Profile of the troops whose last stand helped prevent the destruction of the Army of Northern Virginia, providing Robert E. Lee with yet another chance for a northern invasion .

The stone bridge on the southern flank of the Antietam battlefield became one of the Civil War's most powerful symbols of courage and sacrifice. Each stage of the battle is described by extracts from memoirs and diaries of the time, with details of the area as it was in 1862 and as it is today.

"America's bloodiest day"—the Battle of Antietam on September 17, 1862—left more dead American soldiers in its wake than any other 24-hour period in history. Antietam and the related battles of the Maryland Campaign that led up to the lethal confrontation did not result in decisive defeats for either side. But they did serve as a brutal warning to an out-gunned, out-commanded, and out-organized Union army. Eyewitness accounts by battle participants make these guides an invaluable resource for travelers and nontravelers who want a greater understanding of five of the most devastating yet influential years in our nation's history. Explicit directions to points of interest and maps—illustrating the action and showing the detail of troop position, roads, rivers, elevations, and tree lines as they were 130 years ago—help bring the battles to life. In the field, these guides can be used to recreate each battle's setting and proportions, giving the reader a sense of the tension and fear each soldier must have felt as he faced his enemy.