Carroll’s Yesteryears
13 September 1992
Off to the battlefield: Gettysburg was popular tourist spot
By Jay Graybeal
The historical significance and the nearness of the Gettysburg Battlefield has attracted many Carroll countians as visitors. Preserved in the photograph collection of the Historical Society of Carroll County are a number of images taken of local families on visits to the battlefield.
Prior to the advent of amateur photography, battlefield visitors often hired professional photographers to record an image as a memento of the visit. Prominent among the professionals were William H. Tipton and the Mumpers.
Devil’s Den, the rock-strewn area below Little Round Top and scene of heavy fighting on July 2, 1863, was a popular backdrop for group portraits. Visitors also posed at the sites of important events such as the “Highwater Mark” or the place where Union Gen. Winfield S. Hancock was wounded.
Prominent among most views is the horse drawn vehicle or the automobile which carried the tourists around the battlefield. The pride that the owners took in their respective vehicles is clearly evident.
The selected views provide a glimpse of Carroll residents enjoying a tour of the Gettysburg Battlefield, one of the earliest tourist attractions in the country. They also provide details about touring attire, methods of transportation and favorite backdrops for a photographic memento of the visit.
Photo credit: Courtesy of the Historical Society of Carroll County
Photo caption: Roy Englar, at wheel, and Lena Burner, Grace Westwood and Joseph Englar at the “Highwater Mark,” Gettysburg, 1906. The battlefield guide stands in front of the Cadillac car owned by Nathan Englar. Photographed by W. H. Tipton. The photograph was the 1906 Christmas gift of Grace and Lena to their father Nathan. (Historical Society of Carroll County, bequest of Vivian Englar Barnes, 1981)
Photo caption: Ada Royer, standing left, and Charles Royer, seated, with friends at Devil’s Den, Gettysburg, c.1890. Photographed by Mumper and Gelbach. (Historical Society of Carroll County, gift of Grace Cookson, 1988)
Photo caption: Guy and Ada Cookson shortly after their 1898 marriage, Devil’s Den, Gettysburg. Photographed by J. Mumper. (Historical Society of Carroll County, gift of Grace Cookson, 1988)
Photo caption: Dr. Stewart, at wheel, Barton Smith, Dr. Hugh Latimer Elderdice Sr., Dorothy Elderdice, Mrs. Elderdice, Hugh L. Elderdice Jr., standing, at the site where Gen. Winfield Scott Hancock was wounded, Gettysburg, 1907. (Historical Society of Carroll County)
Photo caption: James Pearre Wantz Sr., James P. Wantz Jr., Dora Price Robertson, Carrie Rinehart Wantz, Caroline Rinehart Wantz and May Whaley, at Devil’s Den, Gettysburg, May 30, 1912. Photographed by Mumper. (Historical Society of Carroll County, gift of Mrs. David H. Taylor, 1983)
Photo caption: Front car: Mr. and Mrs. Frank Orendorff and unidentified woman. Rear car: Mr. and Mrs. Abraham Leister and sons at Devil’s Den, Gettysburg, c.1910. Photographed by W. H. Tipton. (Historical Society of Carroll County, gift of Mrs. Herbert L. Leister, 1957)
