Sunday, June 3
We woke up to a cool, rainy morning. It had started raining late last night, and continued throughout the day. We went ahead with our plans to join Mike, Kelly, and the Jividens at Grove Avenue Baptist Church for early services. It was a great experience…just what we needed, with good singing and a great message by the pastor.
Following the service, Barbara and I went to a shopping center that we had seen on the way to the church to see if there was anything there that we couldn’t live without. Some of the stores opened at 11:00 am, but the place Barbara wanted to shop didn’t open until 12:00, so we just walked around the mall and checked out a few of the stores…eventually found that no one had anything we wanted or needed, so we came back to the RV park, fixed a light lunch, and watched a little TV until we decided it was time for a nap.
The rain continued all evening, so we just lazed around…watched some TV, played computer games, and read until it was time to call it a night…really exciting, huh!
Monday, June 4
Woke up to sunshine and a little warmer weather…it had rained for nearly 28 hours, so everything around Big V was thoroughly soaked. We had to go outside and tip the chairs over to drain the water out of them, and then take the cover off the camping table to let the grills dry out.
Around noon we went out to mail a package and do a little shop-looking…found a few necessaries and then returned to Big V and did pretty much nothing for a couple of hours.
At 5:30 we left to meet Mike at a shopping area on the northwest area of Richmond. He had made arrangements for us to go out to the International Mission Center to meet with Stacy, one
of two girls who were on his team when he was in China. Stacy is back in Richmond taking a refresher course and had a free evening to go out to dinner with us. We hadn’t seen her for about three years, so it was nice to visit again.We had never seen the IMC, so Mike and Stacy 
gave us the short tour. The center is very much like a small college campus, complete with 
dormitories, a library, classrooms, a chapel, and recreation buildings, all set in a beautifully wooded area outside of Richmond.
After the tour, we headed out for dinner. Our cultural choice for the night was Thai. Mike knew of a place in the Short Pump area, Ruan Thai, an authentic Thai restaurant. During previous trips to Richmond we had eaten at a Thai restaurant downtown, so we were looking forward to doing some comparison shopping.
After about an hour and a half, we returned to the house for sandwiches and more conversation until it was time for us to once again get back in the car and head north to pick a place to stay for the evening. Loading everything (we thought) in the car, we said our goodbyes and headed out. About fifteen miles up the road we came to an intersection where a convenience store advertised gasoline at $2.85 a gallon…the best price we had seen since starting the trip. Barbara asked me if we need gas, and I said I didn’t think so, since we still had half a tank. A few more miles up the road the phone rang…it was Rod, telling us we had left our camera at their house. He said he would meet us at the convenience store we had passed, so we turned around, went back, and pulled in to wait (and go ahead and fill up the gas tank…guess we needed it after all). We really appreciated Rod going the extra mile(s) to help us out.
Rod soon arrived to hand over the camera and we were back on the road, pointed in the general direction of Harpers Ferry.
It didn’t take long to find out that there wouldn’t be any affordable lodging at Harper’s Ferry, so we drove a few miles west to Charles Town, West Virginia, where we scouted around until we found a motel that met all of our needs, including great free wireless internet.
Wednesday, June 7
We got up relatively early (for us) and ginned around so we could go on our sightseeing adventures today. After eating a good meal in the hotel breakfast room and checking to see that we had our map book and cameras, we set out east on U.S. 340 toward Harpers Ferry, West Virginia.
As we pulled in to the ranger station we got to try out our new lifetime Senior Pass for national parks and federal recreation lands. We had purchased it for $10.00 when we went to the Lincoln Boyhood Home in Indiana; the cost for both of us to get in was $6.00, so we were out only $4.00 after using it the first time. Let’s just say that after today we are well ahead of the game…what a great bargain.
Anyway, to make a short story not so short, we were immediately directed to the visitors center where we received more information and directions for catching the shuttle bus down to the lower town. It is possible to drive in, but the shuttle bus is a whole lot simpler. It runs every 10 – 15 minutes, and is a short ride up (and down) very steep and curvy terrain.
