West Woods (Antietam)
| West Woods | |
|---|---|
| Part of Battle of Antietam | |
| Sharpsburg, Maryland | |
The West Woods | |
| Site information | |
| Owner | National Park, National Register of Historic Places |
| Controlled by | United States National Park Service (part) |
| Condition | Preserved and commemorated |
| Location | |
| Coordinates | 39°28′24″N 77°44′41″W / 39.47333°N 77.74472°W |
| Site history | |
| In use | Site of major battle on September 17, 1862 |
| Battles/wars | Battle of Antietam |
| Events | First major battle fought on Union soil during the American Civil War |
The West Woods was a wooded area on the western side of the Antietam Battlefield that witnessed intense combat during the Battle of Antietam on September 17, 1862, a significant battle during the American Civil War. Approximately one mile north of Sharpsburg, Maryland, its southern edge measured approximately 300 yards in width, narrowing to about 200 yards or less as it extended northwest from the Hagerstown Turnpike. A key landmark, the Dunker Church, stood near its southeastern corner. Major General John Sedgwick's division of the Army of the Potomac's II Corps fell into an ambush by two Confederate divisions, suffering heavy casualties. It was the location where future U.S. Supreme Court associate justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. received one of his wounds while serving in the Union Army.