Gettysburg Battlefield - Oak Ridge

A Brief History: Oak Ridge is a portion of the Gettysburg battlefield that is now located near the intersection of Confederate Avenue and Doubleday Avenue and Mummasburg Road. It became a part of the battle on the very first day of the battle on July 1st1863. Oak Ridge holds significance because (aside from Pickett’s Charge) it is the biggest volume loss of confederate troops of all skirmishes during the battle of Gettysburg. The initial confederate attack led by Colonel Edward O’Neal was very poorly planned and even more poorly communicated among the ranks. His men advanced too early and were quickly dispatched due to being unorganized and unsupported. Around 2:30pm, the main attack on Oak Ridge began when Alfred Iverson ordered his brigade of 1,384 men to charge the hill toward the Federal position. The charge was largely met with no opposition, until the men got within about 50 yards. When they crossed this point, the Union troops opened fire and decimated the exhausted and surprised men. Iverson’s men returned fire to cover their retreat into a small gully they had advanced past, where they held position. However, after realizing they had incurred heavy casualties, not twenty minutes after they had reached the gully, the remaining men openly surrendered. Once the last shot of the skirmish had been fired, over 900 of Iverson’s 1,384 men were captured, killed or wounded. During the battle a brigade of North Carolinians were slaughtered and left for dead. They were buried in a mass grave in the area now known as Iverson’s Pit. Iverson’s remaining men refused to acknowledge him as their commander following the skirmish. Throughout the entirety of the chaos, Iverson watched from the back of his horse far behind the lines. He was even disgusted that his men had surrendered. So following the battle of Gettysburg, he was removed from command.

Oak Ridge is now a part of Gettysburg National Military Park. It is memorialized by several monuments and even features an observation tower to give visitors a bird’s eye view of the battlefield to truly envision what happened there.

Haunted History: The violence and negative energy of that July 1stafternoon seems to have left its permanent mark on the grounds of Oak Ridge. People have reported seeing wispy mists floating across the battlefield during late afternoon hours as if the smoke from muskets still floats over the bloodied grounds. There are also experiences of distant yelling and voices being heard if you stand upon the ridge of Oak Hill. The rumors are that the voices you hear are Iverson’s men talking and yelling amongst themselves as they contemplate surrender against their commander’s orders. Overall, the vast majority of the claims at Oak Ridge are residual hauntings, however there is an exception. One experience that has been reported by many is the spirit of Alfred Iverson roams the rear of where his men charged forward and orders visitors to attack the hill, then disappears. There are claims that he is seen on horseback like he actually was during the attack, but also others that say he was on foot with his sword drawn and ready to charge into battle, like his men wished he was that day.