We are pleased to announce that our Membership Incentive Book for 2026 will be McClellan in Command: The Maryland and Virginia Campaigns of September to November 1862 by Marion V. Armstrong, Jr.
What did George B. McClellan truly know—and when did he know it?
Drawing on a career that began in a Vietnam-era tactical operations center and matured in the archives of the Civil War, Marion V. Armstrong offers a groundbreaking reexamination of the Army of the Potomac’s leadership during the tumultuous months of the Maryland Campaign and afterwards. Inspired by the “Commander’s Reading File” system used in modern military headquarters—and echoed in Abraham Lincoln’s own hours spent poring over dispatches in the War Department Telegraph Office—McClellan in Command reconstructs, day by day, hour by hour, the flow of messages into and out of McClellan’s Army of the Potomac field headquarters.
By reassembling telegrams, dispatches, and other communications from the Official Records, McClellan’s Papers, and other primary sources into strict chronological order, Armstrong places readers beside the general himself, seeing each operational dilemma as he saw it. This innovative method reveals not only McClellan’s campaign and battlefield decision-making but also the increasingly political character of his command in the weeks during and following the Maryland Campaign.
Unlike most accounts, McClellan in Command does not end at Antietam. Instead, Armstrong follows McClellan through the quiet but consequential interlude before the Virginia Campaign of late October—and to his final removal on November 7, 1862. Periodic “Reality Check” sections illuminate Confederate actions across the lines, providing essential context without shifting focus from McClellan as army commander.
Comprehensive, original, and meticulously researched, McClellan in Command adds new depth to the story of the autumn of 1862 and offers a fresh lens through which to understand one of the Civil War’s most controversial leaders.
Marion V. Armstrong Jr. (Vince) is a Civil War author, particularly known for his detailed studies on the Battle of Antietam. He is the author of Unfurl Those Colors!: McClellan, Sumner, and the Second Army Corps in the Antietam Campaign and Opposing the Second Corps at Antietam: The Fight for the Confederate Left and Center on America’s Bloodiest Day. His books offer an in-depth operational analysis of Union and Confederate leadership and tactics at the battle, and provide fresh reappraisals of commanders like Edwin Vose Sumner.
A retired U.S. Army Reserve officer and Vietnam veteran, Vince brings a valuable military perspective to his historical writing. He resides in Lewisburg, TN, and teaches history as an adjunct professor at Middle Tennessee State University.
For several years, the Antietam Institute has been committed to supporting the Town of Sharpsburg in its efforts to develop an interpretive plaza in the green space at the corner of Main and Church Streets. Each year, we have made a $2,000 annual contribution for this project.
This year, construction on the park began in earnest, and by Memorial Day, 75% had been completed. The final piece of the park was the installation of interpretive waysides to tell the story of Sharpsburg and the people who have lived there.
Before the installation could begin, the waysides had to be developed. Because of our staunch support of the project since the beginning, the Sharpsburg Mayor and Town Council asked the Institute to help with this undertaking. After an initial concept meeting to develop some themes, we formed a committee of several members to begin formulating these themes and ideas into six distinctive waysides.
The committee included: John Schildt, Steve Cowie, Timothy Snyder, Robert Nill, Jim Buchanan, and Chris Vincent. The committee did an excellent job gathering stories, first-hand accounts, and photos for each panel. By July, the town approved the six draft panels, and they were off to Chris Brown, the Executive Director of Civil War Trails (CWT) for review and development. Civil War Trails, Inc. also collaborates with small parks, museums, and communities to share their history, topics, and sites by providing unique research and development expertise, along with high-quality materials.
To help draw interest to the historical park through the marketing of CWT, one of the six waysides was selected to be a Civil War Trails sign and the Antietam Institute took on the sponsorship and annual membership of that sign. This is the second CWT sign the Institute has sponsored in the Town of Sharpsburg.
Despite the frigid, wet weather, Chris Brown and his CWT crew installed the six waysides at the park the first week of December, just in time for the 35th Memorial Illumination.
The six waysides at the park are:
1- The Piper House: A Historic Connection to the Antietam Battlefield. Refers to the Piper house across the street, the Piper family, and the connection to the battlefield that so many Sharpsburg families had.
