November 2021 Southern Maryland Civil War Round Table

November 9, 2021

The Southern Maryland Civil War Round Table is pleased to announce that its next meeting will be held Tuesday, November 9, 2021 at 7:00pm at The Maryland Veterans Museum, 11000 Crain Highway North, Newburg, MD 20664.

Due to Charles County Board of County Commissioner updated mandates, masks will be required for all in attendance. Seating will be limited to 4 people per table. Thank you for your support and understanding.

Guest Speaker: Gary Dyson

We welcome our friend Gary Dyson back to Southern Maryland this evening, as he shares with us his latest offering, “Confederate Row: The Confederate Dead Buried at Mount Olivet Cemetery in Frederick, Maryland 1862-1907”

Confederate Row tells the stories of the Confederate dead buried at Mount Olivet Cemetery in Frederick from 1862-1907. These soldiers entered Maryland in not the best physical condition, but fought at South Mountain, Sharpsburg, Gettysburg, Cedar Creek, and other nearby battlefields and later died in Frederick from their wounds. Their genealogy, battle history, and extent of their wounds where possible are described. The presentation will also give the history of the Row since the war. As a sequel, “beyond the Bowie List” is in the works. This will describe the lives of all the known Confederate dead buried in Maryland that presumably were re-interred at the Washington Confederate from the battlefields of South Mountain, Sharpsburg, the retreat from Gettysburg, and some from Early’s Maryland invasion of 1864 that weren’t buried in Frederick.

Gary L. Dyson is a retired Environmental Specialist from the city of Gaithersburg, MD and a Marine Corps veteran. He is a lifelong history enthusiast and has spent countless hours reading, researching and exploring battlefields – from the French and Indian War to World War II. Gary owns Dyson Genealogy and Historical Research and is the author of The Ambush of the Isaac P. Smith and A Civil War Correspondent in New Orleans, the Journals and Reports of Albert Gaius Hills of the Boston Journal as well as two Maryland church histories. He has a BS in Natural Resources from Oregon State University. Gary lives in Mount Airy, MD with his wife Emily, and are finally “empty-nesters.”

We welcome all to come out and learn about this important Civil War location, the story behind and the current state of the cemetery. Attendance is free, but membership is encouraged. Please feel free to contact us with any questions or concerns at bsunderland@somdcwrt.org or at 443-975-9142. We look forward to seeing you!

February 17, 2021March 9, 2021

March 2021 Southern MD Civil War Round Table Meeting

March 9 , 2021

The Southern Maryland Civil War Round Table is pleased to announce that its March meeting will take place virtually on Tuesday, March 9, 2021 at 7:00pm from your computer. Due to continuing concerns over the COVID 19 virus and in the interest of member health and safety, we are moving our meeting on line for the immediate future. Members should be checking their email for directions on how to connect to the meeting on March 9, 2021 at 7pm. Not a member! Please reach out to us at bsunderland@somdcwrt.org to learn how to become a member.

Guest Speaker: Matt Borders

We welcome back Matt Borders, who spoke to us in November about his book “Faces of Union Soldiers at Antietam”, as he shares images and stories of some of the 30 Union soldiers highlighted in his latest book, “Faces of Union Soldiers at South Mountain & Harpers Ferry”.

Written and published with his fellow National Park Service certified guide Joseph Stahl, this work looks into 30 individual soldiers that fought in the opening battles of the Maryland Campaign, South Mountain and Harpers Ferry on September 14 & 15, 1862. These images are previously unpublished and are of the men in the ranks, not the generals that commanded them. Matt will discuss a sampling of these soldiers, who they were, what they did on these fields, and what can be gleaned from their images.

A long time student of American History and the Civil War, Matthew Borders holds a BA in US History and an MS in Historic Preservation. He has worked as a National Park Service ranger at Antietam National Battlefield, as well as a historian and battlefield surveyor for the National Park Service’s American Battlefield Protection Program. He is also a Certified Battlefield Guide at Antietam and Harper’s Ferry. Currently Matthew is a Park Ranger at Monocacy National Battlefield in Frederick, MD. In 2019, Matthew was honored to be the recipient of the Save Historic Antietam Foundation’s prestigious Dr. Joseph Harsh Award for his research topic, The Loudoun Valley Campaign of 1862: McClellan’s Final Advance.

Please feel free to contact us with any questions or concerns at bsunderland@somdcwrt.org or at 443-975-9142. We look forward to seeing you!

April 12, 2016

May 2016 Southern MD Civil War Round Table Meeting

May 10, 2016

The Southern Maryland Civil War Round Table is pleased to announce that its next meeting will take place on Tuesday, May 10, 2016 at 7:00pm at the College of Southern Maryland’s Center for Business and Industry, Chaney Enterprises Conference Center, Room BI-113, at 8730 Mitchell Road in La Plata, MD.

Guest Speaker: Dr. Bradley Gottfried

As we eagerly anticipate our annual field trip; this year to the Antietam National Battlefield, Round Table President Brad Gottfried will get us ready for our great adventure on Saturday, May 14th. Author of the book, “The Maps of Antietam“, join us as Dr. Gottfried provide his unique insight, analysis and perspective of the battle that marked Robert E. Lee’s first invasion of the North. Bruised and battered after a long spring and summer of battles on the Virginia peninsula and at Manassas, the Army of Northern Virginia, led by Gen. Robert E. Lee decides to seize momentum and move the theater of battle away from his native state and give the north a taste of the conflict. An audacious gambit indeed, that if successful might bring a negotiated peace and Southern independence. Meanwhile, The Army of the Potomac has just had its beloved leader, Gen. George B. McClellan, restored to overall command, in an attempt to boost troop morale and blunt the advances of the Confederate Army. The result of these two behemoth’s clashing in the Maryland countryside on September 17, 1862 was one of the bloodiest days in American History.

Battle of Antietam - The New York Times

Not able to go on the field trip! That’s OK! Come on out anyway and hear Brad as he lays out the important events that took place prior to, during and in the aftermath of a battle that would ultimately make the Battle of Antietam arguably one of the most significant battles ever fought. Dunker Church! The Cornfield! The Sunken Road! Burnside Bridge! Dr. Gottfried will cover them and whet our appetites for the sites we shall see on the field.

The Southern Maryland Civil War Round Table invites all to attend this lecture on a battle fought on our own soil! Attendance is free for all, but membership is recommended. For information, contact the Round Table’s president, Brad Gottfried, at bgottfried@csmd.edu or 301-934-7625.