When we arrived in the lower town, we were immediately transported back in time. Much of the architecture remains of the 19th century town…some reconstructed and some merely refurbished.
A lady we visited with while at Jefferson Rock gave us some directions for a back-country drive to Sharpsburg, Maryland and the Antietam National Battlefield. She was right about it being back-country – it was a ride of steep hills and tight curves, much more suited to a motorcycle ride than for the car, but we saw some absolutely gorgeous countryside along the way.
We eventually came to the Potomac River and crossed over into Sharpsburg, Maryland, the
town closest to the battlefield. Some historians call the battle of September 17, 1862, “Sharpsburg,” but it is more commonly called the Battle of Antietam, named for Antietam Creek that wanders through the area.
It was one of God’s most beautiful mornings…blue skies overhead and the sun shining brightly upon a verdant landscape of fields, hills, and pastures in a land meant for farming and family living…such a stark contrast to what it must have been on that horrible September morning nearly 145 years ago when two mighty armies faced off against each other in the bloodiest single-day battle in the American Civil War.
gave us the short tour. The center is very much like a small college campus, complete with 
dormitories, a library, classrooms, a chapel, and recreation buildings, all set in a beautifully wooded area outside of Richmond.After the tour, we headed out for dinner. Our cultural choice for the night was Thai. Mike knew of a place in the Short Pump area, Ruan Thai, an authentic Thai restaurant. During previous trips to Richmond we had eaten at a Thai restaurant downtown, so we were looking forward to doing some comparison shopping.
We soon found that we weren’t going to be disappointed at all with our choice. We started with a couple of appetizers; first, Som Tum, a delicious shredded papaya salad with lime dressing, and then Tod Mon, fried fish cakes served with cucumber sauce.
For main courses, we chose Pad Thai (Thai rice noodles with chicken, egg, scallions, tofu, ground peanuts, and bean sprouts in
tamarine sauce), Gang Panan (sliced beef with red curry paste and coconut milk), and Gaong ob Mor Din (shrimp with hot pot and bean thread noodles in black pepper), all with medium hot sauces.
The only thing that exceeded the quality of the meal was the quality of the time that we spent with Mike and Stacy, remembering our first visit to China to see the kids there, and catching up with what has been going on in Stacy’s life.
Again, time ran out on us. Stacy had to get back to the IMC, and we needed to race the sun to get back to the RV park before dark, so after getting back to our car, we all said goodbye and called it a day.
Tuesday, June 5
Mike and Kelly have a lot of activities going on during the week, so we chose Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday to go out and do some touring. After checking the maps and thinking about some of the places we haven’t seen, we decided to go northwest of Richmond to spend some time at Harpers Ferry National Historical Park in West Virginia, and the Antietam National Battlefield, just a few miles up the road and across the Potomac River from Harpers Ferry.
As luck (and a little manipulation of our travel route) would have it, we arranged our trip so we could visit our friends Rod and Ruth Kunkel, with whom we had worked when we were helping build the Church in Lady Lake, Florida in March. Rod and Ruth had invited us to come spend some time with them at their house on Lake Anna in Virginia, so we thought this would be a perfect opportunity to renew our friendship.
By 8:30 am we were on the way, driving up very busy I-95 toward Washington, DC. About twenty miles from the RV park we came upon a horrific accident in the southbound lane of I-95. It seems that about 4:30 am there had been a collision involving three tractor-trailer rigs. As we drew near, we saw a cloud of smoke and many emergency vehicles. All we could see was the burned out hulls of two rigs, one of which had been carrying a load of gasoline. Needless to say, three lanes of traffic were backed up for nearly ten miles on that side of the highway.
Leaving I-95 and wandering around through the Virginia countryside, we eventually came to Lake Anna, a marvel of engineering. The lake, created in 1972, was designed to provide water for a large nuclear power plant. The South Anna River and nearby streams were dammed and the water backed up to form a lake what currently has 250 miles of shoreline and approximately 13,000 surface acres of water..
