March 2012 Color Bearer Tour  Add to Calendar

Thank You Weekend for our Color Bearer Members
Shepherdstown, West Virginia
March 2-4, 2012
Tour & Schedule | Hotel  | Resources

Civil War Trust will hold its annual March Color Bearer Event in Shepherdstown, West Virginia on March 2-4, 2012. This event is open exclusively to Color Bearers.

Event does not include hotel registration; attendees must make their own reservations.

Fighting, Photos and the Emergence of a Battlefield Park with Garry Adelman: On foot and on coach, visit the key places where the battle was fought hardest, follow in Alexander Gardner’s footsteps to where he recorded photos that shocked the world, and tour the hallowed ground where the Park has grown, changed and emerged into the great battlefield we know today. The underlying theme of the tour is how we can better employ the most underused sources—photographs and the battlefield itself--to better understand American history, the Civil War and the Battle of Antietam. In this lively presentation, we will tour the Cornfield, Dunker Church, Bloody Lane, Burnside Bridge and a few other surprise locations off the beaten path. Expect roughly 1.5 miles of leisurely walking over mostly rolling ground in total.

"I Dread the Thought of the Place" with Scott Hartwig: This tour will combine walking and driving to examine the Battle of Antietam from both the commanders and the soldier’s perspectives.  The latter will be highlighted with battlefield hikes that explore specific pieces of the battle that help inform our understanding of the nature of the combat as experienced by the infantrymen and artillerymen.  This tour will also consider the people who lived upon what became the battlefield and how they coped with the battle that swept over their farms.  Finally, we will assess what the battle meant to the commanders, the soldiers and the country.

The Bloodiest Day's Leaders in Blue & Gray with John Hoptak: Lee, McClellan, and their Commanders at Antietam. This comprehensive tour of the Antietam Battlefield will focus on leadership at all levels of command, with an emphasis on the opposing army commanders: Robert E. Lee and George B. McClellan. In addition to stops at the scenes of the battle's major actions--the Cornfield, Sunken Road, and Burnside Bridge--this tour will also make stops at the National Cemetery and at the Pry House where the strategies of the army commanders will be laid out. The tour will conclude with a two-mile hike, focusing on the much-maligned Ambrose Burnside as you walk in the footsteps of his Ninth Corps over land that has only recently been acquired by the National Park Service.

The Bavarian Inn
164 Shepherd Grade Road
Shepherdstown, WV

Reservations at this hotel are available only by contacting us. Most rooms are suites. Space is limited.

Please contact Bonnie Repasi at brepasi@civilwar.org or 800-298-7878 ext. 7229 to reserve a room. Reservations must be made by February 6, 2012. Group Room Rate: $150++/night

 The Comfort Inn
A fairly new property; 5 minutes from The Bavarian Inn

Call (304) 876-3160 to make your own reservations. Please ask for the Civil War Trust group room rate. Reservations need to be made by February 8, 2012.

Group Room Rate: $84++/night and includes breakfast

There will be more information on-line in the coming months. Please keep checking back for more information on this event.