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I was a soldier once, and I shed a tear when I think of these brave men who never went home again!

It's a comfort to be be buried with your most loving and faithful companion, your beloved dog ❤

I'm actually very surprised you did not mention Clara Barton. She took on the largest task of identifying soldiers and contacting families She created and spearheaded the entire process. in Civil War history to identify fallen soldiers. She petitioned President Lincoln and he assigned her. Later on, Clara Barton became the founder of the American Red Cross. Here's an excerpt from the National Parks archives: During the Civil War there was no official system in place to document missing or dead soldiers. As the war ended Clara Barton, the "Angel of the Battlefield" who had achieved fame as a nurse during the war, took it upon herself to fill this void. She began to receive letters from family members trying to find out the fate of their loved ones who had not returned home. Each of these letters led to a painstaking process of researching the whereabouts of these missing soldiers and responding to the family members' inquiries. Women need to be honored for their contributions and place in history.

My heart dropped when you showed the confederate cemetery. My they rest in peace. They were someone's child, husband, loved one.

As a mom of an only son who serves and has been deployed before, this absolutely breaks my heart. I can't imagine the grief of never knowing where his body was. I just can't 💔😭

Great video JD. I've been told by people before that the confederate dead didn't deserve to be buried. I feel it doesn't matter which side, the dead deserves respect. I'm sure I'll get hammered for saying that but that's how I personally feel. May God shelter them now. 🙏 🙏 🙏

I'm a Vietnam vet. My great great Grandfather was a Confederate soldier served under Col. John Mosbys Rangers God Bless The CSA

I haven't been to Antietam, but I've been to Gettysburg. We were there right after sunrise. The hair on my neck went straight up, as did the hair on my arms. There were no other live people where we were. We were being watched the whole time we were there. It wasn't the first time I've had paranormal experiences, but the feeling of extreme sadness and melancholy stayed with me for a long time. There wS was a thick fog over the area even though it was broad daylight. I've never been to a sadder place.

No matter the side, as a mother, I can't fathom not knowing where my son was buried. It would haunt me.

That dog story got to me. I do hope when re-interred they were together. The Confederate burials without headstones is saddening. Thank you for this video!

If KZfaq didn't exist and these videos were not available I would have never heard nor seen any of this......... Thank You for all the effort you put into these videos.👍👍👍

The fact that they kept such good records about the burials and where they were from is fascinating. I am glad they honored the soldiers in such a way. The story about the dog was touching. My Belgian Mal would be the same, he would not leave me.

Antietam is one of the saddest places I've ever visited. It brought tears to my eyes to know what happened there. You can sense the fear, pain and death that took place on the fields. The cemeteries in the area are a real eye opener.

Years ago my family and I were the first ones there on a misty morning. We walked down The Sunken Road at Antietam, and we could feel the presence of those men who died there. It was quite moving.

I can’t even imagine being a resident of Antietam and be faced with burying dead soldiers in their fields. I’m sure the sights, sounds and smell haunted them forever.

Out standing JD! I have taken an interest in the burial of the dead after a stint in the Army as a Combat Engineer. We had a soldier die of natural causes in Africa, where I was asked to escort his remains home. Our journey back to the states exposed me to what the Quartermaster, specifically what Mortuary Affairs is all about. When I was in Frankfort at the US Army Mortuary Affairs Center, I had opportunity to talk to them and go through the photographic record of what they had accomplished over the years with retrieval of our dead and missing from two wars. My personal experience has given me an interest in what happens to the dead and the treatment of their remains. We should all be grateful for people like Elliot, Goode, and Gill, for leading the research that went into identifying the dead. It is important that we don’t forget the names of the individuals who died on those fateful days be it one side or the other.

Great video. Regardless of which side they fought for or which side a person believes was right, all the soldiers fought for what they believed in and deserve respect!

The beautiful story of the Newfoundland staying with his master had me in tears. Such loyalty! Thank you for sharing stories such as this.