After visiting with Rod and Ruth in their house, Rod invited us to hop in their boat for a tour of
the lake. It was an absolutely beautiful day – just perfect for boating. As Rod pointed out the features of the lake, I asked him how long it took for it to fill up after the dam was built. He said that the engineers had projected that it would take at least three years to provide a viable water source for the power plant, but they hadn’t counted on a force of nature helping out. In June, 1972, Hurricane Agnes struck the east coast and dropped record amounts of rain throughout Virginia. Within a month of the hurricane, the lake was full (probably one of the few times that a government project ever came in under schedule).
For main courses, we chose Pad Thai (Thai rice noodles with chicken, egg, scallions, tofu, ground peanuts, and bean sprouts in
tamarine sauce), Gang Panan (sliced beef with red curry paste and coconut milk), and Gaong ob Mor Din (shrimp with hot pot and bean thread noodles in black pepper), all with medium hot sauces.The only thing that exceeded the quality of the meal was the quality of the time that we spent with Mike and Stacy, remembering our first visit to China to see the kids there, and catching up with what has been going on in Stacy’s life.
Again, time ran out on us. Stacy had to get back to the IMC, and we needed to race the sun to get back to the RV park before dark, so after getting back to our car, we all said goodbye and called it a day.
Tuesday, June 5
Mike and Kelly have a lot of activities going on during the week, so we chose Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday to go out and do some touring. After checking the maps and thinking about some of the places we haven’t seen, we decided to go northwest of Richmond to spend some time at Harpers Ferry National Historical Park in West Virginia, and the Antietam National Battlefield, just a few miles up the road and across the Potomac River from Harpers Ferry.
As luck (and a little manipulation of our travel route) would have it, we arranged our trip so we could visit our friends Rod and Ruth Kunkel, with whom we had worked when we were helping build the Church in Lady Lake, Florida in March. Rod and Ruth had invited us to come spend some time with them at their house on Lake Anna in Virginia, so we thought this would be a perfect opportunity to renew our friendship.
By 8:30 am we were on the way, driving up very busy I-95 toward Washington, DC. About twenty miles from the RV park we came upon a horrific accident in the southbound lane of I-95. It seems that about 4:30 am there had been a collision involving three tractor-trailer rigs. As we drew near, we saw a cloud of smoke and many emergency vehicles. All we could see was the burned out hulls of two rigs, one of which had been carrying a load of gasoline. Needless to say, three lanes of traffic were backed up for nearly ten miles on that side of the highway.
Leaving I-95 and wandering around through the Virginia countryside, we eventually came to Lake Anna, a marvel of engineering. The lake, created in 1972, was designed to provide water for a large nuclear power plant. The South Anna River and nearby streams were dammed and the water backed up to form a lake what currently has 250 miles of shoreline and approximately 13,000 surface acres of water..
After visiting with Rod and Ruth in their house, Rod invited us to hop in their boat for a tour of
the lake. It was an absolutely beautiful day – just perfect for boating. As Rod pointed out the features of the lake, I asked him how long it took for it to fill up after the dam was built. He said that the engineers had projected that it would take at least three years to provide a viable water source for the power plant, but they hadn’t counted on a force of nature helping out. In June, 1972, Hurricane Agnes struck the east coast and dropped record amounts of rain throughout Virginia. Within a month of the hurricane, the lake was full (probably one of the few times that a government project ever came in under schedule). Lake Anna is the second largest lake located entirely in Virginia, and is a haven for homeowners and vacationers alike. Its primary purpose is to provide a cooling system for.jpg)
two nuclear reactors situated at the lower end of the lake. Cool lake water flows around the steam pipes at a rate of one million gallons per minute and is then diverted through a system of canals and channels to be cooled down to about 95 degrees before being channeled 
back into the lake.
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two nuclear reactors situated at the lower end of the lake. Cool lake water flows around the steam pipes at a rate of one million gallons per minute and is then diverted through a system of canals and channels to be cooled down to about 95 degrees before being channeled 
back into the lake.After about an hour and a half, we returned to the house for sandwiches and more conversation until it was time for us to once again get back in the car and head north to pick a place to stay for the evening. Loading everything (we thought) in the car, we said our goodbyes and headed out. About fifteen miles up the road we came to an intersection where a convenience store advertised gasoline at $2.85 a gallon…the best price we had seen since starting the trip. Barbara asked me if we need gas, and I said I didn’t think so, since we still had half a tank. A few more miles up the road the phone rang…it was Rod, telling us we had left our camera at their house. He said he would meet us at the convenience store we had passed, so we turned around, went back, and pulled in to wait (and go ahead and fill up the gas tank…guess we needed it after all). We really appreciated Rod going the extra mile(s) to help us out.
