1962 Hagerstown Bi-Centennial Tokens

Souvenir Money

Hagerstown Bi-Centennial – Antietam South Mountain Centennial

Clara Barton, Angel of the Battle Field Founder of the American Red Cross

Historic Dunker Church, Battle of Antietam Sept 17, 1862

Gathland Civil War Correspondents Memorial Frederick County Md.

Good for 50 cents in trade at any cooperating business or redeemable at any Washington or Frederick County Maryland Bank on or before 2:00 P.M. April 5, 1962

These are soon to be lost to the eBay auctioneer. Thought they deserved a spot in the virtual scrapbook first. Click on the image tovisit the Flickr PhotoPage where you can see a higher resolution image.

MSO at Antietam National Battlefield 2009

Just a couple of pictures from the Maryland Symphony Orchestra Salute to Independence at Antietam National Battlefield. The performance is always superb this year was no exception. The premier performance of Ghosts of Antietam by the MSO’s principle timpanist Joe McIntyre was really nice. The sound of the tympanis in the darkening view of Bloody Lane and the fields beyond was haunting and beautiful.

My Dad would have been 97 yesterday He was very proud to have been born on the fourth of July. . His Grandfather was at Antietam. He would have really enjoyed the John Phillips Sousa numbrs.

Alexander Gardner’s Burnside Bridge Photos

Alexander Gardner took a series of photographs of the Antietam Battlefield beginning just two days after the battle where 23,000 soldiers were killed, wounded or missing in a single day of combat.

Gardner’s photographs were the first time an American battlefield had ever been photographed with many of the dead still on the field. Gardner, 41 years old at the time of the battle, was employed by Mathew Brady's studio in Washington, DC.

Library of Congress Image cwpb 04327 from Gardner Negative.


Gardner’s photos include four taken of Burnside Bridge. I have attempted to discover Gardner’s camera position and recreate those shots. The results provide a glimpse of how much (or little) the area has changed in nearly 150 years.

Gardner’s Burnside Bridge (follow link to Gardner’s photo)

This would be the same view seen by many of the attacking soldiers in Burnside's command.

Clicking on the photos will take you to its page in my Flickr photoset where you can see a full size image. You can also locate the camera position on a google map or satellite image by following the “Taken in: (map)” link found under Additional Information on that page.

Clicking on the link that is the photo's title will take you to Alexander Gardner's historic photo for comparison.

Gardner’s Burnside Bridge 2 (to Gardner’s photo)

Now that I know the spot, I can return with my tripod and attempt to duplicate Gardner’s long exposure time.

Gardner’s Burnside Bridge 3 (to Gardner’s photo)

I believe the fence is a bit closer to the bank of the Antietam creek in Gardner’s shot.

Gardner’s Burnside Bridge 4 (to Gardner’s photo)

I have found Gardner’s position for this shot but I have missed on the time of day.

You can see 30 of Gardner’s photographs on the National Park Service Antietam webpage here:

Historic Photographs by Alexander Gardner

The photos can be seen as a slide show or in a gallery of downloadable 3000 x 2400 pixel images.

Follow this link to see a slideshow of some of my recent Antietam Battlefield photos:

LostBob’s Antietam Battlefield Photoset

The Irish Brigade at Antietam

In honor of St Patrick’s Day I am posting a few shots of The Irish Brigade Monument at Antietam National Battlefield. The monument stands at the entrance to the observation tower near the end of Bloody Lane.

Irish Brigade Monument

On September 17th, 1862 the Irish Brigade suffered heavy casualties as they crossed the corn field and approached Bloody Lane. The brigade’s casualty list included 113 dead, 422 wounded and 5 missing.

Clicking on these images will enlarge them for easy reading.

How many of those were immigrants or sons of immigrants? How many came to this country simply because there were no jobs and little food back home? Came to perform hard and dirty work for a lower wage than the folks already settled here were willing to accept? How many came simply because it was the only way they could find to feed and clothe their families?

How many were welcomed by their new neighbors in the months and years before they spilled their blood early on an autumn day in a Maryland cornfield?

Just some food for thought as we raise a pint of Guinness in honor of the Patron Saint of Ireland.



Click the Pic. to visit it's Flickr PhotoPage where you can see (and download)high resolution originals. For example, the monument detail image to the left is available at 1500 x 1200 pixels.






Other pictures from the Antitam National Battelfield can be seen in my Antietam Battlefield PhotoSet on Flickr

Cheers!