Bladensburg Dueling Grounds is a small spit of land along Dueling Creek, formerly in the town of Bladensburg, Maryland, and now within the town of Colmar Manor, just to the northeast of Washington, D.C., United States. Dueling Creek, formerly known as Blood Run, is a tributary of the Anacostia River.

From 1808 the grove witnessed approximately fifty duels by gentlemen, military officers, and politicians, settling "affairs of honor". A formalized set of rules dealing with dueling etiquette referred to as a Code duello was usually enforced by the duelers and their seconds, even though dueling was illegal in the District of Columbia, and in most American states and territories.

Following the Civil War, dueling fell out of favor as a means of settling personal grievances and declined rapidly; the last known duel was fought here in 1868.

Notable duels [edit]

• In 1819, Colonel John Mason McCarty killed his second cousin, General Armistead Thomson Mason. McCarty was haunted for years by his experience after surviving the musket duel.
• Naval hero Stephen Decatur was mortally wounded in 1820 by James Barron.
• In June 1836, 22-year-old Daniel Key, the son of Francis Scott Key, was killed in a senseless duel with a fellow Naval Academy cadet, John Sherbourne, over a question regarding steamboat speed.
• Jonathan Cilley, a Representative from Maine, was a reluctant participant. In February 1838, Cilley was killed by Congressman William J. Graves of Kentucky. Graves was a stand-in for New York newspaper editor James Webb, whom Cilley had called corrupt. Cilley was inexperienced with guns, and Graves was allowed to use a powerful rifle. A severed artery in Cilley's leg caused him to bleed to death in ninety seconds. This duel prompted passage of a Congressional act of February 20, 1839, prohibiting the giving or accepting challenges to a duel within the District of Columbia.

References [edit]

• Hauck, Dennis William, Haunted Places, The National Directory
• Holland, Barbara, Gentlemen's Blood: A History of Dueling from Swords at Dawn to Pistols at Dusk
• Thompson Mason, Armistead, The Bladensburg Dueling Ground (Harper's Magazine)

External links [edit]

• "Dueling Creek Natural Area". Prince George's County Dept. of Parks and Recreation. 2012. 
• Smith, J.J. (May 13, 2010). "Colmar Manor: Deadly dueling ground now a neighborly community". Washington Examiner . 
• Denny, George D. (2011). "History of duels, battles and grit determination at the Town of Colmar Manor, Maryland". Town of Colmar Manor. 
• Taylor, Troy (1998). "Bladensburg Dueling Grounds". Haunted Maryland. 
• "Bladensburg Dueling Grounds". The Shadowlands: Famous Hauntings. 2009. 
• "Duels and the Bladensburg Dueling Grounds Marker". The Historical Marker Database. 2012. 
• "Dueling Grounds Historical Marker". The Historical Marker Database. 2012. 

38°55′30.6″N 76°56′25.4″W / 38.925167°N 76.940389°W / 38.925167; -76.940389Coordinates: 38°55′30.6″N 76°56′25.4″W / 38.925167°N 76.940389°W / 38.925167; -76.940389