The Sunken Road, better known as Bloody Lane, is a historic dirt farm lane located on the Antietam National Battlefield near Sharpsburg, Maryland. The road was used by farmers to bypass Sharpsburg, but was worn down by years of rain and wagon traffic, resulting in the road sinking into the ground. During the September 1862 Battle of Antietam, 2,600 Confederate soldiers of Daniel Harvey Hill's division took up positions along the embankment and inflicted heavy losses on William H. French's 5,500 Union troops, leading to four hours of fighting. Israel B. Richardson's Union division later joined the fray, and the Federals were ultimately able to seize the Sunken Road from the Confederates after heavy losses on both sides. 5,500 soldiers were killed or wounded during the fighting for the "Bloody Lane".
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