New York Monuments at Antietam
The monument to the 34th New York Infantry Regiment at Antietam is on Confederate Avenue west of the Dunker Church. (Visitor Center-Dunker Church tour map;) It was dedicated on September 17, 1902.
From the south side of the monument:
THIRTY-FOURTH REGIMENT
N.Y.S.V.
Col. James A. Suiter
Commanding
Enlisted under President Lincoln’s
Call, issued April 15, 1861, for 75,000
men, to serve two years.
Mustered into the State service May 1, 1861
Mustered into the United States service
June 15, 1861
Mustered out June 30, 1863
First Brigade Second Division
Second Corps
The surviving members of the Regiment, aided by the County of Herkimer, and the State of New York, have erected this monument, to the memory of t he gallant men who fell on this and other Historic fields.
The dead on this field were 43 and the wounded 74.
From the east side of the monument:
The Story in Brief
At 7:30 on the morning of September 17, 1862, the Thirty-fourth Regiment left camp near Keedysville, crossed the Antietam Creek and marched westward into the East Woods, now extinct. Facing Westward being on the extreme left of Brigade line it emerged from the East Woods and soon became heavily engaged with the Confederate forces in its front. Crossing the open field and the Hagerstown Pike, it entered the West Woods, now also extinct, the line extending North and South of the Dunkard Church. The left of the Regiment being unprotected was in danger of being enveloped by the enemy, and a hasty retreat became necessary; the Regiment reforming near the East Woods with its organization intact. In a very brief time 43 men had been killed and 74 wounded, the killed being 13 percent of all engaged.
From the north side of the monument:
Composition of the Regiment at the time of this Battle
Colonel James A. Suiter
Lieutenant Colonel Byron Laflin
Major John Beverly
Adjutant George W. Thompson
Quartermaster Nathan Easterbrook, Jr.
Surgeon Socretes N. Sherman
Asst. Surgeon Edward S. Walker
Chaplain John B. Van Petten
| Co. | Captain | County |
| “A” | Benjamin H. Warford | Albany |
| “B” | Wells Sponable | Herkimer |
| “C” | Thomas Corcoran | Herkimer |
| “D” | John A. Scott | Clinton |
| “E” | Henry Baldwin | Steuben |
| “F” | Charles Riley | Herkimer |
| “G” | Joy E. Johnson | Herkimer |
| “H” | Samuel P. Butler | Essex |
| “I” | William H. King | Steuben |
| “K” | Emerson S. Northrup | Herkimer |
From the west side of the monument:
1862 1902
After many years
we, their surviving comrades,
journeying hither,
and calling to remembrance
their fortitude in the midst
of hardships, and their
courage in the midst of dangers
have reverently
and with loving hands,
erected this noble shaft
overlooking the fields
on which they they fell in glory,
to preserve their memory
from decay, and to tell all
the story of
their sacrifice, their patriotism,
and their valor.
Other important engagements:
| Edwards Ferry | Glendale |
| Sidge of Yorktown | Malvern Hill |
| Fair Oaks 1st & 2nd days | South Mountain |
| Savage Station | Fredericksburg |
| Chancellorsville | |
Location of the monument
The monument to the 34th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment is north of Sharpsburg on the north side of Confederate Avenue about 110 yards west of the Dunker Church (39°28’31.2″N 77°44’52.9″W).
