GDG- Bliss Farm Site

[JIM COOKE]

Tom, unfortunately we do not have pictures of the farm site. When William Bliss bought the property there was an advertisement that described a 75 X 30 structure of stone, brick and wood, and a fairly modest house. Mr. Bliss paid $1,900 for the farm and after the war sold the land to N. Codori for $1,000. A damage claim was filed, but the family did not receive anything. There is a great book called "The Struggle for the Bliss Farm" by Elwood Crist which talks about the history of the property, the family, and their loss.
We live right near there, and my wife was on our front porch last Saturday, and she was able to hear some of Dr. Fennell's talk as the group moved across the field. Isn't he a great presenter?
At least three AOP regiments fought over this ground, including the 1st DE, 12th NJ and 14th CT. There are some accounts of some less than heroic actions of the commander of the 1st (Harris) on July 3, and other accounts of heroic actions by other soldiers as the property changed hands many times during July 2 and 3. Indeed, it can be argued that the spirited defense of the AOP regiments who fought on this property interfered with the July 2 assault and prevented Posey from advancing all his regiments across the fields in support of A. R. Wright, who had to retire after achieving a breakthrough of the AOP lines on Cemetery Ridge.
JC
----- Original Message -----
From: Tom Ryan <pennmardel at mchsi.com>
To: GDG <gettysburg at arthes.com>
Sent: Sat, 3 May 2008 11:36:29 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: RE: GDG- Bliss Farm Site

Esteemed GDG Member Contributes:


<<A nice bunch of people, most but not all from Connecticut, cleared brush from around the William Bliss farm site and the related monuments yesterday Thank you, ladies and gentlemen, for your efforts.>>

Jim, 

A Spring Muster tour dealt with the 14th CT and the Bliss Farm.  That was an area I was generally unfamiliar with, and this tour was an eye opener.  The fact that the 1st Delaware was on the same skirmish line was of interest as well.  

Some day it would be nice to see reconstruction of the Bliss house and barn  Now the area is mostly overlooked because of its remote location and lack of buildings to draw visitors.

Tom Ryan 

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