Peace Portico marks 100th anniversary
Published in the Gettysburg Times, May 22, 2014
The 1,300 pieces
of etched stone and bronze that decorate the streets, hills, woods, fields and
ridges in and around Gettysburg speak volumes to the events that happened there
on July 1,2 and 3, 1863, and in many ways are the physical representations of
the soldiers themselves.
While a vast majority of these monuments, markers and memorials are symbolic of the 170,000 men who fought for the Union and Confederacy—and the 51,000 who were killed, wounded and captured—just two are dedicated to the peace established in the decades after the American Civil War.
The more famous of the two peace monuments is the Eternal Light Peace Memorial, which was dedicated by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1938. It rests on Oak Hill, and is one of the most-visited sites on the battlefield.
May 21, 2014, marks the 100th anniversary of the other monument to peace—the Peace Portico—which is situated on the western side of Schmucker Hall or Old Dorm, the original building of the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg.
While a vast majority of these monuments, markers and memorials are symbolic of the 170,000 men who fought for the Union and Confederacy—and the 51,000 who were killed, wounded and captured—just two are dedicated to the peace established in the decades after the American Civil War.
The more famous of the two peace monuments is the Eternal Light Peace Memorial, which was dedicated by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1938. It rests on Oak Hill, and is one of the most-visited sites on the battlefield.
May 21, 2014, marks the 100th anniversary of the other monument to peace—the Peace Portico—which is situated on the western side of Schmucker Hall or Old Dorm, the original building of the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg.
Photo: Codie Eash, May 19, 2014
The building was complete in 1832 and played several key roles during and after the battle: From the seminary’s cupola, Brig. Gen. John Buford and Lt. Aaron B. Jerome surveyed Confederate troops in the distance. As the battle drew closer, fighting commenced within feet of the seminary and literally approached its back door. Around this time, the building filled with wounded soldiers, after which time it served as a hospital for nearly two-and-a-half months, from July 1 to Sept. 16, 1863.
Though the portico is the lesser known of the two peace monuments, it was built and dedicated first—nearly 24 years prior to the Eternal Light. It was dedicated in 1914, one year after the Battle of Gettysburg’s 50th anniversary.
From June 29 to July 6, 1913, almost 55,000 veterans converged once more on Gettysburg to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the bloodiest battle of the American Civil War. This time, however, they were not meeting to wage war, but to engage in the officially titled “Peace Jubilee.” The festivities marked the largest-ever gathering of Civil War veterans.
Over the course of a week, the seminary welcomed 527 guests from the Pennsylvania Commission, including Lewis A. Grant, commander of the First Vermont Brigade; Confederate Gen. Evander M. Law; Virginia Gov. William H. Mann; and descendants of Union Gen. George Meade and Confederate Generals James Longstreet, A.P. Hill and George Pickett.
Since it housed veterans during the jubilee, the seminary received $3,000 in compensation from the federal government, which it used to upgrade dining facilities, restrooms and the western entrance of its main dormitory building.
Coincidentally, many people were calling for the construction of “a great peace memorial at Gettysburg,” according to the “Gettysburg Compiler,” so the newly renovated western entrance was destined to serve that purpose. To that point in time, hundreds of monuments had been placed by various veterans’ groups, but none were meant to commemorate peace.
Over the course of the next few months, construction ensued on “a semi-circular portico with six Doric columns,” reminiscent of features typical of the 20th century Classical Revival period, according to historian Michael Dreese. The “Gettysburg Compiler” donned the portico “the only memorial of the great peace jubilee.”
The dedication ceremony took place on May 21, 1914, during the seminary’s spring commencement. Students, ministers and family members performed music, poetry and short stories during the ceremony.
Though the portico is the lesser known of the two peace monuments, it was built and dedicated first—nearly 24 years prior to the Eternal Light. It was dedicated in 1914, one year after the Battle of Gettysburg’s 50th anniversary.
