We drove 300 miles on Thursday, from northern Ohio to Maryland, and took in two side trips along the way: the Flight 93 Memorial and the Antietam Civil War Battlefield. It was a sobering day.
While in Pennsylvania, we saw a sign for the Flight 93 Memorial and decided on the spur of the moment to add it as a side trip. This memorial is located near the crash of the flight that was hijacked on Sept. 11, 2001. It was incredibly moving to learn more about those on the airplane and to listen to some of the voicemails they left for loved ones before the plane crashed. The individual panels of the Wall of Names list those 40 passengers and crew members who were killed in the crash and the wall is located along the flight path. What heroes they were to take the plane back from the terrorists and to thwart an attack on the US Capitol. The visitor center was filled with information about the twin towers and all four airplane crashes that day. Flight 93 Info
Our goal on this travel day was to visit the Antietam Civil War Battlefield in Maryland. On Thursday afternoon we drove around the eleven points of interest on the battlefield. The next day we biked this route, gaining new views this time, and really feeling the scale of the battle and the geography of the land as we cycled up and down the hills. Sue spoke with a Vietnam veteran who was visiting Antietam and who was visibly moved by what he described as “this hallowed ground”. In an emotional voice, the gentleman commented that, “It was rough in Vietnam, no doubt, but it was nothing like what these boys faced.” Antietam was the bloodiest day of war in the history of the United States with over 23,000 who were killed, wounded, or missing during this single day of battle. Antietam Info
We are grateful for the opportunity to have seen these sacred places and we stand in awe of the bravery of those in the midst of madness who gave their last full measure of devotion to a cause larger than themselves.