Rod soon arrived to hand over the camera and we were back on the road, pointed in the general direction of Harpers Ferry.
It didn’t take long to find out that there wouldn’t be any affordable lodging at Harper’s Ferry, so we drove a few miles west to Charles Town, West Virginia, where we scouted around until we found a motel that met all of our needs, including great free wireless internet.
Wednesday, June 7
We got up relatively early (for us) and ginned around so we could go on our sightseeing adventures today. After eating a good meal in the hotel breakfast room and checking to see that we had our map book and cameras, we set out east on U.S. 340 toward Harpers Ferry, West Virginia.
As we pulled in to the ranger station we got to try out our new lifetime Senior Pass for national parks and federal recreation lands. We had purchased it for $10.00 when we went to the Lincoln Boyhood Home in Indiana; the cost for both of us to get in was $6.00, so we were out only $4.00 after using it the first time. Let’s just say that after today we are well ahead of the game…what a great bargain.
Anyway, to make a short story not so short, we were immediately directed to the visitors center where we received more information and directions for catching the shuttle bus down to the lower town. It is possible to drive in, but the shuttle bus is a whole lot simpler. It runs every 10 – 15 minutes, and is a short ride up (and down) very steep and curvy terrain.
When we arrived in the lower town, we were immediately transported back in time. Much of the architecture remains of the 19th century town…some reconstructed and some merely refurbished.
Of course, the business community now consists mainly of museums and points of reenactment, but it easy to envision what was once a thriving community of approximately 3000 just prior to the outbreak of the Civil War. The picture at the right is of the restored 
armory fire engine house where John Brown was captured by a group of U.S. Marines under the command of Lt. Colonel Robert E. Lee. The building is known popularly as “John Brown’s Fort.”
In the early 1700s Robert Harper passed through the area on his way to build a Quaker church in the Shenandoah Valley. A man of vision, he immediately saw the possibilities of a settlement at the confluence of the Shenandoah and Potomac rivers. Not only was there a source of water power, there was an abundance of raw materials for manufacturing processes. There were only three houses in Harpers Ferry when he died, but he was convinced that the settlement would grow, so he designed a four acre cemetery for those who would follow.
In the 1790s the United States Armory and Arsenal was established in Harpers Ferry, transforming it from a wilderness into an industrial center. Between the time the first buildings were constructed in 1799 and the outbreak of the Civil War in 1861, the armory produced more than 600,000 muskets, rifles, and pistols, and employed more than 400 people.
According to literature provided by the National park Service, the history of Harpers Ferry has few parallels in the American drama. It is more than one event, one date, or one individual. It involves a diverse number of people and events, decisions and actions that influenced the course of our country’s history. Harpers Ferry witnessed the first successful application of interchangeable parts, the arrival of the first successful American railroad, John Brown’s attack on slavery, the largest surrender of Federal troops during the Civil War, and the education of former slaves in one of the earliest integrated schools in the United States.
In short, the history of Harpers Ferry is rich and varied, and fills multiple volumes of history texts and biographies. Nothing in writing though prepares the readers for the deep sense of history that overwhelms the visitor within a few steps of entering the town. While nearly everyone who has ever heard of Harpers Ferry associates it with abolitionist John Brown’s raid on the arsenal and armory in a failed attempt to secure weapons to fight against slavery, a multitude of famous U.S. figures had more than a passing connection with the settlement and town, including George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Merriwether Lewis, Robert E. Lee, J.E.B. Stuart, “Stonewall’ Jackson, George Armstrong Custer, Philip Sheridan, Abraham Lincoln, John Brown, Frederick Douglass, and W.E.B. Du Bois. During the Civil War the town was considered such an important asset that it changed hands eight times between Union and Confederate forces during the conflict.
