During the 1800s, citizens of the United States were moving to escape slavery, find riches on the frontier, and find land. Some families found their towns to stay in and moved from one place to another within the community that they worked and made friendships in. This is the case of the family of the Wades. Mary Virginia “Jennie” Wade and her sister Georgia Wade were able to be near friends within all their abodes. Let’s explore each one in Gettysburg.
Georgia and Jennie were both born at the house at 242 Baltimore Street. This wooden house was built in the 1820s, and lies along the top of the hill. It was the best sledding hill in town, along with being very close to their family friends of the Pierces, Shrivers, Garlach, Rupp, and Sweney families. Three of the Wade family members would be born in this house, with Margaret Wade being the last one. She passed away after four months of living in 1849. Due to this tragedy, they moved to another house, but not far away.
The second house that the Wades lived in was that of the one at 49-51 Breckenridge Street. The remaining Wade children Samuel and Harry may have been born here or at the Alms House north of town. Samuel was born in 1850, and Harry was born in 1855. Around this time, Mr. Wade was in trouble with the law, and domestic life was not suiting him. He was charged with assault, battery, and larceny. He was sent to prison for two to three years at Eastern State Penitentiary, and then to the Alms House when he returned to Gettysburg because he was very insane. Due to this, Georgia and Jennie had to help their mother, Mary Ann Filby Wade, help provide for the family and work around town. This house on Breckenridge Street was their house through the Civil War.
The third house is the where Jennie’s life ended. It’s actually a duplex that is shared between Georgia Wade McClellan and the McClain family. Georgia married her husband John McClellan on April 15, 1862. Another note, her marriage to John is fifty years prior to the sinking of the Titanic. Back to the 1860s. Her husband would join the 21st Pennsylvania Cavalry in June 1862 and serve three years until July 1865. During one of his leaves from the Union army, he came home to see Georgia and they became pregnant. She gave birth to her first born on June 26th, 1863, just a few days before the battle of Gettysburg on July 1 through July 3rd. When Jennie was shot and killed, she was buried first behind the house, which is now currently the gift shop. She would then be buried at the church cemetery and then re-interred in the Evergreen Cemetery.