living history | Civil War History

To aid the Fort Abercrombie State Historic Site, Stuart, Joe, and I headed down on Saturday to do some living history for the day. We met the new supervisor, Thomas Casler, who is quite enthusiastic and interested in reenacting as well. We put out a bit of equipment and set ourselves up in the guard-house. Though the day started slow and rainy, it eventually picked up. We did pass the time as soldiers might have (although illegally) by playing cards (our pot was coffee beans). About thirty people came out throughout the day, including one couple who traveled all the way from Philadelphia, coming to North Dakota to visit forts and the Badlands.

Several youngsters came with their parents and we demonstrated the sequence for firing the weapons and talked about our gear. We also raised and lowered the flag over the post. Overall, it was a good day, despite the iffy weather, and we had a good time helping them commemorate Memorial Weekend. Our next trip will be to historic Fort Sisseton in South Dakota to take part in their annual historic festival. Below are some pictures (courtesy of Thomas Casler) from our day at Abercrombie.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Received the following via email and decided to post it for your benefit if you are interested in Civil War re-enactments.

MEDIA RELEASE

CONTACT:

Ilena Di Toro
PR Specialist

215-776-4251

ilena.ditoro@hotmail.com

21^ST ANNUAL CIVIL WAR RE-ENACTMENT AT NESHAMINY STATE PARK

The Appomattox Campaign – April 6, 1865

(February 22, 2010) The 21^st annual Civil War Re-enactment will be held on Saturday-Sunday, May 1 – 2, 2010 at Neshaminy State Park, located on 3401 State Road in Bensalem, PA, from 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM, rain or shine. Admission is free.

This event is the largest Civil War re-enactment on the East Coast outside of Gettysburg and the theme for this year is “The Appomattox Campaign – April 6, 1865”. Over 1,000 re-enactors will converge on the park for this two-day event featuring:

· Authentic battle re-enactments

· Camp life scenarios

· Military and civilian life demonstrations

The Appomattox Campaign consisted of a series of battles to the south and west of the capital of the Confederacy, Richmond, Virginia in early April of 1865. These battles ended with the surrender of Confederate forces on April 9, 1865, lead by General Robert E. Lee. April 6, 1865 is notable for two actions: “The Battle of Sailor’s Creek” and “High Bridge”. “The Battle of Sailor’s Creek” occurred when the Union cavalry exploited a gap in the Confederate line and cut off two Confederate corps, resulting in a Union victory. “High Bridge” saw Confederate cavalry capture Union forces, resulting in a Confederate victory. These two battle actions will be staged during this year’s re-enactment.

While admission is free, a voluntary collection will be taken each day of the re-enactment and all proceeds will go toward Civil War preservation efforts. Proceeds from this year’s collection will go to the Civil War Preservation Trust, (www.civilwar.org) a non-profit organization dedicated to the conservation of Civil War battlefields. The Neshaminy Civil War Re-enactment has raised close to $30,000 during its 21 year history, for various Civil War organizations.

This event is a joint project sponsored by Neshaminy State Park, the Bensalem Historical Society, the 28^thPennsylvania Historical Association, the Army of Northern Virginia Reenacting Organization, the Delaware Valley Civil War Roundtable, The G.A.R. Museum and Library, and Waste Management, Inc.

For more information, please visit http://www.28thpvi.org or contact Ken Gavin, Event Chairman, at 610-809-6540 or kgc28pvi@comcast.net.