What had begun as an overcast and sometimes rainy morning, turned into a beautiful, if not slightly warm day, when my husband, Bobby, and I visited the Antietam National Battlefield outside of Sharpsburg, Maryland.
Not being too familiar with the specific battles of the Civil War (outside of Gettysburg), I didn’t fully understand what we were going to see or learn on our excursion. We had already spent a little time in Sharpsburg on the Sharpsburg Civil War Ghost Tour with Mark Brugh, which you can read about here. We had some idea of the magnitude of the battle and the gruesomeness of the aftermath, but no specific battle information.
The Antietam National Battlefield has a very nice visitor center that sits on the top of a hill overlooking much of the actual battlefield. In actuality the Battle of Antietam consisted of several different battles occurring simultaneously.
We arrived in time to schedule a private tour. While we waited for the driver, we were able to listen to the presentation by the Park Ranger and view a short movie that was narrated by James Earl Jones.
The Park Ranger’s presentation took place in the observation level of the visitor center. Three sides of the room were windows which gave us a panoramic view of the battlefield. The Park Ranger shared different aspects of the battles that took place. She said that because of the terrain (which is quite hilly) it was impossible to see what was occurring over a ridge or in the next valley. At times soldiers came up a hill or out of a cornfield and were right on top of the soldiers from the other side of the conflict.
After the Ranger’s presentation, we went to the theater to watch a 26 minute film which gave us a little bit more background and helped us picture what took place during that battle on September 17, 1862. On that day, during the battle 23,000 soldiers from both sides were killed, wounded or missing. There is one area of the battlefield that is considered “Bloody Lane.” It was a narrow road that had led from one farm field to another where Union and Confederate soldiers clashed and fought each other bitterly.
Even though the Union outnumbered the Confederates. The Confederates still held their ground until around Noon. It was in this place that a photograph was taken of the dead, giving the public at large a glance of the reality of the carnage of war. And this was just one of the areas where the fighting took place on that hot September day.
If listening to the Ranger and watching the movie gave us a crash course in the battles that happened that day, our private tour took it to a whole different level. Our guide, John Michael “Mike” Priest, is a certified tour guide and a former high school history teacher. Let me just say, he knew his stuff!
What happens when you hire a tour guide is that they drive your car around to the different sites of the battlefield. While we certainly could have done that on our own, we would have missed so much. Mike pointed out where the cornfield was that saw a brutal three hours of fighting. I can’t remember the exact number of men who were killed, wounded or missing, but the number 11,000 keeps coming to mind. (Bobby checked on Google and said it was nearly 13,000 in the morning phase of the battle.)
There are a total of 11 stops on the Antietam Battlefield tour. Throughout the tour there are monuments to the different military regiments. Some were just a column with the name of the regiment. Others were quite ornate.
One that stands by the Observation Tower near the “Bloody Lane” is a monument with an bronze relief that depicts the soldiers of the Irish Brigade.
Another monument, that we would have never seen if we weren’t with Mike, is of the 15th Massachusetts regiment. The monument is one of a wounded lion. (The monument sits near the area where the soldiers from this regiment fought, but now it is on the side of the busy road leading to Sharpsburg.)
Mike explained the artillery and the types of cannons that were used during the battle. Having just come from Sharpsburg and seeing the cannonball holes in the buildings, I was amazed at how far away the cannons would have been from the town. Mike assured me that the cannons were deadly accurate.
We traveled to the Burnside Bridge, where Mike explained that the Union soldiers had to cross an open field with no cover to reach the narrow bridge that was being held by the Confederates. What was fascinating to me is that the area now has many mature trees, but at the time of the battle Mike said there were few trees at all.
We ended our tour back at the visitors center right around 5 pm. (The center closes at 5.) We said goodbye to Mike and walked around a little before we left. (The park itself stays open until dusk.) By this time there was a pleasant breeze and I found shade by the Maryland Monument. This gave me an incredible view of the beautiful land that had once seen such horror.
While I waited for Bobby to take pictures, a family came up to the monument. The teenage son asked his parents, “So where did the battle take place?” Although he wasn’t talking to me, I answered as I pointed out the areas, “There was one over there. Another over there. Some over that way. There were a whole lot of battles going on at the same time.”
I am by no means on my way to being a Civil War historian. But I appreciate people like Mike who keep history alive for someone like me. While I may not remember all the details, I have certainly gained a deeper understanding of the sacrifice made by those on September 17th, 1862 to keep our country united.
