Franklin County Visitors Bureau invites the public to explore South Mountain in Stories of the Mountain Tour on August 24, 9 AM to 4:30 PM. South Mountain holds centuries of history and lore. The mountain forests fed the iron ore industry, sheltered escaping enslaved, saw the strife of Civil War and was reborn through Pennsylvania’s conservation movement. Life on the mountain is the story of small communities across America. Learn the secret, tangled routes of the Underground Railroad, visit a general store museum, hear the eerie story of the silvery lady of Pond Bank., and join the Ghost Pit (Paranormal Investigation Team) for a lunchtime investigation of Penn National Inn.
The tour begins at Franklin County 11/30 Visitors Center, 9 AM, where participants will view “Road to Freedom,” a video about the Underground Railroad of South Mountain, the iron ore industry, and the beginnings of the conservation movement of Pennsylvania. Stops include Caledonia State Park and Thaddeus Steven’s Blacksmith Shop and Preserving Our Heritage Museum, housed in a one-room schoolhouse with a relocated 1930 – 1950 general store. Learn about the South Mountain Restoration Center, where fresh air gave hope to thousands of tuberculosis patients. Discover the South Mountain connection to John Brown and his raiders.
Lunch is at Penn National Golf Course and Community, where the views of the mountain are breathtaking. After lunch, the Ghost PIT will invite tour participants to help investigate the “old inn,” on the Penn National property. Step back to 1812 and visit the Royer farmhouse at Renfrew Park and hear the story of the Renfrew Sisters, Daniel Royer, and the Nicodemus family. Continue up the mountain to Monterey Pass Battlefield where 10,000 Union and Confederate troops fought along the mountain ridge in a blinding thunderstorm during the late hours of July 4 and early hours of July 5, 1863, part of the retreat from Gettysburg.
Single tickets are $30/ person or two tickets for $50. Bring a friend and save! Tour fee includes lunch at Founder’s Grille and all admission fees. Tickets can be purchased online here or by contacting the Franklin County Visitors Bureau at 866.646.8060.
Fought during the retreat of Gettysburg, the Battle of Monterey Pass is the second largest Civil War battle fought on Pennsylvania soil with 10,000 from both Union and Confederate forces. The fight took place in the late hours of July 4, 1863 and the early hours of July 5, 1863 during solid darkness and a torrential downpour on a precarious mountainside, spanning two states and four counties.
After the Confederate defeat at Gettysburg, General Robert E. Lee was faced with returning troops, supplies, artillery, wagons, and wounded across South Mountain to Virginia. From July 3 to July 6, the retreating Confederate troops moved across South Mountain. There were two routes the Confederate army took. One was along the Chambersburg Pike to Cashtown, onto Greenwood—today known as Fayetteville—and south to Hagerstown. A shorter route traveled winding mountain roads through Fairfield Gap and across Monterey Pass to Hagerstown.
A twenty-mile train of Conestoga-style wagons retreated on the longer route through Cashtown and was led by Brigadier General John Imboden. With so much rain, there was much mud. The multitude and weight of the wagons made an arduous and long retreat.
The exodus via the shorter route through Fairfield Gap and across Monterey Pass did not escape the terrible impacts of the rain. Men marched on flooded roads and thick mud. In many Confederate soldier’s diaries and letters, it was referred to as Mount Misery or the quagmire. The conditions made night travel even more dangerous because visibility was so limited.
On July 4, Union troops led by General Judson Kirkpatrick removed the Confederate sentries at Fairfield and were able to advance toward Monterey Pass. Brigadier General George Custer charged the Confederates with the 6th Michigan Cavalry, allowing Kilpatrick’s men to reach and attack the wagon train. Ultimately, the Union forces captured more than 1300 Confederate men and destroyed nine miles of wagons.
Today, the site of the battle is along PA Route 16, just east of Waynesboro. The battlefield land is preserved by the local municipality, Washington Township, and houses the Monterey Pass Battlefield Museum, open weekends from April to November. The museum interprets Civil War history, depicts details of the Battle of Monterey Pass, and portrays the historical significance of the region.