2- Canals and Turnpikes Fuel the Economic Growth. Discusses the C&O Canal and the turnpikes that intersect at Sharpsburg, which spurred economic growth of the town.
3- Sharpsburg Architecture and Prominent Citizens. Talks about some of the unique buildings in town and residents like Dr. A. A. Biggs, O.T. Reilly, and Dr. Hal Shealy.
4- Returning Veterans and Remembrance. Shows the connection between veterans returning to Sharpsburg after the war and the tradition of the Sharpsburg Memorial Day parade.
5- Sharpsburg and the Battle. Focuses on the civilians in town, specifically the Adam Michael family, whose house is across the street from the park, and the hardships caused. (Civil War Trails wayside)
6- Sharpsburg and the Civil War. Shares stories of several residents who were caught up in the war, like Barney Houser, Thomas Grove, Judge David Smith, and Jacob Rohrbach.
One final vertical interpretive panel will be added in the spring that will include the founding of the town in 1763 by Joseph Chapline, a timeline of key events, and a map of Sharpsburg. The Sharpsburg Historical Park is a much-needed resource to tell the amazing story of Sharpsburg and its residents and will help interpret this chapter of the Maryland Campaign and the Civil War.
We want to thank the committee members for sharing their time, effort, and knowledge on this project. Thanks to Chris Brown and Civil War Trails for their hard work and commitment in sharing the stories of civilians, soldiers, and communities. More importantly, we would like to thank the Town of Sharpsburg, Mayor Russ Weaver, and Vice Mayor Jacob Martz for the opportunity to support this project and promote the town’s history. We look forward to our continuing partnership with Civil War Trails and the Town of Sharpsburg.
We sat down with some of the contributors of the Commanders of Antietam to give us a little insight in to they commanders the wrote about. We asked the contributors several questions during these interviews. One – what got them particularly interested in the commander they choose to write about. We asked about the commanders background before the Maryland Campaign, how important was this commander’s role in the Maryland Campaign or the Battle of Antietam, and finally to summarize this commander’s career after the battle and his life after the Civil War.
We want to thank institute members, Ernie Chase and Will Blaney (Chase History) for volunteering to conduct the interviews and for turning them into these first-rate video productions providing us with a behind the scenes look at the Commanders of Antietam.
We kicked off the interviews with Institute President and author of Artillery at Antietam, James Rosebrock. Jim wrote about the artillery commanders for the book and choose to provide a little more insight on Captain Dunbar Ransom.
Historian and author, Matthew Borders talks about Confederate commander Robert Ransom, Jr. and his role at Antietam and the Civil War.
Author and guide, Joe Stahl talks about Colonel William Christian and what happened to him at the Battle of Antietam.
Historian and author, Steven Stotelmyer discusses the life of Major General Jesse Lee Reno.
Historian and author, Sharon Murray talks about Confederate commander Colonel Thomas Munford.
Historian and author, Matthew Borders talks about Union commander George Sears Greene and his role during the Civil War and extortionary engineering career before and after.
Historian and author, James Rosebrock discusses the role of Colonel Stephen D. Lee at Antietam and his career.
Author and guide, Joe Stahl talks about Confederate Colonel Alfred Colquitt.
More contributor interview videos will be add both here and our YouTube channel as they are completed
We’ll be wrapping up the Summer Lecture Series on August 25 with local historian, John Schildt presenting Frederick: the Crossroads of the Civil War
Frederick, MD in 1862, (Crossroads of War)
Just south of the Mason-Dixon Line, Frederick, Maryland, was poised at the crossroads of the Civil War. Here, Confederate troops passed west to the Battles of Antietam and South Monocacy, while Union troops marched north to Gettysburg and south to raid the resources of the Shenandoah Valley. Both heroes and villains were made in the spired city, such as Dame Barbara Fritchie, who is said to defied General Jackson; General Jubal Early, who threatened to put the town to the torch; and the local doctors and nurses who cared for thousands of wounded soldiers. Join local historian John Schildt as he recounts the fascinating history of Frederick in the Civil War.
