War’s Lingering Devastation In the Antietam Valley

(Historynet) ... With winter approaching there would be no harvest, and with 700 bodies buried in the despoiled fields, planting was out of the question. Although the armies moved on, the wounded would remain for up to a year, and disease would descend on the valley, carrying off many Sharpsburg civilians. Continued

Photos: 1. Antietam, Maryland. Ruins of Mumma's house on the battlefield. 2. Keedysville, Maryland (vicinity). Straw huts erected on Smith's farm used as a hospital after the battle of Antietam. (Alexander Gardner/Library of Congress)