[Illustration: Sharpsburg, Md., looking southwest along Main Street, September 21 or 22, 1862. Library of Congress] [Illustration: 1] [Illustration: 9] [Illustration: 11] About Your Visit Antietam National Battlefield lies north and east of Sharpsburg, along Md. 34 and 65. Both routes intersect either U.S. 40 or 40A and Int. 70. The visitor center is north of Sharpsburg on Md. 65 and is open daily except Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years Day. All visitor center facilities and most tour route exhibits are wheelchair accessible. There are interpretive markers at Turner’s, Fox’s, and Crampton’s Gaps on South Mountain (scenes of preliminary fighting) and at the Shepherdstown (W. Va.) Ford where Lee’s army recrossed the Potomac. While touring the park, stay alert to all traffic. Bicyclists should use caution while descending hills. Please use trails to avoid contact with stinging nettles, ticks, and snakes. Do not climb on cannons, monuments, fences, or trees. Don’t spoil your visit with an accident. Note: Relic hunting is prohibited. Antietam National Battlefield and Cemetery are administered by the National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior. A superintendent, whose address is Box 158, Sharpsburg, MD 21782, is in charge. Phone: (301) 432-5124. [Illustration: Area map] Touring Antietam Battlefield Before starting your tour, stop at the visitor center where exhibits and audio-visual programs provide an introduction to the battle and the Maryland Campaign. The numbered tour stops below are arranged according to the sequence of the battle. [Illustration: Battlefield map] Morning Phase (6 a.m. to 9 a.m.) 1 Dunker Church This was the focal point of repeated clashes as both armies sought to occupy and hold the high ground around it. Leveled by a storm in 1921, the church was rebuilt in 1962. 2 North Woods General Hooker launched the initial Union attack from this point. It was stopped by Jackson’s troops in The Cornfield, ½ mile south. 3 East Woods Union Gen. Joseph Mansfield was fatally wounded here as he led his XII Corps into battle. 4 The Cornfield More fighting took place here in the Miller cornfield than anywhere else at Antietam. The battlelines swept back and forth across the field for three hours. 5 West Woods Union Gen. John Sedgwick’s division lost more than 2,200 men in less than half an hour in an ill-fated charge into these woods against Jackson’s troops. 6 Mumma Farm Burned by the Confederates to prevent their use by Union sharpshooters, the Mumma farm buildings were the only civilian property purposely destroyed during the battle. Midday Phase (9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.) 7 Roulette Farm Union troops under French and Richardson crossed these fields on their way to meet the Confederates posted in the Sunken Road.