"At the very farthest point of advance on the turnpike, Captain Werner Von Bachelle, commanding Company F, was shot dead.Ĭaptain Bachelle was an ex-officer of the French army. Sometimes a shell would burst just over our heads, scattering the fragments among us. It was no longer alone the boom of the batteries, but a rattle of musketry-at first like pattering drops upon a roof then a roll, crash, roar, and rush, like a mighty ocean billow upon the shore, chafing the pebbles, wave on wave, with deep and heavy explosions of the batteries, like the crashing of the thunderbolts.Ĭharles Carleton Coffin, Army Correspondent Alexander Hunter, Company A, 17th Virginia Infantry No houses were entered - no damage was done, and the farmers in the vicinity must have drawn a long breath as they saw how safe their property was in the very midst of the army. It was the first ragged Rebels they had ever seen, and though they did not act either as friends or foes, still they gave liberally, and every haversack was full that day at least. and as far as the eye could reach, was the glitter of the swaying points of the bayonets. The country people lined the roads, gazing in open-eyed wonder upon the long lines of infantry. In an hour after the passage of the Potomac the command continued the march through the rich fields of Maryland. The ambulances were full, and the whole route was marked with a sick, lame, limping lot, that straggled to the farm- houses that lined the way, and who, in all cases, succored and cared for them. Many became ill from exposure and starvation, and were left on the road. Our under-clothes were foul and hanging in strips, our socks worn out, and half of the men were bare-footed, many were lame and were sent to the rear others, of sterner stuff, hobbled along and managed to keep up, while gangs from every company went off in the surrounding country looking for food. We toasted, we burned, we stewed, we boiled, we roasted these two together, and singly, until there was not a man whose form had not caved in, and who had not a bad attack of diarrhea.
We went hungry, for six days not a morsel of bread or meat had gone in our stomachs - and our menu consisted of apple and corn. On the 8th we struck up the refrain of "Maryland, My Maryland!" and camped in an apple orchard. Have them compose their own journal entries or letters to loved ones. Afterwards, have the students imagine that they are Civil War soldiers or civilians. Teachers: This handout contains excerpts of eyewitness accounts, diary entries, and letters for you to read to your students or to assign to your students as an independent reading activity. Please Note: These primary sources retain the wording, spelling, punctuation, and lack of punctuation as written by the eyewitnesses of the Battle of Antietam and those who experienced its aftermath.
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