A bonus of our visit was that while walking up the hand-carved rock steps
toward St. Peter’s Catholic Church and Jefferson Rock, we realized that we were also traversing a section of the Appalachian Trail, a 2,175 mile footpath stretching from Georgia to Maine. While Barbara went back to look at the shops in the town, I took the opportunity to walk a few hundred yards along the heavily wooded trail. All that did, though, was make me want to gear up and hike the trail from one end to the other…who knows – maybe one of these days…
Right: While Barbara was maneuvering to get a picture of me, a hiker on the trail stopped and offered to take this picture of us standing beside Jefferson Rock. Concerned about the stability of the rock and its underlying foundation, the park service no longer allows visitors to climb up on it and pose.
In October, 1783 Thomas Jefferson, on his way to Philadelphia to serve as a Virginia delegate to the Continental Congress, stopped here with his eldest daughter Patsy. There was no town or settlement here at the time, just the wild and untamed Shenandoah and Potomac rivers coming together and crashing through the mountains in a way that Jefferson was moved to call it “perhaps one of the most stupendous scenes in Nature.”
After walking the town, crossing the footbridge across the Potomac River just yards before it melds with the Shenandoah and continues its way south through Washington, DC on the way to Chesapeake Bay, we wandered back toward the park where the shuttle bus had dropped us off a couple of hours earlier. I read a few more historical markers about the initial capture of Harpers Ferry by Confederate troops under the command of Thomas Jonathon Jackson (later nicknamed “Stonewall,” while Barbara took a few more pictures. Then it was time to get back on the shuttle bus and wind our way back up the mountainside to the visitors center to find the car and take off on the next leg of our adventure for the day. A word of advice to travelers to this area…take time to come to Harpers Ferry…you will thoroughly enjoy and appreciate it!
armory fire engine house where John Brown was captured by a group of U.S. Marines under the command of Lt. Colonel Robert E. Lee. The building is known popularly as “John Brown’s Fort.”In the early 1700s Robert Harper passed through the area on his way to build a Quaker church in the Shenandoah Valley. A man of vision, he immediately saw the possibilities of a settlement at the confluence of the Shenandoah and Potomac rivers. Not only was there a source of water power, there was an abundance of raw materials for manufacturing processes. There were only three houses in Harpers Ferry when he died, but he was convinced that the settlement would grow, so he designed a four acre cemetery for those who would follow.
In the 1790s the United States Armory and Arsenal was established in Harpers Ferry, transforming it from a wilderness into an industrial center. Between the time the first buildings were constructed in 1799 and the outbreak of the Civil War in 1861, the armory produced more than 600,000 muskets, rifles, and pistols, and employed more than 400 people.
According to literature provided by the National park Service, the history of Harpers Ferry has few parallels in the American drama. It is more than one event, one date, or one individual. It involves a diverse number of people and events, decisions and actions that influenced the course of our country’s history. Harpers Ferry witnessed the first successful application of interchangeable parts, the arrival of the first successful American railroad, John Brown’s attack on slavery, the largest surrender of Federal troops during the Civil War, and the education of former slaves in one of the earliest integrated schools in the United States.
In short, the history of Harpers Ferry is rich and varied, and fills multiple volumes of history texts and biographies. Nothing in writing though prepares the readers for the deep sense of history that overwhelms the visitor within a few steps of entering the town. While nearly everyone who has ever heard of Harpers Ferry associates it with abolitionist John Brown’s raid on the arsenal and armory in a failed attempt to secure weapons to fight against slavery, a multitude of famous U.S. figures had more than a passing connection with the settlement and town, including George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Merriwether Lewis, Robert E. Lee, J.E.B. Stuart, “Stonewall’ Jackson, George Armstrong Custer, Philip Sheridan, Abraham Lincoln, John Brown, Frederick Douglass, and W.E.B. Du Bois. During the Civil War the town was considered such an important asset that it changed hands eight times between Union and Confederate forces during the conflict.
