including the battle of Spottsyl- 
 vania, in the famous Wilderness Campaign. 
 
 It was their singular honor to be the first regiment to 
 receive General Grant when, as Commander in Chief, he 
 joined the Army of the Potomac. I quote the following 
 record of this period from the report of Colonel Fowler. 
 "Although the time of the Fourteenth had nearly 
 expired, the men stood the brunt of battle nobly. Not 
 a case of desertion occurred, and but little murmuring. 
 Many a brave spirit winged its flight heavenward, who, 
 in the body, had counted the days that would elapse ere 
 he would be in the embrace of dear ones at home." 
 
 AWashington correspondent writes, under date of May 
 24,1864 : "The 14th Brooklyn Regiment, Colonel Fowler, 
 arrived here to-day from the front, and left to-night for 
 New- York. Of 2,100 men it has had in the service, but 
 91 officers and men return— a sad, but glorious commen- 
 tary upon its achievements." 
 
 Well might the City of Brooklyn welcome it with 
 every honor. "Welcome, the brave Fourteenth, out of 
 the Wilderness !" 
 
 The regiment, having enlisted for three years, returned 
 home, thin enough indeed in ranks, but full of honors. 
 About one hundred men, who had become members of the 
 regiment at various dates, and whose terms of service 
 had not yet expired, were incorporated into the Fifth 
 Regiment of New- York Veterans. Here they upheld 
 their old credit with undiminished gallantry. Six, at 
 least, became officers, two being promoted on the field 
 of battle for bravery in action. The subsequent services 
 
21 
 
 of these men, no less than the record of the regiment as 
 such, are lovingly commemorated by this monument. 
 Circumstances prevented them from sharing in the 
 triumphant return home of the regiment to whose glory 
 they contributed so largely. It is litting that at this 
 hour glad recognition should be made of their services, 
 and that they should be claimed by Brooklyn as an 
 integral portion of her famous lighting regiment. 
 
 Now, four and twenty years after the mighty struggle 
 of Gettysburg, we are gathered here, a handful of people 
 out of the great multitudes of Brooklyn, to dedicate this 
 monument to the Brooklyn Fourteenth. What does it 
 signify? Abraham Lincoln said, in that marvelous ad- 
 dress which he made in yonder cemetery, it was here decid- 
 ed that "government of the people, by the people and for 
 the people, should not perish from the earth." Certainly, 
 then, the monument means this, by way of history, that 
 in that august decision, weighty with far-reaching conse- 
 quences on both sides the great sea, and in every quarter 
 of the globe, the 14th Kegiment, and through them the 
 City of Brooklyn, bore glorious part. 
 
 Who shall presume to say what the monument means 
 to you who are veterans of the regiment ? To you, and 
 indeed to us, the spot whereon we stand is holy ground. 
 Around and about us are similar monuments marking 
 the fidelity and heroism of other men. But, to you, 
 this monument has a sacred significance all its own. It 
 tells you of comrades who were not afraid to die. It 
 tells you of comrades who were not afraid to live, rob- 
 bed of their health, crippled in limb, the wrecks of the 
 men who went with you to the front. It tells you of 
 yourselves, how that it is a sublime thing at such a time 
 to have been true and brave. 
 
 But what shall the monument mean to me, and to 
 others like me, who have come to manhood since the 
 war, to all who, being non-participants in the lighting, 
 have yet shared in the glorious results I What would 
 
