Wisler House 3D

• Wisler House Restoration

On the morning of July 1, 1863, the 8th Illinois Cavalry established a vidette post at the home and blacksmith shop of Ephraim Wisler. From its position on Knoxlyn Ridge, the Wisler House was an ideal location from which to spy any Confederate advance toward Gettysburg down the Chambersburg Pike. At 7:30 am, Union cavalrymen detected the advance on Henry Heth's Confederate division, which had departed their Cashtown bivouac to conduct a reconnaissance in force toward Gettysburg. Lt. Marcellus E. Jones, who commanded the picket line of the 8th Illinois, borrowed the carbine of Sgt. Levi Shafer, rested the weapon on one of the Wisler's fence posts, and from the western yard of the home fired the first shot of the Battle of Gettysburg. The Ephraim Wisler home would become enshrined in Gettysburg lore as "The First Shot House"...the location from which the great Battle of Gettysburg was inaugurated.

 

 

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  Wisler House 3D Tour - Audio Described

  On the morning of July 1, 1863, the 8th Illinois Cavalry established a vidette post at the home and blacksmith shop of Ephraim Wisler. The Wisler house was an ideal location from which to spy any Confederate advance toward Gettysburg down the Chambersburg Pike. Lt. Marcellus E. Jones, who commanded the picket line of the 8th Illinois, fired the first shot of the Battle of Gettysburg from the western yard of the home. This 3D tour allows you to visit "The First Shot House."

  Duration:

  2 minutes, 22 seconds