June 28 and 29th, 1863 - Skirmish of Oyster's Point

June 28 and 29, 1863

The Skirmish of Oyster's Point (more like skirmishes)

Camp Hill, PA

Gen. William F. Smith:  two militia regiments from New York and Landis’ Philadelphia Battery of Light Artillery

VS.

Ewell: Gen. Albert G. Jenkins

* Much of this skirmishing is just a distraction so Jenkins can observe and report on the Harrisburg defenses

* Several sources refer to it as a "small engagement" or a skirmish, hardly ever a battle- but it has got to be the furthest North-East that the Confederates ever got. Certainly these skirmishes at Oyster Point are further East than the other actions approaching Harrisburg, and represents their closest approach to the Northern capitol city. 

* "the furthest northern point which was reached by the invaders, and marks the crest of the wave of the invasion of Pennsylvania" - or maybe that was Sporting Hill.

"Farthest advance of a body of Confederate troops toward Harrisburg. Southern units under General A. G. Jenkins of Ewell's Corps reached Oyster Point on June 28, 1863. On the next day defending militia faced them here in a skirmish in which both sides suffered casualties."

https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=26520

"Confederate General Albert G. Jenkins` trot towards Harrisburg was stalled as he neared Oyster’s Point, named for a tavern owned by the Oyster family at the junction of Carlisle Pike and Trindle Springs Road. In 1863, these two roads met to form a fork or a 'point' around the 3000 block of Market Street. Recognizing the strategic advantage of controlling these roads, select Union forces advanced from the defenses of Harrisburg and gathered in the vicinity. The Oysters’ quaint tavern, a mere three and a half miles from the state capital, would soon become the focal point of hostilities in the hours before Gettysburg.

The nearby community was known as White Hall, consisting of about a dozen homes. In the days before the Confederate arrival, Union militia had looted and plundered the local homes and farmsteads. 'It seemed as if our soldiers thought they were in an enemy’s country', recalled one exasperated local. 'The contents of the store of David Denlinger were strewn along the picket line... Packages of tea, coffee, muslin and calico could have been obtained... with but the asking for them...' The New Yorkers and Pennsylvanians alike freely took preservatives, meats and blankets, and frequently killed local livestock at their own decree.

Fighting at Oyster’s Point commenced in the early afternoon of June 28, 1863. Confederates lobbed artillery shells into the vicinity from the Peace Church and the Samuel Albright House on East 36th Street. Confederate skirmishers were countered both north and south of the Pike by Union pickets, and the lines moved back and forth throughout the afternoon, with skirmishing primarily between the 3100 and 3300 blocks of Market Street. On June 29, General Jenkins was under orders to scout the defenses of Harrisburg and inform the infantry in Carlisle, and therefore devised a ruse. For about two hours he bombarded the Union position, and then some Confederates on horseback charged down the Pike, driving back frightened Union militia, and getting as far as Limekiln Lane (present-day 28th Street, Camp Hill). This marked the furthest advance towards Harrisburg by any Confederate force. They remained under fire for at least another hour, effectively occupying the Union attention while General Jenkins rode south to observe the defenses of Harrisburg."

https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=167852

Pretty cool map from the signage showing its location relative to the actual Oyster Point, visible as a triangle. Also seen on this map: the Peach Church that the Confederates ironically shelled from, Jenkins' HQ in the lower left, and Sporting Hill in the upper left, which also saw action as the Rebs pulled back.

BONUS: Also at this location-

'In May 1866, the White Hall School for soldiers’ orphans opened in the 2100 block of Market Street in what is now Camp Hill. Within a year it had 121 boys and 80 girls under its roof, with a faculty of five and a staff of twelve. The students wore uniforms and adhered to a strict schedule of academic classes and trade instruction for the boys and homemaking skills for the girls. Students were encouraged to use the library of 350 books, participate in singing and music, and attend religious services at the nearby Camp Hill Church of God. They also worked on the school’s farm and grew and preserved much of their own food as part of their practical education. Each year the students were tested, including a public oral examination. Being the closest school to Harrisburg, governors and legislators often visited to ensure that standards of care and education were met.

At age 16, students were graduated and sent into the world, thus known as ‘Sixteeners”. The White Hall School closed in 1890 when enrollment became too small, and the remaining students were sent to other schools. The alumni “Sixteeners” of the White Hall School erected a small monument to the school in 1926 in Willow Park. originally, there was a small statue of a student in a military uniform on the top of the monument, but it disappeared years ago.'

The original 1926 monument described in the sign text is right alongside it, but somehow doesn't get it's own entry in the Historic Marker database? 

Site of the Peace Church shelling, though there are two peace churches in the area. 

https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=26957

Same headquarters for much of the campaign threatening Harrisburg

This signage from across the river in the city summarizes the threats and defenses of Harrisburg in June 1863:

"General Robert E. Lee decided to take the war into the North in June 1863, allowing Southern farmers an uninterrupted growing season, and perhaps convincing European powers to aid the Confederacy. As the rebels invaded Pennsylvania, Harrisburg made a tempting target as a key transportation hub that promised access to a large cache of military supplies at nearby Camp Curtin. Its loss, as an important Union state capital, would be a major blow to Northern morale.

Union Major General Darius Couch was charged with the defense of Harrisburg. Low on troops, Couch did the best he could, hastily building fortifications on the heights directly across the Susquehanna River from Harrisburg. Pennsylvania and New York militia troops manned the defenses.

Confederate cavalry under Brigadier General Albert Jenkins captured nearby Mechanicsburg on June 28. The next day, his troops skirmished with Federals at Oyster Point (in present-day Camp Hill).

On June 30, Couch’s troops met the Confederates at Sporting Hill, about five miles from Harrisburg. Throughout the afternoon, Union and Confederate forces fought the northernmost engagement of the Gettysburg campaign. Jenkins withdrew that day to join Lee’s army concentrating near Gettysburg. Harrisburg had been saved."

https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=102338

Informative blog entry on the skirmish that I stole the "northernmost" quote from:

https://housedivided.dickinson.edu/sites/blogdivided/2010/09/07/skirmish-at-oyster-point-june-1863/