Rev. John Schildt
Reverend John Schildt graduated from Shepherd College, Wesley Theological Seminary and has studied at Western Maryland College, Gettysburg Seminary and West Virginia University. John’s first book, September Echoes, published in 1960, was the first on Antietam since Francis Palfrey in 1887. This led to an appointment to the Maryland Centennial Committee. He wrote the account of the battle for the Official Centennial Program and was the guest speaker for the 125h anniversary. John has been a lecturer and guide for several Civil War organizations, Round Tables, and many other groups. John led his first tour of Antietam in 1958. Since then, 2,000 additional tours have followed. John has written over thirty-five books relating the various aspects of the Maryland Campaign of 1862 and local history. This list includes Drums along the Antietam, Roads to Antietam, Four Days in October, Islands of Mercy, and Roads to Gettysburg. He and his wife and daughter live in Sharpsburg.
Come join leading historians and scholars as they discuss intriguing topics about their latest works and research on the Maryland Campaign and the Civil War during our Civil War Summer Lecture Series. See the complete 2025 schedule.
These indoors programs are held in McKinley Hall at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church on Monday evenings at 7:00 p.m. The church is located at 209W Main Street with a small parking area off the alley. More parking is available on Main and Hall Streets. These lectures free and open to the public. Each week we hold a drawing in which the proceeds support the Save Historic Antietam Foundation. Be sure to check our Facebook page for updates and changes to the schedule.
Evangelical Lutheran Church in 1862 (Crossroads of War)
Evangelical Lutheran Church in 1862 (Crossroads of War)
Join us on August 4 for Tracey McIntire’s presentation – The Fate of Antietam’s Wounded. Hear the little-known stories of some of the almost 8,000 soldiers wounded at Antietam who were sent to Frederick for treatment.
Tracey McIntire
Tracey McIntire earned her BA in English at Rivier College in Nashua, NH. She is Lead Educator at the National Museum of Civil War Medicine, site manager of the Pry House Field Hospital Museum, and an interpretive volunteer at Antietam National Battlefield. She is also an active Civil War living historian, where she portrays a woman soldier in various guises.
Come join leading historians and scholars as they discuss intriguing topics about their latest works and research on the Maryland Campaign and the Civil War during our Civil War Summer Lecture Series. See the complete 2025 schedule.
These indoors programs are held in McKinley Hall at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church on Monday evenings at 7:00 p.m. The church is located at 209W Main Street with a small parking area off the alley. More parking is available on Main and Hall Streets. These lectures free and open to the public. Each week we hold a drawing in which the proceeds support the Save Historic Antietam Foundation. Be sure to check our Facebook page for updates and changes to the schedule.
Colorized print of Jefferson Davis and his first cabinet with General Robert E. Lee, published by Thomas Kelly (1897)
We’ll be kicking off July by looking at how and when the idea of invading Maryland occurred. On July 7, Dr. Alex Rossino will present – Before September: The Origin of the 1862 Maryland Campaign
Colorized print of Jefferson Davis and his first cabinet with General Robert E. Lee, published by Thomas Kelly (1897)
Confederate military and political leaders hatched multiple plans for an invasion of Maryland before Lee’s army crossed the Potomac in September 1862. In this talk, Dr. Rossino documents those plans and the impact they had on Lee’s decision to enter the state.
Dr. Alex Rossino
Dr. Alexander B. Rossino resides in Washington County, Maryland. An award-winning independent historian, Dr. Rossino earned his degree from Syracuse University and worked at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C from 1994 to 2003. He is the author of Their Maryland: The Army of Northern Virginia from the Potomac Crossing to Sharpsburg in September 1862 (Savas Beatie, 2021), Calamity at Frederick: Robert E. Lee, Special Orders No. 191, and Confederate Misfortune on the Road to Antietam (Savas Beatie, 2023) and has published several articles on the Maryland Campaign. He has co-authored The Tale Untwisted: General George B. McClellan, the Maryland Campaign, and the Discovery of Lee’s Lost Orders (Savas Beatie, 2022) with Gene Thorp. Alex has also written a two-part series of historically accurate Civil War novels published by Savas Beatie, Six Days in September: A Novel of Lee’s Army in Maryland, 1862 (2017) and The Guns of September: A Novel of McClellan’s Army in Maryland, 1862 (2024).
Come join leading historians and scholars as they discuss intriguing topics about their latest works and research on the Maryland Campaign and the Civil War during our Civil War Summer Lecture Series. See the complete 2025 schedule.
