Culp's Hill, which is about 3⁄4 mi (1,200 m) south of the center of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, played a prominent role in the Battle of Gettysburg. It consists of two rounded peaks, separated by a narrow saddle. Its heavily wooded higher peak is 630 ft (190 m) above sea level. The lower peak is about 100 feet shorter than its companion. The eastern slope descends to Rock Creek, about 160 feet lower in elevation, and the western slope is to a saddle with Stevens Knoll with a summit 100 ft (30 m) lower than the main Culp's Hill summit. The hill was owned in 1863 by farmer Henry Culp and was publicized as "Culp's Hill" by October 31, 1865.
Edwin Forbes' Scene behind the breastworks on Culps Hill, morning of July 3rd 1863, painting by Edwin Forbes.
Confederate pickets on Culp's Hill (engraving from The Century Magazine)
Union breastworks on Culp's Hill.
Effect of shot and shell on trees at Culps Hill.
The Battle of Gettysburg was a three-day battle in the American Civil War fought between Union and Confederate forces between July 1 and July 3, 1863, in and around Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The battle, which was won by the Union, is widely considered the Civil War's turning point, ending the Confederacy's aspirations to establish an independent nation. It was the Civil War's bloodiest battle, claiming over 50,000 combined casualties over three days.
The Battle of Gettysburg by Thure de Thulstrup
M1857 12-Pounder "Napoleon" at Gettysburg National Military Park Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, September 2006
This November 1862 Harper's Magazine illustration shows Confederate Army troops escorting captured African American civilians south into slavery. En route to Gettysburg, the Army of Northern Virginia kidnapped between 40 and nearly 60 Black civilians and sent them south into slavery.
Union Army breastworks on Culp's Hill, 1863