Dazzling pageant of the bloody war between the states re-enacted
next week
Those who want to see what life was like for a soldier living in
1864
– up close and personal – will get their chance during Civil War
Days, a recreation of history to be played out at the San Benito
Historical Park on Sept. 16 and 17.
Dazzling pageant of the bloody war between the states re-enacted next week
Those who want to see what life was like for a soldier living in 1864 – up close and personal – will get their chance during Civil War Days, a recreation of history to be played out at the San Benito Historical Park on Sept. 16 and 17.
For $5 admission, visitors to the spectacle will be astounded by the realism and drama participants bring to the event, which kicks off with deafening cannon fire and an ensuing gun battle between Confederate and Union soldiers, all dressed in authentic Civil War uniforms.
At last year’s event, spectators had a hard time remembering the whistling bullets and cannonball fire were all blanks. Some of the soldiers carry prop blood which they splatter on themselves when they decide to “die” or become wounded. While the pageant isn’t exactly choreographed beforehand, those playing higher officers have a huddle before the battle begins and map out a loose plan of what’s going to happen.
“The commanders get together and talk about what they want to do – but it doesn’t always go the way they planned,” said Jim Thompson, a Hollister Civil War re-creationist who has been “fighting” in such events throughout the state, and sometimes in other states, for 20 years. “It’s up to the individual soldiers when they want to get hit. Like if someone’s tired and if it’s really hot, he may decide to go down.
“A lot of guys die in the shade,” he added with a laugh. Thompson plays a rebel Captain of the 14th Unit, Tennessee.
This is the second annual Civil War recreation hosted in San Benito by the county Historical Society, and participants are expecting a bigger turnout of spectators this year. The actors who participate in these Civil War recreations have a passion for this period of history; many, like Thompson, travel throughout the state and other parts of the nation to participate in the recreations nearly year-round.
The burning question is, why do they do this?
“It’s the love of the time period, and the most interesting time in this nation’s history,” Thompson offered. “It’s what made us what we are — for better or worse.
Just as dazzling as the combat scenes is the action that follows. Spectators tag along as the battle weary soldiers limp off or are carried to the field hospital – normally the dancehall in the park’s Historical Village – commandeered by the doctors and field medics. An atmosphere of chaos prevails as nurses, garbed in hoop skirts and toting bowls of “blood”-tinted water, scurry between moaning soldiers draped on cots.
Inevitably, the cry of “Amputate!” pierces the air.
Relief from the pandemonium of the battle’s aftermath can be found in the saloon across the street from the hospital, where genuine ginger beer and sarsaparilla (the original form of root beer) are served up by a friendly barkeep to hardened soldiers and tourists alike. There, one can see soldiers relaxing after the gruesome business of the day, drink in hand, perhaps playing a friendly card game.
Whether the game stays friendly is another matter, as all participants stay in character pretty much until they go to sleep that night in the soldiers’ camp – a forest of canvas tents and campfires. Walking through the camp, one can smell the aroma of bread and stews wafting from Dutch ovens and observe soldiers as they try to settle into a rugged life on the move.
Last year, Thompson’s wife, Teresa, played a Southern belle nurse and looked like she stepped out of a scene from “Gone With the Wind.” This year, said her husband, she will play the quintessential femme fatale – a spy – but which side she abets and which she betrays, no one yet knows.
The Historical Park is located one mile south of Tres Pinos on Hwy 25, and the “Civil War Days” events for the general public are scheduled for Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 16 & 17. On Saturday, battles are at noon and 3 p.m., and on Sunday at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. Admission is $5 for adults, under 10 years of age get in free. Gate hours are from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
School programs will be hosted on Friday, Sept. 15. The battle will take place at noon and the event is free of charge to schools. Any elementary schools wishing to attend Friday’s School Days should arrive at the park by 10 a.m. For further information, call Jim Thompson at 638-1025 or go to the National Civil War Association web site at www.ncwa.org.
