Gettysburg's Lost Love Story: The Ill-Fated Romance of General John Reynolds and Kate Hewitt

by Jeffrey J. Harding

Overview

Union general John Reynolds was one of the most beloved and respected military leaders of the Civil War, yet beyond the battlefield, the captivating true story of his secret romance with Catherine “Kate” Mary Hewitt remains etched into his legacy. Clandestinely engaged before John marched off to war, the couple’s love remained a secret. Kate made a poignant “last promise,” a commitment to enter into a religious life if her beloved were to be killed. Tragically, Reynolds lost his life leading troops into action during the opening phases of the Battle of Gettysburg. Within days Kate was embraced by the Reynolds family and soon began to honor her promise of a religious life. Yet a few years later she seemed to disappear. Author Jeffrey J. Harding unveils new findings on Kate’s life before and after John’s death as he recounts Gettysburg’s saga of star-crossed love.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781467151597
Publisher:	Arcadia Publishing SC
Publication date:	02/07/2022
Series:	Civil War Series
Pages:	192
Sales rank:	677,096
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.50(d)

About the Author

Jeffrey J. Harding currently works as a Licensed Battlefield Guide at Gettysburg National Military Park, a freelance historian, a leadership consultant and a motivational speaker. Over the past decade, Jeff has joined with numerous others in a number of sleuthing efforts to resolve mysteries of historical significance. Jeff’s accounts of these endeavors and his analysis of additional historical subject matter have graced the pages of noted publications such as Civil War Times, Naval History Magazine, Gettysburg Magazine, the Washington Times and The Gettysburg Experience. Jeff has conducted numerous interviews for podcasts and major media, and he delivered a keynote speech about FADM Nimitz during a special event held on the Battleship Missouri Memorial commemorating the sixty-eighth anniversary of the end of World War II.

Table of Contents

A Note on the Text 9

Foreword Wayne E. Motts 11

Preface 13

Acknowledgements 17

Introduction 23

1 John: Gettysburg 27

2 John: Child of Privilege 35

3 Kate: Owego Orphan 41

4 John: West Point 47

5 John: Army Life and the Mexican War 56

6 Kate: California Girl 64

7 John: Go West Young Man 69

8 Kate: Revelation and Scandal 80

9 John and Kate: A Fateful Encounter 87

10 John and Kate: Engagement and a Last Promise 95

11 John: Return to the Point 100

12 Kate: Salvation and Redemption 104

13 John: Civil War-Through the Ranks 108

14 John: Civil War-Corps Command 118

15 Kate: Farewell John 127

16 Kate: The Daughters of Charity-Emmitsburg 134

17 Kate: The Daughters of Charity-Albany 140

18 Kate: Marriage 146

19 Kate: A Remarkable Legacy 152

20 John and Kate: Reflections 160

Notes 167

About the Author 191

Editorial Reviews

A mystery that has puzzled Gettysburg historians for years has been solved! The fate of Kate Hewitt, the secret fiancée of General John Reynolds, is now a compelling true story of love, sacrifice and redemption. Jeff’s meticulous research (along with Mary Stanford Pitkin) has uncovered facts never before seen and has unveiled the truth of the Reynolds/Hewitt relationship. —Michael A. Riley, historian and author of: “For God’s Sake Forward!”: General John F. Reynolds, USA

The ill-fated saga of John Reynolds and Kate Hewitt has long fascinated those interested in the Battle of Gettysburg. We have wanted, for many years, to know more about the mysterious Kate. Thanks to Jeff Harding and genealogist Mary Stanford Pitkin we now know why Kate did not want to be fully discovered, yet her story continues to amaze us. This is a carefully documented chronicle of love, loss and triumph—and why the Civil War, with its myriad participants, continues to fascinate us. —Diana Loski, author and editor of The Gettysburg Experience magazine and author of The Chamberlains of Brewer and A Gettysburg Collection, Biographical Treasury

The real Catherine (Kate) Hewitt has been found! For those who love both good history and a great mystery, this book is for you. Through impeccable research, historian Jeff Harding and his research associate Mary Stanford Pitkin have answered the enduring questions surrounding General John Reynolds’s fiancée, Kate Hewitt. In this very readable book, the reader will discover who she was, what happened to her after Reynolds’s untimely death at Gettysburg and the location of her final resting place. A dual biography of General Reynolds gives context to the ill-fated relationship. But this is no dry historical recitation! Harding takes you with him on a fascinating journey of discovery as he uncovers clues, which he deftly weaves into an engaging story. The outcome is satisfying and a little bit shocking. —Sue Boardman, historian, licensed battlefield guide, former Leadership Program director for the Gettysburg Foundation Leadership Program and coauthor of three books: Elizabeth Thorn of Gettysburg: The Wartime Caretaker of Evergreen Cemetery; The Battle of Gettysburg Cyclorama, A History and Guide and The Gettysburg Cyclorama: The Turning Point of the Civil War on Canvas.

