In today's second blog about Point Lookout State Park we'll tell you about the former Civil War Prison and Tom's quest about it.
Point
Lookout State Park's peaceful surroundings belie its history as the location of
a prison camp which imprisoned as many as 52,264 Confederate soldiers during
the Civil
War. A museum on site recounts
this vivid history.
Tom learned that his great-great grandfather on his mother's side was imprisoned there and survived. After the war, his great-great grandfather returned to his wife and children in Virginia It was pretty moving to stand on the soil where his great-great grandfather "lived" while imprisoned.
WHAT WAS CAMP HOFFMAN? Point Lookout was the largest and one of the worst Union prisoner-of-war camps, established on August 1, 1863 on the Chesapeake Bay side of Point Lookout.
According to Mycivilwar.com, the conditions were pretty bad.
LIVING CONDITIONS - All prisoners lived in the overcrowded tents and shacks, with no barracks to protect them from heat and coastal storms. There were several different kinds of tents that the prisoners used. Each row of tents were labeled as a division and would hold 1,000 or more prisoners. The majority of the different types were: A-tents (5 men), Sibley tents (13-14 men), Hospital tents (15-18 men), Wall tents (3-8 men), Hospital flys (10-13 men), Wall-tent flys (3-8 men), and Shelter tents (3 men).
BATHING, WASHING, LIMITED DRINKING WATER - The back of the prison was next to the bay. Here, the prisoners were allowed a certain area to bathe, wash clothes, and find additional food, such as clams, lobsters, and fish. Fresh water for drinking was scarce and polluted. Wells supplied the water for the camp, but they proved too shallow and had iron and alkaline salts in it. Later on, a boat was arranged to bring in fresh water for the prison.
WHAT WAS CAMP HOFFMAN? Point Lookout was the largest and one of the worst Union prisoner-of-war camps, established on August 1, 1863 on the Chesapeake Bay side of Point Lookout.
According to Mycivilwar.com, the conditions were pretty bad.
LIVING CONDITIONS - All prisoners lived in the overcrowded tents and shacks, with no barracks to protect them from heat and coastal storms. There were several different kinds of tents that the prisoners used. Each row of tents were labeled as a division and would hold 1,000 or more prisoners. The majority of the different types were: A-tents (5 men), Sibley tents (13-14 men), Hospital tents (15-18 men), Wall tents (3-8 men), Hospital flys (10-13 men), Wall-tent flys (3-8 men), and Shelter tents (3 men).
HORRIBLE CONDITIONS - Because of the topography, drainage was poor, and the area was subject to extreme heat in the summer and cold in the winter. This exacerbated the problems created by inadequate food, clothing, fuel, housing, and medical care. As a result, approximately 3,000 prisoners died there over 22 months. Besides chronic diarrhea, dysentery and typhoid fever had become epidemic at the camp while smallpox, scurvy, and the itch had become quite common.
 |
| The general area where Camp Hoffman was located on the Chesapeake Bay |
PRISONER STATISTICS - In April 1865 at the end of the Civil War, there were still 22,000 prisoners there..They were release in alphabetical order and reverse order of states that seceded from the Union. By June 30, all of the prisoners had been transferred out of the camp. At least 3,584 prisoners died at the prison. It is estimated that a total of 52,264 prisoners, both military and civilian, were held prisoner there. Only 50 escaped successfully.
NEXT: The Destroyed Resort
