Previous image preload Next image preload
Back to catalog
Lot 325
image_0 image_1 image_2
Gettysburg! Letter Re: Battle Flag Captured During the Civil War, Confederate General Forwards Flag Captured Up the Chain of Command to President Jefferson Davis
Gettysburg! Letter Re: Battle Flag Captured During the Civil War, Confederate General Forwards Flag Captured Up the Chain of Command to President Jefferson Davis
image_0 image_1 image_2
Description:

Civil War
Maryland, VA, July 13 - August 10, 1863
Gettysburg! Letter Re: Battle Flag Captured During the Civil War, Confederate General Forwards Flag Captured Up the Chain of Command to President Jefferson Davis
Letter

This remarkable letter accompanied a regimental flag (not included) captured at the Battle of Gettysburg and passed up the chain of command to be presented to Confederate President Jefferson Davis. The endorsements on the verso show its travels over nearly a month from mid-July to mid-August 1863. Lieutenant Frank M. Harney, who was mortally wounded in capturing the flag, wished it to be presented to Davis, so Brigadier General Stephen D. Ramseur forwarded the flag with this letter, written during the retreat from Gettysburg, to division commander Major General Robert G. Rodes, who forwarded it to corps commander Lieutenant General Richard S. Ewell, who sent it on to the office of General Robert E. Lee, the commander of the Army of Northern Virginia. Lee's adjutant Walter H. Taylor forwarded it on, and Assistant Adjutant General Hugh L. Clay submitted it to President Davis.

After receiving the flag, President Davis wrote to Governor Zebulon B. Vance (1830-1894) on August 19, "The flag is in my possession and will be treasured by me as an honorable memento of the valor and patriotic devotion which the soldiers of North Carolina have displayed on many hard-fought fields." He concluded, "Such deeds illustrate a people's history, justify a people's pride, and sustain a country's cause."

During the evacuation of Richmond two years later, the Davis family packed the flag in their personal baggage. It traveled with Davis through southern Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina into Georgia, still in Davis's valise. On May 10, 1865, Union soldiers captured Davis in women's clothing near Irwinville, Georgia, and recovered the flag. It wound up in the custody of the War Department, and several important Pennsylvanians urged the War Department to return the flag to the state. In 1869, the U.S. government agreed and returned the flag to Harrisburg.

[CIVIL WAR.] [Stephen D. Ramseur], Manuscript Letter [Signed], July 13, 1863, Headquarters, Ramseur's Brigade. 1 p., 6.75" x 7.625". Pencil letter somewhat faint on blue paper; lower third (with Ramseur's signature) lacking; scattered soiling.

Complete Transcript
Head Qu Ramseur's Brigade
July 13, '63

Maj. Taylor, A.A.G.
Sir:
I have the honor to forward the accompanying Flag of the 150th Penn. Volunteers, with the following statement of the circumstances under which it was captured:
Upon the advance of my Brigade into the town of Gettysburg, on the 1st. inst., my Sharpshooters encountered and, without other assistance, dispersed the above-mentioned Regiment. Lieut. F M Harney, 14th. N. C. I., who commanded the corps, with his own hands wrested the Flag from the color-bearer of the Regiment, and was shortly thereafter mortally wounded.
It was the dying request of this gallant and heroic officer that this Flag should in his name be presented to the President.

[Docketing:] S. D. Ramseur / Brig. Genl / Hagerstown July 13 1863
Letter accompanying stand of colors captured in the town of Gettysburg by Lt Harney, who was mortally wounded & desired the Colors to be presented to the Prest in his name

[Endorsement:]
Hd Qu Rodes Division
July 13 1863
Respectfully forwarded
R E Rodes
Maj Genl

[Endorsement:]
Hd Qu 2nd Army Corps
July 13 1863
Respectfully forwarded
R. S. Ewell / Lt. G.

[Endorsement:]
Head Qu Army
13 July 1863
Resp. fwd. with the stand of colors
For Gel R E Lee
W. H. Taylor / A A Gl

[Endorsement:]
Respectfully submitted to His Excellency, The President.
H. L. Clay / A.A.G.
A. & J. G. O.
Aug 10 '63

Historical Background
The 150th Pennsylvania Infantry Regiment was raised in Philadelphia and Harrisburg in September 1862 and joined the Army of the Potomac in February 1863, 2nd Brigade, 3rd Division, First Corps. The Battle of Gettysburg was the 150th Pennsylvania's first major engagement. Entering the battle with 397 men, it was involved in the conflict on all three days. The regiment lost 53 men killed, 134 wounded, and 77 missing. Lt. Col. Henry S. Huidekoper and Corp. J. Monroe Reisinger of the 150th each received the Medal of Honor for their actions at Gettysburg.

