On April 17, 1861, five days after Confederate guns opened on Fort Sumter, thousands of Schuylkill County residents poured into the streets as 230 young men marched down Centre Street to the railroad depot and departed for the frontlines of the Civil War. 

They went into history as the First Defenders — among the first Union troops to reach Washington, D.C. Before the war ended, more than 13,000 men from Schuylkill County would serve. More than 600 never came home.

Led by public historian Jake Wynn, this walking tour traces the Civil War through the landscape of Pottsville — from the 1851 railroad depot on East Union Street to the Irish immigrant soldiers of St. Patrick's Church — drawing on primary sources and contemporary accounts to tell the unique story of how this Coal Region city experienced the nation's defining conflict.

Tour begins and ends at the Schuylkill County Historical Society.

Approximately 1.5 miles - will include hills (appropriate for Pottsville). 90 minutes long. 

Presented by Jake Wynn | wynninghistory.com

Purchase tickets below or by calling the Society at 570-622-7540