Roads to Antietam

The creaking of the wheels, the smell of sweaty leather harnesses, the rumble of horse drawn vehicles, and the tramp, tramp, tramp of perspiring men through clouds of dust comprised some of the sights and sounds of September 1862.



 The month brought the first invasion of the North by the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia. Robert E. Lee crossed the Potomac River and threatened Washington and Baltimore.



 To meet this serious threat, President Abraham Lincoln named a new commander, George B. McClellan, and the newly reorganized Army of the Potomac moved from the shadow of the nation's capital in pursuit of the invader. The two armies met in battle on South Mountain, at Harpers Ferry, and along Antietam Creek.  



 Approximately 125,000 men took part in the campaign. They had their memories. So did the farmers and the folks in the little towns in their paths. They all had their memories and their stories. What was it like for the folks who lived in those exciting days when the artillery, ambulances, supply wagons, cavalry, and infantry of two armies marched by?



 Roads to Antietam is an attempt to share the story as told by the soldiers and civilians. Through their stories, the sights and sounds of 1862 come alive.