Known as the Dark and Bloody Grounds, the former site of the Bladensburg Dueling Grounds was located along Dueling Creek and Bladensburg Road; the historic location now shares the present-day boundary of the towns of Cottage City and Colmar Manor. Cottage City and Moyer's Mill played a key role in the Battle of Bladensburg during the War of 1812. The mill acted as a hospital for wounded American militia, as well as an artillery battery. American forces were repulsed in a bitter fight in Mr. Moyer's orchards, an event that resulted ultimately in the burning of the nation's capital.