  The Antietam National Battlefield was established August 30, 1890, to commemorate the significant events of September 17, 1862, and to preserve the important features of the battlefield. Administered by the War Department until 1933, the site was transferred that year to the U.S. Department of the Interior to be administered by the National Park Service. Clara Barton. Courtesy, Library of Congress. Citizen volunteers assisting the wounded at Antietam. From wartime sketch by Waud. Courtesy, Library of Congress. Maryland Monument. Turner’s Gap looking east. War Correspondents’ Memorial Arch at Crampton’s Gap. The Battle of Antietam was fought over an area of 12 square miles. The site today consists of 810 acres containing approximately 8½ miles of tour roads. Located along the battlefield avenues to mark battle positions of infantry, artillery, and cavalry are many monuments, markers, and narrative tablets. Similar markers describe the actions at Turner’s Gap, Harpers Ferry, and Blackford’s Ford. Lee headquarters marker in the Oak Grove. Key artillery positions on the field of Antietam are marked by cannon. And 10 large-scale field exhibits at important points on the field indicate troop positions and battle action. The War Correspondents’ Memorial Arch and the 1st New Jersey Regimental Monument are located at Crampton’s Gap, and at Fox’s Gap is the memorial to Maj. Gen. Jesse Reno, who was killed while leading the Federal attack there. Outstanding in the observance of battle anniversaries at Antietam was the occasion of the 75th anniversary on September 17, 1937. Thirty-five thousand persons, including 50 veterans who fought at Antietam, joined in the observance held on the battleground near the Sunken Road. The National Cemetery. The Robert E. Lee Memorial tablet, located in a plot at the McClellan’s headquarters, the Philip Pry House. The National Cemetery, located at the eastern limits of Sharpsburg, is the burial place of Federal dead from the Battles of Antietam, South Mountain, and minor engagements. The cemetery was established by an act of the Maryland legislature in March 1865; the dedication took place September 17, 1867, the fifth anniversary of the battle. The cemetery plot of 11 acres was deeded by the State of Maryland to the United States Government on March 13, 1878. Of 4,776 Civil War burials, 1,836 are listed as unidentified. The total number of burials, including nearly 300 from recent wars, is more than 5,000. |
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