He spent several weeks in April 1882 at the site of the Gettysburg Battlefield to sketch and photograph the scene, and he extensively researched the battle and its events over several months.

Philippoteaux also interviewed several survivors of the battle, including Union generals Winfield S. Hancock, Abner Doubleday, Oliver O. Howard, and Alexander S. Webb, and based his work partly on their recollections.

[2] Philippoteaux enlisted a team of five assistants, including his father until his death, to create the final work.

Other paintings included Retour d'un pardon (1864), Vannenses (1865), Marche en Bretagne (1865), and Scene d'invasion (1866), which were all exhibited at the Paris salon.

[citation needed] Philippoteaux made drawings that were engraved by Charles Laplante (fr) to illustrate the 1877 first edition of Jules Verne's novel Hector Servadac (or Off on a Comet).