General Ewell’s Adjutant General’s, Campbell Brown’s
“Recollections” Written in 1869

“Old General Trimble, who had come along as a sort of volunteer, looking out for a vacancy, was also quite jolly. . . . our cavalry from Early at York, and. . .

. . . [On June 30^th] Jenkins who had pushed on toward Harrisburg reported back that he was in sight of the town and the river apparently fordable. We made preparations accordingly to push on to that place the next morning and were actually on the road about to start, when an order came from General Lee to move to Gettysburg and unite with him there. Accordingly [Edward] Johnson was directed to move back by the road he had come and cross the mountain by the best route while we moved south from Carlisle and Early was instructed to rejoin us near Gettysburg. We camped near that place (five miles) that night [June 30^th]. . . and next morning [July 1] moved in accordance with instructions from General Lee to rejoin Hill at Cashtown. But when at Heidlersburg (or Middletown, Brown’s not sure which) word came from A.P. Hill that he would move directly on Gettysburg, where he asked us to meet him. General Lee was not yet up with Hill.

Not long after we had left our camping place of the night before, and it was between 8:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m., that the message came from Hill and we turned to the left toward Gettysburg. At this time of turning off, General Ewell sent me toward Cashtown to meet General Lee and inform him of our change of direction. I struck the main turnpike at Cashtown and happened to meet General Lee just there. The road was full of wagons, part of Hill’s wagon train. Troops were passing toward Gettysburg as I was talking to Lee. Hill was already engaged with artillery and skirmishers. . . ”

Next Brown says that Lee asked him whether Ewell had heard where Stuart was, and said Stuart had not followed his instructions. . . (this seems contrived.)

A Page From Brown’s 1869 “Recollections”

Brown’s First Diagram

Brown’s Second Diagram

Joe Ryan