A Glimpse at History

In Sharpsburg Maryland a hiker, cutting through a cornfield where soldiers were blown to pieces during the battle of Antietam, caught a glimpse of something near what appeared to be a groundhog hole. A closer look revealed fragments of bone and a metal button, clotted with red clay.

The remains were brought to the visitors center at Antietam National Battlefield and turned over to experts who determined that they belonged to a Union soldier from New York State.

This find came 146 years after the soldier perished and is a continual reminder that there are still soldiers unaccounted for, and because of this, the story is not factual beyond a shadow of a doubt.

Many of the soldiers that died on these battlefields like Antietam and Gettysburg, just to name a couple, were buried in shallow, unmarked graves quickly, due to scavengers, both human and animal alike, and because of the stench of the quickly decaying bodies. Many of thesse bodies were not reburied until 5 years or more after the incident, and there are numerous reports of the graves being forgotten because the person keeping track, remembered it to be by a tree, for example. And, because that tree grew and the landscape grew back it did not look the same, therefore the burial site was never found and the bodies recovered. That is why we still occationally come across finds like these. The last one at Antietam was an unidentified member of the Irish Bridgade, in 1989.

The soldier’s identity will remain a mystery as are so many. For example, look at how many headstones are marked unknown in the National Cemetary at Gettysburg, or how about the Confederate soldiers that were buried under the streets of Gettysburg as punishment, never to be recovered. These men and women have been lost to time as are their stories. A National Park Service archaeologist and Smithsonian Institution anthropologist were the ones who confirmed the bones were from a soldier and believe he was approximately 19 to 21 years of age at the time of his death.

 There were 23,100 soldiers confirmed killed, wounded, captured or declared missing at Antietam, but what is interesting is if they are confirmed, then why is the missing number somewhere between 140 to 200. This vast difference in the amount of soldiers actually beleived to be missing, supports my statement that we will never know the events and how they actually unfolded beyond a shadow of a doubt, because there is so much that is being speculated. And, I am finding to the victor go the spoils. The Unions versions have been taken to the hearts of America, and its later generations tainting their perseptions of the Southern People and their right to their heritage.  The Confederate point of view and motivation behind their efforts has been picked apart and made to look unimportant and that of a people bored with their lives.  This careless, narrow minded way of the victor (the North) presenting the events and motivations of a people, convinced they were carrying out the true course of how our forefather’s intended our country to be governed, and the rights its people were meant to have over their government when they beleived it did not have their best interest in mind, for future people and their children to read about in history books in every school in America is what has perpetuated racism into the 21st century.

By the way it is believed that because of General Lee’s retreat from the battlefield gave President Lincoln the political strength to issue the Emancipation Proclamation five days later. Please read my earlier blogs on this subject filed under Civil War.

Well……The Civil War seems to continue to keep us in awe for over 144 years now and it probably will keep us talking and debating for the next 144 years. What do you think??

Have a Historical Day!!

Savannah

Filed under: Civil War Blogs by Savannah Meade