taught at and later became principal of the Boy's High School, a period covered in his book Annals of the Boy's High School of Harrisburg, 1875-1893. During his time as principal the Boy's High School admitted and graduated its first African-American students; Wert, with his progressive ideas on race, was important in overcoming public opposition and ensuring that the students received fair treatment. Wert served as the first principal of Harrisburg High School from 1893-94. Wert was an active member of the Grand Army of the Republic and wrote frequently about the Battle of Gettysburg and the Civil War, while continuing to acquire Civil War artifacts. Notable Civil War books include A Complete Hand-book of the Monuments and Indications and Guide to the Positions on the Gettysburg Battlefield (with an abridged version being released in 1890, The Two Great Armies at Gettysburg, Being chapters I, II and III of Gettysburg and Its Monuments) and Poems of Camp and Hearth. Wert also wrote numerous newspaper articles and letters; a series of 35 articles published in 1912 and 1913 regarding Harrisburg's Eighth Ward before it was demolished in an urban renewal project has been collected and published. Wert also wrote a number of school books and novels. Wert married Emma Letitia Aughinbaugh, a teacher, in 1869. They had four sons and a daughter. Wert died on March 11, 1920, in Harrisburg and is buried in Gettysburg. External links People from Gettysburg, Pennsylvania Writers from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania 1841 births 1920 deaths 19th-century American historians 19th-century American male writers Underground Railroad people Historians from Pennsylvania American male non-fiction writers 20th-century African-American people