Harding’s dedication to tracking down the details of Kate’s life is admirable and adds a significant chunk of human-interest appeal to the already massive Gettysburg historiography. That makes his contribution considerable, as the first stop on the Gettysburg National Military Park’s tour map is the site where Reynolds fell and where the mystery of his engagement with Kate first began. Now, visitors can also learn more about Kate, the loss she suffered at Gettysburg, and her indomitable will to survive in the face of staggering tragedy. Emerging Civil War

After finishing Harding’s dual biography, readers will have sufficient material to answer if the Reynolds-Hewitt relationship, however brief, contributes something of importance to the historical record and, specifically, how that relationship did or did not affect Reynold’s life and his conduct as a soldier during the Civil War. The History Press is to be commended for including numerous photographs and illustrations that add a human dimension and sense of place to Harding’s book. John Fulton Reynolds’s legacy has long been set in stone; his impressive equestrian statue is the first stop on the Gettysburg battlefield auto tour. Kate Hewitt now has her story memorialized in the pages of Jeffrey Harding’s book. Civil War Monitor

Jeff Harding’s Gettysburg’s Lost Love Story closes the book on the answer to a question that has eluded Civil War historians for generations. It also offers an intriguing look at Kate Hewitt’s life before John Reynolds and begs the question as to what Reynolds knew of her early life when he proposed to marry her. —Fred Veil, great-grandnephew of Charles Veil (General Reynolds’s orderly) and former executive director of the Sharlot Hall Museum in Prescott, Arizona

Jeff Harding has penned an interesting and thoughtful portrayal of the lives of General John Reynolds and his fiancée, Kate Hewitt. Although much is known about John Reynolds, little has been known until now about the life of Kate Hewitt. Carried out with the assistance of Mary Pitkin, Mr. Harding’s dogged pursuit of evidence reveals heretofore unknown details about Kate Hewitt’s life and its trajectory following the death of John Reynolds, painting a clear picture of her persistence and resilience even under daunting circumstances. This highly readable story will be of interest to historians and non-historians alike. —Janet Morgan Riggs, President Emerita, Gettysburg College

Gettysburg—its history, its memory, its characters—has a near totemic significance for millions of people. Now Jeff Harding has written a book that will further delight this group. Blending new research with a keen knowledge of history and a detective’s instinct for the meaning behind the facts, Harding provides an engaging chronicle of the relationship between General John Reynolds and “Kate” Hewitt. But more than anything this is a story, written with insightful empathy, of Kate herself, including new information about her life’s continuing journey following Reynolds’s death at Gettysburg. Rudyard Kipling said, “If history were taught in the form of stories it would never be forgotten.” After reading Harding’s book I will be remembering the John and Kate romance, and appreciating Kate, in new ways. Jeff Harding has given us a wonderful story that adds to our understanding of the history, the memory and the characters of Gettysburg. —Lawrence Taylor, U.S. ambassador (retired) and co-founder of the Gettysburg Leadership Experience

The sudden death of General John F. Reynolds and the dramatic effect it had on the love of his life, Catherine “Kate” Hewitt, has long been a simple anecdote about the Battle of Gettysburg. Author, historian and licensed battlefield guide Jeff Harding has gone one step further to unearth the story of this tragic and heartbreaking relationship and chronicle the story of love that bloomed only to come to a sad end on the battlefield and beyond. —John S. Heiser, historian, National Park Service (ret.)

In the middle of this cauldron are Kate and John. His life has been profusely documented in text and visuals. Her life is largely a mystery. Until now. Harding shines a light on Kate’s journey of perseverance, including revelations and scandals, and a secret prewar engagement to the accomplished Reynolds.

From the Publisher