At 11 Baltimore Street, on the west side of the street is the home of Moses McClean (1804-1870). His home, a two and a half-story structure in 1860, was struck by an artillery projectile which is visible in this photograph. If you can’t see it now, don’t worry, we’ll show you later in this post. This view was taken facing northwest at approximately 10:15 AM on Friday, December 26, 2008.
This year we have shown some structures with battle damage. Some of you have asked us to do posts listing “all the buildings with artillery shells” or “all the buildings with bullet holes” in the area. It’s about time we started to do that. Be forewarned, however. Some of the buildings with artillery shells stuck in the building had the shells placed there after the battle. Some buildings, as we are featuring in our post today, have the shell in a different location than where it actually struck the building in July, 1863, and may not even have the correct type of shell stuck in the building.
As we do with many local history questions, we went back to look up an article by Gettysburg Licensed Battlefield Guide Tim Smith that he wrote for the Adams County Historical Society Journal in 1996. Tim is also a research assistant at the historical society, and his article in that year’s Journal (Volume 2), “A Tour of Gettysburg’s Visual Battle Damage,” presents a good overview of the buildings we will feature over the next couple of weeks. We highly recommend that you pick up a copy at the Adams County Historical Society on Seminary Ridge in Schmucker Hall, or order a copy ($6.95) from the Adams County Historical Society. Click this link for their online giftshop.
There are over a dozen buildings showing battle damage in and around Gettysburg. We are providing this map which we will update every time we present a post about a new structure. Today’s building, marked with a red star with a number “1” is located just south of the Diamond/Lincoln Square/Circle at 11 Baltimore Street. This map was created at approximately 5:00 PM on Friday, December 26, 2008.
Moses McClean was a prominent Gettysburg attorney who was a member of the United States House of Representatives from 1845-1847 when war was declared on Mexico. In 1855 he was a member of the Pennsylvania State Legislature. He was also the owner of the McClean Farm situated along the Mummasburg Road and in the middle of some heavy fighting on July 1, 1863. His farm was occupied by a tenant during the battle. During the battle, his home on Baltimore Street was occupied by Moses McClean (1804-1870) his wife Hannah and other family members. This view was taken facing west at approximately 10:15 AM on Friday, December 26, 2008.
To see the artillery projectile, let’s go to the alley to the left of the building. The 1860 federal census shows that Moses McClean (1804-1870) was “white,” an Attorney, born in Pennsylvania, and that he lived in the same dwelling and was part of the same family with Hannah M. McClean (1811-), born in Pennsylvania; Maggie P. McClean (1837-), born in Pennsylvania; Sallie M. McClean (1842-), born in Pennsylvania; Robert F. McClean (1845-), born in Pennsylvania; Elizabeth McClean (1847-), born in Pennsylvania; Colin C. McClean (1850-), born in Pennsylvania; Lucy E. Butler (1832-), an African American servant, born in Maryland. His real estate had a value of $16,500, and his personal estate had a value of $6000. He was the eighth wealthiest person in Gettysburg. This view was taken facing northwest at approximately 10:15 AM on Friday, December 26, 2008.
When you get to the alley, go to the telephone poll (utility poll) against the brick building on the right. Look up. This view was taken facing west at approximately 10:15 AM on Friday, December 26, 2008.
Above the utility poll and to its left (west) is an artillery shell sticking out of the brick wall. This view was taken facing northwest at approximately 10:15 AM on Friday, December 26, 2008.
Here’s a better view of it. Robert McClean wrote two weeks after the battle that an artillery shell “entered the garret through a side wall, did some slight damage but did not explode, and rolled down the steps, through the open door to the first landing, where my niece… had been but a few moments before.” This view was taken facing northwest at approximately 10:15 AM on Friday, December 26, 2008.
Here’s a view from the back (west) of the house. In 1908 Elizabeth McClean wrote that “there was a loud crash and a shell came tearing through a fifteen inch brick wall, striking a beam that supported the roof, split it in two, broke out a rung from the crib in which we had slept when children, and having spent its force rolled down the stairs to the first landing. The garret was filled with a cloud of brick dust and we thought it was on fire, but the shell did not explode.” This view was taken facing northeast at approximately 10:15 AM on Friday, December 26, 2008.
In 1909 Robert McClean wrote that it was a round shell that entered the house. “The racket caused may be imagined, the impact on the wall, the crashing of the brick on the garret floor, and of the sundered timber, the rolling along of the shell till it reached the open door, and then thumping down the first flight of stairs, step by step till it reached the landing…” This view was taken facing northeast at approximately 10:15 AM on Friday, December 26, 2008.
But the shell stuck in the side of the building today isn’t a round cannonball. This is a spherical shaped, 20-Pounder Parrott Shell. This view was taken facing northeast at approximately 10:15 AM on Friday, December 26, 2008.
And the 20-Pounder Parrott shell is located high on the wall of a three-story building. However the McClean House was a two and a half-story building at the time of the battle. This view was taken facing southwest at approximately 10:15 AM on Friday, December 26, 2008.
Elizabeth wrote in 1908 that “The man who afterwards bought our house had another shell put in the wall where the first one came through.” This view was taken facing north at approximately 10:15 AM on Friday, December 26, 2008.
In October, 1877, George Stock bought the house and opened up a cigar store on the first floor of the building. According to Elizabeth, Stock mortared the shell into the building to mark the spot where the original shell struck the home. Of course, it was not the correct type of projectile. It is not known what became of the round projectile that did strike the house in 1863. This view was taken facing northwest at approximately 10:15 AM on Friday, December 26, 2008.
See the following related posts:
Gettysburg’s Wills House: White Stenciling Progressing on West Side on October 28, 2008.
Christmas Decorations at the Gettysburg Academy on December 21, 2008.
Some James Pierce House (Tillie Pierce House) Christmas Decorations on December 23, 2008.
Sweney House (Farnsworth House) Christmas Decorations on December 24, 2008.
Christmas Decoratons on the Carrie Sheads House on December 25, 2008.
Civil War Artillery with Licensed Battlefield Guide George Newton on November 21, 2008.
