Prior to the Civil War, the twin hills south of Gettysburg were not known by the familiar names “Big Round Top” and “Little Round Top.” The taller, southern hill (today “Big Round Top”) was generally called “Round Top” or “Round Top Mountain” by locals, and sometimes simply “Round Hill,” reflecting its prominent rounded shape. The smaller northern spur (today “Little Round Top”) had multiple local names. Contemporary accounts and local lore referred to it as “Sugar Loaf Hill,” “Granite Spur,” “Rock Top,” “Stony Ridge,” or “High Knob,” among other descriptions . In short, the two elevations were often considered parts of one “Round Top” landform, with the subordinate spur lacking a fixed unique name before the battle.

The name “Little Round Top” itself only came into use after the Battle of Gettysburg. There is no clear evidence of soldiers or townspeople using that name during the fighting in July 1863 (it does not appear in official battle reports), though one Union officer, Lt. Franklin A. Haskell, did use the term in a letter shortly after the battle. In the battle’s immediate aftermath, battlefield guides and writers sought distinguishing names for key points. Historian John B. Bachelder – an early Gettysburg battlefield guide and mapmaker – actually proposed naming Little Round Top “Weed’s Hill” to honor Brig. Gen. Stephen H. Weed (killed there on July 2), but this did not catch on and he abandoned the idea by 1873 . Instead, the descriptive term “Little Round Top” gained currency, especially after famed orator Edward Everett used it publicly. Edward Everett’s oration at the Soldiers’ National Cemetery dedication on November 19, 1863 (the same ceremony as Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address) explicitly referred to “Round Top” and “Little Round Top,” helping to cement those names in popular memory. From that point forward, maps and literature commonly labeled the two hills as Little Round Top (the lower northern spur) and Big Round Top (the higher southern summit, formerly just “Round Top”).

During the post-war era, the names became official as the battlefield was preserved and interpreted. The U.S. War Department and early park commissioners adopted “Big Round Top” and “Little Round Top” in their records and signage to clearly distinguish the two. There were no further name changes after that, and these names have endured. Little Round Top’s dramatic battle story ensured its name entered Civil War history, while Big Round Top simply gained the prefix “Big” by comparison. Notably, some 19th-century sources occasionally called the larger hill “Great Round Top,” but “Big Round Top” became the more common usage . Today, the National Park Service continues to use these names, and they are ingrained in Gettysburg’s geography.

Ownership History of Big and Little Round Top

Before the Civil War, Big and Little Round Top were privately owned as part of the patchwork of Gettysburg area farms and woodlots. The rugged slopes of the Round Tops were not prime farmland – Big Round Top was heavily wooded and Little Round Top’s western face had been recently logged in the early 1860s. However, the surrounding land was divided among local families. For example, John Slyder’s farm (approximately 75–88 acres) lay on the western side of Big Round Top along Plum Run. Slyder had bought the property in 1849 and built a house, barn, and orchard on the fertile lowlands near the hill. Likewise, to the north of Little Round Top, George Weikert’s 78-acre farm (purchased 1852) bordered the hill; the Weikert house and fields were just east of the Taneytown Road, north of Little Round Top . Much of Little Round Top itself was an unimproved hillside used for timber or pasture, and it may have been considered part of the adjacent farms (like the Weikert land or the farm of Peter and Susan Rogers nearby). In general, multiple landowners had claims to different slopes of the Round Tops area, though the summits were not extensively developed.

The Battle of Gettysburg (July 1863) devastated these properties. During the fighting on July 2, 1863, Confederate forces swept over John Slyder’s farm at the base of Big Round Top, trampling crops and orchards; afterwards the farm buildings were used as a Confederate field hospital, and the Slyder family’s belongings were looted or destroyed. George Weikert’s farm north of Little Round Top was also turned into a field hospital and riddled with shot. The toll on local owners was immense – for example, John Slyder, facing the loss, sold his farm only two months after the battle (September 1863) and left Gettysburg for Ohio. Many other landowners filed damage claims for destroyed fences, crops, and buildings. Despite this turmoil, legal title to the Round Top hills themselves still rested with private owners in the immediate aftermath of the battle.