These indoors programs are held in McKinley Hall at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church on Monday evenings at 7:00 p.m. The church is located at 209W Main Street with a small parking area off the alley. More parking is available on Main and Hall Streets. These lectures free and open to the public. Each week we hold a drawing in which the proceeds support the Save Historic Antietam Foundation. Be sure to check our Facebook page for updates and changes to the schedule.
Institute historian are back at the Pry House this summer for our “Commanders of Antietam” speaker series. Come to the Pry House to hear the contributors of the Commanders of Antietam discuss in detail some of the commanders that fought in the 1862 Maryland Campaign. The series is sponsored by the Antietam Institute and hosted by the National Museum of Civil War Medicine. The presentation begins in the Pry Barn at 2:00 PM and is a pay-what-you-please event. There is a $3.00 suggested donation to tour the Pry House Field Hospital Museum.
JUNE 1 – Gary Rohrer- MG William B. Franklin Gary is a native and lifelong resident of Washington County. After serving in the Navy during the Vietnam era, Gary earned a BSCE from the University of Maryland and later earned an MBA from Frostburg State University. He became a Registered Professional Engineer and enjoyed a 35-year career in Public Works engineering. His passion for the 1862 Maryland Campaign was sparked by his Boy Scout years camping and hiking the fields of Antietam, South Mountain and Harpers Ferry during the Civil War Centennial and countless visits to Gettysburg. Gary’s thirst for Civil War history grew upon retirement as he became an Antietam volunteer and an NPS Certified Antietam, South Mountain, and Harper’s Ferry Battlefield guide. Gary has toured numerous Civil War battlefields and sites throughout the U.S. and also made extensive tours of both WWI and WWII battlefields across Europe. He is married and resides near Boonsboro, MD.
JUNE 15 – Laura Marfut – Col. John R. Brooke Laura Marfut retired as a colonel in the U.S. Army with 32 years of service, including 12 years on the Pentagon Joint Staff and two tours in Afghanistan. She graduated from the U.S. Army War College with a master’s degree in Strategic Studies, and also holds master’s degrees in both International Relations and Education. After retirement, she developed the curriculum and taught the Homeland Security program at South Hagerstown High in Washington County, Maryland. Laura was certified as an Antietam National Battlefield Guide in 2019, fulfilling a long-term bucket list goal. She added Harpers Ferry and South Mountain credentials the following year. Laura served as President of the Mason-Dixon Council, Boy Scouts of America. She volunteers with Hospice of Washington County and as an Antietam Battlefield Ambassador. Laura and her husband, Ed, live in Hagerstown, Maryland.
JUNE 29 – Jim Buchanan – MG John Sedgwick A fourth generation Washingtonian, Jim grew up spending many hours playing with friends on the earthworks of Fort [Benjamin “Grimes”] Davis in his Southeast D.C. neighborhood. He graduated from the city’s public schools, and earned a BA and an MA in history at the University of Maryland, College Park. With a teacher’s certificate, he returned to the D.C. schools to teach social studies. He eventually signed on for 11 years as an associate editor on a Supreme Court history project. That led him to a national organization where he developed law-related education curriculum for high school teachers. Then in 1992, he joined the Federal Judicial Center where he worked until retirement in 2017. Currently, he is a volunteer and certified guide at Antietam National Battlefield
JULY 13 – Tom McMillian -Brig. Gen. Lewis A. Armistead and Brig. Gen. Winfield Scott Hancock Tom McMillan has spent a lifetime in sports media and communications – including 25 years as VP of Communications of the Pittsburgh Penguins of the NHL – but his heartfelt passion is history. The author of four books on American history, he has served on the board of trustees of Pittsburgh’s Heinz History Center, the board of directors of the Friends of Flight 93 National Memorial, the marketing committee of the Gettysburg Foundation, and as a docent at the Thomas Espy GAR Post in Carnegie, PA.. Tom and his wife, Colleen, are also volunteer ambassadors at Antietam. A former newspaper sports writer and radio talk-show host who has covered the Olympics, the Super Bowl, the Stanley Cup Finals and the NCAA Final Four, he earned a journalism degree from Point Park University in Pittsburgh.
