Various

“ Amid the confusion and uproar, I saw but one regiment moving in order, officers at their posts, companies in line and flag flying. It was the 57th Pennsylvania! When the men recognized me, they gave me three cheers, a compliment I have never recalled except with a full heart and, must I admit it, with grateful tears. The 57th has a right to be proud of its service, discipline and veteran courage on the battlefield of Chancellorsville. ”

“ We dedicate this memorial shaft, not to those who fell at Gettysburg alone, but to the eight hundred who were swallowed up by the tide of death on other fields; in prison pens, in hospitals, and on the lonely picket line. We dedicate it to every member of that grand old regiment, either living or dead. We dedicate it to our children and our children's children forever. ”

“ I see long lines marching out to do and die; I hear the mothers' cries, the sobs of wives, the sisters' wail, the sweethearts' moan; and then comes waiting, day by day and night by night, the women in darkened homes, the men amidst the dangers of the field. Today is hope; tomorrow comes the news, the dreadful news, the battle's crash, the roar of guns, the din of war, the sharp command, the fire and smoke, the whirl, the charge, the awful shock, the iron hoof, the swinging sword, the gush of blood, the piteous groan, the dying hero and the dead. ”

“ With a cheer they spring forward and press back the foe. Soon they are lost to view amid the scrub pine, their location only known by the curling smoke from their pieces and their cheers as they ascend the hill. Over half way to the summit the second line of the enemy is encountered. Again a galling fire is poured into their faces, but still they cheer and press on. Down in the valley we stand anxiously, but idly watching the now desperate and unequal contest our comrades of the Old Keystone are waging. They are brothers, friends and neighbors to many, if not all of us. ”

“ Immediately, it recognizes a general in whom it has confidence. The stragglers come from the bush and the wounded from the hospitals; regiments, brigades, divisions and corps reform, and at Antietam it is invincible and irresistible.
Every man in the ranks knew that the fortified heights of Fredericksburg were impregnable, that the forlorn hope would charge, not into the imminent deadly breach, but into a death trap, and yet with unfaltering step this grand army salutes its blind commander and marches to the slaughter! ”

“ As soldiers we knew little of the danger that confronted us, and nothing of the councils being held by the enemy plotting our discomfiture. This knowledge was reserved for us until the 31st. On that day about one o'clock, just after the regiment had its midday ration, like a clap of thunder out of a clear sky the crash of musketry came to our ears from the front. Casey's division of Key's corps, which had pushed about three miles to our front, and had erected some slight fortifications near Fair Oaks station, had been suddenly and fiercely attacked by overpowering numbers. ”

“ We have been met with many and unlooked for obstacles; but one by one they have been overcome, and the result of our work is before you.
As chairman of your committee, in the name of the taxpayers of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, I present you with this beautiful monument, which will stand while generations pass away, as a monument to the valor and patriotism of the 57th regiment, and to the generosity of the citizens of this grand old State. Pennsylvania honors herself in thus honoring the memory of those who fell in her defence. ”

“ In the midst of the roar of battle a fierce electric storm burst upon the contending forces, and the flashes of lightning and peals of thunder mingled with the crash of musketry and booming of cannon, while rain descended in torrents. While the regiments of the division were being advanced General Kearny sat on his horse but a few paces from the 57th. Some of his staff suggested that the regiment be assigned to the advance column. "No," replied the general, "place the 57th in reserve. If these men have to retreat I want them to fall back upon men that won't run!" ”

“ To the Army of the Potomac belongs the unique distinction of being its own hero. It fought more battles and lost more in killed and wounded than all others; it shed its blood like water to teach incompetent officers the art of war, and political tacticians the folly of their plans; but it was always the same invincible and undismayed Army of the Potomac. ”

“ Soon explosion followed explosion in quick succession within the enemy's lines. A shot from one of our guns had penetrated one of their caissons and now their own exploding ammunition was doing its deadly work, and silencing their only battery in position to do us immediate harm. Now is the time to charge the heights! The Pennsylvania Reserves are chosen for the hazardous task. In three lines, with arms at a right shoulder shift, they advanced at a quick step. What a magnificent spectacle! Not a man falters, but shoulder to shoulder they move across the plain in perfect alignment. ”

“ Then, with discipline and drill, out of chaos came order; the self-deserting volunteer has become an obedient soldier; the mass has become moulded into a complex but magnificent machine; and it was the Army of the Potomac! Overcoming untold difficulties, fighting with superb courage, it comes in sight of the spires of Richmond, and then, unable to succeed, because McDowell and his corps of thirty thousand men are held back, it renews each morning and carries on every night in retreat the Seven Days' Battle for existence ”

“ President Lincoln finally broke the silent spell, and, turning to Governor Curtin, said: "Governor, what will Pennsylvania do, if I issue my proclamation?" Silence more profound prevailed. It was a momentous question. It seemed as if the fate of a nation depended upon the reply about to be made. Manifest destiny seemed trembling in the balance. Governor Curtin faced the President and said: "What will Pennsylvania do? Why, sir, if you issue your proclamation, Pennsylvania will give you a hundred thousand men in one week." ”

“ Across the narrow neck of land that divided the waters of the Chesapeake and James, the magnificent hosts of the Army of the Potomac, stretching from shore to shore, moved forward to the fortified post of the enemy at Yorktown. Battlefields, like history, repeat themselves. ”

“ The outlook was squally; at daybreak, the rebels would attack; what could the 57th do against such odds? I at once sent to General Kearny a report and a request for supports, threw out a company of skirmishers to the left along the edge of the hill, formed the regiment behind the rail barricade, ordered the Irish picket to stand fast where they were and everybody to fire at will and with good aim at any rebel who should try to reach the top of the hill. I knew that if the enemy should once gain the level ground with their artillery, the little 57th would be swept off as by a cyclone. ”

