Sgt. William T. Ambler: A last full measure of devotion

      At the Soldiers' National Cemetery in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, the layout of the grounds itself are meant to portray a sense of equality. These men, who may have not been equal in life – either in terms of wealth, character or honor – here, all are equal in death. The circular formation demonstrates this equality where no one soldier’s grave overshadows the rest. The Union Army, though it appears to us today as it had been a united fighting force, still had various fractures that separated these men along lines – ideologically, religiously, economically, and in principle. Together, the men of the Union Army unknowingly came together to create a microcosm of the society from which they came. For instance, while some men looked upon themselves as “gentlemen,” they looked at lower-class men as “scoundrels” or “roughs.” These men, who had lived quite differently as civilians, may not have held the same principles or the same notions of honor. However, one thing is for certain, here at the Soldiers’ National Cemetery in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, all share a common place of honor.

       Lincoln’s words not only worked to calm a shattered community in south-central Pennsylvania, but also immortalized the struggles of the men who nobly advanced, and gave the last full measure of devotion. In recognition of their efforts, or in the least, the loss of life while in the uniform of their nation, work to immortalize an equality in death and a place of importance in the history of the United States of America. Lincoln’s words, these graves, and this cemetery work hand in hand to memorialize the lives snuffed out by the brutal warfare of this conflict. Among these young lives ended at the Battle of Gettysburg was Sergeant William T. Ambler of the 57th New York Infantry.

       William T. Ambler

       Sergeant William T. Ambler (Co. D, 57^th New York Infantry) [Soldiers' National Cemetery, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania plot E – 91].  Ambler’s war story reads like so many young men involved in the American Civil War.   Having come from a close-knit and loving family, Ambler went off to war with fellow New Yorkers in order to restore the Union.  Before even the outbreak of war, the Ambler family and children suffered loss in 1851 when their father passed away at the age of 28.  During this time, William, the eldest of four children, was merely 6 years old, but was expected to then take on a position in the house as a young and responsible adult to help care for his siblings, aged 5, 3, as well as a newborn sister.  Since this time, William developed a loving bond with his siblings in helping to raise them with his widowed mother.  This love is evident in a letter he wrote to his sister, Harriet in the late winter months of 1862.  Telling her of a 5-inch-snow snowstorm, Ambler teased her that “I would like to be home and have a snow-ball fight with you first-scale.  I guess if you would let me make 5 or 6 snowballs ahead, I could stand you and Albert – yes and Lewis to for that matter, and make you all run!”  Approximately 8 months later, Sgt. Ambler would be killed on July 2, 1863 at the Battle of Gettysburg by “a solid shot entering his right shoulder and passing through his left side.”  Ambler’s lieutenant wrote a sympathy letter to the family notifying him of their loved one’s death, assuring him that William was “in fair way of promotion,” and that the regiment “will always remember Willie as a true & fine soldier in the support of our glorious country.”


       The fact that Ambler's officers looked upon him as a good soldier designates the fact that he acted as he should in the ranks.  This understood sense of honor and manhood was something that Ambler, though quite a young man, seemed to have possessed.  From this letter, we do not know how this man acted in battle, or how he fared in the face of the enemy, but we can assume he had performed well habitually due to his being a sergeant, and the fact that he may have been promoted had he survived the battle.  In the words of Abraham Lincoln, Ambler gave the "last full measure of devotion."

The Unfinished Work Continues

         The title of this blog, "The Unfinished Work" is merely an echo of Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address. Lincoln offered,

" The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us—that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion."

         These are the words I live by. I think most historians or those interested in advancing scholarship in the public history community would agree as well. Truly our work as historians is "unfinished," as it will always remain as time continues to march forward into the future. It is our task to make known the efforts of ordinary people who do extraordinary things, as well as understand the lessons understanding one's history can provide so that we may better understand ourselves. With that, I believe "The Unfinished Work" here on the blog will serve as a fitting outlet to post, explore and share some quirky, inspiring and heroic findings in my research.I wonder what the men and women my colleagues and I spend hours with through research would think if they could see the United States today? We are connected through the Internet in ways that would have before seemed unimaginable, and yet the technology continues to advance!

         This democratization of the world through the Internet has allowed us to communicate in new ways, as well as have a flow of information always at our fingertips. Not only these, but it also allows for a college student to modestly hope strangers will find interest in her musings.

         Through my time thus far in undergraduate schooling, I have had the opportunities to read, touch, hold and hear the words of manuscripts, letters, diaries, photos, artifacts, and oral histories of veterans that all provide a direct link to the past. This summer, I was offered a unique opportunity to intern at Gettysburg National Military Park to further both my own knowledge of the Civil War, but also to advance public knowledge of a popular period in American history. This fall, I will continue my studies at Gettysburg College.

          And yet, there was something that it seems every history major discovers on their own with no instruction from the professor: research is a funny thing. It allows us to become close to perhaps an individual, or a group of individuals. Throughout the process of researching to find out who they were, and what the memory of their lives does for the historical community today, historians and historian protegee's alike, find themselves emotionally attached to these subjects of study come the end of the project.

Anthony McDermott of the 69th Pennsylvania
Infantry Regiment. McDermott, of Co. I, fought
alongside his fellow Philadelphians at the Batttle
of Gettysburg to repulse Pickett's Charge on July
3, 1863. (Photo from Today In Irish History.)

         Most recently, I have gained such a connection to the 69th Pennsylvania Infantry Regiment. This American Civil War regiment was raised out of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in order to answer President Abraham Lincoln's call for volunteers. These men, anxious to prove themselves as capable and patriotic men were also looking for the opportunity to prove themselves loyal and newly arrived Americans. Much of the 69th was comprised of Irish immigrants or those of such ethnicity, and because of this, their efforts and their very honor was in question. Studying the 69th's contributions at the Battle of Gettysburg has left me feeling quite close to these boys. I'm not sure why, exactly, but I suppose it has to deal with their effective stand on July 3, 1863 at the stone wall against the raging tide of Pickett, Pettigrew and Trimble's men during "Pickett's Charge." The first hand accounts left behind by regimental adjutant, Anthony McDermott of Company I in the unit's regimental history drew a new perspective on the battle as a whole for me, and in the very least, I recommend coming to Gettysburg National Military Park to take a few moments at the 69th's monument along the stone wall at the High Water Mark.

         The Union Second Corps at Gettysburg is a new interest of mine, but I must deviate to the Third Corps for a moment, to the regiment formed out of my hometown of West Deer Township. The 63rd Pennsylvania Infantry Regiment comprised of farmers and miners from the hills and mountains just north of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, near the Allegheny River. One member of the regiment, Magill, owned a large bit of farmland in this area, as did many of the men and boys from the area. Approximately 80 years after Magill enlisted in the Union Army, fought at Gettysburg and would later return to his home, a housing plan would be developed on those very fields. 40 years after that, my newlywed parents would purchase a modest ranch home there. It was at this house I was raised, matured, and still call home. Little could I have imagined as an enthusiastic ten year old (who had at the time, recently memorized the Preamble to the U.S. Constitution and the opening paragraph of the Declaration of Independence), that 8 years down the road, I would be studying at a location at which the previous owner of the lands upon which I lived, had seen combat and friends killed in service to his country. Magill and I have passed the same deer paths and bridges, but it the scope of realizing the community effect caused by the Civil War is mind-boggling. To me, at least.

     Cheers in pursuing The Unfinished Work,

                    Val Merlina