JULY 27 – Michael Hill – Brig. Gen. Thomas Meagher Michael Hill, a native of Atlanta who grew up on the battlefield of Peachtree Creek, came to Baltimore for college at Johns Hopkins and pretty much never left, spending 35 years as a journalist at the Baltimore Sun and another ten working for the international aid organization, Catholic Relief Services. He did live one year in Fredericksburg VA for his first job out of college, residing on a 19th century estate overlooking the Rappahannock with Confederate entrenchments in the nearby woods. And there were four years in South Africa as a foreign correspondent for The Sun. In Maryland, Michael discovered he preferred the serene atmosphere of Antietam to the honky-tonk sprawl of Gettysburg and visited many times over the years. He got serious about studying the battle after a tour with Jim Buchanan made some sense out of it and became a licensed guide in 2021.
AUG 10 – Sharon Murray – Colonel B. F. Davis As a native Idahoan, Sharon Murray moved east in 2010 to volunteer at Antietam National Battlefield. She has multiple degrees in mining engineering and history from the University of Idaho. Sharon has published a number of articles on Idaho mining history and won awards for photographs from the International California Mining Journal and the American Battlefield Trust. She is has been a guide at Antietam since 2014 and is the author of “An Ornament to his Country: The Life and Military Career of Benjamin Franklin Davis”.
AUG 24 – Joe Stahl – Col. Harrison S. Fairchild In retirement, Joseph Stahl became a volunteer and NPS Licensed Battlefield Guide at Antietam and Harpers Ferry. He grew up in St. Louis where he received BS and MS degrees from Missouri University of Science and Technology and an MBA from Washington University in St. Louis. Joe has coauthored three books and more than two dozen articles.
SEPT 7 – Jim Rosebrock – Col. Stephen D. Lee James Rosebrock is a retired Army officer and Department of Justice employee, with 45 years of leadership experience in the logistics, security and emergency management fields. Jim graduated from Niagara University in 1976 with a degree in Russian History. Jim served with the 82nd Airborne Division during Operation Urgent Fury in Grenada. He is a graduate of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College and the Industrial College of the Armed Forces where he was awarded a master’s degree in National Resource Strategy. Jim was an instructor for Combined Arms and Services Staff School when he retired with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. He is a National Park Service certified battlefield guide at Antietam National Battlefield and served as Chief Guide from 2011 – 2018. He has two Civil War related blogs and is the author of the Artillery of Antietam.
SEPT 21 – Harry Smeltzer – Col Albert L. Magilton Harry Smeltzer is the host of Bull Runnings (bullrunnings.wordpress.com), a website dedicated to the digitization of primary resources and original content related to the First Battle of Bull Run. He lives just outside Pittsburgh, and was born and raised in Southwestern PA. He has earned degrees at The Pennsylvania State University and the Katz School of the University of Pittsburgh. He’s also been published in print media including in the journal Civil War History, The Civil War Monitor, Civil War Times, and America’s Civil War. He is a Digital History Advisor for The Civil War Monitor. He sits on the board of directors of the Save Historic Antietam Foundation and is a past vice-president. He has presented programs on Bull Run related topics to organizations in eight states and the District of Columbia and organizes and leads tours of the battlefield of First Bull Run. Groups with which he’s worked include Civil War round tables, libraries, historical societies, universities, and the United States Marine Corps. He’s been hosting Bull Runnings since November 2006.
OCT 5 – Marty Pritchett – Col. James A. Walker Martin Pritchett was born in Southern Kansas. Martin is a member of the Oklahoma Shawnee tribe. He grew up in a military family that took him from the Midwest to Europe. A veteran of 23 years in the United States Coast Guard and Texas General Land Office specializing in coastal search and rescue, environmental protection response, and maritime port safety. After seven years as an Antietam Battlefield Ambassador, Martin became a Certified Antietam Battlefield Guide.
OCT 19 – Jim Smith – Brig. Gen. Max Weber A native of Miami, Florida, Jim began volunteering at Antietam in 2017 and became a certified battlefield guide in 2018. Jim wrote several chapters for Brigades of Antietam and is a regular contributor to the Antietam Journal. He has an MA in history from the University of Georgia and undergraduate and law degrees from Duke University. A corporate lawyer for more than 25 years in the Washington, DC area, he has been with Hilton since 2011. Jim and his family live in Anne Arundel County, Maryland.
