Antietam beginnings

Of all the battles that I've read about over the past months, this immediately grabbed my imagination more than any others even Gettysburg. I put effort into writing a song culled from as much information as I could find. This date, Sept 14 has been set aside for months; And today I wake up early to take my first solo trip after a long night returning from Baltimore for the Star Spangled festival.


Antietam is a battlefield that should be done in 2 days there is so much to see and do. Though a one day battle, so much happened here over a large area, that to just hike the trails and hear the guide takes up the whole day.

Arriving at the visitor center, I am directed to the observation room, which is framed by windows on 3 sides, providing a view of the surrounding mountains, the cornfields and woods that are the sites of the tragic events that occurred 152 years ago.

I begin to cry at the beauty, the tragedy, the quiet, the anticipation of the day.