In the months following the battle, efforts began to preserve portions of the Gettysburg battlefield, including the Round Tops. Gettysburg attorney David McConaughy spearheaded early preservation. In August 1863, he proposed forming a battlefield memorial association; lacking that initially, McConaughy himself used personal funds to buy important parts of the field. By September 16, 1863 – less than three months after the battle – McConaughy had purchased the summit of Little Round Top and other key tracts (including land on Cemetery Hill and Culp’s Hill), ultimately acquiring around 600 acres. This purchase presumably included portions of Big Round Top as well, since controlling Little Round Top’s “granite spur” often meant owning the connected ridge land. These acquisitions by McConaughy were explicitly meant to protect and memorialize the battlefield. In 1864, the Gettysburg Battlefield Memorial Association (GBMA) was chartered by Pennsylvania to hold and manage such lands. McConaughy transferred his Round Top parcels to the GBMA, which then continued buying additional parcels over time. By the end of the 1860s, the GBMA either owned or had plans to purchase much of Little Round Top, Big Round Top, East Cemetery Hill, Culp’s Hill, and other significant areas. The Round Tops thus transitioned from private hands to preservationist ownership within just a few years of the battle.

Through the late 19th century, the Round Tops were maintained by the GBMA as part of the memorialized battlefield. In February 1895, the U.S. Congress established Gettysburg National Military Park, and that summer the GBMA’s lands – including Little and Big Round Top – were formally transferred to the Federal government’s War Department . The War Department era (1895–1933) saw the battlefield developed with avenues, observation towers, and iron tablets marking troop positions. Finally, in 1933, administration of Gettysburg was handed over to the National Park Service, which continues to own and manage Big and Little Round Top today as protected historic sites. In summary, ownership went from local farmers before the war, to battlefield preservationists by the 1860s, to U.S. Government stewardship by the end of the 19th century – ensuring the Round Tops would be preserved in perpetuity. (Notably, John Slyder’s former farm and the Weikert farm were eventually bought by the Park as well, many years after the war, becoming part of the protected landscape.)

Military Significance in the Battle of Gettysburg

Little Round Top’s role in the Battle of Gettysburg became legendary, whereas Big Round Top’s tactical impact was more limited. On July 2, 1863 – the second day of the battle – Little Round Top was a critical high ground anchoring the extreme left flank of the Union Army of the Potomac. The hill overlooked the rolling fields and rocky den known as Devil’s Den to its west and commanded a view of much of the Union line along Cemetery Ridge. Recognizing its importance, Union Maj. Gen. George G. Meade had ordered it occupied, but due to a misunderstanding Maj. Gen. Daniel Sickles’ III Corps advanced too far forward, leaving Little Round Top undefended at a key moment . As Confederate Lt. Gen. James Longstreet launched a massive assault on the Union left that afternoon, the hill was nearly taken by surprise. Chief Engineer Gouverneur K. Warren, arriving on Little Round Top, was alarmed to find it empty of Union troops and spotted Confederate battle lines moving toward the hill. Warren urgently sent officers to fetch reinforcements just in time.

The result was an ad-hoc but fateful defense of Little Round Top. A Union brigade under Col. Strong Vincent rushed up the slope minutes ahead of the Confederate attack. Vincent’s brigade took position along the hill’s southern spur, from the 16th Michigan on the right to the 20th Maine on the extreme left flank. They arrived literally as Confederates from Brig. Gen. Evander Law’s Alabama brigade and Brig. Gen. Jerome Robertson’s Texas brigade were scrambling up through the boulder-strewn valley between Big and Little Round Top. Confederate Col. William C. Oates, commanding the 15th Alabama, had earlier led two Alabama regiments across the slope of Big Round Top to chase off Union sharpshooters posted there. Oates’s men then descended into the saddle and joined Texas regiments for an assault up Little Round Top’s rocky western face. In total five Confederate regiments (the 4th and 5th Texas, 4th Alabama, 47th Alabama, and 15th Alabama) charged against the Union line on Little Round Top’s slope.