We are pleased to announce that our Membership incentive book for 2024 will be Commanders of Antietam.
Commanders of Antietam, the Union and Confederate Commanders at the Battle of Antietam is a comprehensive look at the biographies of both armies’ high command during the Maryland Campaign of September 1862. This treatment focuses on the lives of Union and Confederate commanders from the brigade level up to the army commanders, Robert E. Lee and George B. McClellan.
Each commander’s biography is broken into three sections: Before the Maryland Campaign; During the Maryland Campaign; and After the Maryland Campaign. This is the most complete volume of commanders’ biographies in the Maryland Campaign.
This book has been written by a collaboration of Antietam Battlefield Guides, National Park Service Rangers and volunteers, and Civil War historians. Kevin Pawlak and Brad Gottfried are the editors of this volume. It is the third in a series of books focused on different aspects of the campaign, including Brigades of Antietam (edited by Bradley Gottfried) and Artillery of Antietam (by James A. Rosebrock), both published by the Antietam Institute.
We had an outstanding group of educators and historians leading the program for our third annual Fall Conference. This year’s theme was Prelude to Antietam: Forcing the South Mountain Gaps – looking at events of the Maryland Campaign of 1862 leading up to the battle of Antietam.
Friday afternoon we kicked off with three featured speakers.
John Hoptak gave an overview of the campaign and the Battle of South Mountain. Dr. Alex Rossino looked at the loss of Special Orders 191 and the effects it had on the campaign Dr. Brad Gottfried discussed the cavalry operations of both the Federal and Confederate forces.
After these three outstanding programs we had a short reception where members could mingle and chat with the speakers and get their books signed.
Getting books signed by Steve Stotelmyer and John Hoptak
Members chatting with Dr. Emilie Amt, Dr. Brad Gottfried, and Dr. Alex Rossino.
Board member, Miriam Cunningham selling Institute publications, apparel, and used books
Following dinner, members were able to attend three breakout sessions.
Dr. Emilie Amt talked about Archie Ridout, an African American eyewitness to the fighting at Crampton’s Gap.
Steve Stotelmyer discussed the legend of Wise’s Well and the 58 dead Confederates buried there.
We heard from Kevin Pawlak about Rutherford B. Hays and the Ohioans at Fox’s Gap
Saturday was an all-day South Mountain battlefield excursion starting out at Turner’s Gap with Steve Stotelmyer and Steve Robertson for an overview of the events leading up to the morning of September 14, 1862.
Steve StotelmyerSteve Robertson
Next, we moved down to Fox’s Gap, where Steve Stotelmyer covered the all-day fighting that took place around the Wise farm and along the ridge roads.
After Fox’s Gap, the bus took us back around Turner’s Gap to the Frostown Gap where Steve Robertson discussed the advance of Gen. Hooker’s Union First Corps across a mile-long front. The bus had some difficultly tackling the steep mountain roads, but it gave us a better appreciation of the treacherous terrain of South Mountain.
After a long morning we pulled into the Gapland State Park at Crampton’s Gap for a break and some lunch provided by Bonnie’s at the Red Byrd in Keedysville.
After lunch, Steve Robertson started back up to cover the fighting at Crampton’s Gap. After a brief overview, we walked over to the War Correspondent’s monument and down the new interpretive trail.
After a long day on the mountain, dinner was ready and wanting for us at Shepherd’s Springs when we returned. Following dinner, Institute President, Chris Vincent presented the “State of the Institute” for the members. Vice President, Jim Rosebrock had the honor to introduce our keynote speaker, Scott Hartwig. As always, Scott’s talk was outstanding discussing “The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly of the Maryland Campaign”.
President, Chris VincentVice President, Jim RosebrockScott Hartwig
Sunday morning we met at in the barn at the Pry House Field Hospital Museum for a program by Dr. Tom Clemens. Tom discussed the whereabouts of McClellan and his true headquarters. Chris thanked Rachel Moses for not only being part of the conference, but for hosting the Institute for our summer lectures at the Pry Barn. Before heading out for the last excursion, members had a chance to tour the Pry House with Rachel.
