Last updated: January 12, 2024
Place
Humphreys Monument
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Quick Facts
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Historical/Interpretive Information/Exhibits
The charge of Andrew Atkinson Humphreys’ division (3rd Division, Fifth Corps, US Army of the Potomac, made up entirely of Pennsylvanians) was the last major assault made against the Sunken Road on December 13, 1862. Throughout the early afternoon, General Edwin Sumner had thrown the divisions of French, Hancock, Howard, Griffin, and Whipple against the Confederate line without success. Around mid-afternoon, Burnside ordered the heights to be attacked yet again, this time by the men of General Joseph Hooker’s Center Grand Division.
In preparation for this assault, Humphreys’s division crossed the river and deployed into a line of battle on the western side of the millrace, astride Hanover Street, shortly after 2:30pm. Opposed to renewing the assault against what he considered an impregnable position, Hooker rode back across the river to confer with the commanding general. In his absence, word reached General Darius Couch that Confederate guns had been seen leaving the heights. Misinterpreting the movement as a Confederate retreat, Couch ordered Humphreys to attack at once.
Humphreys ordered his men forward at sunset. As the division crossed the plain, Confederate infantry and artillery fire blasted its ranks, belying reports of a rebel withdrawal. Nevertheless, Humphreys’ men pressed forward, approaching to within 100 yards of the stone wall that ran along the base of the ridge. The division paid dearly for its courage. In little more than an hour’s time, it lost 1,019 men, 25 percent of the 4,000 men that it took into action.
Fredericksburg Battlefield Memorial Commission of Pennsylvania erected the Humphreys Monument was with assistance from the State of Pennsylvania. President D. Watson Rowe, Secretary/Treasurer James M. Clark, and other members of the Commission came to Fredericksburg in May 1906 to search for a place to put the monument. When they could not find a suitable site at a reasonable price, they determined to erect the memorial in Fredericksburg National Cemetery. Civil Engineer P. H. Henderson staked out the location for the monument on August 31, 1908. By the second week of October the monument was in place.
Two trains carrying veterans of the division, their families, friends, and dignitaries arrived in Fredericksburg at on November 11, 1908. Although a rainstorm temporarily interrupted their reunion, the skies cleared off in time for the monument dedication.
Tansil’s 16-piece band of Washington, D.C., opened the day’s activities with a concert at the courthouse. One hour later, 1,500 people marched to the cemetery. The veterans of Humphreys’ division, marching in regimental formation, brought up the rear. Thousands of local citizens crowded the streets to watch the mile-long procession as it made its way through the city. Once the procession arrived at the cemetery, dignitaries and honored guests took their seats on temporary stand, as 3,000 spectators crowded into position below.
Over the course of the ceremony, the Memorial Commission transferred ownership of the monument to the State of Pennsylvania. The State of Pennsylvania, in turn, transferred ownership to Assistant Secretary of War Robert Shaw Oliver, representing the United States Government.
The monument is made of smooth pink Stony Creek, Connecticut, granite. A pedestal stands atop a stepped octagonal base that measures 14 feet square at its widest point. A bronze statue of General Humphreys crafted by Herbert Adams crowns the whole. Humphreys, holding his hat with one hand and clutching the hilt of his sword with the other, faces eastward his gaze focused on the northern horizon. The pedestal and base together stand 11 feet high, while the figure of Humphreys increases the height by another nine feet for a total height of 20 feet. Ornate bronze letters adorn the base and pedestal and form the following inscriptions:
[North Face]
134TH REGIMENT
COL-EDWARD O’BRIEN
129TH REGIMENT
COL-JACOB G-FRICK
126TH REGIMENT
COL-JAMES G-ELDER
LT-COL-D-WATSONROWE
91ST REGIMENT
COL-E-M-GREGORY
PENNSYLVANIA
VOLUNTEER
INFANTRY
[South Face]
SECOND BRIGADE
COL-P-H-ALLEBACH
131ST REGIMENT
COMMANDING
131ST REGIMENT
LT-COL-WM-B-SHAVT
133RD REGIMENT
COL-F-B-SPEAKMAN
123RD REGIMENT
COL-JOHN B-CLARK
155TH REGIMENT
COL-EDWARD J-ALLAN
PENNSYLVANIA
VOLUNTEER
INFANTRY
In preparation for this assault, Humphreys’s division crossed the river and deployed into a line of battle on the western side of the millrace, astride Hanover Street, shortly after 2:30pm. Opposed to renewing the assault against what he considered an impregnable position, Hooker rode back across the river to confer with the commanding general. In his absence, word reached General Darius Couch that Confederate guns had been seen leaving the heights. Misinterpreting the movement as a Confederate retreat, Couch ordered Humphreys to attack at once.
