Download HOW ONE MAN ARRIVED AT GETTYSBURG (Wesley Culp`s life

HOW ONE MAN ARRIVED AT GETTYSBURG (Wesley Culp’s life story)
by: Dale W. Pinkley
Back in the mid-1800’s Mr. and Mrs. Culp had two sons. They raised their two
boys the best they could on their small farm in Pennsylvania. The names of their sons
were Wesley and John. Wesley and John grew up enjoying playing on the hill that their
farm rested on. Many summer days they would play war on their property with friends
that lived near by. The boys also enjoyed making memories with their parents. The
family loved all the times they got to play outside under the big sky and run up and down
the surrounding hills without a care in the world. Wesley and John did grow up and
eventually graduated from high school. The time now came when they had to choose
what college to attend. After much thought, John decided to attend a college in the north.
His brother, Wesley, did not have the same desire to go north so he chose a college in the
south. While the Culp boys were at college, tension in the country grew. There was
much unrest between the North and the South; the big issue was slavery. The South
wanted to keep their slaves and the North felt that the slaves should be free.
In 1861 the Civil War broke out. The boys and men of this country that believed
that the slaves should be freed joined the Union army of the North. Those that felt the
South should be able to keep slavery joined the Confederate Army. This divided many
families, including the Culp family. Wesley Culp, the son that went to college in the
South, joined the Confederate army. His brother John believed that slavery should be
abolished so he joined the Union soldiers of the North. The fighting was intense and
there was a lot of bloodshed. After two years of fighting, Robert E. Lee, the general of
the South army, had his troops just south of a small town in Pennsylvania called
Gettysburg. Wesley Culp was a member of Lee’s troops. On July 1st, 1863, Robert E.
Lee ordered his troops to attack the Union. This was the beginning of the famous Battle
of Gettysburg. The first day Lee’s troops drove the Union back onto a hill. On the
second day, Lee ordered some of his men, including Wesley Culp, to go around the right
side of the hill and try to move through the Union army. Wesley, along with the other
Confederate soldiers, began their push at daybreak. The fighting was hard and intense.
Culp knew the hill that he was fighting on well. Just years before he had played war with
his friends on the same hill. The very hill that Culp grew up playing war on was now a
home for dead men everywhere. Bodies were lying everywhere as fighting continued.
Wesley fought hard throughout the day when all of a sudden, THUD, Wesley felt a sharp
pain in his chest. He had been shot. That day, July 2nd, Wesley Culp died on the hill on
which he grew up playing war and which is now known as Culp Hill.
Each soldier that fought in the Civil War carried a story. This story is a personal
look at how the Civil War affected one family. This story is historical fiction but is based
on actual facts that did occur to the Culp family and their two sons. The battle addressed
in this story, Gettysburg, was a very important battle in the Civil War. This battle was
the turning point in which the North began to gain momentum. The battle lasted from
July 1st, 1861 to July 3rd, 1861. The whole Civil War lasted from 1861-1865.
1.
In what year did the Civil War begin?
2.
What are the names for the North and South armies?
3.
Who was the general of the Southern armies?
4.
Do you think it would be heard to fight in a war knowing that you could be
shooting at your brother, sister, or father?
5.
How do you think Wesley’s parents felt when they heard their son was killed on
what used to be their farm?
HOW ONE MAN ARRIVED AT GETTYSBURG (Wesley Culp’s life story)
by: Dale W. Pinkley
Outline:
I. Culp Family
A. Two sons
1. Wesley
2. John
B. Lived on a hill
1. Played war
2. Ran up and down hills
II. Left for college
A. Wesley went to a college in the south.
B. John went to a college in the north.
III. Civil War began (1861-1865)
A. Wesley joined the confederate troops
B. John joined the Union troops
IV. Battle of Gettysburg
A. Wesley was under Robert E. Lee’s command at Gettysburg
B. Charged up hill he grew up on on second day of battle (July 2)
C. Was shot and killed on hill.
Props:
Toy Gun (use at beginning of story when boys are playing war)
Real Rifle (use when Wesley is fighting on the hill he grew up on)
Answers to Questions:
1. 1861
2. The North army was known as the Union. The South army was known as the
Confederates.
3. Robert E. Lee
4. Answers will vary.
5. Answers will vary.
Source: Josh Michael, a senior history major at Cedarville College.