On September 17, 1862, the forces of Major General George B. McClellan and his Union Army of the Potomac confronted Robert E. Lee's entire Army of Northern Virginia at the Battle of Antietam in Sharpsburg, Maryland. The Union forces mounted a powerful assault on Lee's left flank in the idyllic Miller Cornfield. It was the single bloodiest day in the history of the Civil War. The elite combat units of the Union's Iron Brigade and the Confederate Texas Brigade held a dramatic showdown and suffered immense losses through vicious attacks and counterattacks sweeping through the cornstalks. Author Phillip Thomas Tucker reveals the triumph and tragedy of the greatest sacrifice of life of any battleground in America.

The Battle of Antietam was the bloodiest day in American history, and Wisconsin played a vital role. The Second, Sixth and Seventh Wisconsin Regiments served in the Iron Brigade, one of the most respected infantries in the Federal army, and fighting by their side in Maryland was the Third Wisconsin. The mettle of the Badger State was sorely tested and proven on South Mountain and on the bloody Miller's Cornfield. The Third alone lost more than half its men to death or injury, and the Iron Brigade, too, suffered extraordinary losses. Yet Wisconsin's sacrifices at Antietam rebuffed the Confederate incursion into Northern territory and enabled the Emancipation Proclamation. Civil War historian Cal Schoonover sheds new light on the exploits of Wisconsin soldiers in this turning point to secure the Union.

With vivid battlefield accounts based on extensive primary research, award-winning author Jack Dempsey's masterful biography tells the amazing story of an unsung hero. Detroit's Alpheus Starkey Williams never tired in service to his city or his country. A veteran of the Mexican-American War, he was a preeminent military figure in Michigan before the Civil War. He was key to the Lost Order, the Battle of Gettysburg, the March to the Sea and the Carolinas Campaign. His generalship at Antietam made possible the Emancipation Proclamation, and Meade and Sherman relied on his unshakable leadership. A steady hand in wartime and in peacetime, Williams was a Yale graduate, lawyer, judge, editor, municipal official, militia officer, diplomat and congressman who stood on principle over party.

The Texans from Hood's Texas Brigade and other regiments who fought at Antietam on 16-17 September 1862 described their experiences of the battle in personal diaries, interviews, newspaper articles, letters, and speeches. Their reminiscences provide a fascinating and harrowing account of the battle as they fought the Army of the Potomac. This book collates their writings alongside speeches that were given in the decades after the battle, during the annual reunions of Hood's Brigade Association and the dedication of the Hood's Brigade Monument at the state capital in Austin, Texas. These accounts describe their actions at the East Woods, Dunker's Church and Miller's Cornfield, and other areas during the battle. For the first time ever, their experiences are compiled in Texans at Antietam: A Terrible Clash of Arms, 16-17 September 1862.

Discover a forgotten chapter of American history with Steven Cowie's riveting account of the Battle of Antietam. The Battle of Antietam, fought in and around Sharpsburg, Maryland, on September 17, 1862, was the bloodiest day in American history. Despite the large number of books and articles on the subject, the battle’s horrendous toll on area civilians is rarely discussed. When Hell Came to Sharpsburg: The Battle of Antietam and Its Impact on the Civilians Who Called It Home by Steven Cowie rectifies this oversight. By the time the battle ended about dusk that day, more than 23,000 men had been killed, wounded, or captured in just a dozen hours of combat—a grim statistic that tells only part of the story. The epicenter of that deadly day was the small community of Sharpsburg. Families lived, worked, and worshipped there. It was their home. And the horrific fighting turned their lives upside down. When Hell Came to Sharpsburg investigates how the battle and opposing armies wreaked emotional, physical, and financial havoc on the people of Sharpsburg. For proper context, the author explores the savage struggle and its gory aftermath and explains how soldiers stripped the community of resources and spread diseases. Cowie carefully and meticulously follows the fortunes of individual families like the Mummas, Roulettes, Millers, and many others—ordinary folk thrust into harrowing circumstances—and their struggle to recover from their unexpected and often devastating losses. Cowie’s comprehensive study is grounded in years of careful research. He unearthed a trove of previously unused archival accounts and examined scores of primary sources such as letters, diaries, regimental histories, and official reports. Packed with explanatory footnotes, original maps, and photographs, Cowie’s richly detailed book is a must-read for those seeking new information on the battle and the perspective of the citizens who suffered because of it. Antietam’s impact on the local community was an American tragedy, and it is told here completely for the first time.

The new, amazingly detailed, and thorough guide from the author of The Complete Civil War Road Trip Guide. Although the Civil War was fought across America, the most captivating events for history buff s seem to be those that occurred in the relatively small region surrounding the two wartime capitals, Washington, DC, and Richmond, Virginia. In The Civil War Road Trip: A Guide to Northern Virginia, Maryland, and Pennsylvania, author Michael Weeks takes you on complete tours of every major military campaign in the region during the first two years of the war, from First Manassas in 1861 to Gettysburg in 1863. Weeks has visited every site included here, learning their vibrant stories and driving thousands of miles to bring readers the most accurate information. Detailed directions and maps for your own road trip, along with a blow-by-blow history of each campaign, will guide you to and through some of the war’s most critical battlegrounds, including Fredericksburg, Antietam, and the Shenandoah Valley. Travel tips, historic lodging places, and further sources of information are also included. Fully up to date and thoroughly researched, this guidebook is indispensable for travelers interested in America’s history.

Among the thousands who fought in the pivotal Battle of Antietam were scores of Ohioans. Sending eleven regiments and two batteries to the fight, the Buckeye State lost hundreds during the Maryland Campaign's first engagement, South Mountain, and hundreds more "gave their last full measure of devotion" at the Cornfield, the Bloody Lane and Burnside's Bridge. Many of these brave men are buried at the Antietam National Cemetery. Aged veterans who survived the ferocious contest returned to Antietam in the early 1900s to fight for and preserve the memory of their sacrifices all those years earlier. Join Kevin Pawlak and Dan Welch as they explore Ohio's role during those crucial hours on September 17, 1862.