Being a Guide at Antietam

I love being a guide at Antietam. I literally live for it. With rare exception over the past eight years as a certified guide, I have never wearied of sharing the battlefield with the hundreds of guests who have had me take them out on the field. Generally, I do not spend much time talking about the monuments. My tours evolve around the tactics, the terrain, the weather, and the soldiers’ experiences. It never grows old for me.

I often tell my guests it is like teaching again but so much safer. So far no one has beaten me up or tried to kill me and I get to do what I do best - talk about history and the people who lived it. The average visitor is a first time guest and a great many have a cursory knowledge of the Civil War, neither of which bothers me in the least.

I get to drive all kinds of vehicles – big pick-up trucks, a two-seater jaguar with a standard transmission, a Tesla, and my kind of car (the one I would have to pay someone to steal).  I have toured with parents and their very young children, all ages of school kids, military personnel, and hard core Civil War enthusiasts. I have enjoyed every adventure and unexpected occurrence. I have had guests lay down in the Sunken Road and “play dead.” We have encountered a groundhog that committed suicide by crawling into a hole with a corncob in his mouth and perished because he would not let go of it, and consequently suffocated. We have encountered impressive herds of deer, turkey buzzards on the overhanging branches of dead trees, and an occasional blacksnake sunning itself on the Burnside Bridge.

I really enjoy it when the visitors ask questions. It is a trait I share with the renowned Warren G. Harding, who was just the sort of “damned fool” who would try to answer them. I welcome queries and observations, with the admonition that if I do not know the answer, I will tell them, but, if they insist, I will make something up. I teach on the field the way I taught in the classroom: give and take, questions and answers, and an open exchange of thoughts and ideas. I was the much derided “Sage on the stage” and not “the guide on the side.”

We (the guests and I) do not spend much time discussing generals and what they thought and why they did what they did unless I have documentation for it. The battle was more or less a brawl with large caliber weapons, a whirlpool which pulled everything into the center. Any teacher who has tried to control a fight in the hall will understand the connection. Generally, generals kept their reasons for doing things to themselves. They viewed the combat on a different level than the soldiers in the ranks, much like supervisors operate on a different level than employees. Generals could only control what they could see and at Antietam the terrain and smoke limited their line of sight.

I get asked why the men marched in tight formations and stood up to fight. I explain it was done to mass fire power and to gain fire superiority over their opponents. From there the topic often meanders into the men using available cover when they had it, the rare occurrences of bayonet attacks, and how much weapons training they often received. A very large portion of General McClellan’s army consisted of newly recruited regiments.

We discuss how the farmers planted their fields and what crops they grew. I sometimes mention that Sharpsburg had three major crops – rocks, children, and corn. We talk about the number of foreign born and first generation Americans were in the Federal army and about the German Baptists Brethren (Dunkers). I gear the conversation to the interests of our visitors.

I like being a guide at Antietam because of the excellent individual with whom I work. The guides are some of the most collegial, friendly individuals I have ever had the privilege of working with. All of them are dedicated to the battlefield and to the history of the Maryland Campaign. Each one is well read, and quite a few are published or will be published. A number of them are collectors of artifacts, letters, and CDV’s (photographs). Each one has their own style of conducting tours. Look up Antietam Battlefield Guides on the web and peruse their resumes. They are a great bunch with whom to work.

As NPS Certified Guides we work through Eastern National, whose staff at the bookstore do a fantastic job. They treat the guides with respect and are very helpful with our visitors. I use “our” a lot because we are all there to assist our guests by providing them with unforgettable, positive, lifelong memories of the time they spend at the field.

Going out on the field alone, or with visitors never gets old to me. Whether I am tramping the iconic Cornfield, Sunken Road or Burnside Bridge or exploring the walking trails of the now verdant, pastoral setting, devoid of rampant commercialism, I find myself meditating on the beauty of the place. Sometimes, I will slip into the Dunker Church and quietly sit in one of the plain wooden pews and absorb its serenity. It is unlike any other field I have studied. I cannot explain my attraction to the place. For an introvert, like me, it’s, at times, like slipping into a prayer closet – ironically peaceful and comforting.

I know I have engaged in a lot of shameless self-promotion. I make no apologies for it. Should you get the chance, drop by and see Antietam for yourself. Thank you.