Join us on Friday, April 10 as historian Steven Stotelmyer discusses the Maryland campaign of 1862 that led up to the epic battle of Antietam, the bloodiest single day of combat in American history.

With 23,000 casualties it is understandable that Antietam tends to take the spotlight in the Maryland Campaign of 1862.  However, General Robert E. Lee did not begin crossing the Potomac on September 4, 1862, just so he could fight at Sharpsburg 13 days later with his back to that same river.  Mr. Stotelmyer’s presentation, based on his book From Frederick to Sharpsburg, sheds light on some of the other participants and events long obscured in the shadow cast by Antietam, including Robert E. Lee, Barbara Fritchie, Daniel Wise, J.E.B. Stuart and Jesse Lee Reno.

In 1989, Mr. Stotelmyer was a founding member of the Central Maryland Heritage League, a non-profit land trust which helped preserve some of the South Mountain Battlefield. During his tenure with CMHL he discovered significant information regarding the Battle of South Mountain and the Legend of Wise’s Well. This led to the publication of The Bivouacs of the Dead: The Story of Those Who Died at Antietam and South Mountain.  Stotelmyer also authored Too Useful To Sacrifice, Reconsidering George B. McClellan’s Generalship in the Maryland Campaign from South Mountain to Antietam. Currently, he is a National Park Service Volunteer as well as a NPS Certified Antietam and South Mountain Battlefield Tour Guide. His presentation will set the stage for our spring field trip to South Mountain on May 2, 2026.

Those who are unable to attend this engagement in person are invited to tune in to the lecture and Q&A session via Zoom.  Click on the following link:  https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87355636564.   No password in required.  To dial in by phone, call 1-301-715-8592 or click on the following link: https://us02web.zoom.us/meetings/87355636564/invitations?signature=beMNlMgAy5a98zpSD3hs1sOXnSWiBQzZImwOLi4oAt8.  The meeting ID # is 873 5563 6564.  Zoom participants should join the meeting by 7:00 pm.

To reserve your spot for dinner, please pay using PayPal or credit card below. Reservations are due by noon on the day of the meeting.