SHEPHERDSTOWN (W.Va.): Where the 118th Pennsylvania met disaster

BATTLEFIELD BACKSTORY: Do yourself a favor the next time you visit the Antietam battlefield: Cross the Potomac River -- take the bridge, don't wade across -- head down the River Road at Shepherdstown, park your car and walk out to the water. The scene can be breathtaking. Of course, on Sept. 20, 1862, this scene above was more terrifying than breathtaking for the 118th Pennsylvania, which saw the elephant here at the Battle of  Shepherdstown, Va., (West Virginia today). Chased from the bluffs above time, soldiers in the regiment scrambled across the slippery dam or dived into the shallow water, attempting to dodge gunfire from the Rebels. Soldiers "hoping to escape the fatal effect of the avenging bullets," a 118th regimental historian noted, "took to deeper water and crossed where the stream was deep enough to cover the entire body and leave the head alone exposed." Many did not make it. (Click at upper right to enlarge and click here for all posts on this blog.)