Andersonville National Historic Site

How to Get There

From Columbus, GA (65 mi): Take US-280 E to GA-49 N, then follow signs to Andersonville and turn onto Cemetery Road to reach the site.

Overview

Andersonville National Historic Site preserves Camp Sumter, the largest and deadliest Confederate prison camp of the Civil War, where nearly 13,000 of the roughly 45,000 Union soldiers held here between 1864 and 1865 died of overcrowding, disease, and starvation. You can walk the prison grounds, trace the perimeter of the original stockade, and see reconstructed earthworks, all interpreted alongside the National Prisoner of War Museum, which honors American POWs from the Revolutionary War to today.

The site also encompasses Andersonville National Cemetery, still an active burial ground with more than 21,000 graves honoring veterans of multiple wars. Admission is free and the park is open year-round, making it an easy, moving stop for anyone tracing Civil War history.

Things to Do

Visit the National Prisoner of War Museum

The centerpiece of the site, this museum uses artifacts, photographs, oral histories, and personal accounts to tell the story of American prisoners of war from the Civil War through modern conflicts, with introductory films that set the scene before you head out to the grounds.

Tour the Historic Prison Site

A self-guided walking route (about a mile, easy grade) leads through the Camp Sumter grounds past reconstructed stockade sections, monuments, and interpretive exhibits that convey the scale of the prison and the conditions endured by those held here.

Explore Andersonville National Cemetery

Stroll the cemetery's rows of headstones and monuments, a quiet, reflective walk that also serves as the final resting place for most of the prisoners who died at Camp Sumter.

Take the Self-Guided Audio Tour

Pick up a self-guided audio tour from the museum to walk the prison site and cemetery with added historical interpretation along the way.

Attend Ranger Programs and Living History Demonstrations

Throughout the year, park rangers and living historians offer talks, guided tours, and demonstrations that bring Civil War prison life and military history to life.

This article uses material from the Wikipedia article and official pages for Andersonville National Historic Site, released under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 3.0, along with National Park Service visitor information (Things to Do, Plan Your Visit) and Explore Georgia.