22 
 
 you have it mean to us, you who here for our sakes 
 looked in the eyes of death and were not afraid ? 
 SjDeaking for myself, and for the generation to which I 
 belong, we stand in your j^resence Avith uncovered 
 heads. We give you, with full hearts, the meed of 
 gratitude and of glory that men have given, always, to 
 those who have fought their battles. We look upon 
 you, and upon such as you, with a touch of reverence, as 
 upon those who have preserved all that as citizens of 
 this great, free land, we hold most dear. God grant 
 that the record of your deeds, and the memory of your 
 self-sacrifices, may inspire us, and alKyour fellow-citi- 
 zens, with a x)atriotic devotion to the country we all 
 love so well. May the power of your example never 
 die, but wax stronger and stronger with the growing 
 years. But beyond all this, what would you have us 
 young men say of the war in which you fought ? And 
 wdiat shall we say of the men against whom you fought ? 
 Certainly let us say this, in any presence, that you 
 fought for the right and that they fought for the wrong. 
 But would you have us speak of the war only as a rebel- 
 lion ? Shall it seem to us only a causeless and wicked 
 war, brought about for their owd purposes by design- 
 ing and ambitious men 1 "It must needs be that offences 
 come, but woe unto that man by whom the offence 
 Cometh." So shall we not rather admit, with the can- 
 dor of truth, that the seeds of the war may be traced 
 back to the Constitution itself, to that Constitution 
 which, in the words of Fitz Hugh Lee the other day, 
 as he sorrowfully said, permitted slavery, and was 
 silent as to the right of secession? I bring no charge 
 against the framers of the Constitution. They did 
 their part, and they were in nothing more wise than 
 in not attempting to do what was beyond their power. 
 The attempt to settle these questions then would have 
 made the Union impossible. They rightly judged that 
 if they could make the Constitulion of the nation 
 
23 
 
 sound and strong, it would of itself cast out whatever was 
 hostile to its life. And is not this what happened, and 
 are not these the questions which you have decided 
 once for all upon the supreme appeal to arms, you later 
 Constitution-makers, fellow laborers with the fathers, 
 Washington, Jefferson, Hamilton, Franklin, Madison, 
 and all their goodly company? If this be so, if this be 
 the view that placid History will take when she comes 
 to record, with impartial pen, the story of these stirring 
 years, then may not we, your countrymen and theirs, 
 casting away all bitterness, rejoice that we are once 
 more fellow-citizens with them as well as with you, in a 
 Union so much stronger and better than it was before ? 
 And, indeed, my countrymen, let us thank God that it 
 is so. " Government of the people, by the people and 
 for the x)eople," was not more strengthened by your 
 victory than it was by the re-admission into all their 
 rights as fellow-citizens of those who had been your 
 foes. Without this crowning triumph your victory 
 would have been meaningless. Had this been impos- 
 sible, the Union would have perished on the same held 
 where your enemies surrendered. But now are we all 
 called, they as well as we, to make the renewed Union 
 more glorious than before. Out of the war, unques- 
 tionably, has s])rung a material growth and develoj)- 
 ment unimagined in the earlier years. Out of the war, 
 let a profounder faith in the whole i)eople grow, and a 
 deeper sense of fellowship between man and man ! We 
 need that faith and that fellowship every hour. Popu- 
 lar government rests, at all times, upon a just faith in 
 the people, and upon their capacity for self-sacrifice, a ca- 
 pacity which expresses itself sometimes in self-restraint, 
 sometimes in self -surrender. The civil war was the crown- 
 ing effort of our people's self-surrender. Cheerfully, un- 
 grudgingly, both sides marched to the front, facing death 
 without a murmur. Cheerfully, ungrudgingly, they laid 
 upon themselves a burden of taxation such as no tyrant 
 
24 
 
 would have dared to impose. Cheerfully, nnf^rudgingly, 
 each have borne all the sad consequences of the conflict, 
 until together they have come out into the brighter day. 
 For such a jDeople all things are possible while they re- 
 tain the spirit of the men of the mighty generation to 
 which you belong. This monument is Brooklyn's "V 
 
 tribute to that spirit as it showed itself at Gettysburg. 
 It shall speak to us not so much of strife as of conse- 
 cration, not so much of death as of life, not so much of 
 suffering as of glory, not so much of loss as of gain. 
 May it speak always to willing ears. To-night, com- 
 rades and fellow-citizens, we leave this consecrated spot 
 and return to our distant home. But we leave it, not as 
 it has been, eloquent only to the few who knew its 
 story. We leave behind us this beautiful memorial of 
 our admiration and our love, a happiness to our own 
 hearts and an inspiration to all others who shall pass 
 this way. 
 
 Music. 
 
 Benediction. 
 
