The 62nd PA Volunteer Infantry Living History Family is pleased to announce a special presentation on The 62nd PA Flag by our friend Amy Wilson on October 12th at 11:00 am, at the Gettysburg Heritage Center, 297 Steinwehr Ave. Gettysburg, PA, in conjunction with the 62nd PVI Living History Family’s encampment at the Heritage Center.
A number of years ago, we were asked to be the Honor Guard for the rededication ceremony for the Company M flag, held on July 2nd in the Wheatfield. Amy was one of the presenters that day, and in the years since she has been doing quite a bit of research specific to Company M, and the 62nd boys from the Hollidaysburg area.
This promises to be a very moving and informative presentation, and we hope that if you decide to visit our encampment on October 12th, you will also step inside the Heritage Center at 11:00 am for this presentation in the Heritage Center Conference Room on “The 62nd PA Flag: Stories Of Antietam, Gettysburg, And The Battle To Be Remembered”.
The 62nd PVI LHF is getting ready for our annual trip to the Gettysburg Heritage Center for a Living History Encampment on October 11th from 10 AM to 6 PM and October 12th from 10 AM to 4 PM. The Heritage Center is located at 297 Steinwehr Ave. Gettysburg, PA 17325, if you would like to visit us. We will have two full days of living history demonstrations, with visitors able to walk through our encampment and talk to our family as we share the story of the 62nd PVI. This encampment is always a highlight of our year, and we look forward to welcoming many visitors. This year we also have some special additions to our encampment on Sunday the 12th.
SPECIAL PRESENTATIONS FOR SUNDAY, OCTOBER 12TH
CHURCH SERVICE 10:00 AM – As in recent events, Chaplain Jeff Ryder is going to conduct a Sunday morning Worship service in camp, starting at 10 AM. Guests are welcome to attend!
AMY WILSON PRESENTATION 11:00 AM: “THE 62ND PA FLAG – STORIES OF ANTIETAM, GETTYSBURG, AND THE BATTLE TO BE REMEMBERED” – Amy Wilson will give a presentation in the Heritage Center Conference Room inside the Heritage Center on Sunday the 12th at 11:00 AM.
A number of years ago, we were asked to be the Honor Guard for the rededication ceremony for the Company M flag, held on July 2nd in the Wheatfield. Amy was one of the presenters that day, and in the years since she has been doing quite a bit of research specific to Company M, and the 62nd boys from the Hollidaysburg area, so we are looking forward to her presentation on the 62nd PA Flag on October 12th at 11 AM.
As we prepare for this event in October, we are very grateful for all of our opportunities to share the story of the 62nd PA Volunteer Infantry, and all of the great people we have met along the way. We hope to see you in Gettysburg!
By Katie Wolfe, Co-Vice President of the 62nd PVI LHF:
The 62nd PVI LHF continued our tradition of traveling to Gettysburg, PA to mark the anniversary of the battle of Gettysburg, 162 years ago. This is always a very special weekend to our living history family, as we remember ‘the boys’ of the 62nd PVI at our Wheatfield Tribute Ceremony at the 62nd PVI Monument. This year was a little more special for a number of reasons- 1. We were also invited to set up our living history encampment at the Children of Gettysburg 1863 Museum, a great hands-on museum for children that educates them about both the battle and the civilians of Gettysburg, and 2. A very special visit from a young man named Lochlan, who was visiting Gettysburg with his family as his Make A Wish visit after recovering from a long treatment for cancer. Here are the highlights of our anniversary weekend in Gettysburg…
A highlight of Friday after we set up our encampment was when most of us gathered as a group for a Campfire Talk in Pitzer Woods on West Confederate Avenue with Ranger Matt Atkinson. Ranger Matt took the time to talk to us, in particular to Gavin in his uniform- way to go Gavin! Anna and I actually helped to run the picture slides on his computer for his presentation on Camp Letterman Hospital so that he could stand closer to the audience and be heard. (He had no microphone and it was a large crowd.) There was actually a 62nd PA story in the presentation! Ranger Matt highlighted the story of Private Jacob Shenkel of the 62nd PA who was a musician and stayed to help at the Camp Letterman hospital after the battle. Private Shenkel was in 2 historic photographs Matt shared, one at an operation and one where he was posing/standing in a coffin box! What a remarkable story, with our 62d PVI LHF family sitting in the audience!
