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Maryland: Shots that shattered a nation

In 1861, just after the Battle of Fort Sumter in South Carolina, Union troops traveling to Washington clashed with some Confederate sympathizers in Baltimore. Shots were fired, and the dust-up produced the first bloodshed of the Civil War.

In April, Baltimore will commemorate the 150th anniversary of the encounter as part of the national Civil War sesquicentennial events.

“We’re going to commemorate that April 15-17 with a procession of both re-enactors and contemporary military troops,” said Visit Baltimore’s Sam Rogers. “That will be accompanied by living history demonstrations along the route, telling the stories of people who would have been in Baltimore on that day in 1861. We’re also going to have a two-day encampment at Fort McHenry. There will be a Union encampment and living history.”

Several special museum exhibits around town will complement the event. The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Museum will open an exhibition called “The War Comes by Train,” featuring a collection of railroad cars and equipment that served during the Civil War. The Maryland Historical Society will have an exhibit called “Divided Voices: Maryland and the Civil War.”

More on Maryland:

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Brian Jewell

Brian Jewell is the executive editor of The Group Travel Leader. In more than a decade of travel journalism he has visited 48 states and 25 foreign countries.