September Mourn
The Dunker Church of Antietam Battlefield
Thursday, May 16, 2024, 7 pm | In-Person & Zoom Webinar
Webinar registration required
With author Terry Barkley
The Dunker Church is one of the most iconic structures of the American Civil War. Surprisingly, few people know much if anything about its fascinating story or the role it played within the community of Sharpsburg and its importance during and after the Battle of Antietam.
On September 17, 1862, two mighty armies grappled across the rolling hills, fields, and woodlots surrounding Sharpsburg, Maryland. The combat left more than 23,000 Union and Confederate soldiers killed, wounded, or captured; repulsed Lee’s invading Virginia army; and paved the way for the Emancipation Proclamation. Ironically, in the epicenter of that bloodiest day in American history stood a small whitewashed building dedicated to peace, equality, and the brotherhood of man.
The German Baptist Brethren, or Dunkers (Dunkards) as they were colloquially known, built the Mumma Church of the Manor congregation in 1853, just nine years before Antietam. In addition to being a house of worship with important ties to the local community, the history of the Dunker Church is interwoven with such notable figures as Stonewall Jackson, Clara Barton, Abraham Lincoln, and even Mark Twain. The structure was heavily damaged during the battle, housed torn bodies as a hospital in its aftermath, and suffered a complete collapse before undergoing the long and arduous process of being rebuilt.
Terry Barkley is a retired professional librarian, archivist, and Harvard-trained museum curator, and a former history teacher who lives in Bridgewater, Virginia. Barkley the author or co-author of eight historical books – seven nonfiction books, and one historical novel/novella.