Day 11: Battle Fields

Today was hot. Between 95 and 102. We drank as much as we could. All the time.

A Maryland Farm. On our way back up to Gettysburg.

Parking was free at the Re-enactment.  We walked across the street and back in time

Lon and all the other boys found the candy tent

Lon liked going into every tent and seeing all the stuff. Talking to the re-enactors, who were selling things.
Lon wanted to get a uniform for himself. I told him when we got home I would make him one.

I did get him a small canteen.  It needed washed out before we used it. It is plastic.  We did some more walking around, I bought more drinks, water and lemonade. We sat down in a shade tent next to the EMS tent. The gentleman who was running the tent was in 21st century clothes. He came over to say hi. Lon started talking to him about the canteen, and how cool it was. We could not use it till we got it cleaned out at the hotel. He looks at Lon, who is getting a little pink and asked him if he would drink more water if it was in his canteen. Lon said he would! The nice man  took Lon;s canteen, cleaned it out and filled it with ice cold water. He handed it to Lon, who said thank you. The nice EMS man said he wanted Lon to drink all the water he could because he did not want to see him in his tent.  What a nice man.

Some of the people
When the officer knew his photo was being taken, the styrofoam cup when behind his back

On our way out, we stopped by the Thank You tent. Lon drew a wonderful picture on a postcard for someone serving overseas.

The horse playing the part of Traveller. We did not see General Lee, he had not yet arrived when we left. Lon and I were hot, and hungry. We decided that even though it would be great fun to watch the battle, we could not hang out another 6 hours till the battle began.   We had fun, we talked to people, Lon asked lots of questions and learned alot of things.  But we needed to go and cool off

Since we had more water in the car, Lon poured the last bit of his water over his head to help him cool off!

Near where we found parking.  We went into the visitor's center first and they said it was good food, and family friendly. Sounded like the place for us

Waiting for lunch. It was almost 1 in the afternoon

Pancakes, it's what's for lunch! I had a diner burger. It was yummy too

Much to the delight of the children in the diner, a train went by. The conductor drove waved to all the kids. Squeels of delight!

Memorials and monuments are not limited to the battlefield. They are all over town too!

This one is called A Return Visit

By then it was time for ice cream. Yes, he did eat most of that.
Without my help

We asked the Garmin for directions to Antietam Battlefield. We went down some very little country roads.  There were even wood chucks who crossed the road in front of the car!  I was wondering if we were very lost at a few points. There is not much out on the way to Antietam. Or Sharpsburg.

We did make it !  Lon got his stamp for his National Park's passport. And the annual pass we bought worked. We did not have to pay to get into the battlefield.

Lon learned a little bit about Bayonets over the last two days and now he got to see some.

Memorials at Antietam
There is alot of information out there on the Battle of Antietam or Sharpsburg. (the battle took place near the town of Sharpsburg, but close to Antietam creek)
They had a poster inside the visitor's center showing how a body of a soldier was found at the battlefield in 2008. They carefully exhumed him and buried him in New York  with full honors.They could tell he was from New York by some of the things that they found with him. They are also still finding soldiers at Gettysburg too.

It was only 4pm. We saw a sign out front tell us to visit the Pry House. McClellan's head quater's and hospital. They were having a special exhibit on the father of EMS. Dr. Letterman. How could we pass that up?
This is the house.
History Bit:
Come and visit the Pry House Field Hospital Museum. This museum is located in the historic Pry House on the Antietam Battlefield, which served both as Union Commander General George B. McClellan's headquarters and as Medical Director Dr. Jonathan Letterman's headquarters during the battle. Exhibits include a re-creation of an operating theater, interpretive panels, objects relating to the care of the wounded, the history of the Pry House and family, and information on the revolutionary system of evacuation of wounded created by Dr. Letterman during the battle, which is still in use today. This is why the Pry House is considered the birthplace of military and emergency medicine.
The grounds around the house also offer many sights. The Pry Barn, which was used as a field hospital, will be open to the public with displays on field hospitals. There is also an overlook at which you can view the battlefield in almost the same spot at General McClellan and his staff did in 1862. And right outside the house is a 19th century style medicinal and kitchen garden. Every plant serves a practical, rather than aesthetic, purpose. This includes medicinal plants, herbs, and vegetables for the kitchen table, just like the Pry family would have had in the 1860's.

