Dave Black Online: More on My Family Tree: A Visit to Sharpsburg, MD

If you're ever in the town of Sharpsburg, Maryland, you'll approach a place called the Dunker Church.

It was the epicenter of the Battle of Antietam. You are now on soil where 6,555 Union and Confederate soldiers died in a single day. The date was Sept. 17, 1862. At least 15,000 men were wounded that day. Undoubtedly many of them died later. Who knows how many lost legs or arms.

Last Friday I drove up to Sharpsburg to do some research on my family tree. It's about the 10th time I've visited this historic town and its famous battlefield sites -- the East Woods, the West Woods, the Dunker Church, the Miller Cornfield, the Sunken Road, the Burnside Bridge. As I stood inside the Dunker Church a shiver went up my spine. "These were my people," I thought to myself. Maybe you didn't know this, but my ancestors on my paternal grandmother's side were German pacifists who worshipped in this very meeting hall, built in 1852 by "German Baptist Brethren."

They were known as "Dunkers" based on their practice of full-water baptism, immersing you in nearby Antietam Creek as a sign of your repentance and faith in Christ. During and after the battle it became a field hospital. Confederate General Robert E. Lee had brought his army to Maryland for one reason: to threaten the North and engage its Army of the Potomac in a battle that would convince France and Britain to enter the war on the side of the South. In addition, Lee thought that Maryland would rally itself to his cause. He was profoundly wrong on both counts.

Today the population of Sharpsburg is 560. In 1862 it was about 1,200, most of them farmers. It's impossible to imagine what these simple people must have thought as 150,000 troops suddenly descended on the area, pouring bullets and cannonballs on everything that moved. Sharpsburg sits in Washington County, Maryland -- the first county in the U.S. to be named after Revolutionary War hero (and later President) George Washington. You're a stone's throw from Pennsylvania to the north and West Virginia to the south. Washington County is located in the Appalachian Mountain Range, an extension of the Blue Ridge. To say it is hilly would be a gross understatement. A full third of its population is of German ancestry. They were a major force in replacing tobacco production with wheat and corn. In fact, much of the fighting on Sept. 17, 1862, took place around David Miller's cornfield. This is what his farmstead looks like today.

David Miller was named in honor of his grandfather David who, together with his wife Catherine, were from the Rhineland-Pfalz region of Germany. In the 1760s they emigrated to Maryland and established the first store in the new town of Sharpsburg. David's son John was a colonel in the military during the War of 1812. He became rich and, due to his wealth, was able to establish his sons as farmers throughout the Sharpsburg area. In 1846, John's son David married Margaret Pottenger. By the time of the battle in 1862, they had seven children who worked hard to harvest their crops that fall. Just to the south of the Miller farmhouse was his 24-acre cornfield, the stalks standing ready for harvest. While the battle raged back and forth across their land, the Millers were sheltered at his father's house several miles away. After the battle, when the family returned to their home, not a single corn stalk was standing. Surprisingly, there was very little damage to the house and barns. David Miller would go on living until the age of 78, dying almost 31 years after the battle. His wife preceded him in death by 5 years. I do not know where they are buried but I intend to find out.

You see, David Miller's brother John was my great-great-great-grandfather.

It was on a quest to locate the John Miller farm that brought me back to Sharpsburg. Does anyone else have a similar interest in using genealogy to track down their ancestors? My parents were divorced when I was 3 and I never knew my father. He died before I ever got to meet with him. But through my cousin Michael Black (also born and raised in Kailua) I was able to determine that my paternal grandmother's ancestors were called "Millers" and could be traced back to a certain John Miller "who lived along the Antietam Creek in western Maryland." That blew my mind. I've been a Civil War buff all my life and have even reenacted the Battle of Antietam, along with 40,000 other reenactors. But until last Friday I could not locate the John Miller farm on any topographical maps of the region. All that changed when I visited the public library in Sharpsburg.

While it lacked a section specifically dedicated to genealogy, its librarian was well-versed in local lore and pointed me in the right direction. I scoured maps and records. I just love trying to figure out the mystery of who was who, imagining who the people I haven't known must have been like. I once read that a person dies twice -- once when they actually pass away, and once when their name is said for the last time. I love the idea of keeping my ancestors alive, even if it's just a thought. Thus you can imagine my joy when I discovered not one but two maps that revealed the location of the John Miller farm.

I was also relieved to see that no fighting took place on his homestead during that fateful day in 1862.

Here's a modern map of where the farm is located.

When I drove to the site, the farmhouse was invisible from the road and I had no desire to drive up a long private driveway to see who might be living there today. However, while grabbing a bite to eat at the local deli, I ran across a group of guys who believed they knew the name of the man who had recently purchased the farm. I hope to be in contact with him in the near future and ask if he might be willing to let me see the place. I can hardly wait.

Okay, enough rambling. Below are a few more pics from this weekend's fun in Sharpsburg and Gettysburg. I hope you have a wonderful rest of your Lord's Day!

The new visitors' center at the Antietam National Battlefield Park.