Dr. Tom ClemensPresenting donationPry House tour
Once members concluded the tour, we zipped up to the Newcomer House for the last two excursions lead by Kevin Pawlak and Jim Rosebrock. Members also had a chance to look through the Newcomer House and some of their new displays. Kevin discussed the Union reconnaissance efforts across the Middle Bridge, while Jim pointed out the artillery actions in that area on Sept. 16.
Newcomer HouseParlor exhibit
Kevin PawlakJim Rosebrock
We had another very successful fall conference. Thanks to all the speakers and excursion leaders for sharing their knowledge and interesting presentations. Thanks to all the board members and volunteers that helped throughout the weekend. Finally, a special shout out to Brad Gottfried and the Programs Committee for all the hard work putting together another outstanding program. We look forward to seeing everyone in the spring and future events.
New Designation for a Church Destroyed by Civil War
Heavily damaged Lutheran Church after the Battle of Antietam. Sept. 1862 Photographer: Alexander Gardner. Library of Congress
On Thursday, August 24 members of the Antietam Institute helped hoist a new set of Civil War Trails signs into place where the Mount Calvary Lutheran Church once stood. This is the first Civil War Trails (CWT) site in downtown Sharpsburg officially adding the beautiful community to the multi-state program. The church was damaged beyond repair during the September 17, 1862 Battle of Antietam.
Chris Vincent, President of the Antietam Institute (right) helps placed the new Civil War Trails interpretive sign alongside Jason Shaffer, Operations Manager for Civil War Trails (left). The new site is located at 213 East Main Street., Sharpsburg, Maryland. Courtesy, Civil War Trails, Inc
“We are extremely excited to have this first CWT sign installed at the site of the old Lutheran Church,” said Chris Vincent, President of the Antietam Institute. The Institute was the primary advocate for the project, envisioning how to tell this often overlooked story and covering the initial costs. They will also be the sustaining partner for the site enabling the Civil War Trails program and its partners to market the site internationally to visitors from around the world.
Sharpsburg residents taking shelter in the Kretzer cellar during the Battle of Antietam. Artist: F.H. Schell Leslie’s Illustrated Magazine
This project in Sharpsburg is the latest addition to the CWT program which offers over 1,500 sites across six states. As visitors travel to each site, utilizing the CWT brochures and directional signs to navigate they visit local restaurants, stay at local B&Bs, and enjoy museums, hikes, and other amenities. Daniel Spedden, President of the Hagerstown/Washington County Convention and Visitors Bureau lauded the project. “As cultural and heritage tourists seek authentic experiences, they not only generate revenue, but also support countless small businesses, create employment opportunities, and preserve the unique history, traditions, and craftsmanship of our region.”
Jason Shaffer, Operations Manager for Civil War Trails (left) and Chris Vincent, President of the Antietam Institute (right) steady the directional ‘trailblazer’ sign which helps catch the eye of drivers. These ‘trailblazers’ work in tandem with the print and digital map-guides to help visitors the sites. Courtesy, Civil War Trails, Inc.
Across Maryland there are over 180 Civil War Trails sites, including over two-dozen stops associated with the 1862 Antietam Campaign. The popularity of the 1862 Antietam Campaign driving trail dovetails nicely with the mission of the Antietam Institute. The Institute is a member centered organization with a mission to educate the public on the critical importance of the Battle of Antietam and the campaign which was a major turning point of the Civil War which directly resulted in the Emancipation Proclamation.
The two organizations are optimistic about the ability to help promote travel to region and in telling new and varied stories. Vincent continued, “This is the first of many signs the Antietam Institute plans to sponsor around Sharpsburg to tell the story beyond the battlefield, of those civilians who experienced the tragedy of the bloodiest single day in American history.”
The new Civil War Trails site is located at 213 East Main Street, Sharpsburg located on top of the hill where the cemetery is now today. Be sure to snap a #signselfie and post it along with #mdinfocus. For more information about visiting or for a free map-guide shipped to your door visit civilwartrails.org. To find out more about the Antietam Institute, their programs, publications, and project visit their website at antietaminstitute.org and follow them @antietaminstitute on social media.
Editorial Note: We do not recommend publishing, printing, or posting a photo which shows the entire sign content. Doing so actually decreases visitation.
