Hanover in York County, Pennsylvania — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)
Heroics of the Union Cavalry
A Heart of Hanover Trail Stop
Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, May 5, 2022
1. Heroics of the Union Cavalry Marker
The heroic achievements of the Union cavalry during the Battles of Hanover and Gettysburg were impressive. At Hanover, on June 30, 1863, Confederate Gen J.E.B. Stuart's cavalry division of 5,000 men outnumbered Union Gen. H. Judson Kilpatrick's cavalry of 4,000. You are facing a little stream that made a big difference.
After the Union counterattack successfully reclaimed Hanover, Stuart and his mare Virginia, in this area around 11 a.m., leapt the Plum Creek tributary that you face. They were fleeing 25-to-30 Union horsemen firing pistols at them in hot pursuit. Pursuers knew that nabbing Stuart would be big for the Union cause.
Some Confederate mounted horses were not so fortunate; they had to scamper through water to reach the other side.
At the time, this stream was up to fifteen feet wide and three-to-four feet deep.
Afterwards, Stuart regrouped his men in farmland that stretched before you. By mid afternoon, Stuart withdrew east of town toward Jefferson and Seven Valleys, then north to New Salem (now also known as York New Salem) and eventually Dover. The last Confederates left Hanover at dusk.
The next morning, July 1, Stuart still was dangerously out of touch with commanding Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee, who was about to run into the full force of the Union army in Gettysburg.
On
this page online
To learn about individual Union acts of valor, visit the park on the other side of this stream. Continue forward on Stuart Avenue to Boundary Avenue. Take a left on Boundary, and proceed about a block to the park, which will appear on your left. Please respect our neighbors.
Erected 2022 by Main Street Hanover; and Heart of Hanover Trails.
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Patriots & Patriotism • War, US Civil. In addition, it is included in the Pennsylvania, Battle of Hanover Walking Tour series list. A significant historical date for this entry is June 30, 1863.
Location. 39° 47.469′ N, 76° 59.271′ W. Marker is in Hanover, Pennsylvania, in York County. It is on Stuart Avenue just north of Boundary Avenue, on the right when traveling north. Marker is beside the sidewalk, overlooking Plum Creek. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Hanover PA 17331, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in South-Central Pennsylvania, specifically in Pennsylvania Dutch Country, in the Susquehanna Valley, and in Greater Harrisburg. It is also in the American Northeast and in the Mid-Atlantic. Globally, it is in North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy and also one of the original Thirteen Colonies.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Profiles in Union Cavalry Courage (about 500 feet away, measured in a direct line); The Confederates Invade Pennsylvania (approx. ¼ mile away);
Courtesy Guthrie Memorial Library
2. Marker detail: General J.E.B. Stuart’s Escape
Other markers no longer nearby. Consequences on the Battle of Gettysburg (was approx. ¼ mile away but has been replaced with another marker now near it); Custer at Hanover (was approx. ¼ mile away but has been replaced with another marker now near it); The Forney Farms (was approx. 0.3 miles away but has been permanently removed).
Related markers. Click here for a list of markers that are related to this marker. Heart of Hanover Trail
Also see . . . Battle of Hanover.
After a long all-night ride, Stuart arrived in Dover, where he paroled a few hundred prisoners and sent the wagon train south. He then went to Carlisle, where he burned some barracks belonging to the U.S. Army’s cavalry school and fired a few artillery rounds into the(Submitted on May 7, 2022, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)town. It was at Carlisle that Stuart finally learned that Lee and his army were at Gettysburg. He left immediately to join Lee, arriving late in the day on July 2. When Stuart called on Lee at his headquarters, Lee said coldly, ‘Well, General Stuart, here you are at last.’Courtesy of the Library of Congress3. Marker detail: General Kilpatrick’s RaidGeneral H. Judson Kilpatrick's late cavalry raid through Virginia during the Chancellorsville campaign of 1863, before the Battle of Hanover.
Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, May 5, 2022
4. Heroics of the Union Cavalry Marker
Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, May 5, 2022
5. The Picket Monument
June 30, 1863
between Brig. Gen. Judson Kilpatrick’s
3rd Cavalry Division Army of the Potomac
and
Major Gen. J.E.B. Stuart’s Cavalry Division
Army of Northern Virginia
Erected by
The Commonwealth
of
Pennsylvania
1904
Photographed by Mike McKeown, June 15, 2025
6. Heroics of the Union Cavalry Marker
Plum Creek as of 6/2025
Credits. This page was last revised on June 19, 2025. It was originally submitted on May 5, 2022, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 679 times since then and 27 times this year. Photos: 1. submitted on May 6, 2022, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. 2, 3, 4, 5. submitted on May 7, 2022, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. 6. submitted on June 15, 2025, by Mike McKeown of Baltimore, Maryland.
