Forty Years of Triumph:
A Retrospective of Preservation Success at Antietam and Beyond
September 25-27, 2026
Friday, September 25, 2026
10:00 – 11:30: Early bird Antietam battlefield walk (Brian Baracz)
11:00 – 1:00: Registration (Civil War Center, Shepherd University, 136 W. German St., Shepherdstown WV)
11:30 – 1:00: Lunch on your own
1:00 – 1:15: Welcome and opening remarks (Dr. Jennifer Murray)
1:15 – 2:00: Celebrating SHAF at 40 (Dennis Frye and Dr. Thomas Clemens)
2:15 – 3:15: “Audacious Associations Awful Acronym: The First Eight Years of the APCWS” (Will Greene)
3:30 – 4:30: Panel, “Successes and Setbacks in Local Preservation” (Tim Talbott, Joy Oakes, Richard Gillespie, Keven Walker, Michael Nickerson)
5:00 – 6:15: Dinner at Bavarian Inn
6:30 – 7:00: Book sale & signing and social time
7:00 – 8:00: “Celebrating the American Soldier: The First National Military Parks” (Dr. Caroline Janney)
Saturday, September 26, 2026
8:00 – 12:00: “Harpers Ferry National Historical Park: A Preservation Story” (Dennis Frye)
Lunch on your own in Lower Town Harpers Ferry
2:00 – 3:00: “From Chantilly Battlefield, 1986, to Culpeper Battlefields State Park, 2026: Forty Years of Battlefield Preservation (Clark “Bud” Hall)
3:15 – 4:15: “Gettysburg’s Golden Age: A Discussion with Dr. John Latschar”
Break
5:15 – 6:15: Dinner (Storer Ballroom, Shepherd University Student Center)
7:15 – 8:15: Panel, “Fighting the Second Civil War” (Dennis Frye, Will Greene, Tom Clemens, Bud Hall) (Storer Ballroom, Shepherd University Student Center)
Sunday, September 27, 2026
9:00 – 2:00: “Antietam National Battlefield: A Preservation Story” Join Dennis Frye, Tom Clemens, and Garry Adelman on a journey through time—not in 1862 but spanning later years as Antietam became the battlefield we know. Via the work of ardent veterans and then their descendants, Antietam has been slowly preserved one tract at a time, opening up for interpretation places like the Cornfield, Roulette Farm, Final Attack, the Epicenter and more in series. Join us for a behind the scenes look at how dozens of tracts were developed, preserved, and restored, as we hike around the center and north end of the battlefield. Heroes, villains, and people just going about their lives blend into a fascinating story with a happy ending.
Boxed lunch on the battlefield
2:00: Conference ends
2:30: BONUS! Join the Save Historic Antietam Foundation for a visit to the historic Grove Farm, birthplace of the modern battlefield preservation movement. No admission charge. Following the Grove Farm, SHAF will host its annual membership meeting in Sharpsburg.
** All talks are held in the Byrd Auditorium at Shepherd University, except for Saturday evening events, which will be held in the Storer Ballroom, Shepherd University Student Center.
Exertion for Battlefield Tours:
– Early Bird Antietam Hike (9/25): 1 mile of walking, gradual terrain
– Harpers Ferry (9/26): bus tour, 1 mile of walking, gradual terrain
– Antietam (9/27): car pool to overflow parking lot, 3 miles of walking, moderate terrain
Final itinerary and meals subject to change.
Cancellations made one month before the start of the seminar will be refunded in full. Cancellations made after one month before the start of the seminar will not be refunded.
Have additional questions? Please contact our director Dr. Jennifer Murray at jmurr01@shepherd.edu or Program Coordinator Kristen Marino at kmarino@shepherd.edu