We found it very interesting. 

I could not take photos inside, but as we were leaving the house to go look at the barn, this nice young man shows Lon his rifle. He is getting ready to go up to the re-enactment at Gettysburg. The rifle is taller and almost heavier than Lon. I could not imagine carrying that, a 40 pound pack all while wearing a wool uniform. In the summer.

He even has the bayonet!

A little more on Dr. Letterman
At the start of the Civil War, Letterman was assigned to the Army of the Potomac. He was named medical director of the Department of West Virginia in May 1862. A month later William A. Hammond, Surgeon General of the U.S. Army appointed him, with the rank of major, as the medical director of the Army of the Potomac itself. Letterman immediately set to reorganizing the Medical Service of the fledgling army, having obtained from army commander Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan the charter to do whatever was necessary to improve the system. The army reeled from inefficient treatment of casualties in the Seven Days Battles in June, but by the time of the Battle of Antietam in September, Letterman had devised a system of forward first aid stations at the regimental level, where principles of triage were first instituted. He established mobile field hospitals to be located at division and corps headquarters. This was all connected by an efficient ambulance corps, established by Letterman in August 1862, under the control of medical staff instead of the Quartermaster Department. Letterman also arranged an efficient system for the distribution of medical supplies.
Letterman proved the efficiency of his system at the Battle of Fredericksburg, in which the Army of the Potomac suffered 12,000 casualties. After this show of proficiency, his system was adopted by other Union armies and was eventually officially established as the medical procedure for the entirety of the United States' armies by an Act of Congress in March 1864. The greatest casualties for his army were suffered at the three-day Battle of Gettysburg in July 1863. To deal with more than 14,000 Union wounded, along with 6,800 Confederate wounded who were left behind, a vast medical encampment was created northeast of Gettysburg off the York Pike on the George Wolf farm, named "Camp Letterman."
After a brief period of serving as Inspector of Hospitals in the Department of the Susquehanna, Letterman resigned from the army in December 1864 and relocated to San Francisco, California, where he served as elected coroner from 1867 to 1872. He published his memoirs, Medical Recollections of the Army of the Potomac, in 1866.

Can you spot Lon's new friend? He talked so nice and calmly. The little guy stayed and listened to Lon for a long time

This is lock 38 on the C&O Canal. The tow path next to it. The canal no longer contains water. Lon wanted to walk the at least part of the path. I sadly said no.  It was still hot and it was after 5.

Ferry Hill sitting above the crossroads of the Potomac River, Chesapeake and Ohio Canal, and the "great road" has been and continues to be a place of change and adaptation. In 1775 Van Swearingen had constructed a "Ferry Inn" at the ferry landing on the Maryland side of the river. The community that grew as a result of the ferry became known as Bridgeport.
John Blackford acquired interest in the ferry and adjoining acres through an inheritance from the Van Swearingen family when he married Sara van Swearingen in 1812. Looking for an ideal location to build a home and start his family he decided to build the house high on the bluff overlooking the Potomac River.
Ferry Hill has gone through many transformations: home, restaurant, C&O Canal Headquarters, and today is a visitor center.
Sadly, we could not go into the house. They closed at 4:30.

We got back to the hotel. We thought we would eat at the hotel restaurant. We walked in, waited to be seated. There were three people who looked like wait staff.  No one said anything to us, so we sat down. The place was not busy. Two or three other tables and the bar was full.  We sat. And sat some more.  Lon looked at me, I looked at Lon and out we went. 

We got the garmin and looked for a place. Mountain View Diner came up. The parking lot was full. Of cars with local plates.  I took this as a good sign. It was. I had the gryo plate. It was very yummy. Lon had a hot dog and pudding.  Less than 20 dollars. Lon drank all his apple juice and I downed two ice teas.  We felt much better after eating. 

now it is time to get to the pool. pack up and get ready for tomorrow.  I think I have a plan.