Tag: Gettysburg Women’s History
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Exploring the Lives of Mary Kepner and Anna Wolf: George Bushman’s Wives
If it’s hard getting to know George Andrew Bushman through normal searching, it’s nearly impossible to learn about his wives, Mary Kepner and Anna Wolf, even through deeper research. Both of these women were married for significant times to a prominent and powerful man—a man who was active in local politics, served as a sheriff…
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Aunt Polly Culp: Gettysburg’s Beloved Figure of the Civil War Era
Elizabeth Culp, known to the locals as Aunt Polly Culp (no, we don’t know why), was intertwined in most of the major families of Gettysburg and familiar to almost everyone. Born to Heinrich Reiff and Barbara Eyster in 1780, she was the oldest of at least eight children. She grew up in Rockland Township, Berks…
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Uncovering Julia M. Culp: The Untold Story of a Gettysburg Nurse
Julia M. Culp is forever linked to her brother John Wesley Culp. Wes’s July 1 nighttime visit to his sisters Anna Eliza and Julia is the source of stories and legends handed down through the ages and the place in history where Julia shows up most often. But who was Julia? Julia M. Culp, born…
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The Mystery of Eliza Armstrong’s Age and Legacy
On January 9, 1907, the Gettysburg Compiler noted the passing of Eliza Armstrong, a black woman then residing at the Adams County Almshouse. As with similar articles of the era, it fixated on curiosities barely connected to the life of the person. In this case, the issue was one of age, and here the newspaper…
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Harriet Ciata Stanton: A Legacy in Gettysburg
Harriet Ciata Stanton’s ties go back to the founding of Gettysburg, and her descendants were still in Gettysburg at least through the early 2000s (and may still be there!). Even a hundred years ago, the newspapers referred to the family as the oldest in Gettysburg and Harriet as one of its most notable citizens. Harriet…
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Julia Eyster Jacobs: A Legacy of Faith and Family
These days, no ink is spilled on Julia Eyster Jacobs, wife of Dr. Michael Jacobs. Likewise, little has been said or written in decades about their daughter, Mary Julia. But these were powerful women, steeped in deep faith who made tremendous sacrifices for their beliefs. The first time we find mention of Julia Eyster is…
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The Life and Legend of Keziah Elizabeth Thomas Kuff
On July 1, 1926, sixty-three years to the day of the start of the Battle of Gettysburg, Keziah Elizabeth Thomas Kuff passed away. She was hailed as the oldest resident of Gettysburg, possibly the oldest in the United States, maybe one of the oldest people ever to live. The headline of the day suggested she…
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The Mysterious Story of Ida Millberry in Gettysburg
An odd headline in Gettysburg popped in 1905 related to Ida Millberry who was buried in the Lincoln Cemetery. Ida was not a longtime resident of Gettysburg but had come north from Maryland to live with her daughter there. The article, in many ways, is sort of mindblowing. None of us really wants to be…
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The Mathews-Biggs Family Legacy in Gettysburg
The Mathews family of Biglerville and the Biggs family of Gettysburg had a strong pre-war bond. At least one source suggested that Edward Mathews and Basil Biggs might have family connections in Maryland. Biggs was known to bring travelers on the Underground Railroad to Edward Mathews who hid them among Quaker friends in Biglerville before…
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The Life of Abraham Brian: A Forgotten Legacy
Today, the name Abraham Brian will be memorialized for as long as the United States exists. Brian’s former house sits near the apex of the Union line that bore the brunt of Pickett’s Charge—explanatory signs from the National Park Service tell you that Brian was a free black man living with his family in this…