The Jennie Wade House Museum

A Civilian Caught In The Crossfire During The Battle Of Gettysburg

Past Lane Plus is an extension of Past Lane Travels, a history/travel blog. Past Lane Plus features extra photos of historical sites that didn’t make it into the regular posts.

This week on Past Lane Plus, I have photos from the Jennie Wade House, one of the most visited museums in Gettysburg.

It is the actual house where Jennie Wade died while baking bread on July 3, 1863, as the Battle of Gettysburg raged in the streets of Gettysburg and the farmland surrounding the small town.

Guided tours at the Jennie Wade House tell the tragic story of the 20-year-old who was caught in the crossfire in a house that is almost unchanged from the way it looked in 1863.

Here are a few photos from the house.

Two period-dressed guides stand outside the Jennie Wade House. The second photo is the parlor that would have been used as a bedroom by Jennie's sister Georgia, who had just given birth. The third photo shows bullet holes in the mantel beside the bed. Second row: The actual dough trough that Jennie was using when killed. The opening in the wall that the family used to the South side of the house. The kitchen in the other side of the house. A guide points to the showcase of original items in the house including a bloody floorboard and the actual clock that sat on the mantel.

Jennie Wade was buried three times. The first time in the yard of the house. The second time in the graveyard of the church the family attended, and finally, in Evergreen Cemetery where she now rests.

Her grave is marked with an American flag that flies 365 days a year. She is one of only two women to have that honor. The other is Betsy Ross.

Read the full post on the Jennie Wade House.