Conflicts in American History - Antietam & Cemetery Hill

Preserving and educating others about history was part of what started the modern wargaming tradition. It‘s one thing to know the facts of a battle and another thing entirely to stand in the shoes of its commanders and dictate the actions of the troops on the ground. So it’s little wonder that in 1979 SPI tried to branch out into the world of classroom education to teach an up-and-coming generation of children about the history of conflict in our nation… and perhaps recruit a few new wargamers as a side effect.

The result is this educational kit published in SPI’s soapbox packaging. Bundling up nine copies of Antietam and Cemetery Hill, games originally featured in the Blue & Grey Series, they further included a guide for teachers, two historical briefings, testing materials, and a classroom poster to take this from a simple bulk deal to a product actually designed for classroom use.

The tragic end of the story is that too little interest was generated to make a full-sized series and this is the only known entry in this chapter of SPI’s legacy. Few were ever produced, and it is unknown what level of use those copies that do exist saw. This makes this item a collector’s trophy, ideal to sit alongside the other rarities and oddities of a true wargaming devotee.