Civilians Caught in the Crossfire

Civilians Caught in the Crossfire. . , The American Civil War (1861-65) began several months after George and Hettie Shriver and their two daughters, Sadie and Mollie, settled into their new home (left). Shortly thereafter George mustered into Co. C Cole’s Cavalry of the Union Army in 1861., In a effort to gather fresh supplies and relieve the pressure on the Confederate garrison in Vicksburg, Mississippi, Confederate General Robert E. Lee launched a daring northern invasion in the summer of 1863., On July 1, with fighting heading towards the town of Gettysburg, a terrified Hettie sought safety for herself, Sadie, and Molly. They hiked 3 miles to her parents’ farm, the Jacob Weikert farm, which sits at the base of Big and Little Round Tops., During the three-day battle, the Shrivers’ abandoned home was commandeered by Confederate soldiers. Hettie returned on July 7th to find her house in shambles. Two holes had been knocked through the south brick wall for sharpshooters to fire on their Union adversaries. Eyewitnesses reported at least two Confederates were killed in the sharpshooters’ nest in the Shrivers’ garret (attic)., After sitting abandoned for nearly thirty years, the severely dilapidated house underwent an award-winning transformation in 1996., Today the Shriver House tells the story of one family’s life and throws light on the civilians’ plight before, during, and after the Battle of Gettysburg., (sidebar) Shriver House 1860 , George Washington Shriver's ancestors settled in the Gettysburg area in the 1780s and became one of the wealthiest families in Adams County. In 1860 George sold the large familv farm he had inherited to build the house before you. His plans included a new business: Shriver's Saloon and Ten Pin Alley. , (captions) George Shriver . Hettie Shriver . Sadie and Mollie Shriver