The Tillie Pierce House Inn
Tillie was one of the bravest civilians to spring into action after the Battle of Gettysburg broke out during the American Civil War. Without questioning her own well-being, Tillie rose to the occasion to assist in tending to wounded and dying soldiers.
Tillie showed more selflessness and courage at just fifteen years old than some soldiers on the battlefield. She amputated injured arms and legs, sewed up bleeding gouges, and dressed wounds well into the darkness of the night during battle.
Why is the Tillie Pierce House Inn haunted?
The Tillie Pierce House, located in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, is renowned for its haunted reputation. This historical house, named after Matilda “Tillie” Pierce Alleman, played a significant role during the Battle of Gettysburg in the American Civil War.
Read on to learn about the Tillie Pierce House Inn and find out what led to Tillie becoming an integral part of the American Civil War. Want to see some of Gettysburg’s most haunted locations in person? Book a ghost tour with Civil War Ghosts!
Tillie's Life Before Battle
Tillie Pierce was born in Pennsylvania in 1848. The daughter of a butcher, she was the youngest of the four Pierce kids, all of whom lived right above their father’s butcher shop.
Many years later, Tillie would write a book about the events that unfolded once the war hit. It was titled ‘At Gettysburg, or, What a Girl Heard and Saw in Battle: A True Narrative.’ Tillie recounts the bloodshed she witnessed and the actions she took to play a helpful role during a most horrific time.
On many occasions, she and her family heard rumors that rebels were about to come and raid their homes — more often than not, this talk was nothing more than hearsay. However, that changed in June 1863 when the town’s fears became reality. Confederate forces reached the area, with Union troops doing all that they could to keep them at bay.
The War Draws Nearer
The following is an excerpt from Tillie’s book, which serves to give a sense of the scope of the American Civil War as well as the Battle of Gettysburg:
“They passed northwardly along Washington Street, turned toward the west on reaching Chambersburg Street, and passed out in the direction of the Theological Seminary.
“It was to me a novel and grand sight. I had never seen so many soldiers at one time. They were Union soldiers and that was enough for me, for I then knew we had protection, and I felt they were our dearest friends. I afterwards learned that these men were Buford’s cavalry, numbering about six thousand men.
“A crowd of ‘us girls’ were standing on the corner of Washington and High Streets as these soldiers passed by. Desiring to encourage them, who, as we were told, would before long be in battle, my sister started to sing the old war song ‘Our Union Forever’.”
One must think that to witness just a great force marching through the streets would have caused many people to just run into hiding. Not Tillie– she knew that her brothers were fighting in the war just south of Pennsylvania and that she also had a duty to perform. From here, Tillie’s parents sent her to their neighbor’s farm, the Weikert Farm, as it was considered a ‘safer’ location for her to be.
Tillie's First Experience
Tillie and her friends, who were also sent to the Weikert Farm, were finishing breakfast on July 1st when word came that Union troops were arriving. From her book, Tillie wrote:
“First came a long line of cavalry, then wagon after wagon passed by for quite awhile. Again we sang patriotic songs as they moved along. Some of these wagons were filled with stretchers and other articles; in others we noticed soldiers reclining, who were doubtless in some way disabled.
“It was between nine and ten o’clock when we first noticed firing in the direction of Seminary Ridge. At first the sound was faint, then it grew louder. Soon the booming of cannon was heard, then great clouds of smoke were seen rising beyond the ridge.
“The sound became louder and louder, and was now incessant. The troops passing us moved faster, the men had now become excited and urged on their horses. The battle was waging. This was my first terrible experience.
“I remember hearing some of the soldiers remarking that there was no telling how soon some of them would be brought back in those ambulances, or carried on the stretchers. I hardly knew what it meant, but I learned afterward, even before the day had passed. It was almost noon when the last of the train had passed and I began to think of dinner and the folks at home.”
Tillie Springs To Action
After fighting broke out between the Union and Confederate forces, it wasn’t long before Tillie found herself surrounded by soldiers in need of care. These men soon filled the house and barn. Without hesitation, Tillie grabbed a bucket, ran to the spring to fill it, and returned to clean as many wounds as possible.
More and more injured men piled up, and all through the night, Tillie dressed wounds and tried her best to comfort the soldiers’ minds. This account from her book gives a chilling insight as to what she was being faced with:
“Some limping, some with their heads and arms in bandages, some crawling, others carried on stretchers or brought in ambulances. Suffering, cast down and dejected, it was a truly pitiable gathering. Before night the barn was filled with the shattered and dying heroes of this day’s struggle.
“Nothing before in my experience had ever paralleled the sight we then and there beheld. There were the groaning and crying, the struggling and dying, crowded side by side, while attendants sought to aid and relieve them as best they could….”
Tillie did exactly that—along with the attendants, she helped to care for each wounded soldier who entered the homestead. By this time, the war was nearing its end, and Tillie was soon allowed to return home to her family. She would later write of her walk back home and how, with every single step, she further appreciated how fortunate she was to survive such a harrowing time in American history.
Hauntings at the Tillie Pierce House Inn
The Tillie Pierce House Inn has been featured more than a few times in popular television, radio, and podcast shows. Ghost-hunting groups and those curious about the otherworldly often frequent the home in the hopes of encountering a ghost or two.
Considered the most haunted room in the whole inn, the ‘Blue Room’ is said to be inhabited by soldiers who were once cared for by Tillie. Their footsteps can be heard marching through the halls and in the attic above the room.
Guests have seen patrolling troops, with one such apparition routinely wandering up and down the stairs. Guests have been scared out of their wits upon entering their rooms and seeing a full-blown apparition sitting on the edge of their beds.
Spectral children have also been encountered playing in bed and breakfast, only to vanish right before guests’ eyes.
Haunted Gettysburg
Today, the memory of Tillie’s valor is kept alive by the spirits who forever inhabit the Tillie Pierce House Inn. For more of Gettysburg’s most haunted, keep reading our blog. To see some of these locations in person, book a ghost tour with Civil War Ghosts!
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Sources:
https://civilwarghosts.com/tillie-pierce-house-inn/
https://www.pahauntedhouses.com/real-haunt/tillie-pierce-house-inn.html
At Gettysburg: Or, What a Girl Saw and Heard – Tillie Pierce, 1889.
