Antietam National Battlefield

The first Confederate invasion of the North took place in September 1862.  Major General George B McClellan and his Army of the Potomac met General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia near Sharpsburg, Maryland.  On September 17 the two armies met in what remains the bloodiest one-day battle in American history with over 23,000 dead, wounded or missing soldiers. Despite McClellan having over 75,000 troops at his command to Lee's 38,000, the Confederates fought to a tactical draw before withdrawing back across the Potomac.  This gave the Union a strategic victory and allowed President Lincoln to announce his Emancipation Proclamation.

A visitor center sits in the middle of the battlefield on high ground across the road from Dunker Church.  It has the usual information desk, bookstore, museum, restrooms and theater.  In addition, it has an observation room with excellent views of a vast portion of the battlefield.  The 26 minute orientation film is narrated by James Earl Jones and exceeds the usual park service excellence.  We walked the 1.6 mile Bloody Lane Trail and drove the 8 ½ mile auto tour through the battlefield on our August 2014 visit.

Visitor Center

View of Mumma farmhouse from the visitor center

New York monument with Maryland monument in the background

Dunker Church from the visitor center

Reconstructed Mumma farmhouse

The front of the Mumma farmhouse

Mumma farm outbuildings

Roulette farm outbuilding

Roulette farmhouse

Stone fence near Roulette Lane

Open field between Roulette Farm and Sunken Road, now called Bloody Lane

Union soldiers had to cross these fields toward the 1896 Observation Tower and Sunken Road

Typical trail surface and condition

Entrance to the Observation Tower

Mumma and Roulette farms from the tower

View east to Red Hill and South Mountain

Sunken Road from the tower

5,500 soldiers were killed or wounded near Sunken Road, known since then as Bloody Lane

Looking back down Bloody Lane as the trail heads up Roulette Lane

The trail follows the edge of a field back toward the visitor center

Another view of the open terrain from Mummas Lane

A closer view of Dunker Church

The Poffenberger Farm north of the North Woods

Clara Barton tended the wounded at the Poffenberger farm

Sherrick Farmhouse from Rodman Avenue

Remains of the Sherrick farm barn and out buildings

Burnside Bridge from above

Burnside Bridge from upstream

Antietam Creek

Closeup of Burnside Bridge

This Sycamore tree witnessed the battle at Burnside Bridge

Some people insist the rules don't apply to them

An entrance fee of $4 per person or $6 per family provides a three-day pass to visit the battlefield.  Other entrance options include the Antietem Battlefield Annual Pass for $20, an America the Beautiful Annual Pass for $80 for twelve months access to most national parks and forests or a Senior Pass for a one-time fee of $10 for those age 62 or over for access to most national parks and forests.

The park website is http://www.nps.gov/anti/index.htm.