The fighting on Little Round Top was intense and desperate. The attackers clambered over large boulders and ledges (one ravine at the base would earn the name “Valley of Death” for the carnage). Vincent’s Union brigade, though outnumbered, held stubbornly. On the Union right, elements of Weed’s brigade and an artillery battery under Lt. Charles Hazlett arrived to bolster the defense on the summit (both Gen. Stephen Weed and Lt. Hazlett were killed by sniper fire during the fight, highlighting the hill’s hazards) . On the Union left flank, Col. Joshua L. Chamberlain’s 20th Maine regiment faced repeated assaults by Oates’s 15th Alabama. The Maine troops were positioned on a spur known later as “Vincent’s Spur,” refusing (bending back) their line to prevent being flanked. After withstanding several attacks and nearly exhausting their ammunition, Chamberlain ordered a bold bayonet charge downhill in the early evening, which swept the Alabamians and Texans off the hillside in confusion. This decisive counterattack effectively secured Little Round Top for the Union. Chamberlain’s maneuver, along with the overall staunch defense, thwarted the Confederates’ attempt to turn the Union flank. Little Round Top remained in Union hands, and its defense is often credited with preventing a collapse of the Union line on July 2.

While Little Round Top was a linchpin of the Union defense on July 2, Big Round Top’s direct military role was minor. Big Round Top, about 130 feet higher and heavily wooded, was less accessible and had no cleared fields of fire. In fact, due to its dense timber and steep slopes, no artillery could be placed on Big Round Top’s summit during the battle. On July 2, as part of Law’s flanking maneuver, Confederate skirmishers occupied Big Round Top’s woods briefly. After the repulse of the Confederate assault at Little Round Top, Union forces moved to secure Big Round Top that night. Around 10 p.m. on July 2, the Union 5th Corps (e.g. the 20th Maine and other regiments from Brig. Gen. Samuel Crawford’s division) advanced and occupied the summit of Big Round Top without significant resistance, capturing some stray Confederate sharpshooters. This belated Union occupation of Big Round Top ensured the Confederates would not use it as an artillery vantage point on Day 3. Indeed, by the morning of July 3, Big Round Top formed the extreme left of the Union line. It is noteworthy that Col. Joshua Chamberlain, after his heroics on Little Round Top, was ordered to lead the 20th Maine in taking Big Round Top that night; for his combined actions on July 2 (defending Little Round Top and then seizing Big Round Top’s summit), Chamberlain was later awarded the Medal of Honor.

On July 3, 1863 (the third day of battle), Little Round Top again saw action, albeit indirectly. Union artillery positioned on Little Round Top’s slope (Hazlett’s battery, now under Lt. E. Rittenhouse) fired shells at extreme range into the flank of Pickett’s Charge as Confederate troops crossed the open fields toward Cemetery Ridge . Meanwhile, at the base of Big Round Top to the south and west, one of the battle’s final engagements occurred: the cavalry charge of Brig. Gen. Elon Farnsworth. In the late afternoon of July 3, after Pickett’s Charge had failed, Union cavalry under Gen. Judson Kilpatrick probed the Confederate right. Kilpatrick ordered Farnsworth’s brigade to charge the Confederate infantry positions around the lower slopes of Big Round Top (south of Devil’s Den). In a futile and controversial attack, Farnsworth’s mounted troopers (1st Vermont and other regiments) galloped over broken, rocky ground and were repulsed by Alabama and Texas infantry; Gen. Farnsworth himself was killed in this action. This skirmish demonstrated the rough terrain’s unsuitability for mounted operations, but it was essentially the last combat around the Round Tops. After Gettysburg, Union forces held both Little and Big Round Top, anchoring the left end of their line.

In retrospect, many have argued that the tactical importance of Little Round Top was enormous – it offered observation and artillery positions that could enfilade (fire into the sides of) any enemy advance. Many historians argue that the Union’s timely defense of Little Round Top on July 2 prevented the Confederates from gaining a position that could have unraveled the entire Union line. The heroism of the defenders (Chamberlain’s 20th Maine, Vincent, Warren, O’Rorke, Hazlett, and others) became a centerpiece of Gettysburg lore. By contrast, Big Round Top’s value was more about denying it to the enemy; its thick woods and lack of clear fields of fire meant that it saw no large-scale fighting. Confederate General Hood, whose division attacked Little Round Top, reportedly requested to bypass the Round Tops entirely because of the difficult terrain, preferring to maneuver further right – a suggestion that Lee did not adopt. The relatively quiet fall of Big Round Top on the night of July 2 underscored that it was the little rocky hill, not the big one, that may have proved decisive during the battle.

However, other historians like Garry Adelman have argued that Little Round Top’s defense was just one of many fights that preserved the line and that its fall would not necessarily have led to the Union line’s collapse. Adelman has argued that the South’s advance was unsupported and reinforcements from Culp’s Hill could have countered the threat. That argument does not diminish the heroism of those who fought on the rocky hill, though.