25 
 
 ^ 
 
 THE TRIP 
 
 On the evening of October 18tli, 115 members of the 
 14th Regiment War Veteran Association assembled 
 at the Armory, on North Portland Avenue, where 
 the 14th Regiment, ]N". G. S. IST. Y., headed by their 
 full band and drum Corps, and commanded by their 
 old war comrade. Colonel H. W. Michell, received 
 them, and placed them under "escort of honor," be- 
 tween the wings of the Regiment. They marched over 
 the historic route to Fulton Ferry, where they were 
 joined by County and City officials and invited guests, 
 and proceeded, ma tiie Pennsylvania Railroad, to the 
 battlefield of Gettysburg, to dedicate the Monument 
 there. 
 
 On the way a gloom was cast over the affair by the 
 death of Sergeant W. H. Langdon, a War Veteran. 
 His remains were taken care of by the Surgeon of 
 Police, and his family notified in Jersey City. The 
 party arrived at Gettysburg, and were entertained at 
 the Springs Hotel, on the battlefield, until Thursday, 
 the 20th, at 3 P. M., when they returned, arriving in 
 Brooklyn at midnight. 
 
26 
 
 Owing to the severe rain storm raging at that time, 
 the Regiment, without further ceremony, proceeded to 
 the Armory by the Elevated Raih'oad, and the War 
 Veterans dispersed to their homes. 
 
 On the following Sunday the funeral of Sergeant 
 Langdon was attended by sixty-five War Veterans. 
 
 COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION AND SUBSISTENCE. 
 
 ALFRED CRANSTON, 
 Major JOHN McNEILL, 
 JOHN W. EASON. 
 
 SOUTENIR COMMITTEE. 
 
 JOHN JOCHUM, 
 ALFRED CRANSTON, 
 JOHN W. EASON. 
 
27 
 
 Hoster of Surviving War Veterans of the Fourteenth 
 Hegiment, IT. Y. S. M. 
 
 Those marked thus * were present at the dedication ; those not marljed were nnavoidably 
 
 absent. 
 
 acklet, a. f.* 
 Anthony, Edward,* 
 Atres, George, 
 Adams, R. F. 
 
 AVILA, E. C. 
 AXTEL, E. A. 
 Apel, Ai-ex. 
 Allen, J. S. 
 Austin, Thomas. 
 
 Barnie, Alex., Jr.* 
 boughton, j. w.* 
 Byrne, Martin, 
 Brokaw, Theo. p.* 
 Burnett, W. M. 
 Ball, Wm. A. 
 Bogart, Harris, 
 Bennett, Henry, 
 Bartow, S. B. 
 Bene, John,* 
 BOYLAN, T. F.* 
 Bkockway, Chas. 
 BoYCE, John,* 
 Baldwin. C. F. 
 BuKTis, John, 
 Boyle, Edwd. 
 Brennan, p. F. 
 Bartow, C. A. 
 Brown, Wm. C. 
 Bond, John L.* 
 
 BiGBIE, G. L. 
 Brown, C. L. 
 Barrett, Anthony,* 
 Beck, August, 
 Boyce, Edwd. 
 Bond, W. W.* 
 Bowers, Isaac, 
 Bennett, G. W. 
 
 Bell, Bobt. 
 Brown, H.* 
 Burnett, J. M. E.* 
 BoDGER, Tbtos. 
 Bryant, Chas.* 
 Byers, Saml. 
 
 Cutts, John,* 
 Curry, J. E. 
 CoRLiES, Joseph H. 
 Cardona, Ramon,* 
 Cranston, Alfred,* 
 Carshaw, W. E.* 
 Colgan, p. H. 
 Connor, George A.* 
 
 (^AMPBELL, W. M. 
 
 Chisholm, J. R. 
 Connor, Chris.* 
 Coleman, John J.* 
 Carll, G. W.* 
 Cole, R. F.* 
 Cann, B.* 
 Cassidy, Andrew,* 
 Cole, Jere. 
 Cook, John E.* 
 Carberhy, Peter, 
 Carney, Barney, 
 Christman, Fred. 
 Callas, Jacob, 
 Campbell, John, 
 Caffrey, Geo. 
 Cranford, H. L. 
 Cassidy, Ambrose, 
 Claggett, Charles A.* 
 Connor, P. S.* 
 Crane, G. L. 
 Carshaw, W. L. 
 Clark, John. 
 
