Antietam's Memorial Illumination: The Cost of Freedom

This past weekend, I was back in Maryland for the 24th Annual Antietam National Battlefield Memorial Illumination. Every year, on the first Saturday in December, 23,110 candles are set out on the battlefield to represent each casualty who fell at Antietam on September 17, 1862. This event has grown over the years, and the turnout this year was among the highest ever by some counts. The Illumination gives us an opportunity to remind ourselves that 23,110 is not simply a number in a history book, but the number of men who experienced the pain, suffering, and misery of Antietam in a way that we will never understand. While we can never understand what they went through, perhaps by remembering them as real individuals we can at the very least appreciate what they did for this nation 150 years ago.


Whether Union or Confederate, whether defending the nation or seeking to split it, each man who fought at Antietam had a life, a family, passions, hopes, and dreams. That is what we seek to remember every year on the first Saturday in December.


We must also remember that this is not a "Civil War" event. This is an American event. On Saturday, the day of the Illumination, I was working the front desk at the Visitor Center, speaking with a gentleman and his wife. The gentleman had an ancestor who died at South Mountain, fighting in the 45th Pennsylvania. Thankfully, we were able to locate his ancestor's grave in the Antietam National Cemetery. We then started to discuss the Illumination, how best to see it, and what it meant. When I began describing the casualties for the gentleman, he began to tear up. He told me that he was a veteran of Vietnam, and seeing the candles reminded him of his friends who were lost in that conflict several decades ago. He then thanked me, shook my hand, and left. For this brave American Veteran, the Illumination was as much about those lost in combat in the 20th century as it was for those lost 150 years ago. This incident brought the candles to life for me in a new way this year, and reminded me once again that, no matter what year it is, American soldiers will always be willing to lay down their lives so that this nation might live.

In Memoriam

Pvt. Ellwood Rodebaugh, Company D, 106th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry

Killed in Action, September 17, 1862

Antietam National Battlefield's 2011 Memorial Illumination

Every year, on the first Saturday of December, Antietam hosts a very special event to honor the memory of all those from both sides who fell as casualties in battle that awful September day many years ago. The park uses scores of volunteers to set out 23,110 candles, one for each man killed, wounded, and missing at the Battle of Antietam. As the sun sets on the battlefield, the glow of the candles breaks through the darkness, reminding visitors, volunteers, and rangers alike of the true cost of Antietam.

This year's illumination was my first, and I split my time between helping to park volunteer's cars and aiding visitors who had acquired special use permits to photograph the battlefield from the visitor center. I can say without a shadow of a doubt that this was one of the coolest, most awe inspiring experiences I have had in my young park service career. Visitors lined up in their cars for miles and miles to see the event. Last night, the line of cars at one point stretched over five miles long, causing waiting times of two to three hours. The drive through the event could take up to an hour itself. That being said, every visitor who I spoke to today said it was completely worth it. There really isn't any way to describe the event other than seeing it for yourself.

I wanted to share with you just a few photographs that I took to try to capture the spirit of last night's event. For a few of these, I want to thank park volunteer and good friend Dave Maher, who maintains a great Civil War blog titled Pennsylvania's Emergency Men.


For many of us, Antietam is just a statistic. It is known as America's bloodiest day. 23,110 men were killed, wounded, or missing during a single day of combat. Yet, Antietam is much more than just a number. When we view it as 23,110 candles set before us in the night, the human cost of September 17, 1862 becomes painfully clear. Each candle represents a life that was either snuffed out or dramatically altered by what occurred at Antietam. Each candle represents a person. When we speak of Antietam, we aren't speaking of maps, war games, or hypothetical situations. We are speaking of people. Real people. People with families. People like Elwood Rodebaugh, who died upon the fields of Antietam, leaving his wife a widow and his two young children without a father. Each candle that was lit for Antietam's Memorial Illumination reminds us of just how high the cost of freedom truly is.

 (Courtesy of Dave Maher)

 (Courtesy of Dave Maher)

(Courtesy of Dave Maher)

Private Elwood Rodebaugh, Company D, 106th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, Killed in Action at the Battle of Antietam