Alexander Schimmelfennig

Alexander Schimmelfennig (ENCYCLOPEDIA OF THE CIVIL WAR lists him as "Schimmelfenning", but I have always seen it without the 3rd "n") hid out in the backyard of the Garlach house on Washington Street just past Breckinridge apparently not in a pigsty, but between a wood pile and two slop barrels from which pigs were fed. There is a sign on the sidewalk near the original Garlach house (only a couple of blocks from the Farnsworth House, as I recall) which tells the story of the unfortunate general. Schimmelfennig developed malaria in late 1863, returned to the army to take part in operations against Charleston SC in early 1865, then died of tuberculosis in Sept. 1865. He apparently suffered no military problems from his stay behind the Garlach's swill barrels, although I am sure that he was the butt of many a joke later in the war.

Regards,

Jack Kelly

Chance93@aol.com says:

Re: Schimmelfennig

I won't even guess at the ultimate source(s) of the story, but I will mention what Warner has to say about his post-Gettysburg career:

"After this battle he sought transfer to South Carolina, since he no longer wished to serve in the XI Corps, but an attack of malaria took him out of action again for an extended period. He recovered in time to be present at the capitulation of Charleston on February 18, 1965, and for some time thereafter was in command of the city. On April 8, 1865, he was granted sick leave for thirty days after becoming a victim of a most virulent type of tuberculosis. He sought relief at Dr. Aaron Smith's Living Springs Water Cure Establishment near Warnersville, Pennsylvania, but died there suddenly on September 5, 1865...." [Generals in Blue, p.424]

Hmmm. Sounds like that "pigsty" was a real environmental hazard! Don Troiani

TERRY MOYER) says:

Schimmelfennig:

Generals in Blue has the same information I have seen re: the ultimate demise of the General. However, the town where he went to 'take the cure' is actually named 'Wernersville' and is only a mile or two away from here (Sinking Spring, Pa - a suburb of Reading).

Schimmelfennig is buried in Reading, in Charles Evans Cemetery, within walking distance of another Gettysburg alumnus: General David McMurtrie Gregg. Dennis showed pictures of Schimmelfennigs grave at last year's slide show.

By the way Eric, the statue of Gregg really has been taken down from the Pedestal for refurbishing, I drove by about 3 weeks ago to check. Gregg has been riding that horse since the early 1920's (he died here in, I believe, 1916). It is a once in a lifetime event to see his pededstal standing empty (Greggs statue is an equestrian which sits on a beautiful block of Pink Granite standing about 6' high x 12' long, carved into an elongated ellipse) don't expect to ever see it again.

Terry