28 
 
 DURTEA, JAS. a.* 
 
 Davis, W. W.* 
 Doyle, Fkancis,* 
 Dougherty. D. 
 Donahue, J.* 
 De Winstanley, H. H. 
 Dougherty, Hugh,* 
 Deacon, Alfred, 
 Desmond, D.* 
 Dunham, Francis, 
 Dick, Robt. 
 Donahue, P.* 
 Drain, W. L. 
 Davis, E.* 
 Dwenger, Gr. W. 
 Davenport, J. R. 
 Devlin, Jas. 
 
 Elcock, Geo. S. 
 Eason, J. W.* 
 Edwards, W. H. 
 Egolf, John A. 
 everding, h. 
 Eldard, James, 
 Eldard, J. E. 
 Edie, James,* 
 Evans, G. W.* 
 
 Fowler, Edward B.* 
 Fulton, John,* 
 Farley, Charles B.* 
 Fisher, J. H.* 
 FoHS, Peter, 
 Flavin, E. H. 
 Foskett, Wm.* 
 FuREY, Robt. J.* 
 French, John,* 
 Freitag, C* 
 FoHS, Joseph, 
 Farrell, W. H. 
 FuREY, John N. 
 Fagan, T. J.* 
 Fisher, G. H. 
 Feltman, Dobson, 
 Flint, James, 
 Fritschler, C. L. R.* 
 
 Griffith, C. W. 
 Gilbertson, J. 
 Garcia, Manuel,* 
 Griffin, W. H. 
 GiLLEN, D. J. 
 GiBNEY, T. F. 
 Geary, M. J. 
 Guy, Robert F.* 
 
 GUINAND, P. W. 
 
 Hermance, F. G. 
 Holbrook, A. A. 
 Hooper, W. H. 
 Haley, Thos. 
 Hyer, Joseph G.* 
 Haigh, Edwin,* 
 Hanson. J. B. 
 
 HORTON, A. A.* 
 
 Hawrey, a.* 
 
 HiGGINS, P.* 
 
 Hampton, Z. 
 
 HINGLE, H. W. 
 
 Hamilton, J. F. 
 Hermance, Chas. 
 
 HiGGINBOTHAM, S. 
 
 Hart, D. J. 
 Halloran, p.* 
 Hicks, J. H. 
 Hyson, Edwd. 
 
 Ilsley, S. a. 
 
 JouRDAN, James, 
 JocHUM, John,* 
 Jenkins, John,* 
 Jelley, J. H. 
 Jones, J. A. 
 Jennings, W. P.* 
 
 Kearsing. E. F. 
 Kruser, F. p.* 
 
 KlERNAN, P.* 
 
 Kearsing, A. 
 Keen AN, Andrew, 
 Kent, E. B.* 
 Keenan, James,* 
 
29 
 
 kollmter, j. h.* 
 Keating, James,* 
 Kalt, H. 
 
 .Latton, Jno. W.* 
 Long, James,* 
 Lawson, Wm.* 
 LucKEY, Geo.* 
 Lewis, John, 
 Langlet, W. 
 Lee, John, 
 Lindsay, T. H. 
 Liming, Isaac,* 
 Lynch, Wm. H.* 
 Landon, S. 
 LiZE, A. A. 
 
 Morris, Charles H.* 
 MoRJiOw, Richard,* 
 Mass, W. B.* 
 Moore, Alfred,* 
 Martin, G. W. 
 Merritt, M. 
 Mungerford, J. 
 McCartt, M.* 
 McGeehan, Eichard,* 
 McGlone, J. 
 McLeer, James,* 
 McNeill, John,* 
 McC'ormack, John, 
 Maley, T. W. 
 McIntyre, John,* 
 McKay, Donald, 
 McConichie, J. J. 
 McLeer, Edwd.* 
 Myers, John,* 
 McManxjs, T. 
 McHenry, J as.* 
 Myers, J. H. 
 Madden, W.* 
 
 MlCHELL, H. W.* 
 Mahoney, C. J.* 
 Madden, John,* 
 Morrill, John, 
 Mathews, J. F. 
 Marfing, Joseph. 
 