The 14th North Carolina Infantry Regiment was organized in June 1861 at Garysburg, North Carolina. With an original roster of more than 1,000 men, the 14th North Carolina entered the Battle of Gettysburg with 306 men and lost 5 killed, 37 wounded, and 2 missing.

On July 1, 1863, the 150th Pennsylvania fought all day long against Confederate troops advancing on Gettysburg along the Chambersburg Pike. By late afternoon, the 150th and the rest of the Union First Corps were forced to withdraw through the town to the safety of Cemetery Hill beyond the town. In the firefights during the retreat, color bearer Sergeant Samuel M Peiffer (1833-1863) of Company I was killed, and Corporal Joseph Gutelius (1842-1863) of Company D took up the flag. He was soon killed as well. First Lieutenant Frank M. Harney (1838-1863) of the 14th North Carolina seized the flag but was mortally wounded in the bowels. As a dying wish, Harney asked that the flag be presented to Confederate President Jefferson Davis in his name, leading to this letter and chain of endorsements.

Stephen D. Ramseur (1837-1864) was born in North Carolina and attended Davidson College. He graduated from the United States Military Academy in 1860, was commissioned as a second lieutenant, and was assigned to the 3rd and 4th U.S. Artillery. He resigned and joined the Confederate Army in Alabama before transferring to the 3rd North Carolina Infantry. Injured by a throw from a horse in July 1861, he did not reenter active service until the spring of 1862. He became colonel of the 49th North Carolina Infantry. He was wounded at the Battle of Malvern Hill but returned after the Battle of Antietam to command a brigade in Robert E. Rodes's division. He was promoted to brigadier general on November 1, 1862, making him the youngest general in the Confederate army. He led the brigade in the Battles of Chancellorsville and Gettysburg. His brigade performed well in the Wilderness and Spotsylvania Court House. He assumed command of Jubal A. Early's division and was promoted to major general on June 1, 1864, the youngest West Point graduate ever promoted to major general in the Confederate Army. During the Valley Campaigns of 1864, he was wounded at the Battle of Cedar Creek and captured. He died the following day near Middletown, Virginia.

Robert E. Rodes (1829-1864) was born in Virginia and graduated from Virginia Military Institute in 1848. He taught as an assistant professor there until 1851 but left when the promotion he wanted was given to Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson. He worked as the chief engineer for the Alabama and Chattanooga Railroad until the beginning of the Civil War. He entered the Confederate Army as the colonel of the 5th Alabama Infantry. In October 1861, he was promoted to brigadier general as part of General D. H. Hill's division. He was wounded at the Battle of Seven Pines but returned to lead his brigade at Gaines Mill. He commanded a brigade at South Mountain and Antietam, led a division at Chancellorsville, and commanded the Second Corps under Richard Ewell at Gettysburg. He continued to fight with Ewell's corps even after Gen. Jubal Early replaced Ewell in command. In September 1864, Rodes was struck by a Union shell fragment at the Battle of Opequon.

Richard S. Ewell (1817-1872) was born in Georgetown, District of Columbia, and raised in Virginia. He graduated from the United States Military Academy in 1840. He was promoted to the first lieutenant in 1845. He served in the Mexican War under General Winfield Scott and was promoted to captain for his courage. He served in the New Mexico Territory and was wounded in a skirmish with the Apache in 1859. After Virginia seceded, he resigned from the Army and joined the Provisional Army of Virginia. He was appointed a colonel of cavalry in May 1861 and was wounded in a skirmish at Fairfax Court House. He was promoted to brigadier general in the Confederate Army in June. He was promoted to major general in January 1862. He commanded a division in Stonewall Jackson's army in the Shenandoah Valley. He was wounded in August 1862 and did not return to the Army of Northern Virginia after the Battle of Chancellorsville. His performance at the Battle of Gettysburg caused his reputation to falter. His corps performed well in the Battle of the Wilderness but less so at the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House. He and his troops were captured after the evacuation of Richmond but a few days before Lee surrendered at Appomattox Court House. After the war, he became a "gentleman farmer" in Tennessee and leased a cotton plantation in Mississippi.

