Union Col. Dixon S. Miles found a war-ravaged wasteland when he took command at Harpers Ferry in the spring of 1862. The Harpers Ferry Armory, which at its peak had produced 10,000 firearms a year, lay in ruins - burned by Confederate forces in 1861. The town's churches and mills had become hospitals; shops and residences had become barracks and stables.
"All seem to think that we will have to surrender or be cut to pieces." Private Newman Eldred, 111th New York
Last updated: August 7, 2017