Fire&Fury ACW rules set - Gettysburg in 20mm, the Buildings of the Battlefield (part 25)

The buildings and other structures of the Gettysburg battlefield are one of the interesting aspects of this battle. The German influenced buildings of the Pennsylvanian landscape are  all different and can give a great variety to a wargaming table (or shelves). As they were mostly built by farmers sometimes they are rustic but have also an enduring look and many are still standing. 

A little north of Gettysburg at the foot of Oak Hill you have the McLeans Farm. I built both buildings and soon regretted it as they are space consuming on the table.  

My usual way for wargaming structures, specially brigade level of wargaming, is to build the building on the small size using just 20mm approximately windows and doors. Everything is glued on the outside to speed up construction and simple materials like cardboard and wood is used. Most of the times an electric pistol glues everything together, other times wood glue is used. The entire building is then primed black and then painted with its colours. The black priming is particularly helpful on windows as you only need to paint the frame work after. 

Rear view from the Mummasburg Road.

Gettysburg College is the biggest building of all so all structures had to be shrunken and the number of windows and floors heavily reduced. 

The tower is a Kinder Egg shell. The Building is at the end of Mummasburg Road, north of Gettysburg.

The Seminary was already showed in the first part of this series so just two more pictures of the yet to see front...

                           

... and top parts.

The Cemetery entrance on the north part of Cemetery Hill very close to Tawneytown road.

This was a place of furious hand to hand combat between Ewell's corps and Howards's. 

Bliss farm was another furiously contested place on the 2nd and 3rd day. 

Again the clear influence of German farms can be seen. 

Codori house saw the lines of Pickett's passing through it on the 3rd day.

My smallest house is Bryan House between the Emmitsburg and Taneytown roads.

   Bryan House facing southwest toward the scene of Pickett’s Charge.

McPherson Barn was in the center of the clash between Heth and Buford on the first day. 

Again clear German influence on its layout.  

Just an house for Gettysburg town itself.

The figures standing for scale near the buildings are Markers for Breakthrough in F&F terms.

Thomson House was Lee's Headquarters during most of the battle. 

Side and top view of the same Thompson House. 

Two metal Irregular Miniatures Houses for the streets of Gettysburg. 

And three other resin houses from Serra da Estrela handicraft. After black  priming these nice Portuguese houses can turn Gettysburg houses with some careful painting. 

Rear view of the same group. 

To this houses I can add the ones I made for AWI and include them in the city itself. I still want to do Trostle and Sherfy houses as well as the Devil's Den. 

Next: III Corps (Sickles), the Army of the Potomac. 

Fire&Fury ACW rules set - Gettysburg in 20mm, Hays Division and II Corps artillery (part 24)

On the 2nd of July, with Bliss Farm close to be hotly contested by the advancing Rebels of Anderson's Division, Gen. Hays orders its Division  to place itself behind the Emmitsburg Road on the high ground of Cemetery Hill. 

This is Willard Brigade and it should be placed much to the rear on the reverse slope. This same brigade suffered the humiliation of Harper's Ferry and still was not considered  battle worthy. In the same day they gained the confidence of the rest of the army by driving back Barksdale famous attack a feat of arms that also took Col. Willard's life, struck by a cannon ball in the head. 

Smyth's Brigade is strongly entrenched behind a stone wall. Again mixture of metal and plastic models. 

While Carroll's Brigade is a bit more to the north forming reserve columns. This Brigade is Italeri  for the rank and file and standard bearers with an Esci officer. 

II Corps artillery also has the usual four guns (Fire&Fury ratio, of course) with mostly Revell models with of those Esci figures that originally carried a wounded soldier. 

In an other stand you can see Revell artillerymen living together in harmony with an infantry officer. 

Once again the useful Revell Union standing officer gives a nice Gen. Hays with its already grey beard. 

Next: a break in the blue waves for the buildings of Gettysburg. 

Fire&Fury ACW rules set - Gettysburg in 20mm, Gibbon's Division, II Corps (part 23)

On July the 2nd, Gibbon's Division, placed on Cemetery Hill, faces the assault of the Confederate assault of A.P. Hill Corps. With the approach of 1600 Alabamians under Wilcox menacing the gap between II and III corps, Gen. Hancock urges forward the 262 men of the 1st Minnesota in one of the most famous fighting actions of the war. Half an hour later only 47 remained standing but they gained time for the Union line to be re-established. 

The 1st Minnesota represents Harrow's Brigade and most of the figures are Union bodies with slouch hats taken from Rebel figures. Others are Confederate figures painted as Union. Probably by this time of the war many men would already have lost its slouch hat and had kepis instead but like this the 1st Minnesota is easily recognizable. I also read somewhere that the State/regimental flag was not carried in this battle and the famous paintings of Keith Rocco, Dale Gallon and Don Troiani shows only the National flag while others place both flags. 

Hall's brigade are Revell and Esci figures with hand painted Massachusetts and National flag. 

Webb's Pennsylvania Brigade is represented by the Zouave 72nd Reg.Penn.Volunteer Infantry made from Hat figures with officers from Revell and Imex. The State flag is also hand painted.

General Gibbon is a conversion from the Esci Union officer with a Revell head with goatee facial hair. 