Humphreys ordered his men forward at sunset. As the division crossed the plain, Confederate infantry and artillery fire blasted its ranks, belying reports of a rebel withdrawal. Nevertheless, Humphreys’ men pressed forward, approaching to within 100 yards of the stone wall that ran along the base of the ridge. The division paid dearly for its courage. In little more than an hour’s time, it lost 1,019 men, 25 percent of the 4,000 men that it took into action.
The Monument's History
Fredericksburg Battlefield Memorial Commission of Pennsylvania erected the Humphreys Monument was with assistance from the State of Pennsylvania. President D. Watson Rowe, Secretary/Treasurer James M. Clark, and other members of the Commission came to Fredericksburg in May 1906 to search for a place to put the monument. When they could not find a suitable site at a reasonable price, they determined to erect the memorial in Fredericksburg National Cemetery. Civil Engineer P. H. Henderson staked out the location for the monument on August 31, 1908. By the second week of October the monument was in place.Two trains carrying veterans of the division, their families, friends, and dignitaries arrived in Fredericksburg at on November 11, 1908. Although a rainstorm temporarily interrupted their reunion, the skies cleared off in time for the monument dedication.
Tansil’s 16-piece band of Washington, D.C., opened the day’s activities with a concert at the courthouse. One hour later, 1,500 people marched to the cemetery. The veterans of Humphreys’ division, marching in regimental formation, brought up the rear. Thousands of local citizens crowded the streets to watch the mile-long procession as it made its way through the city. Once the procession arrived at the cemetery, dignitaries and honored guests took their seats on temporary stand, as 3,000 spectators crowded into position below.
Over the course of the ceremony, the Memorial Commission transferred ownership of the monument to the State of Pennsylvania. The State of Pennsylvania, in turn, transferred ownership to Assistant Secretary of War Robert Shaw Oliver, representing the United States Government.
Description
The monument is made of smooth pink Stony Creek, Connecticut, granite. A pedestal stands atop a stepped octagonal base that measures 14 feet square at its widest point. A bronze statue of General Humphreys crafted by Herbert Adams crowns the whole. Humphreys, holding his hat with one hand and clutching the hilt of his sword with the other, faces eastward his gaze focused on the northern horizon. The pedestal and base together stand 11 feet high, while the figure of Humphreys increases the height by another nine feet for a total height of 20 feet. Ornate bronze letters adorn the base and pedestal and form the following inscriptions:[East Face]
ERECTED
BY
PENNSYLVANIA
ERECTED
BY
PENNSYLVANIA
TO
CONMEMORATE
THE CHARGE OF
GENERALHVMPHREYS’DIVISION
FIFTH CORPS-ON
MARYE’S HEIGHTS
FREDERICKSBURG
VIRGINIA
DEC—13—1862
134TH 129TH 126TH 91ST
131ST 133RD 123RD 155TH
PENNA-VOL-INFY
BRIGADIER-GENERAL
CONMEMORATE
THE CHARGE OF
GENERALHVMPHREYS’DIVISION
FIFTH CORPS-ON
MARYE’S HEIGHTS
FREDERICKSBURG
VIRGINIA
DEC—13—1862
134TH 129TH 126TH 91ST
131ST 133RD 123RD 155TH
PENNA-VOL-INFY
BRIGADIER-GENERAL
ANDREW ATKINSON HVMPHREYS
THIRD DIVISION-FIFTH ARMY CORPS
THIRD DIVISION-FIFTH ARMY CORPS
[North Face]
FIRST BRIGADE
BRIG-GEN-E-B-TYLER
BRIG-GEN-E-B-TYLER
134TH REGIMENT
COL-EDWARD O’BRIEN
129TH REGIMENT
COL-JACOB G-FRICK
126TH REGIMENT
COL-JAMES G-ELDER
LT-COL-D-WATSONROWE
91ST REGIMENT
COL-E-M-GREGORY
PENNSYLVANIA
VOLUNTEER
INFANTRY
[South Face]
SECOND BRIGADE
COL-P-H-ALLEBACH
131ST REGIMENT
COMMANDING
131ST REGIMENT
LT-COL-WM-B-SHAVT
133RD REGIMENT
COL-F-B-SPEAKMAN
123RD REGIMENT
COL-JOHN B-CLARK
155TH REGIMENT
COL-EDWARD J-ALLAN
PENNSYLVANIA
VOLUNTEER
INFANTRY
For more information see, Donald C. Pfanz, History Through Eyes of Stone, A Survey of Civil War Monuments Near Fredericksburg, Virginia, February 1983, Revised October 2020.