David McConaughy (July 13, 1823 – January 14, 1902) was a notedattorney,state senator,cemetery president, and civic leader inGettysburg, Pennsylvania and a part-time intelligence officer for theUnion Army during theAmerican Civil War. He was a driving force behind the creation of theGettysburg National Cemetery following theBattle of Gettysburg. He also led early efforts to preserve theGettysburg Battlefield forfuture generations.

McConaughy was the grandson ofIrishimmigrants who had settled inChester, Pennsylvania, in 1712. The McConaughy family was among the first settlers ofAdams County and among the most prominent pioneers. He was the youngest of six children of John and Margaret (Patterson) McConaughy. His father died when he was four years old, and David was raised byfoster parents. He attendedGettysburg College from 1834 until 1838, when he transferred toWashington College, where his uncle, also namedDavid McConaughy, a formerPresbyterian minister in Gettysburg, was the president. After graduating in 1840, he accepted a position as principal of a high school inMaryland, where he remained two years.

McConaughy then studied law under notedabolitionistThaddeus Stevens and became an attorney in Adams County. He was active in politics as aWhig. He helped organize the Gettysburg chapter of theYMCA and often sponsored lectures to raise funds for the organization, which often used "McConaughy's Hall" as a meeting place. From 1853 until 1863, he served as president and chairman of the board of directors for the newly establishedEvergreen Cemetery, and oversaw the construction of its now famous brick gatehouse onCemetery Hill. He joined the newly formedRepublican Party, served as a delegate to the 1860 National Convention, and became an outspoken supporter of PresidentAbraham Lincoln.

When the Civil War started in 1861, McConaughy formed and served as captain of the "Adams Rifles," a company of civilian scouts, primarily composed of his law clients. They were active in monitoring the region for signs ofConfederate activity during several threatened incursions, including during theMaryland Campaign. McConaughy's scouts and spies were particularly active in late June 1863 during the early days of theGettysburg campaign, when they shadowed oncoming enemycavalry and, later, the maininfantry columns. McConaughy gave this vital information to the local military commander,Maj.Granville O. Haller, who in turn relayed it toMaj. Gen.Darius N. Couch and GovernorAndrew Curtin inHarrisburg. McConaughy stayed in Gettysburg during the Confederate occupation in early July, still rendering service to the Federal soldiers. Following the battle, Col.George H. Sharpe wrote a letter to McConaughy on behalf of Maj. Gen.George G. Meade, formally thanking him for the critical information on Confederate troop movements.

The year before the Battle of Gettysburg, McConaughy had envisioned a Soldiers' Cemetery as part of Evergreen Cemetery. At the time, only two Gettysburg men had been killed in combat, so there was not enough support from the community to fund the project. In the days after the battle, he orderedElizabeth Thorn, wife of cemetery caretaker Peter Thorn (who was off serving in the army) to bury nearly one hundred soldiers' bodies in Evergreen Cemetery. Within six weeks, McConaughy initiated efforts to form a National Cemetery as a central resting place for the thousands of slain Union soldiers that had been buried at widely scattered graves throughout the Gettysburg region. Having already laid the groundwork for his concept by previously talking to the adjoining landowners, McConaughy acquired purchasing rights for the 17 acres (69,000 m²) of land immediately north of Evergreen Cemetery. By doing so, McConaughy foiled rival lawyerDavid Wills's plans to purchase the land for theCommonwealth ofPennsylvania. He began buying lots on Cemetery Hill with his own money and asked veterans to contribute financially. The National Cemetery was dedicated November 19, 1863, in ceremonies that included Lincoln'sGettysburg Address. McConaughy soon left the presidency of the Evergreen Cemetery Association to help establish the Gettysburg Battlefield Memorial Association, serving as its first president for ten years. He served as anElector for Lincoln in the 1864 presidential campaign.

After the war, McConaughy served as a member of thePennsylvania State Senate for Adams andFranklin counties.^[1] He commissioned a famous painting of the Battle of Gettysburg by artistPeter F. Rothermel. In late August 1869, McConaughy organized a reunion of the soldiers who fought at Gettysburg to recount their experiences and locate specific historic sites on the battlefield.

McConaughy was buried in Evergreen Cemetery.

• Files of Gettysburg College, Musselman Library, Special Collections.

• Evergreen Cemetery website / Photo of McConaughyArchived 2006-07-07 at theWayback Machine
• David McConaughy Papers at Gettysburg College

• 1823 births
• 1902 deaths
• Politicians from Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
• Union army officers
• American Civil War spies
• People of Pennsylvania in the American Civil War
• Pennsylvania state senators
• Pennsylvania lawyers
• Gettysburg College alumni
• Washington & Jefferson College alumni
• Burials at Evergreen Cemetery (Adams County, Pennsylvania)
• 19th-century members of the Pennsylvania General Assembly

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