A bonus of our visit was that while walking up the hand-carved rock steps
toward St. Peter’s Catholic Church and Jefferson Rock, we realized that we were also traversing a section of the Appalachian Trail, a 2,175 mile footpath stretching from Georgia to Maine. While Barbara went back to look at the shops in the town, I took the opportunity to walk a few hundred yards along the heavily wooded trail. All that did, though, was make me want to gear up and hike the trail from one end to the other…who knows – maybe one of these days…Right: While Barbara was maneuvering to get a picture of me, a hiker on the trail stopped and offered to take this picture of us standing beside Jefferson Rock. Concerned about the stability of the rock and its underlying foundation, the park service no longer allows visitors to climb up on it and pose.
In October, 1783 Thomas Jefferson, on his way to Philadelphia to serve as a Virginia delegate to the Continental Congress, stopped here with his eldest daughter Patsy. There was no town or settlement here at the time, just the wild and untamed Shenandoah and Potomac rivers coming together and crashing through the mountains in a way that Jefferson was moved to call it “perhaps one of the most stupendous scenes in Nature.”
After walking the town, crossing the footbridge across the Potomac River just yards before it melds with the Shenandoah and continues its way south through Washington, DC on the way to Chesapeake Bay, we wandered back toward the park where the shuttle bus had dropped us off a couple of hours earlier. I read a few more historical markers about the initial capture of Harpers Ferry by Confederate troops under the command of Thomas Jonathon Jackson (later nicknamed “Stonewall,” while Barbara took a few more pictures. Then it was time to get back on the shuttle bus and wind our way back up the mountainside to the visitors center to find the car and take off on the next leg of our adventure for the day. A word of advice to travelers to this area…take time to come to Harpers Ferry…you will thoroughly enjoy and appreciate it!
A lady we visited with while at Jefferson Rock gave us some directions for a back-country drive to Sharpsburg, Maryland and the Antietam National Battlefield. She was right about it being back-country – it was a ride of steep hills and tight curves, much more suited to a motorcycle ride than for the car, but we saw some absolutely gorgeous countryside along the way.
We eventually came to the Potomac River and crossed over into Sharpsburg, Maryland, the
town closest to the battlefield. Some historians call the battle of September 17, 1862, “Sharpsburg,” but it is more commonly called the Battle of Antietam, named for Antietam Creek that wanders through the area.It was one of God’s most beautiful mornings…blue skies overhead and the sun shining brightly upon a verdant landscape of fields, hills, and pastures in a land meant for farming and family living…such a stark contrast to what it must have been on that horrible September morning nearly 145 years ago when two mighty armies faced off against each other in the bloodiest single-day battle in the American Civil War.
Our first stop was at the visitors center where our lifetime Senior Pass once again worked its 
wonders (and finished paying for itself). As the young man at the counter gave us a couple of park service brochures about the battleground he also mentioned that a one-hour documentary film had just begun in the theater. It was just a few days ago that Barbara mentioned that she needed to see some authentic films about the Civil War to get a picture in her mind of what the area must have looked like, so we went inside to view this one.
I’ve seen quite a few historical documentaries at parks and museums, and most of them seem to give only a cursory glance at the point of the park or exhibit. This film, narrated by James Earl Jones, demonstrated through photographs, reenactments, artists conceptions, and texts the awesome and awful events of the day. It was almost as if we were viewing a network newscast (minus the network political slants). This was definitely not a glorification of the battle or of war, but an “in your face” portrait of the pain and suffering, and the death and destruction resulting from man’s failure to reconcile issues through peaceful means…made all the more awful and sobering when one realizes that this was a battle between fellow countrymen and, in many cases, family members.
Fought in three major phases throughout the day, the battle saw attacks and counterattacks by both sides. At some points, the lines were firing point blank at each other just a few yards apart, separated only by two split-rail fences and a narrow road.
The fighting in the morning was centered around Dunker Church (photo at left), a small white
church that had been built by a group of German Baptists. During this phase, lasting from 6:00 am until 9:00 am, the casualties on both sides averaged one man killed or wounded every second for three hours.
The midday fighting moved to the surrounding fields and the sunken road (Bloody Lane) contested a narrow country road. Within four hours another 5,000 men were killed or wounded.
