See you in church

Today I stopped by Antietam to pick up and old friend.

This is today's post from my toy soldier blog (toysoldiersforever.blogspot.com).  Check out the video at the end.

-------------

About ten years ago when I was still rangering at Antietam National Battlefield, one of the products carried in the bookstore was the 54mm model of Dunker Church which was a specialty item made by BMC.  The bookstore manager asked me to make an assembled one that he could use as a store display.  I did, and it came out pretty well.

BMC, unfortunately, no longer makes that model, and the new bookstore manager asked me if, after all this years, I'd like it back.  I gave her an enthusiastic "yes" and today I swung by the battlefield and picked it up.

The BMC model was one of their least imaginative buildings  but it provides a good starting place.

I used the Alexander Gardner photograph of the aftermath of the battle of Antietam as my guide.

The cannon damage to Dunker Church came from two miles away where the Union 20-pounder parrott guns were firing upon the Confederate battery deployed just across the road from the church.

Flat pieces of packaging plastic were used as the shattered window panes.  To simulate whitewash worn from the bricks, I brushed brick red over the white plastic, let it dry, covered the brick color with packing tape, and stripped it off.  I was very happy with the result.

I'm really happy to have it back.

In addition to working at Antietam for over eight years, I have another personal connection to Dunker Church...

My wife and I were married there nine years ago. Cheers!

Soldier on!

Mannie

p.s.  Here's a video that I made with one of my ranger friends, Alann Schmidt, who is the authority on Dunker Church: