American tourism: Harpers Ferry and Antietam
After Fort McHenry, we still had a few days before we had to be in southeastern Pennsylvania for a family baptism, so we took a swing through Harper's Ferry and Antietam battlefields. Last year we spent some time at Gettysburg, and so we decided Antietam would be right for this summer.
I had been to both of these places with my family when I was around Myles' age. I was worried they wouldn't live up to how I remembered it, but, fortunately, it did.
I remembered the parts about John Brown's raid in Harpers Ferry.
I had completely forgotten about the role the village played in the Lewis & Clark Expedition.
And, Antietam was almost exactly as I remembered. Expansive and deceptively peaceful.
More after the jump
We stayed two nights in Hagerstown, though for the ambitious regional traveler, one would have been enough.
Parking at the National Park Service visitor center, we rode the bus to Harpers Ferry. We maybe could have parked in town, but we wanted to see if there were any special events going on. The bus also stopped at Bolivar Heights. Knowing our group's limits, we elected to see only Harpers Ferry itself that afternoon.
One thing I've come to appreciate about the National Park Service is how dedicated they are to showing exactly why it is in the national interest to preserve and revere a particular place. For instance, Harpers Ferry would be a shell of an abandoned town were it not for NPS treating it as "Six Acres that Changed the World."
Yes, being in Harpers Ferry was like the being in the John Denver Song.
Almost heaven, West Virginia
Blue Ridge Mountains, Shenandoah River.
It is a tiny town, layered and tiered on the hillside.
Brigid may be proudly American, but she can't let go of some of her Chinese habits, like carrying an umbrella on hot, sunny days.
The Park Service's John Brown signs could date to my previous visit, in the 1980s! Not that the understanding of this history had changed, but it was interesting to see the familiar NPS color scheme.
The Lewis & Clark exhibit was much newer, and, of course, fascinating. When you consider what was at Harper's Ferry, the national armory, it makes sense that the explorers had to start here to be outfitted for such an uncertain trip.
The Appalachian Trail goes right through Harpers Ferry. While we weren't joining any hikes, we especially enjoyed the trail restaurants (there were a few from which to choose!) that served burgers, baked brie, and local microbrews. I tried two beers by Flying Dog, and especially enjoyed their malty Counter Culture because I have lost my palate for IPA. I'm sure it is an age thing.
We walked up the hill to see Jefferson Rock. Technically, this took us along the Appalachian Trail, but I doubt it counted.
We walked behind St. Peter Catholic Church, originally build in 1833, rather early, I think, for a Catholic Church in this part of the country. It is reportedly the only church in the town that sustained no damage during the multiple Civil War campaigns that ravaged many of the other structures in town. One popular story was that the priest at the time would raise a Union Jack on the church property, and neither South or North wanted to fire on that banner and cause England to chose the other's side.
And of course, the ruins of St. John's Episcopal Church. I remembered incorrectly these as being the ruins from the Civil War, and while the church was damaged then, it was rebuilt and in use into the 1890s when a new building was erected in another part of Harpers Ferry.
And of course, Jefferson's Rock, named for the Thomas Jefferson, who viewed the great valley from this point in 1783. The boulders were in balance, but the armory management added the support columns in 1860 to prevent it from destroying homes and the important factories below.
The next day we went to Antietam National Battlefield. On September 17, 1862, the casualties numbered 23,000 killed, wounded, or missing. It was a terrible killing field, but these days it is a quiet National Park.
We purchased a CD and map to follow one of the self-guided car tours. Our rental car did not have a CD player, but, fortunately, a purchase of the CD allowed for a one-time unlocking of the same tour on a phone app.
Before we started, we wanted to look over the collection of cannons. I remembered these, maybe not in this exact location, but my sister Kate and I participated in a cannon-firing demonstration when we were here. There was no such one during our visit, but Brigid had volunteered for one at Fort Pitt last year, and was familiar with the process. Somewhere in an album at my parents' house is a picture of me, slouching shyly in front of this.
The tour took us along the major points of the battle, like the Dunker Church, which survived the war but not a 1921 windstorm. This is a reconstruction.
Just like Gettysburg, the Battlefield is circled with various monuments to regiments and generals.
There are pictures, too, of my youngest sisters in front of this memorial. From this angle even.
The Sunken Road is one of the starkest features of the battlefield in my memory. I was haunted by the idea of so many soldiers, caught in this well-worn lane, unable to escape the line of fire, and piling up.
From the top of the Observation Tower, we could take in most of the battlefield.
At the base of the tower is the monument to the Irish Brigade. We couldn't get close, because it was behind a chain-link fence for area repairs.
One of my father's ancestors served in the Irish Brigade, so we had wanted to get closer pictures of this. We were able, though, to purchase a bag of plastic toy Brigade soldiers in the vistor's center bookshop. it isn't everyday you can buy an action figure of one of your ancestors.
One of our last big stops at Antietam was Burnside's Bridge. Before the war known as Rohrbach's Bridge, this quiet, picturesque crossing belies the death and violence from that bloody day in 1862.
Next to the bridge is what is referred to as a witness tree. This sycamore appears in the photographs taken in the aftermath of the battle, and stands tall to this day. There's something about witness trees that I find so fascinating. We have some around and even inside the Ming Tombs. They are, whether or not they are willing, giant guardians of stories and secrets
I was really glad to share with my kids a trip I took as a child that was so memorable to me.
I had been to both of these places with my family when I was around Myles' age. I was worried they wouldn't live up to how I remembered it, but, fortunately, it did.
I remembered the parts about John Brown's raid in Harpers Ferry.
I had completely forgotten about the role the village played in the Lewis & Clark Expedition.
And, Antietam was almost exactly as I remembered. Expansive and deceptively peaceful.
More after the jump
We stayed two nights in Hagerstown, though for the ambitious regional traveler, one would have been enough.
Parking at the National Park Service visitor center, we rode the bus to Harpers Ferry. We maybe could have parked in town, but we wanted to see if there were any special events going on. The bus also stopped at Bolivar Heights. Knowing our group's limits, we elected to see only Harpers Ferry itself that afternoon.
One thing I've come to appreciate about the National Park Service is how dedicated they are to showing exactly why it is in the national interest to preserve and revere a particular place. For instance, Harpers Ferry would be a shell of an abandoned town were it not for NPS treating it as "Six Acres that Changed the World."
Yes, being in Harpers Ferry was like the being in the John Denver Song.
Almost heaven, West Virginia
Blue Ridge Mountains, Shenandoah River.
It is a tiny town, layered and tiered on the hillside.
Brigid may be proudly American, but she can't let go of some of her Chinese habits, like carrying an umbrella on hot, sunny days.
The Park Service's John Brown signs could date to my previous visit, in the 1980s! Not that the understanding of this history had changed, but it was interesting to see the familiar NPS color scheme.
The Lewis & Clark exhibit was much newer, and, of course, fascinating. When you consider what was at Harper's Ferry, the national armory, it makes sense that the explorers had to start here to be outfitted for such an uncertain trip.
The Appalachian Trail goes right through Harpers Ferry. While we weren't joining any hikes, we especially enjoyed the trail restaurants (there were a few from which to choose!) that served burgers, baked brie, and local microbrews. I tried two beers by Flying Dog, and especially enjoyed their malty Counter Culture because I have lost my palate for IPA. I'm sure it is an age thing.
We walked up the hill to see Jefferson Rock. Technically, this took us along the Appalachian Trail, but I doubt it counted.
We walked behind St. Peter Catholic Church, originally build in 1833, rather early, I think, for a Catholic Church in this part of the country. It is reportedly the only church in the town that sustained no damage during the multiple Civil War campaigns that ravaged many of the other structures in town. One popular story was that the priest at the time would raise a Union Jack on the church property, and neither South or North wanted to fire on that banner and cause England to chose the other's side.
And of course, the ruins of St. John's Episcopal Church. I remembered incorrectly these as being the ruins from the Civil War, and while the church was damaged then, it was rebuilt and in use into the 1890s when a new building was erected in another part of Harpers Ferry.
And of course, Jefferson's Rock, named for the Thomas Jefferson, who viewed the great valley from this point in 1783. The boulders were in balance, but the armory management added the support columns in 1860 to prevent it from destroying homes and the important factories below.
The next day we went to Antietam National Battlefield. On September 17, 1862, the casualties numbered 23,000 killed, wounded, or missing. It was a terrible killing field, but these days it is a quiet National Park.
We purchased a CD and map to follow one of the self-guided car tours. Our rental car did not have a CD player, but, fortunately, a purchase of the CD allowed for a one-time unlocking of the same tour on a phone app.
Before we started, we wanted to look over the collection of cannons. I remembered these, maybe not in this exact location, but my sister Kate and I participated in a cannon-firing demonstration when we were here. There was no such one during our visit, but Brigid had volunteered for one at Fort Pitt last year, and was familiar with the process. Somewhere in an album at my parents' house is a picture of me, slouching shyly in front of this.
The tour took us along the major points of the battle, like the Dunker Church, which survived the war but not a 1921 windstorm. This is a reconstruction.
Just like Gettysburg, the Battlefield is circled with various monuments to regiments and generals.
There are pictures, too, of my youngest sisters in front of this memorial. From this angle even.
The Sunken Road is one of the starkest features of the battlefield in my memory. I was haunted by the idea of so many soldiers, caught in this well-worn lane, unable to escape the line of fire, and piling up.
From the top of the Observation Tower, we could take in most of the battlefield.
At the base of the tower is the monument to the Irish Brigade. We couldn't get close, because it was behind a chain-link fence for area repairs.
One of my father's ancestors served in the Irish Brigade, so we had wanted to get closer pictures of this. We were able, though, to purchase a bag of plastic toy Brigade soldiers in the vistor's center bookshop. it isn't everyday you can buy an action figure of one of your ancestors.
One of our last big stops at Antietam was Burnside's Bridge. Before the war known as Rohrbach's Bridge, this quiet, picturesque crossing belies the death and violence from that bloody day in 1862.
Next to the bridge is what is referred to as a witness tree. This sycamore appears in the photographs taken in the aftermath of the battle, and stands tall to this day. There's something about witness trees that I find so fascinating. We have some around and even inside the Ming Tombs. They are, whether or not they are willing, giant guardians of stories and secrets
I was really glad to share with my kids a trip I took as a child that was so memorable to me.
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