Anna helping to run the picture slides!
Saturday was a beautiful day for our Wheatfield Tribute ceremony. Our friend David Lentz fell in with us, Sergeant Rob Skeel led us in, Chaplain Jeff Ryder led us in an opening prayer, and Private Matt Hankinson spoke on behalf of the Company. Many stories of the 62nd PA’s fight in the Wheatfield were shared, but one memorable one was the story of the 62nd PA Camp Betty Black flag that members of our Armstrong County Civil War Roundtable recently saw in Harrisburg. It is wonderful that this flag is still preserved in our state capitol! The Wolfe ladies then read Joshua Chamberlain’s In Great Deeds Something Abides speech, Private Brian Wolfe played Taps, the wheat sheaf was placed by Private Gavin Zimmerman and Chaplain Ryder gave a final prayer to end another memorable Wheatfield Tribute Ceremony.
The Wheatfield Tribute
Private Wolfe, Bugler
We then had a brief break before our encampment at the Children of Gettysburg 1863 museum. It was a busy day and we greeted many guests, and many children in uniform! Everyone worked together to keep the camp running and we enjoyed a meal of ham sandwiches and an apple pie cooked by the ladies over the campfire. It was great to see Corporal Tim Bowser’s family and little grandson, who appreciated the cup of ice he got from Miss Katie! Amazingly, a descendant of a 62nd PVI soldier from Company B also visited our encampment, and so our list of descendants continues to grow!
An Antebellum Marine Band concert of patriotic music started at 6:00 pm, with Private Brian Wolfe joining to play his trumpet. At this concert, the Make A Wish young man Lochlan Brown and his family were introduced and a proclamation read in his honor by the Mayor of Gettysburg. He then conducted the band for Yankee Doodle, wearing a red band jacket given to him by the band master, our friend Ken Serfass, aka Living Historian General Grant.
The Lochlan and family Make A Wish visit was definitely a highlight, as they visited with us during the concert. Lochlan and his family were so friendly and very appreciative of the time we took to talk to them. Our President, Slim Bowser, has been in contact with Lochlan and his family and is going to do a separate and more in-depth post very soon specifically about his visit to our encampment. Needless to say, it was a very moving and heart-warming visit for all of us, and one we won’t soon forget!
On Sunday, Chaplain Jeff Ryder led a wonderful church service and it was attended by many guests, which was great. We sang songs that the soldiers sang in 1863, such as “Soldiers of Christ Arise” and “Rock of Ages”. Our Chaplain then preached a wonderful and fitting sermon about Adam and Eve and the worst Independence Day, and our need for a Savior. We then enjoyed brunch together and talked to more visitors and children. It was great to see Rob Skeel again with James and Patrick! They even learned how to play Graces with Kara and Anna Wolfe and James was getting pretty good! We also were visited by an intern from the Seminary Ridge Museum who took our picture with General Bearford- very cute!
The 62nd PVI LHF with General Bearford!
Many children visited our encampment, which was great to see!
We showed guests how to play the sawmill toy and the bugle!
We broke down camp late Sunday afternoon after a great weekend together!
I also want to give a shout-out to all of our younger generation in the 62nd PVI LHF- we really do have such a great group of kids and teens! On this particular weekend Cayden, Gavin, Kara, Anna, James and Patrick did such a great job helping out, setting up, cooking, cleaning, talking with visitors, playing with kids who visited and making everyone feel welcome in our camp. We are very proud of our younger generation!
