Mumma Farm at Antietam National Battlefield
ANTIETAM NATIONAL BATTLEFIELD TOUR
STOP 6: MUMMA FARM AND CEMETERY
Allow 30 to 45 minutes for a visit
The sixth stop on the Antietam National Battlefield Tour is at the Mumma Farm, home of Samuel Mumma, his second wife, Elizabeth, and their ten children during the Civil War. There is no parking lot for the farm, so either pull over on the road shoulder or on the gravel driveway that leads down to the farm buildings.
Confederate soldiers were positioned near the farm at the start of the Battle of Antietam on September 17, 1862. They did not occupy the farm buildings but were instead on the high ground to the south and west of the buildings. Because the Confederates feared Union soldiers moving into the area would use the buildings to conceal sharpshooters, General Roswell Ripley ordered the farmhouse burned. Many of the other wooden buildings soon caught fire as well, and supposedly a Union cannonball hit the barn and caused it to catch fire. Only the brick springhouse survived. This was the only intentional destruction of property during the battle. No major fighting took place on the farm, but many soldiers, both Confederate and Union, passed through the fields on their way to other points on the battlefield, most notably the Union advance towards the Sunken Road.
Warned of the coming battle, the Mumma Family evacuated the area, and afterwards, spent the winter at the Sherrick Farm until they were able to rebuild and move back in in June 1863. The United States government established a program for reimbursing citizens of states that remained with the Union for property damage caused by Union soldiers, but because his farm was burned by the Confederates, Mumma’s multiple claims were all denied.
Southeast-facing side of the Mumma Farmhouse at Antietam National Battlefield
Northeast-facing side of the Mumma Farmhouse at Antietam National Battlefield
The buildings now on the Mumma Farm consist of the farmhouse, smoke house, springhouse, barn, and two other outbuildings. None of them are open to the public. The farmhouse was restored to its 1863 appearance in 2001 and is now used as an education center for school groups. If you need to use the restroom, there are portable toilets by the barn.
Mumma Farm bank barn at Antietam National Battlefield
Mumma Farm springhouse at Antietam National Battlefield
Outbuildings at the Mumma Farm, Antietam National Battlefield
The cemetery on the Mumma Farm was established by the Orndorff Family in the late 1790s, though all tombstones from this time are now missing and the location of Orndorff Family graves is unknown. The farm was sold to Jacob Mumma, Samuel’s father, in 1810, and the cemetery became their family cemetery. Samuel Mumma purchased the farm from his father in 1831.
The Mummas were members of the German Baptist Brethren faith, commonly known as “Dunkers” due to their practice of fully immersing church members in water when being baptized. In 1852, Samuel donated land for a church, and in 1873 he enlarged the cemetery and opened it to all members of the congregation.
Mumma Cemetery at Antietam National Battlefield
Mumma Cemetery at Antietam National Battlefield
Grave of Samuel Mumma, Antietam National Battlefield
Dates on the tombstones range from the mid-1800s (mainly infants) to as recent as 2014.
Grave from 2014 at the Mumma Cemetery, Antietam National Battlefield
The farm remained in the Mumma Family until 1885. It was subsequently bought and sold a number of times until being purchased by the National Park Service in 1961 for inclusion in Antietam National Battlefield.
For those who hike the Bloody Lane Trail, it passes through the farm but not the cemetery. If you want to see the cemetery, you must walk a tenth of a mile up the hill from the back of the farmhouse and barn.
Stop 7: Bloody Lane | Stop 5: West Woods | Battlefield Tour Home Page
With a few exceptions, use of any photograph on the National Park Planner website requires a paid Royalty Free Editorial Use License or Commercial Use License. See the Photo Usage page for details.
Last updated on May 23, 2023
