
The Institute offers three major programs each year:
The three-day Fall Conference includes speakers and battlefield excursions on interesting topics relating to the campaign (members only).
The one-day Spring Symposium involves a series of timely talks and interactions on the campaign (members only).
The weekly Summer Lecture Series features historians and researchers presenting their work on the campaign and the war (open to the public).

The theme of the 2025 Fall Conference is Beyond the Battle: Civilians, Casualties, and Remembering the Bloodiest Day in American History.
2025 Fall Conference
October 3-5, 2025
On September 17, 1862, two large armies, over 100,000 men, clashed in the fields and farmland around Sharpsburg in the bloodiest one-day battle in American history. The result was over 23,000 casualties; killed, wounded or missing. Homes, churches, and barns became hospitals, some in operation for months. The Federal army occupied the area for six weeks, living off the land and using up what little resources had remained. Years later veterans returned to remember their experiences and visit where it occurred.
Join us for our three-day conference as we focus on the aftermath of the battle from the civilians and veterans’ perspective. We’ll visit the farmsteads, hospital sites, the headquarters locations, and the communities of Sharpsburg and Shepherdstown to understand the crucial role the civilians played and the veteran’s commemoration of the battle.
Details are coming soon and registration will open on April 13, 2025.

The title of the 2025 Spring Symposium is “Defending it to the Last Extremity:” Harpers Ferry and the Road to Antietam.
2025 Spring Symposium
April 11-12, 2025
The 2025 Spring Symposium, “Defending it to the Last Extremity:” Harpers Ferry and the Road to Antietam, will focus on leadership and Harpers Ferry in September 1862. An optional excursion the afternoon before the Saturday Symposium will explore the Siege of Harpers Ferry.
Registration opened on September 27, 2024.

The weekly Summer Lecture Series continues in Sharpsburg, now in its tenth year
2025 Summer Lecture Series
June 2 – August 25, 2025
These free lectures are held in McKinley Hall at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Sharpsburg every Monday evening at 7:00 pm, June through August, and are open to the public.