That’s it from me- thank you all for a wonderful weekend. We missed everyone who could not be with us and we hope to see you at our next event! God Bless,
Many years ago, one of our long-time descendant members Joe Rupp mentioned that he was going to go to Gettysburg to work on the battlefield for a “Volunteer Work Day” program…I don’t recall if anyone else went with Joe that year, but in the years that followed the interest grew, to the point where we were recognized one year as the “group with the most volunteers” for that work day…
Over the course of our participation in the VWD efforts, which is under the direction of the Gettysburg Foundation [formerly “Friends of Gettysburg”], along with the National Park Service, we have been a part of many, many rewarding projects aimed at maintaining and preserving the Gettysburg battlefield for generations to come…this has included painting some of the historic structures [Codori Barn, McPherson Barn, Eisenhower Farm HQ building], historic fences, as well as building and repairing thousands of feet of historic fence lines, clearing brush along the fence lines, and several details inside the Soldiers National Cemetery [painting the engraved names on the Civil War markers, cleaning headstones]…
Which brings us to Saturday, June 7th, 2025, which started out with some light to steady rain for the morning hours…as it turned out, our small crew of five joined a much larger crew of volunteers for the “headstone cleaning” detail in the cemetery, and the rain didn’t bother us much, as the first step in the process of cleaning headstones is to wet them…from there, a cleaning solution [D2] is applied with pump sprayers, followed by a gentle scrubbing with nylon brushes, and then a second wetting or rinsing with the hoses…
This process results in a visible improvement, especially for the stones that were shaded and under trees, but the D2 cleaner is intended to produce a gradual cleaning of the marble stones through the repeated cycles of sunlight and rain, allowing the cleaner to penetrate the stone without causing any harmful deterioration…when you walk through the cemetery at any given time and see nearly pure white headstones, you are seeing the results of a cleaning cycle done weeks or months prior…
As with any of the duties performed involving the headstones, we never lose sight of the fact that each one represents someone who gave “the last full measure of devotion”, and to reinforce that, Wayne Motts, a man who wears too many hats to list, was kind enough to walk among the stones as we were cleaning, and stop to share a few stories about the fathers, mothers, sons, daughters, grandfathers or grandmothers whose names are engraved into history…
And so it continues amongst the volunteers…we had Tim Bowser, Matt Zimmerman and his son Gavin, and myself [Slim Bowser] with grandson Cayden Mechling, who along with many other fathers, sons, mothers, daughters, grandmas and grandpas, worked together to clean most [or all] of the non-Civil War headstones in the cemetery that day…
We were treated to lunch provided by the Gettysburg Foundation at the Gettysburg High School at noon, before returning to finish the job in the afternoon…the sunshine also returned, which gave us a chance to dry out, and made the white marble shine a little brighter…of course in that setting, among the thousands of graves, I couldn’t help but think of how God gives us the chance to become clean again, by submitting to the “cleaning process” provided by the blood of His Son Jesus, which makes us “white as snow” once we repent and believe!
At the end of the hard days work, we went back to get cleaned up so we could enjoy our annual “post work day cookout” at the beautiful log cabin reserved at Drummer Boy Camping Resort…it’s hard to beat setting on the cabin porch overlooking the pond, enjoying food, friends, and fellowship [and bullfrogs!] at one of our favorite Gettysburg locations…
The 62nd Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry Living History Family was greatly honored to present a progam on the 62nd PVI in January of 2025 at the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh and the Captain Thomas Espy G.A.R Post entitled, “Blood, Courage, and the Maltese Cross”. We were especially honored to give this presentation at the Captain Thomas Espy G.A.R Post, as Captain Espy was a member of Company H of the 62nd PVI, and sadly lost his life after being wounded at the battle of Gaines Mills in 1862. Members of our company plus some friends and fellow historians gave meaningful presentations on different soldiers of the 62nd PVI, including local author Mr. Tom McMillan who introduced us and spoke about his ancestor, Captain Thomas Espy!
