Port Deposit in Cecil County, Maryland — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)
Snow's Battery
Battery B, 1st Maryland Light Artillery
In the summer of 1861, many young men here in Port Deposit were eager to join the Union cause. By September, Capt. Alonzo Snow, the 54-year-old superintendent of the Susquehanna Canal, had organized an artillery unit of approximately 155 men from the town. After duty in Baltimore and on the Eastern Shore, Snow's Battery joined the Army of the Potomac in Virginia for the Peninsula Campaign in May 1862. Lt. Theodore Vanneman complained about the lack of action: "Was in hopes we could have gotten to Yorktown before the rebels left, but it seems we are too late. The war will be over and I shan't get to see a rascally rebel in uniform." That soon changed. Over the next three years, Snow's Battery fought in the Seven Days' Battles and the Antietam Campaign, as well as at Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, New Market, Piedmont, and Lynchburg, and in the 1864 Shenandoah Valley campaigns.
Bloody Antietam made the deepest impression. Vanneman wrote that on September 17, 1862, Snow's Battery arrived on the field "just in time to drive the rebels back with slaughter. All around us their dead bodies lie. The cries of the wounded
this page online
[Captions:]
Lt. Theodore Vanneman. The Paw Paw Museum in Port Deposit holds his letters, those of other battery members, and Snow's possessions.
Capt. Alonzo Snow served as Port Deposit's postmaster after the war.
Reunion, Snow's Battery, Port Deposit, 1900
Light Artillery battery, Antietam battlefield, Sept. 20, 1862
Erected by Maryland Civil War Trails.
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: War, US Civil. In addition, it is included in the Maryland Civil War Trails series list. A significant historical date for this entry is September 17, 1862.
Location. 39° 36.241′ N, 76° 6.875′ W. Marker is in Port Deposit, Maryland, in Cecil County. It is on South Main Street (Maryland Route 222) south of High Street, on the right when traveling south. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 30 S Main St, Port
Regionally, this marker is in Greater Wilmington, on the Eastern Shore, and in Greater Philadelphia. It is also in the American Mid-Atlantic, on the Delmarva Peninsula, in the Tidewater, and in the Chesapeake Bay Region. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region, North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once one of the original Thirteen Colonies and also the Antebellum South.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: A different marker also named Snows Battery (here, next to this marker); Gerry House (within shouting distance of this marker); On Alert (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); The River Town (about 300 feet away); John A. J. Creswell (about 400 feet away); Jacob Tome, Town Father (about 500 feet away); Adams Hall (about 600 feet away); Washington Hall (about 600 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Port Deposit.
Another marker is no longer nearby. Snow's Battery (has been replaced with this marker).
Credits. This page was last revised on June 28, 2026. It was originally submitted on June 28, 2026, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia. This page has been viewed 6 times since then. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on June 28, 2026, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia.
