Union Mills in Carroll County, Maryland — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)
Defiance at Union Mills
"I'm a Union man!"
— Gettysburg Campaign —
In 1863, brothers Andrew K. and William Shriver resided on either side of the Littlestown Turnpike here and likewise were divided in their loyalties, with William supporting the Confederacy and Andrew the Union. When officers at the head of Gen. J. E. B. Stuart’s Confederate cavalry command confronted Andrew Shriver here late on June 29, he staunchly proclaimed, “I can tell you I’m a Union man!” Shriver, a slaveholder, had a son in the Union army. Soon his land, including his yard, gristmill, sawmill, tannery, and orchard were filled with Confederate cavalrymen. The remainder of the column stretched for miles along the turnpike. That night, Confederate Gen. Fitzhugh Lee slept under an apple tree in the orchard behind the house.
Just hours after the Confederates departed the next day, Gen. George Sykes’s footsore and fatigued Union V Corps marched into Union Mills from Frizzelburg and camped in the fields and meadows nearby along Big Pipe Creek. A lieutenant in the 4th Michigan Infantry wrote home that he “washed in a rapid stream at Union Mills,” indulging in a brief respite from the heat. When 62-year-old Gen. James Barnes needed a bed for the night, Shriver gave him the room once occupied by Washington Irving decades earlier. On the morning of July 1, V Corps marched north across the Mason-Dixon Line into Pennsylvania.
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Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Industry & Commerce • Patriots & Patriotism • War, US Civil. In addition, it is included in the Maryland Civil War Trails series list. A significant historical month for this entry is June 1767.
Location. 39° 40.015′ N, 77° 1.052′ W. Marker is in Union Mills, Maryland, in Carroll County. Marker can be reached from Littlestown Pike (Maryland Route 97). Marker is in park next to the Miller’s House. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 3311 Littlestown Pike, Westminster MD 21158, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 6 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Gettysburg Campaign (here, next to this marker); Union Mills (here, next to this marker); a different marker also named Union Mills (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); World War II Memorial (approx. 0.2 miles away); World War I Memorial (approx. 0.2 miles away); Pennsylvania (approx. 4.6 miles away in Pennsylvania); Just Government League (approx. 5˝ miles away); Who was Bennett Cerf? (approx. 5.9 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Union Mills.
Photographed By William Pfingsten, October 14, 2007
2. Defiance at Union Mills Marker
This is a previous iteration of the marker. While the information is identical, the formatting is slightly different.
Credits. This page was last revised on December 16, 2021. It was originally submitted on October 15, 2007, by Bill Pfingsten of Bel Air, Maryland. This page has been viewed 2,197 times since then and 29 times this year. Last updated on August 28, 2020, by Bradley Owen of Morgantown, West Virginia. Photos: 1. submitted on August 28, 2020, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia. 2. submitted on October 15, 2007, by Bill Pfingsten of Bel Air, Maryland. 3. submitted on August 28, 2020, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia.