Mr. Jon-Erik Gilot of the Carnegie Library introduced the program, with remarks from our friend Mr. Tom McMillan as well. Our young recruit Gavin Zimmerman read a brief history of the formation of the 62nd PVI, the names of its leaders, and the batttles the 62nd PVI fought in, as well as the numbers of soldiers wounded, missing, captured and killed in action. Then members of the 62nd PA family including Matt Hankinson, Jim Johnson, Van Cornish, Cindy McShane, Brian and Katie Wolfe and friend of the 62nd PVI LHF Mr. Paul Blackman shared personal stories about soldiers and family members of the 62nd PVI. Katie Wolfe spoke on behalf of our good President, Robert “Slim” Bowser on the importance of what we do as a living history family in passing on the stories of the brave men of the 62nd PA, including Slim’s ancestor, Sergeant Daniel Warren Swigart, who survived the war and gave the benediction as Reverend Swigart at the dedication of the 62nd PVI monument in the Wheatfield at Gettysburg. An original program from that ceremony is housed in the Armstrong County Historical Museum, and curator and 62nd PVI LHF member Jim Johnson brought it to Carnegie as a real link to the stories that were shared…
Mr. Tom McMillan
Mr. Paul Blackham then gave an excellent talk on the Virtual Cemetery of the 62nd PVI that he has created, with links to information on many gravesites of soldiers from the 62nd PVI. Paul shared some amazing stories about soldiers from the 62nd, many who survived the war, including one soldier who enlisted at around age 15 and lived long enough to hear about the bombing of Pearl Harbor on the radio in 1943!
The Wolfes then spoke on the Lowry brothers of Freeport, PA, Major William Gustin Lowry and Corporal Robert Alexander Lowry. Our Bugler, Private Brian Wolfe, read the tragic story of the accidental death of Corporal/Bugler Robert “Gan” Lowry from our great friend Mr. Ernest Spisak’s book on the 62nd PA, Pittsburgh’s Forgotten Civil War Regiment. The story moved the audience, as did the heart-wrenching passages read from Mother Lowry’s diary by Cindy McShane and Katie Wolfe, describing a Mother’s fear for her sons and her grief at their deaths. Major Lowry gave his life for his country on the Stony Hill at Gettysburg leading his company on July 2, 1863, and is buried today in the Soldiers National Cemetery at Gettysburg.
Katie Wolfe and Cindy McShane
Private Van Cornish then shared the sad story of Private William Dunn of Allegheny County, who enlisted in the 62nd PVI and sent most of his wages home to his large family, who depended on his wages for support. Sadly, Private Dunn lost his life in the Wheatfield at Gettysburg, and again the audience was visibly moved by his story of sacrifice and duty.
Katie Wolfe and Private Van Cornish
Private Matt Hankinson finished the program with the heartfelt story of Captain Edwin Little and his wife Maggie of Punxsutawney, PA. Reading quotes from the war time letters of Mr. and Mrs. Little made the audience smile, laugh and finally get teary-eyed as Captain Little’s story also ended with his death on the Stony Hill at Gettysburg, and his wife giving birth to a son shortly after who was named in honor of his father, but would never know him…
Private Matt Hankinson
Private Jim Johnson concluded the program reflecting on his ancestor’s service in the 62nd PVI, and the importance of remembering and sharing the stories of the 62nd PVI, highlighting in particular the great book written by the late Mr. Ernest Spisak, Pittsburgh’s Forgotten Civil War Regiment. We as a living history family are grateful for Ernie’s hard work and research to produce this record of the 62d PVI, as well as his friendship. Thus we concluded another meaningful and memorable event honoring ‘the boys’ of the 62nd Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry.
