Craig Gotschall:  

Craig is from Baltimore, Maryland. Craig's schools include Catonsville High School. Craig later attended George Washington University, UMBC. Craig works(ed) at Howard County Government, Howard County Government. Craig's interests include Animals, Architecture, Art. One of Craig's favorite quotes is:""Fact is stranger than fiction." --Mark Twain". More about Craig:"My name is Craig Gotschall and I was born and raised in southwest Baltimore. Where I played as a child strongly influenced my two passions: the American Civil War and the paranormal. Directly across from my house loomed "Loudon Park," a 400 acre city cemetery established in 1853. Loudon Park contains over 200,000 graves and was designed as a park as was the custom of the large city cemeteries constructed during the 19th century. It has a direct link the Civil War. Baltimore and the surrounding area contained a large population sympathetic to the South. When the sons of these families began to fall in battle, many families offered up their private burial lots in a section of the cemetery. This small area grew into a cemetery in itself with its own identity. It became to be called Confederate Hill. There are over 600 Confederates from all over the South resting on Confederate Hill, including over 200 Confederate veterans from Maryland. Just a short walk from Confederate Hill, you will discover the National Cemetery, which was laid out in 1862. Like its Southern counterpart, it was established to bury the increasing ranks of Union dead. It is one of the first National cemeteries and burials began there two years before Arlington. Like Confederate Hill, the National Cemetery contains graves from all over the North and Mid-West, as well as Maryland. When I was a child, my father and I hiked through Loudon Park on holidays and we were particularly fond of both Civil War cemeteries. We felt fortunate to have such a treasure within walking distance of our home. My dad, who passed away in September ‘09 loved history, especially the Civil War. Loudon Park was one of my first playgrounds and I visit there often. Other influences have endeared me to the Civil...Expand for more