05 06 07 General Warren Tupelos
How to Find Witness Trees 05, 06 and 07
These three tupelo trees stand in a north-to-south row near the western ledge of Little Round Top. Take the walking path from the northern end of the parking area at the summit towards the statue of General Gouverneur Warren. Just before you reach the statue, look to the left while still within the shade of the trees. You will see the three trees standing in a row.
What These Trees Witnessed
When General Warren climbed Little Round Top on the afternoon of July 2, 1863, he saw two things: first, the Confederates were massing in the distance on Warfield Ridge; secondly, except for a few members of the signal corps, Little Round Top was completely undefended! He sent a message to General Meade advising him to send troops to Little Round Top, for if the Confederates were able to capture the hill, the entire Union line might collapse! Soon, Colonel Strong Vincent’s 5th Corps brigade arrived just in time to parry the attack of the Confederates of General James Longstreet’s corps, and the battle for Little Round Top was on!
Then-and-Now Comparisons
These photographs were taken from atop the rocks just to the west of the statue to General Warren. Note the matching rocks (label “A”) next to (actually well behind) the general’s boots. The three tupelo witness trees match up easily in the two images. 1903 image courtesy library of Congress.
These fabulous photographs were taken from just behind the northernmost cannon at the summit of Little Round Top, facing north directly towards the three tupelo witness trees. Note the stone directly in front of Witness Tree 05, whose roots, which have grown up and out of the ground over the past century, have gradually lifted the rock labeled “A” out of the ground. In the 1920s photograph, please note the people walking down the path to their cars (label “B”). Historical photo courtesy of the Boardman Photograph Collection.
This 1936 NPS photo captures all four tupelo witness trees at the summit of Little Round Top. Tree “A” is white oak Witness Tree 03. Historical photo courtesy of NPS, GNMP, Museum Collection, Gett #41135, 30W-091.
Other Photographs
The first set of four photos is all of Witness Tree 04. This tree is one of the few to have a lightning suppression cable still hanging from its crown. The cable is made of copper, which was placed on the tree to conduct the electricity from a lightning strike down into the ground, in order to protect this and the neighboring trees during a storm.
Witness Tree 05 (left) is discernible by the dense covering of vines crawling up its trunk. The second photo (right) is a profile of Witness Tree 06.
