The American Civil War touched the lives of almost every American. Women watched their husbands and brothers march off to war, and fathers and sons fought together on fields of battle, sometimes side by side and occasionally under the enemy’s flag. Factories were built and burned to the ground and millions of enslaved people wondered what this fighting would mean for their futures.
On more than a few occasions, farmers would watch their fields of corn turn to fields of the fallen, and when newspapers reported the movements of either army, the citizens and communities that lived and worked in their path may have let out a collective shudder. Both the Union and Confederate armies brought with them much more than death and destruction. They brought their horses and mules, their wounded and diseased, and their undying hunger. They needed food, water, clothing, medicine, shoes and anything else that was available for the capturing. To meet the ever-growing needs of an army, soldiers, usually cavalrymen, would scout out the surrounding areas for provisions.
Often, local markets, businesses, and farms were thoroughly searched for any useful or necessary goods. Wagon trains and railroad cars were captured, raided, and destroyed when appropriate.
Not only were these raids helpful in replenishing rations and supplies, but they were often also successful in causing panic and chaos among communities. In some cases, raiders would also destroy railroads, bridges, and communication lines to undermine the enemy and weaken support systems. Newspapers often reported on these events and began fostering more fear among communities. The Camden Confederate, a Southern newspaper out of Camden, South Carolina, often updated its readers on the war and the raids that had been happening nearby. In summer of 1863, the paper reported, The Mississippian says no less truthfully than encouragingly:
We believe that one hundred men, with double barrel shot guns, can always out fight five hundred raiders, by ambushing them properly, and evincing the coolness and courage of determination. With the advantages of ambuscades and our knowledge of the country, and facilities for taking the enemy by surprise, one man ought to be equal to five. There is no doubt of the fact that we can prevent these raids, and let every man solemnly resolve to do it.[1]
Since the majority of the war had been fought south of the Mason-Dixon line prior to 1863, Southern cities and towns had most harshly felt the realities of war. As rumors of a new Confederate campaign targeting northern soil began to circulate, panic and fear began to ignite in parts of southern Pennsylvania. Where were the rebels headed? Harrisburg? Washington? What did they want? Is any of this true?
Though General Robert E. Lee began his Gettysburg Campaign on June 3 1863, it’s not until June 12 that Pennsylvania Governor Andrew Curtin addressed the concerns of his citizens. He confirmed rumors that a “large rebel force" was endangering the state and called upon Pennsylvanian men to enlist for the defense of their “own homes, firesides and property.'[2] Governor Curtin immediately began calling for more troops and preparing the state for impending invasion.
As both state and local governments attempted to rally troops and fill new enlistment quotas from President Lincoln in Washington, business owners and citizens began to fear for the safety of their property. The Pennsylvania Central railroad suspended regular work to instead build blockhouses that could be used to defend bridges that would be too difficult and expensive to replace.[3] Businesses packaged and shipped off some of their most valuable merchandise to cities further east. Rural Pennsylvanians also began preparing for the arrival of Confederate forces after General Darius Couch, commander of the Department of the Susquehanna during the Gettysburg Campaign, warned communities of the Cumberland Valley that they may be in harm's way. Reportedly, citizens ran off their horses and cattle and buried tack and tools in haystacks. One man supposedly even hid his work horse in the basement of his home to avoid seizure by the Confederates.[4]
Source: U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service