The 62nd PVI LHF recently participated in a Civil War Days Living History event at the Armstrong County Historical Museum & Genealogical Society in Kittanning, PA. We were joined by special guests Mr. Michael Kraus, Curator of Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Hall of Pittsburgh, Mr. Evan Portman of Emerging Civil War and American Battlefield Trust, and the 11th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry Reenactors. It was a beautiful day with good crowds throughout the day, and we were once again honored to share the story of the 62nd Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry.
62nd Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry Living History Family
Michael Kraus, Curator of Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Hall, Pittsburgh
The 62nd PVI LHF is excited to begin the living history season of 2025 with a Civil War Days Event at the Armstrong County Historical Museum & Genealogical Society on May 10th! The museum is located at 300 N. McKean St. Kittanning, PA, and we have a full day of living history planned! The encampment will open at 10:00 am, and we are pleased to welcome the 11th PVI reenactor group, as well as two guest speakers- Michael Kraus of Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Hall of Pittsburgh speaking at 1:00 pm on local Civil War stories and artifacts and Evan Portman of Emerging Civil War and American Battlefield Trust speaking at 2:00 pm on the Battle of Gettysburg: Forgotten Civilians. The full schedule of events is below, and we hope to see many friends on May 10th! Here’s to a great season!
To continue with catching up over the past year, the 62nd PA Volunteer Infantry Living History Family acted as hosts again for the Armstrong County Historical Museum & Genealogical Society’s Christmas Open House on Sunday, December 1, 2024. The museum and log cabin were beautifully decorated and full of festive cheer as the members of the company interacted with guests, served refreshments and shared stories of the soldiers and families of the 62nd PVI and how they celebrated Christmas both on the front lines and at home during the Civil War. It was a wonderful day of family and fellowship!
The 62nd PVI LHF traveled to Gettysburg last November for the annual Remembrance Day ceremony at the 62nd PVI monument in the Wheatfield, the Remembrance Day Parade and Honor Guard Duty at the Illumination in the Soldiers National Cemetery. This year was as solemn and moving as always, with new recruits and familiar faces joining our ranks to honor the soldiers of the 62nd PVI. The ceremony in the Wheatfield in the morning was well attended by our company, the ladies and children, and many friends of the 62nd PVI LHF. Stories were shared, soldiers and comrades in arms that fought next to the 62nd PVI were remembered, and honor was given to the soldiers through the laying of the wheat sheaf with its black ribbon and American flag at the monument and finally with the playing of Taps.
Quickly after the ceremony, it was time to find our place in line for the Remembrance Day Parade. It was a beautiful day for a parade, and the streets were lined with many people who had come to ‘remember’. A good meal and fellowship at Friendly’s followed the parade, with a little downtime before nightfall and our duty as Honor Guard for the Illumination was to begin.
Our members of the Honor Guard, including a very young recruit, stood guard for a full 45 minutes of solemn reflection and honor over the graves of all the fallen in the cemetery. After our post as Honor Guard was concluded, our good Sergeant Rob Skeel led the Honor Guard on a special march to the graves of the soldiers from the 62nd PVI buried in the Soldiers National Cemetery to have a moment of silence in honor, respect, and remembrance of the ‘boys’ of the 62nd Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry. And so concluded another very memorable and meaningful Remembrance Day in Gettysburg.
Written by Katie Wolfe, Co-Vice President, 62nd PVI LHF. Pictures contributed by Katie Wolfe, Danielle Troup, Cindy McShane, David Lentz and the Zimmerman family.
Katie Wolfe, Co Vice-President of the 62nd PVI LHF here. Apologies for the long overdue update on posts, but as the 62nd PVI LHF looks ahead to our 2025 season, we have much to be thankful for in looking back over our 2024 season! To start catching up, this past October we returned to one of our favorite living history encampment sites at the Heritage Center in Gettysburg, PA for a weekend of educating the public about the 62nd PVI, its soldiers and their families, the battles they fought in, their camp life and more. As you can see from the pictures, we had a fantastic weekend of great weather, many interested guests and great fellowship with one another!
CoD62ndPVI 