The differences in these cemeteries is so striking and so melancholy. Thank you for visiting these sites. The Confederate Row is just so sad but I think they would be glad they were buried together, brothers in arms.

I had over 40 ancestors who fought for the Confederacy and it just crushes my soul to know that Southern men wasn't given the same decent burial . one of my particular ancestors that was killed at Beans Mill, was buried on the battle field and is now covered in water due to the near by river being damed.

That is eerie to see that confederate cemetery with no headstones. Very sad story about Werner and his faithful dog.

My heart breaks for the soldier who gave his life but also for his dog who loved him. Its sad to see the Confederate soldiers not given proper burial at some locations. Despite the tragedy of war these men were soldiers.

Makes me cry..... My family served under General Granville with the Texas 6th Volunteers. God Bless them all.

My last great dane, General, we kept his ashes after he passed and when it's my time there are instructions to mix our ashes together. We had a bond that I've not had with another dog. He was truly special.

Washington Confederate Cemetery with all its Unknown Soldiers is indeed sad, and very much like the Confederate Mound at Oak Woods Cemetery on the South Side of Chicago. This is where over 4000 Confederate POWs, who died at Camp Douglas, are buried. Camp Douglas was located nearby in Cottage Grove. Lots written about the awful conditions at Andersonville in Georgia, and rightfully so, but many northern POW camps weren't much better.

I'm a son of the American revolution and a son of the confederacy. Thank you for this! I hearts my heart that they have no head stones 😢

These people deserve to be remembered, they were humans doing what they felt was the right thing.

cmon people!! 4600 views but only 693 thumbs ups. Lets do JD a small favor for all the work he puts into these video's

My great great uncle was one of the original members of Wheat's Louisiana Tiger Battalion. By the time of Antietam Wheat was dead and what was left of the Battalion had been merged with Coppens Louisiana Zouaves. He was listed as missing after the battle and assumed to have been killed during the fighting in and around The Cornfield. No body was ever identified. I often wonder if he is in an unmarked grave somewhere or if he was even buried at all.

Thank you for this video. I have only recently delved into my family history and have, to my surprise, found over 30 Confederate soldiers on both sides. My parents and grandparents new very little of their own history and I can understand the pervasive grief and loss that was never discussed after their families came west. One great grandfather fought with the 8th Florida, survived the war but not the peace. His father with the 11th Florida, died of disease and is probably in an unmarked grave in So. Carolina, no trace, like so many I fear in unmarked graves from Manassas to Murfreesboro, Chickamauga to Union prison camps in Missouri. Their bones lost but living in my DNA.

My heart hurts that those soldiers didn't get the respect they deserved by not finding out who they were.

There is a Confederate cemetery in Shepherds town West Virginia. More than a hundred soldiers who fought at Antietam and later died of their wounds.

Think about all those families who never knew the fate of their loved ones. No body to bury. Just the assumption that they died in battle. That causes trauma for generations.

I visited the Antietam Battlefield back during the 140th anniversary. I always take time to visit whatever National Cemetery is associated with the battle to pay my respects to those fallen veterans. Antietam's cemetery is awesome!

JD you are such an excellent story teller. My great-great grandfather, Reuben Maurer of Co I 49th Reg of PA from much research and family stories was wounded in the battle and spent the night in/next to Antietam Creek. He never fully recovered from the “cold” he caught there. He died in Feb of 1880. A document I just found is the 1880 mortality schedule. In the column titled were did his sickness start, it says Maryland. He didn’t die in the battle, but eventually died of the battle. When you showed the line of PA soldiers, makes me wonder how many he knew. Thanks again.

This entire war was just tragic and uncalled for RIP GENTLEMAN

Very good definitely need to remember these young men who fought valiantly.

No graphic images of the dead in this video, but still just as sad and sobering. RIP to all who fought for what they believed in.

