Elizabeth Thorn Statue
Evergreen Cemetery
Gettysburg, PA
Photos and Text courtesy of LCWRT Member Charlie Moore
In 1862, Peter Thorn had enlisted in the 138th
Pennsylvania and was serving in the Washington D.C. area during the battle near
his home town of Gettysburg. At the time
of the three-day Battle of Gettysburg, his wife Elizabeth was caretaker of
Evergreen Cemetery, a job normally performed by her husband. During the battle, Elizabeth, her three sons
and her parents moved out of the cemetery gate house to a safer location. After the battle, Elizabeth and her elderly
father buried 91 Union soldiers in Evergreen Cemetery. Peter survived the war, returned home and
took back his position as cemetery caretaker until he stepped down in
1874. The statue of the six months’
pregnant Elizabeth shows her holding a shovel and wiping her forehead upon
completing a burial. The statue was dedicated in 2002 as the Gettysburg Women’s
Memorial to honor all of the women who served and suffered during and after the
battle.
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