Another post-battle controversy worth noting involves the credit for Little Round Top’s defense. In the decades after the war, Joshua Chamberlain’s dramatic account of the 20th Maine’s bayonet charge gained widespread fame (he wrote and spoke about it extensively, and later media like the novel The Killer Angels and the movie Gettysburg further popularized his role). Some other veterans felt that Chamberlain’s fame overshadowed the contributions of others – for instance, the leadership of Colonel Strong Vincent (who selected the ground and was mortally wounded leading the defense), or the timely support of the 140th New York under Patrick O’Rorke (who also died on the hill). Modern historians have debated aspects of the legend, but there is broad agreement that the collective effort on Little Round Top was critical. Chamberlain himself always praised his fellow soldiers and acknowledged Vincent’s leadership. Another post-war discussion involved Confederate Colonel William Oates, who claimed that had he been given one more fresh regiment, he could have turned Chamberlain’s flank. Oates later sought to place a monument to his brother on Little Round Top, which was denied by the veterans’ commission on the grounds that Confederate memorials were not placed on Union-held ground. Despite these debates, Little Round Top stands as one of the battle’s iconic engagements.

Post-War Transformation and Commemoration

In the years and decades after 1863, Big and Little Round Top underwent a transformation from battle-scarred hills on private farmland to carefully preserved national memorials and tourist destinations. This transformation involved the erection of monuments, development of roads and trails, reforestation (and later re-clearing) efforts, and an evolving role in education and tourism.

Immediately after the war, the Gettysburg Battlefield Memorial Association (GBMA) and veterans’ groups began marking important locations on the field. One of the very first memorials placed outside the Soldiers’ National Cemetery was on Little Round Top: in 1878 veterans of Col. Strong Vincent’s brigade installed a modest bronze plaque honoring Vincent near the spot where he fell . This tablet, placed 15 years after the battle, was a simple recognition of the brigade commander’s sacrifice but marked the beginning of formal memorialization on Little Round Top. Over the next two decades, Union veterans’ regiments from many states erected dozens of regimental monuments on and around Little Round Top. For example, the 20th Maine monument (a simple shaft) was dedicated in 1886 on the spot of Chamberlain’s defense. The 91st Pennsylvania Infantry placed a prominent monument on the summit of Little Round Top in 1889, and the 44th New York Infantry erected a large castellated granite tower in 1893 on the southwest side of the hill (its castle-like design and commanding view made it a famous landmark). These monuments, typically funded by veterans and states, often mark the positions held by each unit during the fight. By the 25th anniversary of the battle (1888), Little Round Top was crowned with memorials – a testament to the hill’s importance in the veterans’ memory. Big Round Top, having seen little action, received far fewer monuments; however, units that advanced there at night also put up small markers (for instance, the 20th Maine later added a secondary monument on Big Round Top’s slope to mark where they stopped on July 2 night).

In addition to regimental markers, individual heroes were commemorated. Perhaps the most famous monument on Little Round Top is the bronze statue of Gen. Gouverneur K. Warren, unveiled in 1888. It stands upon a boulder near the spot where Warren stood with his binoculars on July 2, signaling for help. Veterans regarded Warren as the “Savior of Little Round Top,” and the monument shows him gazing forever over the valley. (Interestingly, when a group of veterans visited the Warren statue during the 50th reunion in 1913, they remarked that the scene “stands unchanged” – the rocks and view were the same as in 1863 .) Another key leader, Col. Joshua Chamberlain, was not sculpted at Gettysburg in the 19th century, but he did attend veterans’ reunions on Little Round Top and his name is prominently mentioned on the 20th Maine monument. In recent years (1990s), a monument bust of Chamberlain was added at the hill’s base, reflecting his post-war fame.

Big Round Top, being largely wooded and tactically quiet during the battle, saw different developments. In 1884, the Gettysburg & Harrisburg Railroad built the “Round Top Branch,” a spur rail line that brought tourists to the southern end of the battlefield . An excursion park (“Tipton Park”) with amenities was established near Devil’s Den, and the Round Tops became a destination for sightseeing. In 1895, as part of War Department improvements, a tall observation tower was constructed on the summit of Big Round Top . Made of wood (later replaced by steel), this tower allowed visitors to climb above the treetops for panoramic views of the battlefield. It was one of several such towers built (others on Culp’s Hill and Seminary Ridge). The Big Round Top tower stood for decades, but it never attracted as much use as expected – the climb up Big Round Top itself was strenuous, and then ascending the tower was even more effort. In 1968, the National Park Service dismantled the aging tower as it had become unstable and few visitors were using it . Today only the concrete foundation remains, now listed as a historic ruin on Big Round Top.

