Burnside Bridge Area Cultural Landscape Report
Weldon D. 2018. Burnside Bridge Area Cultural Landscape Report. Cultural Landscape Report. ANTI 302 138747. U.S. Department of the Interior. Washington, D.C.
The Burnside Bridge area cultural landscape is a contributing component landscape of the larger Antietam National Battlefield. The study area is located to the south of Sharpsburg, Maryland along the banks of Antietam Creek and served as the scene of critical fighting during the Battle of Antietam on September 17, 1862. This cultural landscape retains significant character defining features including the Burnside Bridge (circa 1832), a collection of monuments and War Department Tablets (1887 to 1908), the Sycamore Witness Tree (circa 1858), and the National Park Service (NPS) Mission 66 development for the parking area and associated circulation system (1961-1963). The Burnside Bridge area cultural landscape derives significance under National Register Criterion A in the areas of American agricultural practices, military history, and commemoration. The cultural landscape also derives significance under National Register Criterion C under the classification of landscape architecture due to the implementation of Mission 66, an ambitious visitor improvement initiative planned to coincide with the NPS half century that revolutionized the manner in which the American public interacted with the National Parks System through the development of new infrastructure. The overall period of significance for the Burnside Bridge area cultural landscape is 1738 to 1966. The period of significance coincides with the original English settlement of the region and concludes with the end of the NPS Mission 66 improvements. Under Criterion A, the period of significance begins in 1738 and concludes in 1933. This period encompass the start of agricultural developments, the events and reconstruction associated with the Battle of Antietam in 1862, and the commemoration efforts that followed. The period of significance under Criterion A concludes with the transfer of authority from the War Department to the National Park Service in 1933. Under Criterion C, the period of significance begins with the creation of the NPS Mission 66 program in 1955 and concludes with end of the execution of the plans in 1966. The Burnside Bridge area cultural landscape retains a high level of integrity from the period of significance. However, the growth of woody vegetation has diminished the aspects of feeling and setting of this portion of the battlefield landscape. The topography of the cultural landscape has affected the accessibility of the site. Problems concerning interpretation are also observed in the cultural landscape. The intent of this cultural landscape report is to aid the park in addressing these problems and other concerns in order to preserve the historic character of the cultural landscape. The solutions presented in the Preferred Treatment include: the reconfiguration of the existing parking area to better accommodate visitor needs, rehabilitation of trails and walkways, selective removal of vegetation, the alteration of vegetation management in select character areas, and the modification to existing interpretation.
- Type
- Published Report
- Authors
- Weldon, Daniel
- Date of Issue
- 2018-09
- Publisher
- U.S. Department of the Interior
- Units
- ANTI , NCR
- Keywords
- 11th Connecticut, 21st Massachusetts, 2nd Maryland, 35th Massachusetts, 51st New York, 51st Pennsylvania, accessibility, agriculture, Alexander Gardner, American Civil War, Antietam Creek, Antietam National Battlefield, Battle of Antietam, Burnside Bridge, Carmen and Cope, farming, General Ambrose Burnside, General Robert Tombs, Maryland, McKinnley Monument, Mission 66, National Park Service, Newcomer, Otto Farm, Otto House, rehabilitation, Rohrbach Farm, Sherrick Farm, United States War Department
- Subjects
- CRIS-CL: 600043: Burnside Bridge Area