It is unfortunate that people on both sides of this conflict as well as those who have given lives for their nation are generally forgotten by the general population. I remember as a child when Decoration Day aka Memorial Day was a big deal to remember then later barbeque. Now the memeory part is left to cable news and advertising.

Often a forgotten consequence of war, what to do with the dead and how that often falls to the local population. Thanks for another awesome video JD.

Thank you Sir...I wish our young folks would pay more attention to the civil war,,,,

Wonderful. Beautiful. Memorable: Their sacrifice must never be forgotten.

Could you imagine trying to live near a battle ground after the battle was over? The stench must have been unbearable. Neither side would care for the dead. It was left to the locals to bury the bodies.

I don’t know if my 5th great grandfather fought in this battle but he did fight months later in Gettysburg, that’s where he died and is buried somewhere in the confederate graves. I feel like there are many others like myself that are glad their descendants had children before they left to fight if they died in battle

That Washington Confederate Cemetery is very sad! Wasn't expecting that at all. I can imagine your shock when you got there.

I have been to Gettysburg many times, now thanks to your videos I'll be going to Antietam for a week or so. Thanks for keeping our history alive, freedom isn't free. Thanks for posting.....

I've just started watching your videos. I've always found The Civil War to be a very interesting topic. The scale of death and destruction on our own home turf was unprecedented and should never be forgotten. Thank you for honoring these brave men and helping to preserve the memory of all that happened here.

This was very interesting. My husband's 4th great uncle, Thomas Jefferson Ivey, is buried in Mt Olivet on Confederate Row. He turned 18 in February 1864. He enlisted in May and made his way north to join the 31st GA and his 3 brothers in time for Monocacy (I believe one of the brothers was temporarily assigned elsewhere). He was fatally wounded in his one and only battle. The young man died on Sept 10, 1864 in a field hospital in Frederick, which is how he ended up with a marked grave.

The shot at 16:00 is absolutely amazing. Great bit of videography on your part. The music, myst, etc., nice touch. I was also moved by the story about the New Foundland dog. I knew somebody who had one, it was solid black, very unusual and proud looking, and HUGE! Anyone that has seen one in person before knows exactly what I’m talking about. These videos are quite captivating JD, excellent work man, thanks.

JD....thank you for another superb vlog. What is still amazing to me is that the resentment of the South vs North still lives today.

Thank you for your work and their sacrifice 🙏 👍🇺🇲

Thank you for all your hard work, J.D. Your respect for both sides honors these fallen Americans (!) and yourself.

It’s just sad that they all weren’t buried together in the same cemetery. They could have had a section for each side. To wait so long bury some of the Confederates that they couldn’t even identify them and to bury them in a mass grave is so sad for the families who never knew where their soldiers were. Great but very sad video. Again thank you for sharing 👍😢

Fierce American history. Fabulous opportunity, so well told and shown. Remarkable. Stunning, yet real.

Lived in hagerstown 29 years. Been by that cemetery more times than I can count but have never visited. Thank you for taking time to show that

Great video.👏👏👏 I've recently subscribed to your site. I always love learning more abt the Civil War. My parents were history buffs. They passed to us. I've been to almost all the CW battlefields. What was hard for me when I was young was seeing that the boys and men who fought for the South were thrown into mass graves and not buried individually as the Union soldiers were and are. There are very few names that are known for the Confederate boys and men for instance, who are buried in a mass graves in the Vicksburg, MS battlefield. I have the photo slides from each one that the gift shops used to sell. My kids teachers used to borrow them each yr to teach their American CW classes. I'm glad I have them now because they aren't sold anymore.. My mothers ancestors and our family members now have been in every war this country has ever been in including Afghanistan.. My 3 x great grandfathers, their brothers and a couple of their sons all fought in the CW. They were from MO which was a split state. Both grandfathers had farms not far from one another and they were friends but had different opinions. My paternal 3 x great -grandfather fought for the N and my maternal for the S. Both survived. My 3x G uncle was from TN but fought for the Union. He was taken prisoner and sent to that hell hole, Andersonville. He was treated worse than most because he was from TN but fought for the Union. When Sherman was going to burn Andersonville, he was then taken as a prisoner, near Charleston, and died in that camp, at age 32.. Its a war can never be repeated in this country. It truly was a war about brother fighting brother. Can you visit Franklin, TN as well as Vicksburg, MS and do a piece on them? Both are also very incredibly interesting.The battle of Franklin had more deaths and in 4 short hrs than all the major battles (in 4 hours) Thank you again, for bringing us great videos on American history.. thumbs up! Blessings ~ Victoria

God bless Elliott for recording the burials. Modern radar could find anyone overlooked. Has radar survey of the listed burial grounds been conducted?

Yet another great video as always. Thanks JD. I've heard somewhere, someone has said, " so go the victory in war, so go the spoils " If your side won that battle, they get buried nearby. The other has to be buried elsewhere. Not sure if that was the case, but I do remember that from somewhere. Me and a friend made the trip up to Gettysburg for the 150th in the summer of 2013 from Florida. Antietam, Harper's Ferry, DC, Baltimore, Charleston, and Savannah were done in our 2 week adventure. I wouldn't change a thing. I've learned so much in a short amount of time. Your videos are greatly appreciated.

The view from the drone above the cemetery was amazing!

Truly commendable work JD. You are a truly outstanding historian.

My dad did body recovery and grave’s registration in the Bataan area after WW2. He had a lot of interesting stories. Paid GI insurance benefits to PA troops families on his weekends in cash. Wild times.

JD, this series on Antietam has been just wonderful. And I have cried through it all.

Every time I watch another video I think - This. This is the best yet. Every single time. Thank you for every one of them. Hoping all is well with you right now - and looking forward to seeing more soon. Thank you.

Thank you for what you do! My generation is completely lost as to these events and how they shaped our country. I truly believe that we still feel affects of the Civil War to this day. It's good that we have people like JD who are willing to share these things and have experts like Gary Adelman come in to open our eyes to those who have gone before us and the sacrifices they made.

God bless the men that fell that day , especially my southern forefathers and also that loyal little dog. May they all be in the arms of the Lord.

This was a extreemly well done video. 24 minutes went by like a flash, because you held my attention. Plus..I learned more things than i expected. Thanks

"jocko give me a sponsership" was nice and suttle lol. keep doing these fantastic things please!

For more information on the process of burying the fallen, I recommend a book by Meg Groeling; The Aftermath of Battle: The Burial of the Civil War Dead. It's part of the Emerging Civil War Series and is available at most National Battlefield bookstores. I picked up my copy at Stones River.

Absolutely fantastic presentation of a very somber, but critical, time in our country's history. You manage to carefully walk the line between entertaining content and reverence for those who fought and died in this epic battle. My wish would be that all high school students be required to view your videos; then ask questions, discuss and dig further into all of your history presentations. This is a much better way to learn these important facts of our history. I would ask the same of all immigrants who are working to become U.S. citizens.

Outstanding episode. So sad - may God bless them all.

Beautifully done. Thank you.

What an awesome piece of history I didn't know about. Thank you for giving them respect by acknowledging thier resting place. Great video!

Thank you so much for this historical event in America history. I've been to all 3 Battle sites, Miller's Cornfield, Sunken Road, and Burnside's Bridge. So much Civil War History.

Great to see a proper amount of time - 24 minutes - dedicated to this topic.

I grew up in WV....went to college in Shepherdstown....spent a lot of time in Sharpsburg....thanks for the video.

I would like to thank you and Chris for educating me, as a Brit, I know so little about the US civil war.

My 3x great grandfather, William Goudy, was an Ulster immigrant who volunteered to fight in a Union Minnesota regiment. The military sent his regiment to fight in the Sioux Wars instead. After a while the whole regiment protested and demanded that they be sent to fight the South. They then went on to fight some of the last battles of the war.

And another great video. Always interested me on how the victors treated their enemies. Thanks JD for your hard work. 👍👍👍👍👍

So sad. They had family and friends and things they wanted to do just as us.

Your videos are so detailed, fact filled, interesting, and professionally done. Thank you so much!

Well Done JD! Thank you for keeping History Alive and professionally done. Thanks for making my eyes leak talking about the loyal dog! I love the personal stories you come up with, it really puts the personal touch on what happened, what anyone there was feeling. Love your work, thank you for doing this!

Thank you for making this video.. much respect 🙏🇺🇸❤️

JD, I'm a Newfie and the commentary on the dog is fantastic. Another Avenue you have enlightened me with. Many thanks.

JD as always a professional job, and truly a moving tribute to the fallen.

The Washington Confederate Cemetery is just heartbreaking, and shameful!! To see an empty area, where so many fallen men are buried as literally “Unknown”. The small town of Excelsior Springs, Missouri - I believe it is Pisgah Cemetery, near Wood Heights - they found all the names of the Union unknowns from Colorado and there is a monument dedicated to them with their names listed. It took many years, but it was the right thing to do! Do BETTER Maryland. God bless ALL the fallen and ALL veterans of this land.

I was raised in Hagerstown and remember, as a kid, walking through this nearly unmarked cemetery

Awesome episode….cannot imagine the overwhelming task the people took on back then……..thanks, Andrew

May they all Rest in Peace

Thank you for paying homage to these soldiers who gave their lives in the horrific war 🫡😔🙏❤️

I am told by my family that my great-great grandfather fought at Antietam as a drummer boy with the 13th New Jersey. The colonel of the regiment, Ezra Carmen, was one of the co-founders of Antietam National Battlefield, so there are several markers where the regiment fought. It was their first battle.

Thank for keeping the importance of civil cemeteries relevant, always a pleasure to watch your videos..

Thank you for this series! It kindled my interest in a relative who served in the 1st Cavalry Wisconsin. Come to find out, the 1st Cavalry participated in the capture of President Jackson of the Confederacy. Now I'm deep into genealogy - which really never interested me before. Seeing history is an amazing motivator! Thank you again.

My 2x Great Grandfather fought at Antietam. I went to school in Shepherdstown and drove past those fields so many times and (yes i was a stupid youth) misread the sign as "Anti-et-am" and wondered what is was. I live clear across the country now and wish i could see the site. Thank you for the video. My grandfather was Francis Marion Rowlee (1839-1925) of the Fighting 8th out of Ohio. He survived Antietam and several other major battles as well as TWO stays in Andersonville. I have read about the aftermath in his papers and writings of others. It is said that they dealt with their wounded and after a couple of days the smell got to be too much and shovels were requested from as far away as Fredrick. It sounds like it would have been hard to put names to the Confederate soldiers after the realities of the aftermath. I imagine injured and their own fallen brothers would have been dealt with long before the Confederate dead. BTW what woman looks down at her brand new beautiful baby boy and smiling declares I shall call him Raisin Pitts?! Lady!! REally?

The tragedy is that the locals did not bury the Confederates troops for a long time. This caused diseases to become rampant in the area and thousands of local people died as a result.

Great video! Coincidentally they are still identifying, where possible, and relocating WWII dead to this day.

I must admit, I was taken aback by the Washington confederate cemetery. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen anything like that.

My great,great Uncle..Miles Hamilton is buried at Gettysburg..however Antietum is my favorite of all. I feel so much when Im there.

Wow incredible video thank you JD and sending love from United Kingdom 🇬🇧

I remember reading somewhere about a soldier who put his name on a piece of paper and pinned it to his jacket and it read “June 3rd cold harbor I was killed.”