Jennie Wade
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Mary Virginia Wade (May 21, 1843 – July 3, 1863), also known as Jennie Wade or Ginnie Wade, was a resident of
Gettysburg, Pennsylvania Gettysburg (; ) is a borough (Pennsylvania), borough in Adams County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the borough had a population of 7,106 people. Gettysburg was the site of ...
during the
Battle of Gettysburg The Battle of Gettysburg () was a three-day battle in the American Civil War, which was fought between the Union and Confederate armies between July 1 and July 3, 1863, in and around Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The battle, won by the Union, ...
. At the age of 20, she was the only direct civilian casualty of the battle, when she was killed by a stray bullet on July 3, 1863. The house where she was killed is now a popular tourist attraction and museum called the "Jennie Wade House".


Early life

Wade was born in Gettysburg, and worked as a seamstress with her mother in their house on Breckenridge Street while her father was in a
mental asylum The lunatic asylum, insane asylum or mental asylum was an institution where people with mental illness were confined. It was an early precursor of the modern psychiatric hospital. Modern psychiatric hospitals evolved from and eventually replace ...
. She may have been engaged to Johnston Hastings "Jack" Skelly, a corporal in the 87th Pennsylvania, who had been wounded two weeks earlier in the Battle of Winchester. He died from his injuries on July 12, 1863, unaware that Wade had died days earlier.


Casualty of war

Wade, her mother, and two younger brothers left their home in central Gettysburg and traveled to the house of her sister, Georgia Anna Wade McClellan at 548 Baltimore Street to assist her and her newborn child. It was July 1, 1863, during the first day's fighting of the Battle of Gettysburg. More than 150 bullets hit the McClellan house during the fighting. About 8:00 a.m. on July 3, Wade was kneading dough for bread when a
Minié ball The Minié ball, or Minie ball, is a type of hollow-based bullet designed by Claude-Étienne Minié for muzzle-loaded, rifled muskets. Invented in 1846 shortly followed by the Minié rifle, the Minié ball came to prominence during the Crime ...
traveled through the kitchen door and the parlor door of her sister's house and hit her. It pierced her left shoulder blade, went through her heart, and ended up in her corset. She was killed instantly. While it is uncertain which side fired the fatal shot, some authors have attributed it to an unknown
Confederate A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...
sharpshooter. Wade's mother heard her fall to the floor and went to tell her sister Georgia in the other room that her sister had been shot dead; two Union soldiers came from upstairs when they heard the screams of the women. They temporarily buried Wade's body in the back yard of the McClellan house, in a coffin originally intended for the Confederate General
William Barksdale William Barksdale (August 21, 1821 – July 3, 1863) was an American lawyer, newspaper editor, U.S. Representative, and Confederate general in the American Civil War. He served four terms in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1853 to 1861. ...
. In January 1864, her body was relocated to the cemetery of the German Reformed Church on Stratton Street. Her final resting place is located in the Evergreen Cemetery in Gettysburg.Petruzzi, p. 221. On July 4, her mother baked 15 loaves of bread with the dough Wade had kneaded. In 1882, the United States Senate voted to grant Wade's mother a pension, citing that her daughter had been killed serving the Union cause – baking bread for the soldiers.


Monument

In November 1865, Wade's remains were reburied in the Evergreen Cemetery near Jack Skelly. A monument to her, designed by Gettysburg resident Anna M. Miller, was erected in 1900 that includes an
American flag The national flag of the United States, often referred to as the American flag or the U.S. flag, consists of thirteen horizontal Bar (heraldry), stripes, Variation of the field, alternating red and white, with a blue rectangle in the Canton ( ...
that flies around the clock. (The
Betsy Ross House The Betsy Ross House is a landmark in Philadelphia. It is purported to be the site where the upholsterer and flag-maker Betsy Ross (1752–1836) lived when she is said to have sewed the first American flag. History The origins of the Betsy R ...
in
Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
is the only other site devoted to a woman to share this distinction of the perpetual flag. The Evergreen Cemetery grave of
John L. Burns John Lawrence BurnsPetruzzi, p. 235. (September 5, 1793 – February 4, 1872) was an American soldier and constable. A veteran of the War of 1812, at age 69 he fought as a civilian combatant with the Union Army at the Battle of Gettysburg dur ...
also flies the perpetual flag.)


Notes


References

* Frassanito, William A. ''Early Photography at Gettysburg''. Gettysburg, PA: Thomas Publications, 1995. . * Halbur, Patsy. "Jennie Wade and Gettysburg: It Was Not Supposed to Happen." ''Gettysburg Magazine'' 25 (July 2001): 105-15. * Petruzzi, J. David, and Steven Stanley. ''The Complete Gettysburg Guide''. New York: Savas Beatie, 2009. . * Tanaka, Shelley. ''Gettysburg: A Day that Changed America''. New York: Hyperion Books for Children, 2003. . * Trudeau, Noah Andre. ''Gettysburg: A Testing of Courage''. New York: HarperCollins, 2002. . * Wert, Jeffry D. ''Gettysburg: Day Three''. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2001. .


External links


Jennie Wade House Official Site


{{DEFAULTSORT:Wade, Jennie 1843 births 1863 deaths Women in the American Civil War People of Pennsylvania in the American Civil War People from Gettysburg, Pennsylvania Civilians killed in the American Civil War Burials at Evergreen Cemetery (Adams County, Pennsylvania) Deaths by firearm in Pennsylvania