“ Comrades of the 57th Pennsylvania Veteran Volunteers:
In obedience to your command, I have appeared before you in many different characters. I have, with you, trudged along on the weary march and carried my gun, knapsack and forty rounds. And in obedience to your call, I rose rank by rank, until I had the honor to command the grand old regiment. Today, in obedience to your call, I stand before you in a new role; that of orator for this occasion. However well I may have been able to fill the positions to which you have called me heretofore, I do not hope to meet your expectations today. ”

“ No longer need we look back through the centuries for deeds of noble daring. We can point with pride to our own record in the great War of the Rebellion for achievements that will rival Spartan valor or Roman fortitude.
The 57th regiment was organized early in the fall of 1861, at Camp Curtin, Pennsylvania, and in December of that year was ordered to Washington and went into camp on the Bladensburg pike, near the old toll gate, and subsequently became a part of the Army of the Potomac. From that time until you were mustered out, the history of the Army of the Potomac was your history. ”

“ For with but few exceptions there is not a battlefield from Gettysburg to Mobile where the ground has not been stained with the blood of the soldiers of Pennsylvania. There is not a State, loyal or insurrectionary, which was the seat of war, that does not hold within it the honored and sacred remains of the slain heroes of Pennsylvania. When Beauregard first trained his murderous guns upon Fort Sumter, Pennsylvania was there. Pennsylvania volunteers were the first to reach the National Capitol. We were at Appomattox when traitors fired their last volley ”

“ In addition to this, in March, 1864, upon the reorganization of the army, the grand old 3d corps, to which you belonged, was broken up; a corps with a name and a record as brilliant as any organization in the army, a corps that had furnished a galaxy of names second to none in brilliancy; such names as Heintzelman, Hamilton and Sickles, Kearny and Hooker, and Birney and Berry. You must lose your identity, and were ordered to lay off the badge which you had honored, the old diamond which you loved ”

“ Not for his friends alone was that blood shed, but for his enemies as well; and by this latter blood not one but all of us shall live; and on foundations firm as heaven itself the new Republic rises strong and towering upward to the sky; its glistening summits lift their points until they touch the far off blue, and overtopping all the world, they stand up clear against the clouds, so that the very lowest down may see, and, seeing, know that what they see is Freedom's home. ”

“ Thus time passed until 2 o'clock p. m., when suddenly one of those unlimbered pieces, with a crash that brought every man to his feet, sent a screaming shell far out over the woods beyond. This defiant shot seemed at once to be accepted by the enemy as a challenge to action, for immediately there followed a spattering discharge of musketry along our front, the bugle notes sounded and the command to "fall in" rang out along the lines. ”

“ We reached our destination in excellent condition, after serving as buffer for more than two days between our army and the enemy.
Our trip by water to Alexandria was uneventful. Our short stay in that city was made memorable by the drunken carouse of nearly all the troops. It was a day of debauchery; staggering and reeling men filled the street and drunken men the cars which were to take the troops to the Rapidan. The striking exception was the 57th; it maintained its sobriety and good order. While I was standing near the regiment and feeling great pride in it, General Kearny rode by. ”

“ Approaching nearer the field of battle the lines assumed a more defiant order, and it was evident that the greater mass of the troops were nobly standing, and lustily cheered us as we passed. A short distance beyond Fair Oaks station the brigade was deployed in line of battle in an open field to the right of the railroad. The thick woods to our front afforded an excellent cover for the enemy's sharpshooters, of which they speedily availed themselves, field and staff officers being their tempting targets. In a few moments orders were received to move to the left. ”

“ We know we are not in supporting distance. Our impatience overcomes our discipline to wait the word to advance. Shouts are being heard all along the line: "Why are not the Reserves being supported?" We know too keenly that they must yield to the overpowering odds against them unless reinforced at once!
"Battalion, right face, forward, file left, march!" rings out clear from the colonel's lips. The men are quick to obey, and we move more rapidly to the front. "By company, half wheel! Forward into line on first company!" ”

“ Orders to fall back were given, but in the din of battle were unheard or unheeded, and many who attempted the retreat were left dead or wounded on the field. The enemy swarmed out of the woods in our front without order or alignment, giving but little heed to the ditch, springing over the heads of its occupants in their mad rush for our batteries. There was not time for the gunners to debate the question of the safety of their comrades in their front if they would save their batteries, and possibly the day to our cause. ”

“ The 105th Pennsylvania were the first to enter the abandoned works. The news of the evacuation of the works and retreat of the Confederates spread rapidly from regiment to regiment, and our bloodless victory, but not without the loss of many a brave boy, was celebrated with wild shouts and cheers. The cavalry followed closely on the heels of the retreating enemy, but the infantry did not take up the line of march until later in the day; Fighting Joe Hooker's division following first, with Kearny close in his rear. ”

“ The combined remonstrances of the medical officers of the brigade, 'that a month's continuance in that place would deprive the government of the services of one-half of its members,' were met by the silencing reply, 'It is a military necessity.' The result showed that our fears were well founded. The malaria of the marshes and swamps of Yorktown, with the excessive labor performed in the trenches and on picket duty, debilitated our men for months, sending dozens of them to their graves, and rendering hundreds unfit for service, and many for life. ”

“ We continued to grope our way through the thicket and swamps and finally met the enemy and opened fire. The whole division was soon engaged and the roar of the musketry was terrific. In our front the enemy was less than two hundred feet from us, but so dense was the underbrush that it was almost impossible to see them. We had the advantage of the enemy, who were on higher ground, and many of their balls passed over us. The left of the regiment had the hottest part of the line, as it rested on the plank road and was subjected to the fire of the rebels who were on the other side of the road. ”