The afternoon phase was fought at the Lower Bridge (Burnside Bridge – photo at left), where a few hundred Georgia riflemen held off a massive number of General Burnside’s troops for most
of the day. The defense here by the Georgians, posted at the top of the hill, was the main factor in McClellan’s failure to secure a decisive victory at Antietam.
The Battle of Antietam on September 17, 1862, climaxed the first of Confederate General Robert E. Lee’s two attempts to carry the war into the North. Approximately 40,000 Southerners were pitted against the 87,000-man Federal Army of the Potomac under General George B. McClellan. The battle began at daybreak and twelve hours later. When the fighting was ended, the course of the American Civil War had been greatly altered.
More men were killed or wounded (over 23,000) at Antietam on September 17, 1862, than on any other single day of the Civil War (in fact, the numbers for that day exceeded the total of American men killed or wounded in the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, and the Spanish-American War). Federal casualties were 12,410. Confederate losses numbered 10,700. Neither side gained a decisive victory.
Lee’s failure to carry the war effort effectively into the North caused Great Britain to postpone recognition of the Confederate government. The battle also gave Abraham Lincoln the opportunity to issue the Emancipation Proclamation, which, on January 1, 1863, declared as free all slaves in the states still in rebellion against the United States. Now the war had a dual purpose: to preserve the Union and to end slavery. (Source: National Park Service documents)
After viewing the documentary we went back outside to walk around the area, look at the various monuments placed by the states that had soldiers involved in the fighting there, and took some more photographs. We then took the driving tour of the park, observing the different sites where skirmishes had been fought. The picture at the right is
of Barbara standing at the head of the trail leading down to Burnside Bridge. It is a very steep trail, one that she didn’t feel comfortable in taking on this trip since we were both tired from the day’s adventures.
The Antietam National Cemetery holds the remains of 4,776 Federal soldiers who were killed in the battle, including 1,836 who remain unknown because of the terrible disfigurement and lack of identification. Most of the Confederate soldiers who were killed are buried in Hagerstown and Frederick, Maryland, Shepherdstown, West Virginia, and in local and family cemeteries.
Notable Quotes:
“I have always had a high opinion of General McClellan, and have no reason to suppose that he failed to accomplish anything that he was able to do.” Robert E. Lee, commanding general of the Confederate forces.
“If I cannot whip Bobbie Lee, I will be willing to go home.” George B. McClellan, commanding general of the Union forces at Antietam.
Leaving the park, we headed back toward Charles Town, West Virginia, where we would spend another night before going back to Richmond. The drive was pleasant enough, but we would never be able to do it again, because we don’t have a clue where we were. I saw a road sign for Harpers Ferry Road and decided to follow it. After what seemed like forever, we began to think that I should have turned the other direction, but we eventually stopped and asked a gentleman who was sitting on his front porch how to get back to highway 340 and he said we were just a couple of miles away. Sure enough, we were soon back on a familiar highway and headed straight toward where we wanted to be.
After a takeout meal from Taco Bell, some computer time, and an evening of relaxation, we decided that we’d had enough education and driving for one day, so we shut everything down and got a good night’s sleep.
From scenic and historic Charles Town,
Jim & Barbara
“War is a dreadful thing…Oh, my God, can’t this civil strife be brought to an end.” Clara Barton, who tended the wounded at Antietam during and after the battle.
wonders (and finished paying for itself). As the young man at the counter gave us a couple of park service brochures about the battleground he also mentioned that a one-hour documentary film had just begun in the theater. It was just a few days ago that Barbara mentioned that she needed to see some authentic films about the Civil War to get a picture in her mind of what the area must have looked like, so we went inside to view this one.I’ve seen quite a few historical documentaries at parks and museums, and most of them seem to give only a cursory glance at the point of the park or exhibit. This film, narrated by James Earl Jones, demonstrated through photographs, reenactments, artists conceptions, and texts the awesome and awful events of the day. It was almost as if we were viewing a network newscast (minus the network political slants). This was definitely not a glorification of the battle or of war, but an “in your face” portrait of the pain and suffering, and the death and destruction resulting from man’s failure to reconcile issues through peaceful means…made all the more awful and sobering when one realizes that this was a battle between fellow countrymen and, in many cases, family members.