From June 29 to July 6, 1913, almost 55,000 veterans converged once more on Gettysburg to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the bloodiest battle of the American Civil War. This time, however, they were not meeting to wage war, but to engage in the officially titled “Peace Jubilee.” The festivities marked the largest-ever gathering of Civil War veterans.
Over the course of a week, the seminary welcomed 527 guests from the Pennsylvania Commission, including Lewis A. Grant, commander of the First Vermont Brigade; Confederate Gen. Evander M. Law; Virginia Gov. William H. Mann; and descendants of Union Gen. George Meade and Confederate Generals James Longstreet, A.P. Hill and George Pickett.
Since it housed veterans during the jubilee, the seminary received $3,000 in compensation from the federal government, which it used to upgrade dining facilities, restrooms and the western entrance of its main dormitory building.
Coincidentally, many people were calling for the construction of “a great peace memorial at Gettysburg,” according to the “Gettysburg Compiler,” so the newly renovated western entrance was destined to serve that purpose. To that point in time, hundreds of monuments had been placed by various veterans’ groups, but none were meant to commemorate peace.
Over the course of the next few months, construction ensued on “a semi-circular portico with six Doric columns,” reminiscent of features typical of the 20th century Classical Revival period, according to historian Michael Dreese. The “Gettysburg Compiler” donned the portico “the only memorial of the great peace jubilee.”
The dedication ceremony took place on May 21, 1914, during the seminary’s spring commencement. Students, ministers and family members performed music, poetry and short stories during the ceremony.
Photo: Codie Eash, May 19, 2014
The keynote address was delivered by the Rev. Henry Eyster Jacobs, dean of the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Mt. Airy, Pa. At the time of the battle, Jacobs was a student at Gettysburg who witnessed the opening phases of the fighting from the seminary’s cupola.
During his address, Jacobs spoke of the building’s importance when he said, “This old building…is more truly a monument of the great battle than are the hundreds of costly structures scattered over this historic field.”
Between 600 and 700 soldiers—from both North and South—were treated on the four floors of its interior. Classrooms, dorm rooms, the library, chapel and offices became operating rooms, amputation stations and beds for dying young men.
To Jacobs, the buildings throughout Gettysburg which withstood the fighting, such as the seminary, were the only true memorials to the terrible events during the first three days of July 1863.
During his address, Jacobs spoke of the building’s importance when he said, “This old building…is more truly a monument of the great battle than are the hundreds of costly structures scattered over this historic field.”
Between 600 and 700 soldiers—from both North and South—were treated on the four floors of its interior. Classrooms, dorm rooms, the library, chapel and offices became operating rooms, amputation stations and beds for dying young men.
To Jacobs, the buildings throughout Gettysburg which withstood the fighting, such as the seminary, were the only true memorials to the terrible events during the first three days of July 1863.
Photo: Codie Eash, May 19, 2014
“[I]t was then that these walls received their baptism of fire and the scars of honorable wounds,” Jacobs said. “[T]his building was itself a part of the battle.”
Though the Peace Portico is unknown to most modern tourists, its story holds true as being part of a structure that was present “when the air was full of shrieking shells and stifling vapors and the sun was clouded by the smoke of artillery and musketry,” as Jacobs said.
Most of the seminary building’s original structure still stands today, and visually the edifice is nearly identical to its condition around the time of the battle. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1973, and is now home to the Gettysburg Seminary Ridge Museum, which opened on July 1, 2013.
Though the Peace Portico’s roof was removed throughout the 1960s, it was restored it to its original 1914 appearance during the building’s 2012-2013 renovation.
Though the Peace Portico is unknown to most modern tourists, its story holds true as being part of a structure that was present “when the air was full of shrieking shells and stifling vapors and the sun was clouded by the smoke of artillery and musketry,” as Jacobs said.
Most of the seminary building’s original structure still stands today, and visually the edifice is nearly identical to its condition around the time of the battle. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1973, and is now home to the Gettysburg Seminary Ridge Museum, which opened on July 1, 2013.
Though the Peace Portico’s roof was removed throughout the 1960s, it was restored it to its original 1914 appearance during the building’s 2012-2013 renovation.
