By: Timothy H. Smith, Historian & Director of Education, Gettysburg History
While names like David Wills, John Burns, and Jennie Wade are familiar to students of Gettysburg history, David McConaughy was one of the most important—yet often overlooked—figures of the Civil War era in Gettysburg.
The McConaughy family was among the earliest settlers in what is now Adams County. Both of David’s grandfathers fought in the American Revolution and served in the Pennsylvania State Legislature. David was born in Gettysburg on July 12, 1823, to John and Margaret Patterson McConaughy. Displaying remarkable intelligence from a young age, he graduated from Washington College, Pennsylvania, in 1840 at just 17 years of age. After a brief career in education, he studied law under his brother-in-law, Moses McClean, a former U.S. Congressman from Gettysburg. McConaughy was admitted to the Adams County Bar in 1845 and practiced law for the rest of his life.
Community Leadership and Evergreen Cemetery
A dedicated Presbyterian, McConaughy played a pivotal role in founding Evergreen Cemetery in 1853, serving as its first president—a position he still held at the time of the Battle of Gettysburg. In politics, he was a Republican and served as a delegate to the 1860 Republican National Convention in Chicago, where Abraham Lincoln was nominated for president.
Intelligence Work Before the Battle
When the Confederate Army invaded Pennsylvania in June 1863, McConaughy organized a group of volunteer scouts to track enemy movements. His detailed intelligence reports were sent via telegraph to the governor of Pennsylvania, then relayed to the Department of the Susquehanna and Washington authorities.
On June 28, 1863, as an advance detachment of the Army of the Potomac under General Joseph Copeland arrived in Gettysburg, McConaughy provided valuable intelligence, for which General George G. Meade’s intelligence officer, Colonel George Sharpe, responded:
“The General directs me to thank you…. You have grasped the information as well in its directness & minuteness, that is it very valuable.”
Visionary Battlefield Preservation
McConaughy’s greatest legacy came in the days immediately after the battle. In an August 14, 1863, letter, he wrote:
“Immediately after the battles of Gettysburg the thought occurred to me, that there could be no more fitting and expressive memorial of the heroic valor and signal triumphs of our army… than the battlefield itself, with its natural and artificial defenses, preserved and perpetuated in the exact form and condition that presented during the battle.”
Acting upon this vision, McConaughy acquired key battlefield sites, including portions of Cemetery Hill and Little Round Top. In 1864, his efforts led to the incorporation of the Gettysburg Battlefield Memorial Association by the State of Pennsylvania—the earliest organized effort to preserve the battlefield.
Later Life and Legacy
After the war, McConaughy served in the Pennsylvania State Legislature and continued practicing law. He died in 1902 and is buried in Evergreen Cemetery.
Though his name has been overshadowed, McConaughy’s vision for preserving the battlefield laid the foundation for what is now Gettysburg National Military Park. Every visitor walking the hallowed ground today is experiencing the result of his foresight and dedication.
To learn more about David McConaughy and other citizens who shaped Gettysburg’s history, visit the award-winning new Beyond the Battle Museum.
