George D. Chenoweth describes the Confederate invasion, occupation, and shelling of Carlisle. He mentions leaving Carlisle before the raid, and the pleasure of finding none of their personal belongings disturbed upon his return. 12,000 men entered the town, setting up camp around the town and on...

John Keagy Stayman questions Edgar E. Hastings as to when the draft will be lifted from Cumberland County, as he is “considered by Uncle Sam a ‘first class man’.” He also asks whether or not Dickinson College is still being used as a hospital, and hopes that it will quickly be vacated so that...

Thomas Miller Griffith writes to his brother and sister and describes the scenes in Carlisle as the Confederates occupied and shelled the town in the days before the Battle of Gettysburg. As the Confederates first approached Carlisle in late June 1863, Griffith recalls the expedited Commencement...

This map, published in the Philadelphia Inquirer, shows Carlisle in July 1863 when Confederates shelled the town.

The Philadelphia Inquirer publishes this letter from a regular correspondent that relays information about the shelling of Carlisle, including information from a dispatch from Harrisburg and an eyewitness account from the following morning.

"Our Harrisburg Letter," ...

This article, from an issue of Philadelphia Inquirer, page 3, describes in detail the occurrences of the shelling of Carlisle, including the pre-attack discourses between General Lee and General William Farrar Smith. Transcript included.

"The Rebels at Carlisle," Philadelphia...

In diary entries from late June and early July, Charles Francis Himes (Class of 1855) describes the Confederate invasion of Carlisle. Himes, who follows the Confederates as they move on to Gettysburg, describes his interactions and movements through several days. Himes also briefly mentions...

Samuel Dickinson Hillman, an alumnus and a professor at Dickinson College, recalls the invasion and shelling of Carlisle in this article from The Methodist.  Hillman covers the appearance of the Rebel troops, conversations had during the occupation, and the bombardment, all from his...