Thursday, November 8, 2012

Antietam National Cemetery - Rural Thursday

Before we drove home from Harpers Ferry, we knew we wanted to go visit Antietam.  We decided to walk through the cemetery first.

It's really very impressive.

By this sign, there is a registry, in case you are trying to locate a relative.

One of my great great great grandfathers fought in the Civil War.

According to records, he survived the war, although my Mom says he was wounded at one point.

 4,776 Union soldiers are resting at this cemetery.

The Private Soldier Monument really towers over the cemetery, standing watch, day after day.
The inscription reads "NOT FOR THEMSELVES BUT FOR THEIR COUNTRY"

Several of the grave stones in the Michigan section bore flags.

And a great number of the stones were marked unknown.

The view, over the battlefield, from the back of the cemetery.

Our walk back towards the car.

A solemn experience.  
We were fortunate enough to have the cemetery entirely to ourselves this day, but even the boys seemed a bit awestruck by the visit.

It's Rural Thursday!  Time to link up with Nancy from A Rural Journal and  myself with your stories and pictures from the rural life.  Just grab the code beneath the button, and paste it into your blog.  Then come back and add your website to the linky.  Please be sure to visit and comment on the blogs of at least 5 other participants.  Have a great Thursday!

48 comments:

Lmkazmierczak said...

Ordinary Words... solemn, noteworthy and worthwhile. Thanks for sharing♪

Anonymous said...

looks peaceful

Buttons Thoughts said...

Wow that is really something. I cannot imagine standing in the center of all that history and the stories. Beautiful peaceful place. B

Cat said...

Honey, you had FOUR grandfathers who fought in the Civil War :-) Three were Virginia cavalry and one was a Tennesee Volunteer.

andy said...

Looka like a cool place! I just love history reading those tombstones and wondering what they did and what kinda family they had. Neat! !!!have a wonderful day

Candy C. said...

What a nice post Lisa! We need to remember all the soldiers who have fought for our country from the very beginning.
Thank you for hosting every week! :)

Kerri Farley said...

What a great place! You are doing a GREAT job of teaching your children so much history!! Kudos to you and your hubby!

Sonya @ Under the Desert Sky said...

I love visiting historic, solemn places like that.

Anonymous said...

I'm sure you 'felt' the history in that place... my great GF lived in the northwestern tip of NC and was a Union sympathizer but was conscripted into the Confederate Army by force, he went AWOL and hid the the Blue Ridge Mountains near his home until the war was over... thanks for hosting.

patty said...

cemetaries to me are always very moving. the unknow soldier really strikes a cord...

thank you for hosting!
patty@findingserendipity.com

Unknown said...

Wow! What a wonderful place explore! With Veteran's Day coming up it is so cool that your boys had the opportunity to see where veterans walked and lay to rest.

Tanya Breese said...

beautiful..you and nancy were on the same wavelength today! we didn't stop there on our trip to harpers ferry...but we need to make it a trip for sure.

my ggg grandfather (i can't remember how many greats back) was in the civil war along with his brother. his brother was killed in gettysburg.

my husband had 2 ggg grandfathers in the war (again, can't remember how many greats back) and one was on the north and one on the south, their children married! it truly was brother against brother.

Heather said...

Very interesting! I have been to a lot of revolutionary war sites, but not any civil war sites. I love the history!

Unknown said...

Solemn is the perfect description of an outing like that.

TexWisGirl said...

such incredible history - and yes, very solemn.

Lexie Loo, Lily, Liam & Dylan Too said...

Great pictures! I love how many places you take your children!

carol l mckenna said...

wonderful photography and great post on history ~ (A Creative Harbor) ^_^

Tina Fariss Barbour said...

One of my ancestors died at Antietam, so I'd love to go. Thanks for sharing these photos--they give a wonderful view of the place.

Are We There Yet! said...

The old cemeteries are some of the most beautiful, peaceful places around. I love going to them. My Hubs probably thinks I am a little morbid.

Sandy said...

Looks like an incredible place. I am not a history buff, but cemeteries interest me.

Out on the prairie said...

These are the real heros we will celebrate Monday

Evelyn S. said...

I don't believe I've ever seen photos of this cemetery before. These are wonderful!

Debby@Just Breathe said...

I am so glad you took the time to visit the cemetery. I love walking through a cememtery and it would be an honor to walk through one with those who have given their lives for us to have freedom.

Pride In Photos Beauty said...

Lisa...this cementary is very impressive. So well taken care of...very nice to see.
Laurie

It's A Wod World said...

When I was a kid, we used to play hide and seek in cemeteries. Not fun when you trip over a stone in the dark.

jp@A Green Ridge said...

In this case, "freedom" isn't just another word!! It belongs with "united" too!!!...:)JP

Sue Frelick said...

A moving tribute to so many brave men. I am always awed by historical sites...they seem to each have their own spirit. I just love and revere them.

I'm not at all surprised to hear that your boys felt it in the cemetery visit.

Our Neck of the Woods said...

That would be a very solemn and somber experience. I think it's good that you exposed your boys to that at a young age. Thanks for the photos.

Seraphinas Phantasie said...

This is a wonderful place. Beautiful photos. Great !

Anonymous said...

A somber and lovely tribute.

Gail Dixon said...

Wonderful shots of this historic place. I visited a civil war cemetery in MS with my dad a few weeks ago, but it wasn't as impressive as this.

Barbara said...

I can see why the boys would be awestruck.

Leovi said...

Yes, precious pictures, really a solemn experience.

An Apel a Day said...

Really old cemeteries are really interesting to me.

I didn't have time to post one this week. :(

Grandma Bonnie said...

your photos are beautiful. I am always thankful for the ultimate sacrifice the soldiers have made for us! I would love to visit that Cemetery one day.

Thistle Cove Farm said...

Those cemeteries always are so sad; thinking of the loss of dang near everything...life, hopes, dreams, etc.

Liz Mays said...

I can see that it would definitely make quite an impact. That's quite a place.

Michelle said...

I have been to both Harper's Ferry and Antietam. Both excellent experiences.

Lin said...

Wow, cool place to visit! I can't begin to imagine that so many soldiers lost their lives there.

tiarastantrums said...

sort of a sad outing eh?

Minoru Saito said...

Beautiful captures. Many people would remind of sad memories in this cemettery.
Wishing you a wonderful weekend.

Ellie said...

Wow what an impressive cemetary and a fascinating place to visit.

Nancy said...

An awesome post in view of the upcoming Veteran's Day holiday.

Kmcblackburn said...

I LOVE Civil War battlegrounds and sights. Luckily, I don't live TOO far from Gettysburg so I can get my "fix". Great shots!

Anne Payne said...

Wonderful visit in honor of Veteran's Day.

EG CameraGirl said...

It's wonderful to see the cemetery in such great condition.

Carletta said...

A timely post for this weekend's Veterans Day!
Those iron gates and fence are certainly ornate.

I'm so late getting around to Rural Thursday posts. Thanks so much for your visit this week and your time spent hosting.

Joe Todd said...

Great post. I've been to Antietam.and just visited Andersonville Prison last week.. Gives me the chills.. Sometime in the future will be doing a post on Andersonville