Early Paperweight of Jennie Wade House – killed at Gettysburg

This is another nice item being offered; it is an early 20th century Gettysburg paperweight. It measures 4" x 2 1/2" x 1". Under the thick glass is an early photograph of the “Jennie Wade House” along with her headstone in the cemetery.

These paperweights were a popular souvenir in the early 20th century. Many visitors and even Civil War veterans would pick one up as a keepsake. They had many different scenes; Devils Den is one of the rarer ones. In my book “Battle of Gettysburg – The Relics, Artifacts & Souvenirs” I show several examples of these paperweights (see pictures).

Jennie Wade, her mother, and two younger brothers left their home downtown and traveled to the house of her sister, Georgia Anna Wade McClellan at 528 Baltimore Street to assist her and her newborn child. It was July 1, 1863, during the first day's fighting of the Battle of Gettysburg. More than 150 bullets hit the McClellan house during the fighting.

About 8:30 a.m. on July 3rd, Jennie was kneading dough for bread when a Minié ball traveled through the kitchen door of her sister's house and hit her. It pierced her left shoulder blade, went through her heart, and ended up in her corset. She was killed instantly. While it is uncertain which side fired the fatal shot, some authors have attributed it to an unknown Confederate sharpshooter.

Shortly afterward, three Union soldiers discovered the body and told the rest of the family. They temporarily buried Wade's body in the back yard of the McClellan house, in a coffin originally intended for a Confederate officer. Later she would be reinterred in the nearby Evergreen Cemetery. On July 4th, her mother baked 15 loaves of bread for soldiers with the dough Wade had kneaded the day before.

This unique piece is in very nice condition with no chips or cracks. In my book “Battle of Gettysburg – The Relics, Artifacts & Souvenirs”, I go into detail about paperweights such as this along with many other collectibles related to Jennie Wade.