Casper Richard Carlisle

He Rode Through Enemy Fire to Save a Cannon

Casper Richard Carlisle was born in 1841 in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. He became a Union Army artilleryman whose extraordinary courage during the Battle of Gettysburg earned him the Medal of Honor. On July 2, 1863, while serving as a Private in Battery F of the Independent Pennsylvania Light Artillery, Carlisle saved a cannon from being lost during intense Confederate fire. His determination on one of the Civil War's most dangerous battlefields would remain the defining achievement of his military service.

Carlisle grew up in western Pennsylvania, where his family lived in the communities surrounding Pittsburgh. Historical census records place him in Ross Township during his childhood and in Pine Township as a young man. Before entering military service, he worked as a laborer.

When the American Civil War began in April 1861, Pennsylvania became an important center for Union military recruitment. Thousands of volunteers joined infantry, cavalry, and artillery formations to support the preservation of the United States.

On October 8, 1861, Carlisle entered Union military service in Pittsburgh. He joined the artillery organization commanded by Captain Robert B. Hampton, which became known as Hampton's Battery or Independent Battery F, Pennsylvania Light Artillery.

His brother Benjamin also served with the battery.

The battery subsequently joined Union military operations in the Eastern Theater. Its service included campaigns in the Shenandoah Valley and engagements associated with Second Bull Run, Antietam, and Chancellorsville.

As a member of a field artillery unit, Carlisle served in an organization responsible for operating and transporting cannons during military operations. Artillery crews depended on carefully coordinated teamwork, with soldiers managing ammunition, positioning guns, and maintaining the horses and equipment required to move heavy weapons.

The ability to withdraw artillery pieces safely was especially important when enemy forces threatened a position. A damaged team of horses or a wounded driver could leave a valuable cannon exposed to capture.

In May 1863, Hampton's Battery suffered a major loss when Captain Robert B. Hampton was mortally wounded during the Battle of Chancellorsville.

The following month, Batteries C and F of the Independent Pennsylvania Light Artillery were temporarily consolidated under Captain James Thompson. The combined formation became part of the Union Army's artillery reserve as Confederate General Robert E. Lee advanced into Pennsylvania.

On July 1, 1863, Union and Confederate forces began fighting at Gettysburg. The battle quickly developed into one of the largest and most consequential engagements of the American Civil War.

On July 2, Confederate troops launched major attacks against the Union left flank, including the positions around the Peach Orchard.

Captain Thompson's combined Pennsylvania batteries were ordered forward under Lieutenant Colonel Freeman McGilvery, who commanded an artillery brigade supporting the Union defensive line.

At approximately five o'clock that afternoon, the batteries entered positions facing Confederate infantry and artillery. Enemy fire intensified as Confederate forces advanced, placing the Union artillery crews under severe pressure.

During the engagement, Confederate troops forced portions of the Union infantry line to withdraw. Thompson's artillerymen attempted to reposition their guns while continuing to resist the enemy advance.

It was during this fighting that Private Casper R. Carlisle performed the action for which he would receive the Medal of Honor.

One of the battery's cannons became dangerously exposed when its team of horses suffered devastating casualties.

Four lead horses were killed, another horse was badly wounded, and the driver was also wounded. The damaged team made it extremely difficult to withdraw the artillery piece as Confederate musket fire swept the position.

Captain Thompson later described Carlisle's conduct in his official battle report.

According to Thompson, Carlisle assisted him in freeing the harness traces from the dead horses while exposed to heavy musketry fire.

Carlisle then mounted the surviving wheel horse and successfully moved the cannon away from the battlefield, preventing its loss.

The action required him to remain near a disabled artillery team while enemy fire continued. Instead of abandoning the threatened weapon, he helped free it and bring it to safety.

Captain Thompson specifically commended Carlisle for his bravery and recommended that he receive a medal for his conduct on July 2 and his subsequent service during the fighting on July 3.

The captain's recommendation preserved an important firsthand account of Carlisle's achievement.

The combined batteries continued participating in the Battle of Gettysburg as the Union Army resisted Confederate attacks.

On July 3, the final day of the battle, Union artillery helped defend Cemetery Ridge against the massive Confederate assault remembered as Pickett's Charge.

The Confederate attack failed, and Lee's army eventually withdrew from Pennsylvania.

Gettysburg became a major turning point in the Eastern Theater, ending the Confederate invasion of the North.

For Carlisle, the battle established a lasting reputation for personal bravery. His conduct demonstrated the importance of individual initiative during moments when an artillery unit's weapons, equipment, and personnel were under immediate threat.

Following Gettysburg, Carlisle continued serving with the Independent Pennsylvania Light Artillery as the war progressed.

He remained in military service until June 26, 1865, when Battery F was mustered out at Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, following the Union victory.

After leaving the Army, Carlisle returned to civilian life in the Pittsburgh area. Historical city directories identify him as a teamster and wagon driver, occupations that involved transporting goods using horse-drawn vehicles.

He also maintained connections with fellow Civil War veterans through the Grand Army of the Republic and the Hampton Battery Veteran Association.

In 1888, the battery's surviving veterans formally acknowledged Captain Thompson's efforts to secure official recognition for Carlisle's bravery at Gettysburg.

The following year, Carlisle attended a veterans' reunion at Gettysburg on September 11, 1889, joining former members of the artillery battery on the battlefield where they had served more than twenty-six years earlier.

Recognition for his wartime courage finally came on December 21, 1892.

On that date, Casper R. Carlisle was awarded the Army Medal of Honor for his extraordinary conduct at Gettysburg on July 2, 1863.

His official citation stated:

"Saved a gun of his battery under heavy musketry fire, most of the horses being killed and the drivers wounded."

The decoration recognized the bravery he had demonstrated while helping rescue a disabled artillery piece during the Confederate assault against the Union left flank.

Carlisle received the Medal of Honor during his lifetime, almost three decades after the battle.

His later years were spent in Pennsylvania, where historical records document continued financial hardship despite the military distinction he had earned.

Casper R. Carlisle died on April 29, 1908, at the age of sixty-six. He was buried at Mount Lebanon Cemetery in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania.

His grave commemorates his military service and the Medal of Honor he received for his actions at Gettysburg.

Carlisle's legacy is closely connected to the courage of ordinary Union artillerymen who faced extraordinary dangers while maintaining their positions under enemy fire.

On July 2, 1863, as Confederate forces advanced and a battery's horses and drivers fell under fire, he helped free a threatened cannon and mounted a surviving horse to move the weapon to safety.

That act of bravery, recognized by his commanding officer and later honored by the United States government, secured Casper R. Carlisle's place among the Medal of Honor recipients of the American Civil War.