Publisher's Synopsis
Excerpt from The Attack and Defense of Little Round Top, Gettysburg, July 2, 1863: A Paper Read Before the Ohio Commandery of the Loyal Legion, February 3, 1915
Little Round Top, Gettysburg, in which my brother, General Strong Vincent, took part.
What I shall say is practically a summary of one of the more recent volumes of our Civil War literature. It was published in 1913, and is entitled 'the Attack and Defense of Little Round Top, Gettysburg. Its author is Oliver W. Norton, a successful and retired business man of Chicago, a member and ex - Commander of our Illinois Commandery, and a member of our Commandery-in Chief. The value of this book as an authority consists in two facts: first, that the author, although long entirely blind, has unearthed and brought together original reports and letters of leading men in that fight, most of which were unknown to the historians, and some of which have never before been published; and, second, the fact that the author was himself a personal eye witness of new and important incidents which he relates, connected with some critical moments in that fight. At the time he was brigade bugler, mounted, and bearer of the brigade's headquarters ?ag. As it was his duty to be always near his brigade commander, Colonel Vincent, he had, in this way, exceptional opportunities of hearing what was said and seeing what was done. When the fight was on, however, and until his services as color bearer were again needed, he seized a musket and fought in the ranks with his regiment.
But, to begin with, let me now brie?y recall the principal facts which led up to this particular fight.
In the summer of 1863, Lee undertook to divert the Federal offensive from Richmond, and to take the offensive himself against \vashington. He also hoped to pass around Washington's main defences on the Potomac and attack it on the ?ank or rear. In order to do this, he marched northward, first into Maryland and then into Pennsylvania; also carrying the war in this way into the enemy's country. But first Hooker, and then Meade, keeping himself all the while between Lee and Washington, marched north ward, too, almost exactly parallel with Lee. Finally, as Lee had decided to give battle, when the advance corps of the two armies met near Gettysburg on July lst, there was a preliminary struggle, in which major-general Reynolds of our First Corps was killed.
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