Hanover Junction
North Codorus Township, York County, Pennsylvania
Marker Inscription
Here, Nov. 18, 1863, a special train carrying Abraham Lincoln and party to Gettysburg for dedication of National Cemetery changed railroads. Earlier in that year, wounded soldiers were transported from Gettysburg battlefield to this Junction, thence to distant hospitals. It was a chief point on the Military Telegraph line, 1863.
Erected by Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission
The Story
In November 1863, this rural railroad junction in York County was where Abraham Lincoln's train changed lines on his way to dedicate the national cemetery at Gettysburg. Months earlier the same junction had funneled wounded men from the battlefield onward to distant hospitals, and it served as a key relay on the military telegraph network that carried war news north and east. What looks like an ordinary spot where two rail lines met was, for a season, a nerve center of the war in Pennsylvania.
Why it matters
It captures how the era's railroads and telegraph wove battlefield, president, and home front together, making places like Hanover Junction essential to how the Civil War was fought and remembered.
Plan your visit
NearbyMake a day of it — museums, food, and places to stay near this marker.
Museums & culture
- Hanover Fire Museum11.0 mi away
- Neas House11.5 mi away · 103 West Chestnut Street, Hanover, PA
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Related people
- · Abraham Lincoln
Related events
- · Gettysburg Address
- · Battle of Gettysburg
Themes & tags
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