Fought in three major phases throughout the day, the battle saw attacks and counterattacks by both sides. At some points, the lines were firing point blank at each other just a few yards apart, separated only by two split-rail fences and a narrow road.
The fighting in the morning was centered around Dunker Church (photo at left), a small white
church that had been built by a group of German Baptists. During this phase, lasting from 6:00 am until 9:00 am, the casualties on both sides averaged one man killed or wounded every second for three hours.The midday fighting moved to the surrounding fields and the sunken road (Bloody Lane) contested a narrow country road. Within four hours another 5,000 men were killed or wounded.
The afternoon phase was fought at the Lower Bridge (Burnside Bridge – photo at left), where a few hundred Georgia riflemen held off a massive number of General Burnside’s troops for most
of the day. The defense here by the Georgians, posted at the top of the hill, was the main factor in McClellan’s failure to secure a decisive victory at Antietam.The Battle of Antietam on September 17, 1862, climaxed the first of Confederate General Robert E. Lee’s two attempts to carry the war into the North. Approximately 40,000 Southerners were pitted against the 87,000-man Federal Army of the Potomac under General George B. McClellan. The battle began at daybreak and twelve hours later. When the fighting was ended, the course of the American Civil War had been greatly altered.
More men were killed or wounded (over 23,000) at Antietam on September 17, 1862, than on any other single day of the Civil War (in fact, the numbers for that day exceeded the total of American men killed or wounded in the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, and the Spanish-American War). Federal casualties were 12,410. Confederate losses numbered 10,700. Neither side gained a decisive victory.
Lee’s failure to carry the war effort effectively into the North caused Great Britain to postpone recognition of the Confederate government. The battle also gave Abraham Lincoln the opportunity to issue the Emancipation Proclamation, which, on January 1, 1863, declared as free all slaves in the states still in rebellion against the United States. Now the war had a dual purpose: to preserve the Union and to end slavery. (Source: National Park Service documents)
After viewing the documentary we went back outside to walk around the area, look at the various monuments placed by the states that had soldiers involved in the fighting there, and took some more photographs. We then took the driving tour of the park, observing the different sites where skirmishes had been fought. The picture at the right is
of Barbara standing at the head of the trail leading down to Burnside Bridge. It is a very steep trail, one that she didn’t feel comfortable in taking on this trip since we were both tired from the day’s adventures.The Antietam National Cemetery holds the remains of 4,776 Federal soldiers who were killed in the battle, including 1,836 who remain unknown because of the terrible disfigurement and lack of identification. Most of the Confederate soldiers who were killed are buried in Hagerstown and Frederick, Maryland, Shepherdstown, West Virginia, and in local and family cemeteries.
Notable Quotes:
“I have always had a high opinion of General McClellan, and have no reason to suppose that he failed to accomplish anything that he was able to do.” Robert E. Lee, commanding general of the Confederate forces.
“If I cannot whip Bobbie Lee, I will be willing to go home.” George B. McClellan, commanding general of the Union forces at Antietam.
Leaving the park, we headed back toward Charles Town, West Virginia, where we would spend another night before going back to Richmond. The drive was pleasant enough, but we would never be able to do it again, because we don’t have a clue where we were. I saw a road sign for Harpers Ferry Road and decided to follow it. After what seemed like forever, we began to think that I should have turned the other direction, but we eventually stopped and asked a gentleman who was sitting on his front porch how to get back to highway 340 and he said we were just a couple of miles away. Sure enough, we were soon back on a familiar highway and headed straight toward where we wanted to be.
After a takeout meal from Taco Bell, some computer time, and an evening of relaxation, we decided that we’d had enough education and driving for one day, so we shut everything down and got a good night’s sleep.
From scenic and historic Charles Town,
Jim & Barbara
“War is a dreadful thing…Oh, my God, can’t this civil strife be brought to an end.” Clara Barton, who tended the wounded at Antietam during and after the battle.