Meanwhile, monuments on Big Round Top were sparse but not absent. At the base of Big Round Top along South Confederate Avenue, veterans erected an Elon Farnsworth memorial (an upturned cannon barrel on a pedestal) before 1896 to mark where Farnsworth fell during his ill-fated cavalry charge . On the slopes of Big Round Top, the 1st Vermont Cavalry later placed a monument, and in 1930/31 a bronze statue of General William Wells (a Vermont cavalry officer who received the Medal of Honor for the Farnsworth charge) was dedicated partway up the hill . A small stone marker also honors Lt. Charles E. Hazlett’s battery near the summit of Big Round Top, as Hazlett’s men dragged a cannon up there on July 3 (though it could not be used effectively). By and large, however, Big Round Top remained a wooded preserve, more natural and less adorned than Little Round Top.

Throughout the early 20th century, tourism and education at the Round Tops grew. The National Park Service (after 1933) and its predecessor, the War Department, maintained a network of roads – such as Sykes Avenue which crosses Little Round Top’s crest and South Confederate Avenue/Wright Avenue around Big Round Top – making these sites accessible by automobile . Guides and park rangers incorporated Little Round Top into their battlefield tours as a highlight. The vistas from Little Round Top, although partially reforested since 1863, remain awe-inspiring. Notably, the west face of Little Round Top, which had been mostly bare rock in 1863 due to logging, grew up with trees in subsequent decades; the Park Service has periodically cleared vegetation to restore the historic sight-lines (for example, in the 1880s veterans actually planted trees on parts of the battlefield as memorials, but later the Park removed trees on Little Round Top to resemble the 1863 landscape). The balance between preserving a “gettysburg in 1863” appearance and the natural wooded character of the Round Tops has been an ongoing management challenge.

Little Round Top became not only a popular tourist stop but also an outdoor classroom. The U.S. Army used Gettysburg for staff rides, analyzing tactics on the actual ground. Countless school groups and military trainees have climbed its rocks to learn about flanking maneuvers and key decisions. Big Round Top, being less dramatically storied, often sees fewer visitors, but it offers a quiet hiking trail to its summit. In the 1930s, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) improved trails and even built a parking lot at Little Round Top’s summit, as well as the stone observation scope platform still seen there . They also installed the handsome circular plaza around the 91st Pennsylvania monument (with its distinctive paths), making it a convenient overlook for tourists . In recent years (2020–2023), Little Round Top underwent a major rehabilitation project to mitigate erosion from heavy visitation – new trails, sidewalks, and interpretive signage have been added to protect the landscape while accommodating visitors . This illustrates how the Round Tops continue to evolve in their public use.

Commemorative events have frequently centered on the Round Tops. At the 50th anniversary of the battle in 1913, aging Union and Confederate veterans toured the hill together. A famous photograph from that reunion shows veterans of the 91st Pennsylvania posing by their monument on Little Round Top (see image above), symbolizing healing and remembrance. The Round Tops have also been the scene of countless Civil War reenactments and ceremonies (although large-scale battle reenactments are now held off-site to protect the park, ceremonial marches and occasional demonstrations have occurred). The site remains deeply evocative – standing by Warren’s statue or the 20th Maine lines, visitors often read aloud Chamberlain’s accounts or watch the sunset over “the Valley of Death,” reflecting on the courage shown on those rocks.

In summary, Big Round Top and Little Round Top have been transformed from mere hills on a battlefield to enduring symbols of the Civil War. Their names, once obscure local references, are now known to millions. Their ownership is secure under the National Park Service, dedicated to preservation. Little Round Top’s rocky slopes, once a scene of brutal combat, are now dotted with monuments that honor the valor of the men who fought there. Big Round Top’s quiet forest harbors remnants of observation towers and memorials to a cavalry charge. Both hills are integral to the Gettysburg story: one as the stage of a pivotal clash, the other as a steadfast sentinel overlooking the field. Together, the Round Tops remind us of Gettysburg’s monumental history – from the meaning their names gained, to the blood shed on their soil, and finally to the collective effort to preserve and remember what happened there.