Confederate Major General James Ewell Brown Stuart led 4,500 Confederate cavalrymen through York County during the Gettysburg Campaign (Library of Congress)
Confederate Calamity: The Krall properties
The Krall family owned a fair amount of land off Lisburn Road in Warrington Township near Round Top, including much of the land on the eastern side of the intersection of today’s State Route 74 and the state game land road. There, they operated a general dry goods store. A little farther up Lisburn Road is the old farmhouse owned by Jacob D. Krall. On a warm summer afternoon in 1863, a patrol of Confederate cavalry from Brigadier General Wade Hampton III’s brigade of Jeb Stuart’s division passed by this farm.
They did not leave empty handed.
Rebels entered Krall’s large barn and emerged leading his 8-yr-old black stallion and a 2-yr-old bay stallion.
In an amazing coincidence, Krall recovered the latter animal two to three months later, as it had been abandoned by the Confederates after the Battle of Gettysburg. However, but it had been so badly injured its back that he had to destroy the animal.
Krall later filed a state damage claim for $700 for the two horses.
He was never compensated for his loss.
The old Krall general store is long gone, as well as many other buildings along Lisburn Road. However, Jacob Krall’s house and barn are in excellent condition, a tribute to later generation owners and to the current property owners.