Next: 3rd Division, II Corps Army of the Potomac.

Fire&Fury ACW rules set - Gettysburg in 20mm, Caldwell's Division, II Corps (part 22)

Moving to the second day, 2nd July 1863, 1st Division, II Corps is deploying in the Wheatfield, where some of the most savage fighting of the battle took place. This Division, led by Gen John C. Caldwell was the only to have four brigades in the Army of the Potomac due to the heavy casualties suffered by its regiments in the Fredericksburg campaign. 

Cross Brigade, a bit ahead of the others, is ready to engage Anderson's Division in the eastern part of the Wheatfield. In line, behind the Wheatfield Road, stand Zook's and Kelly's Brigade. To the rear and getting ready to form a reserve comes Brooke's Brigade. 

Behind a stonewall stands the famous Irish Brigade (Kelly's). The figures are Esci and Revell and the flags are still hand painted as this brigade is one of my oldest. 

Zook's Brigade is here represented by the 140th Pennsylvania. I painted brass epaulettes on these figures as this was part of their initial uniform. Also hand painted flags. 

A mix of ACTA, Revell, Esci, Imex and a converted officer makes Cross Brigade. 

Brooke's brigade is marching in column with Esci, ACTA, Revell and Irregular Miniatures figures. The Officer is a conversion of an Italeri figure. 

Division Commander, Gen. Caldwell, had a short but hairy beard and the Revell figure portrays him quite well. 

The Wheatfield is already strewned with bodies. The figures are Irregular Miniatures and some have a plastic rifle. In Fire&Fury these figures, and many different ones,  are markers, and were a novelty in the wargaming panorama in 1990. 

Next: Yes, you got it, 2nd Division, II Corps. 

Fire&Fury ACW rules set - Gettysburg in 20mm, Doubleday/Rowley division, I Corps (part 21)

Doubleday's Division, Now Rowley's, due to I Corps commander's death Gen. Reynolds, is engaging the Confederates of Brockenbrough and Pettigrew close to Herbst Woods and along the Willoughby run on the 1st of July, 1863. 

The L shaped Stone's Brigade is made fully of one position of the Union Revell and Imex. 

Biddle's Brigade is a mix of Italeri and Revell plastics with some Irregular miniatures with shouldered rifles. This important position for carrying a ACW weapon is absent of all plastic brands until the last StreletsR arrival. 

Stannard Brigade was not at Gettysburg on day one but present in the defeat of Pickett's charge in which his Vermont men flanked the Confederate's advance in a very important moment of the battle and poured flanking fire into their advance. 

The figures are mostly from A Call to Arms and Esci. 

Gen. Doubleday is a figure from one of the StreletsR box of Union personalities. 

Next: Army of the Potomac, II Corps. 

Fire&Fury ACW rules set - Gettysburg in 20mm, Robinson´s Division and I Corps artillery (part 20)

1st of July 1863, Paul's Brigade withdraws north of Gettysburg under the pressure of four Confederate Brigades. Baxter Brigade is installed in Oak Ridge but both brigades will race soon for the safety of Cemetery Hill, behind the line of trees. Well, in fact Cemetery Hill is not there, what lies there is a wall from my yard. 

Divisional Commander, Gen. Robinson is a Revell figure, chosen due to the prominent beard the original man had. The standard bearer is a conversion of an Italeri figure. 

The brigades have nothing special, being made of Revell, Imex, Esci and Italeri.

A bit more of the same with some more conversions on the standard bearers. 

The Divisional artillery, represented by four guns and limbers, have figures from Revell's artillery, infantry and pioneers set. The gun is a conversion of a Napoleonic Esci British gun. 

One of the limbers is an old and precious Airfix limber....

... and the other three are Revell. Only the strange right arm of the horse drivers was heated and its position changed in order to look more natural. 

Next: Doubleday's division to conclude theArmy of the Potomac I Corps, . 

Fire&Fury ACW rules set - Gettysburg in 20mm, Wadsworth's Division, I Corps (part 19)

Meredith's and Cutler's Brigades, 1st Division, 1st Corps, deploys its regiments from Seminary Ridge to block the advance of Davis and Archer's Brigades, 1st of July, 1863. 

The figures of the Iron Brigade (Meredith`s), represented here by the 2nd Wisconsin, are the Esci figure with the Hardee hat and frock coat plus some conversions from Esci also with Hardee hat on  sack coat figures. The old Airfix confederate officer changed sides and joined the anti-slavery cause. The flags are hand painted from the time when no printers existed.

The 14th Brooklin Militia (84th NY) represent Cutler`s brigade and are based on the Hat and Italeri Zouaves all in shell jacket and Revell officer. 

Other figures that joined 14th Brooklin are some conversions on the Chinese copies of the Esci hard plastic WW2 Japanese that you can see in marching position. I only cut the Japanese felt hat on top in order to create a kepi.

 The divisional Co, Gen. Solomon Meredith, is a StreletsR figure with Italeri head with whiskers as the true character.

Gen. Abner Doubleday assumed command of I Corps with Gen Reynolds death on the first day. But on the second day the command was given to Gen. John Newton. This Italeri figure represents the bearded John Newton who fought on the second and third day of the battle.

Next: More Army of the Potomac with Robinson division.