Patrick O'Rorke

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Patrick Henry "Paddy" O'Rorke or O'Rourke^[1] (March 25, 1837 – July 2, 1863) was an Irish-American immigrant who became a colonel in the Union Army during the American Civil War and was killed at the Battle of Gettysburg.

Contents 1 Early life 2 Civil War 3 In memoriam 4 References 5 Notes 6 External links

[edit] Early life

O'Rorke was born in County Cavan, Ireland. He was a year old when his parents emigrated to the United States. They settled in Rochester, New York, where he attended the public schools, and in 1853 went to work as a marble cutter. Shortly after he was appointed a cadet in the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, graduating first in his class in June 1861.

[edit] Civil War

Commissioned a lieutenant in the regular army, O'Rorke first distinguished himself in the Civil War as a staff officer in the engineer corps. He was appointed colonel of the 140th New York Infantry, which he led in the Battle of Fredericksburg. At Chancellorsville, he commanded the 3rd Brigade, 2nd Division, V Corps.

At Gettysburg, O'Rorke was back in command of his regiment; Brig. Gen. Stephen H. Weed commanded the 3rd Brigade. Brig. Gen. Gouverneur K. Warren was desperately searching for units to defend Little Round Top, and he encountered O'Rorke's New Yorkers, the rearmost regiment in Weed's brigade, on their way to reinforce the III Corps. O'Rorke initially declined Warren's request for assistance because he was under orders to follow his brigade. Warren told him, "Never mind that, Paddy. Bring them up on the double-quick and don't stop for aligning. I'll take the responsibility."^[2] O'Rorke rushed his men to the crest of the hill and plunged down its western face without pause, driving the attacking Confederates back down the slope. During the counterattack, O'Rorke caught up his regimental colors and, mounting a rock to urge on his men, was struck and fell dead. The Comte de Paris in his Histoire de la guerre civile en Amérique (VI, iv, 379) says this was one of the most striking and dramatic episodes of the battle. O'Rorke's widow became a member of the Society of the Sacred Heart and one of the successful educators in their New York convents.

[edit] In memoriam

In 2004, a bascule bridge in Rochester, New York, was dedicated to the memory of Colonel O'Rorke.^[3].

[edit] References

• Clark, Champ, and the Editors of Time-Life Books, Gettysburg: The Confederate High Tide, Time-Life Books, 1985, ISBN 0-8094-4758-4.
• This article incorporates text from the entry Patrick Henry O'Rorke in the public-domain Catholic Encyclopedia of 1913.

[edit] Notes

[edit] External links

• Biography from the Gettysburg National Park website

v • d • e Gettysburg Figures Confederate leaders Robert E. Lee • E. Porter Alexander • Richard H. Anderson • James J. Archer • Lewis Addison Armistead • William Barksdale • Jubal A. Early • Richard S. Ewell • John Brown Gordon • Henry Heth • A. P. Hill • John B. Hood • Allegheny Johnson • James Longstreet • Lafayette McLaws • W. Dorsey Pender • J. Johnston Pettigrew • George E. Pickett • Robert E. Rodes • J. E. B. Stuart • Isaac R. Trimble Union leaders George G. Meade • Francis C. Barlow • John Buford • Joshua L. Chamberlain • Andrew Gregg Curtin • George A. Custer • Abner Doubleday • Elon J. Farnsworth • George S. Greene • David McMurtrie Gregg • Winfield S. Hancock • Joseph Hooker • Oliver O. Howard • Henry J. Hunt • Abraham Lincoln • Patrick O'Rorke • Alfred Pleasonton • John F. Reynolds • John Sedgwick • Daniel Sickles • Henry W. Slocum • George Sykes • Gouverneur K. Warren • Stephen Weed • Strong Vincent Other Notable Military Characters Father William Corby • Henry Thomas Harrison • Amos Humiston • Marcellus Jones • Horatio Stockton Howell • Richard Enderlin • Arthur Fremantle • Ellis Spear • Traveller (horse) Local civilians John L. Burns • Abraham Bryan • David McConaughy • Edward McPherson • Ginnie Wade • David Wills (Gettysburg)