Road to Gettysburg

President Abraham Lincoln replaced Army of the Potomac commander Gen. Joseph Hooker with Gen. George G. Meade on June 28, 1863, as the army pursued Gen. Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia. Meade placed Gen. John F. Reynolds, I Corps commander, in charge of the Federal army's left wing, which consisted of I, III, and XI Corps. The next day, I Corps marched to Frederick from Middletown and camped in the western suburbs, but by dawn on June 30, had departed for Emmitsburg, where it bivouacked on the heights north of town. Confederates had been reported at Fairfield, and Reynolds was taking no chances.

Meade, uncertain of Lee's strength or location, had ordered the army to entrench along Pipe Creek to counter any move toward Washington or Baltimore. The Federal right flank rested at Manchester, the center at Union Mills, and the left at Middleburg. Reynolds was to withdraw his forces near Gettysburg and occupy the left flank.

At 7:30 a.m. on July 1, however, Lt. Marcellus E. Jones, 8th Illinois Cavalry, fired the first shot in the Battle of Gettysburg as the Confederates crossed Marsh Creek Bridge. Reynolds rode to the scene to assess the unfolding situation and direct his infantry forward, only to be cut down by a sharpshooter's bullet three hours after the opening engagement.

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