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Hood’s Mississippians: A Confederate Counterattack Into The Cornfield – Bill Sagle
During General John Bell Hood’s counterattack in the Cornfield, two regiments from Mississippi briefly breached the Union line and scattered several regiments at and beyond the north fence. General George Meade was concerned enough to call it “one of the most critical moments of the morning.” In this tactical analysis…
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The 23rd Ohio and Ewing’s Brigade in the Final Attack – Steve Stotelmyer
Largely overshadowed by the exploits of Lieutenant Colonel Rutherford B. Hayes at South Mountain and Commissary Sergeant William McKinley’s coffee break at the Lower Bridge, the 23rd Ohio’s action in the Final Attack at Antietam largely remains unnoticed in the popular histories of the battle. But the 23rd Ohio, along…
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They Answered the Call: the 130th Pennsylvania – Jason Campbell
Using their own words from letters and diaries, Institute historian Jason Campbell will follow in the footsteps of the 130th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry on August 1. In the summer of 1862, Pennsylvania volunteers were recruited primarily from Cumberland and York Counties to fill the quota of a new, nine-month regiment. Within…
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Paul Semmes, Willis Gorman, and a Farmstead Too Far – Jim Buchanan
Of all the Confederate brigades thrown at Maj. Gen. John Sedgwick’s Union Division in the West Woods, none fought so hard, advanced so far, and paid a steeper price than that led by Brig. Gen. Paul Semmes. Unlike other McLaw’s Division brigades, Semmes was the only one to squarely face…
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“Nothing to the right!”: The plight of the 13th New Jersey – Marty Pritchett
The 13th New Jersey Infantry saw its “baptism of fire” at the Battle of Antietam on September 17, 1862, arriving only days after mustering in, and suffered heavy casualties, including the death of Captain Hugh C. Irish. Becoming one of the bloodiest engagements for the unit, the 13th New Jersey…
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“One of Abraham Lincoln’s 300,000: The 125th Pennsylvania Infantry” – D. Scott Kenepp
Learn about the recruitment and muster of the 125th Pennsylvania. See how this newly organized unit behaved in battle for the first time. How did the mortal wounding of XII Corps commander Joseph Mansfield change the trajectory of the 125th Pennsylvania? Follow the track of the regiment across the field…
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Picture and Poetry at the Bloody Lane: 61st/64th New York Infantry – Jim Smith
“It was a picture—it was poetry.” So observed an Irish Brigade lieutenant who witnessed the advance of the 61st and 64th New York against the Bloody Lane on September 17, 1862. The combined regiments fought up and down the lane under the command of two Civil War luminaries—Harvard valedictorian Francis…
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“They are flanking us! See, yonder’s a whole brigade!” – Garland’s (McRae’s) Brigade – Joe Stahl
On September 14, 1862, the Army of Northern Virginia lost one of its rising stars at Fox’s Gap with the death of General Samuel Garland, Jr.. Garland’s brigade was now commanded by Colonel Duncan Kirkland McRae, formerly head of the 5th North Carolina. Three days later, at Antietam, McRae’s 752…