Walter H. Taylor (1838-1916) was born in Norfolk, Virginia, and graduated from the Virginia Military Institute in 1857. He became a railroad clerk and later a banker in Norfolk. After John Brown's 1859 raid on Harpers Ferry, Taylor joined a militia company and joined the Confederate Army in April 1861. He was soon assigned to the staff of General Robert E. Lee, shortly after Lee was given command of Confederate forces. He served as Lee's chief aide-de-camp throughout the war. He wrote dispatches and orders for Lee, performed personal reconnaissance, and often carried messages in person. In 1862, Taylor became the army's assistant adjutant general. He was promoted to lieutenant colonel in December 1863. After the war, he resumed his banking career in Norfolk. He served as a state senator from 1869 to 1873. In 1877, he became president of the Marine Bank. He also defended General Robert E. Lee in several publications including Four Years with General Lee (1877).

Hugh Lawson Clay (1822-1890) was born in Alabama to U.S. Congressman, Alabama governor, and U.S. Senator Clement C. Clay and his wife. He attended the University of Alabama and the University of Virginia (1839-1840) and wanted to study medicine, but his mother pushed him into studying law. He was admitted to practice with his father but in 1845, he began a law practice in Tuscumbia, Alabama, which lasted until 1846, when he returned to Huntsville and joined his brother in the practice of law. He served as a captain in the Mexican War but saw little fighting. During the Civil War, he was adjutant general on the staff of General E. Kirby Smith. He was a close friend of Secretary of War Leroy Pope Walker and President Jefferson Davis. He rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel.

*The image of the flag pictured is for reference only and is not included*

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

WE PROVIDE IN-HOUSE SHIPPING WORLDWIDE.

  • Dimensions: 6.75" x 7.625"
  • Artist Name: Civil War
  • Medium: Letter

Accepted Forms of Payment:

ACH, American Express, Discover, MasterCard, Money Order / Cashiers Check, Personal Check, Visa, Wire Transfer

Shipping

Unless otherwise indicated, we do our own in-house world-wide shipping!

Applicable shipping and handling charges will be added to the invoice. We offer several shipping options, and remain one of the few auction houses that proudly provides professional in-house shipping as an option to our clients. All items will ship with a signature required option, and full insurance. Most items are sent via Federal Express, with P. O. Box addresses being sent through USPS. We insure through Berkley Asset Protection with rates of $.70 per $100 of value, among the lowest insurance rates in the industry. Our shipping department cameras document every package, both outgoing and incoming, for maximum security. In addition, we compare our shipping and handling rates against those of other auction houses, to ensure that our charges are among the lowest in the trade.

Upon winning your item(s), you will receive an invoice with our in-house shipping and handling fees included. ***We will ship to the address as it appears on your invoice. If any changes to the shipping address need to be made, you must inform us immediately.***

International shipments: In order to comply with our insurance provider, all international shipments will be sent via Fed Ex and customs paperwork will show a value of $1.00. International buyers should contact our office directly with any questions regarding this policy.

Third-Party Shipping Option: If a third-party shipper is preferred, the buyer is responsible for contacting them directly to make shipping arrangements. For your convenience, we have provided some recommended shippers. For your protection, we will require a signed release from you, confirming your authorization for us to release your lots to your specified third-party. At that point, our responsibility and insurance coverage for your item(s) ceases. Items picked up by third-party shippers are required to pay Connecticut sales tax. Items requiring third-party shipping due to being oversized, fragile or bulky will be denoted in the item description.

Please see our full terms and conditions for names of suggested third-party shippers.

After payment has been made in full, University Archives will ship your purchase within 10 business days following receipt of full payment for item.

Please remember that the buyer is responsible for all shipping costs from University Archives' offices in Wilton, CT to the buyer's door. Please see full Terms and Conditions of Sale.

July 16, 2025 10:00 AM EDT
Wilton, CT, US

University Archives

You agree to pay a buyer's premium of up to 25% and any applicable taxes and shipping.

View full terms and conditions

Bid Increments
From: To: Increments:
$0 $99 $10
$100 $299 $20
$300 $499 $25
$500 $999 $50
$1,000 $1,999 $100
$2,000 $2,999 $200
$3,000 $4,999 $250
$5,000 $9,999 $500
$10,000 $19,999 $1,000
$20,000 $49,999 $2,500
$50,000 + $5,000