Sergeant Amos Humiston

The monument to Union Sergeant Amos Humiston was constructed in 1993 in Gettysburg on Stratton Street. It is the only monument to an individual enlisted on the battlefields of Gettysburg.

From the table on the monument, it is recorded that near the site on July 1, 1863, a Union soldier was mortally wounded. When a local resident found the unidentified soldier's body, he also discovered a photograph of three children whom the soldier hugged affectionately. The news was quickly covered by the press, and copies of the photo were distributed and sold for charity. One of these went to Phylinda Humiston of Portville, New York, who realized that her husband, Sergeant Amos Humiston of Company C, New York's 154th Volunteer Squad, had been killed.

Knowing the story, Dr. Bournes made a special journey to New York to deliver the original photo to Amos's widow and children. The story became so famous and widespread that many sympathetic donations were used to establish the Soldiers' Orphanage in Gettysburg in 1866. Amos's wife, Humiston, moved to Gettysburg to serve as the orphanage's first patron. Amos' body was moved to Gettysburg National Cemetery and the monument to Union Sergeant Amos Humiston was built to mark the place where he died in 1993.

In short, the monument to Union Sergeant Amos Humiston:

• was constructed in 1993 in Gettysburg on Stratton Street.
• the table on the monument records the place where he died and holds in his hand a picture of his three children to show how sacred fatherhood is.
• the only monument to an individual enlisted on the battlefields of Gettysburg to commemorate the Union soldier, Amos Humiston.