 Nayxor, R. S.* 
 Nugent, F.* 
 Newman, John, 
 Nash, W. A. 
 
 o'donnell, w. c. 
 Oliver, John, 
 Ostrander, p. W. 
 Oliver, J. A. 
 O'Connor, Edwd. 
 
 Pinkney, W. H. H.* 
 Pittman, W. H. 
 Philips, W. H. 
 Prendergast, j. H.* 
 Palmer, J. W. 
 PUGH, J. H. 
 
 Plows, J. E. 
 Plass, Garwood, 
 Perpignan, a. C* 
 Packard, P. A.* 
 Powell, Elias, 
 Porter, C. R. 
 Perrine, D. 
 
 Richmond, Van D. 
 RoONEY, Tnos. 
 Revere, Wm. 
 Raymond, H. A. 
 Russell, W. F. 
 Rich, Erskine,* 
 Richardson, M. J. 
 Rankin, J. D. 
 roecker, j. f. 
 Rice, Geo. H.* 
 Redding, Jno. W. 
 Rogers, D. D.* 
 RiKER, Edward,* 
 Rogers, W. H. 
 Russell, A. W.* 
 Reiley, W. H. 
 RiELL, Jacob,* 
 Richmond, C. H. 
 Rabb, Jacob,* 
 RiKER, J. L. D.* 
 
 Robertson, N. 
 
30 
 
 EocH, John,* 
 
 Shanlet, John,* 
 Sherman, C. P. 
 Spowers, J. J. 
 Stilwell, (Jeo.* 
 Stafford, J. P.* 
 Sutton, J. A. 
 Storer, a. a. 
 Smith, Smith. 
 Summers, W. H. 
 Smith, Lawrence, 
 Serra, Mario,* 
 Switzer, J. H. 
 Shaffer, T. W. 
 Stears, W. S. B. 
 SWALM, W. F. 
 
 Sands, Joseph,* 
 Shaw, Wm. 
 Steen, Benj. 
 Saunders, F. N.* 
 Stryker, W. H. H. 
 Smith, J. A. 
 Shelton, G. N.* 
 Skelton, L. 
 Smith, W. Z.* 
 Storms, A. 
 Satchell, Wm.* 
 Stevens, J. 
 Styles, J. H. 
 Smith, W. J. 
 Smith, G. W. 
 Skelton, T. 
 Satchell, G. a. 
 Sisty, B. F. 
 Smith, Joseph, 
 Smith, W. H. 
 
 Thetford, Chas. E.* 
 Thiery, Gus.* 
 Taylor, John, 
 Taylor, R. 
 Tomsey, J. P. 
 Twaits, B. J.* 
 Tassie, Thos. 
 
 TiCKNER, a. p. 
 
 TiGNEY, Wm. H. 
 Tobey, Charles B.* 
 Taylor, J. W. 
 Teasdale, Jas. 
 Thatcher, Wm.* 
 
 Uffendill, Isaiah,* 
 Uncles, David. 
 
 Vliet, John,* 
 Van Ingen, P. D. 
 Van Bell, John, 
 Van Voorhis, G. E. 
 
 Waterbury, Z. C. * 
 Walters. G. W.* 
 Whitall, Geo. 
 
 WiLKINS, L. 
 
 Wagner, Adam, 
 West, James,* 
 Ward, T. H. 
 White, Henry,* 
 Wood, L. D. C. 
 Wood, Alfred M. 
 Whitlock, James,* 
 Webb, R. W.* 
 Weeks, Geo. D. 
 , WooDHEAD, James,* 
 Warburton, S. B. 
 Wynne, John J.* 
 Whitman, Philip, 
 Walker, Ij. 
 Wesgott, Geo. C* 
 Williams, H. R.* 
 Wilkinson, E. 
 Weise, J. H. 
 White, Geo. W.* 
 Walton, Jas.* 
 
 York, John F.* 
 Yates, Benj. G. 
 Yeoman, Robt. 
 
 Zellinsky, F. 
 
 Munroe Johnson,* ) 
 Alfred B. Payton, j ^' ^'