The past will come alive this month when Union and Confederate
soldiers clash in the smoke and the sounds of battle during Civil
War Days at San Benito County Historical Park.
Hollister – The past will come alive this month when Union and Confederate soldiers clash in the smoke and the sounds of battle during Civil War Days at San Benito County Historical Park.
Civil War Days, a first for the San Benito Historical Society, will include mock battles and living history displays to give spectators a taste of what soldiers and civilians experienced during the war between the states, which divided the nation on the issues of slavery and states’ rights.
“It’s pretty neat,” said Hollister resident and Civil War reenactor Jim Thompson, a captain with the 14th Tennessee Volunteers. “It’s great for kids to come and see.”
Battle reenactments with people dressed in Union and Confederate garb will be held, but the event will give a well-rounded depiction of the era. There will be an area with people dressed as civilians from the period who will give attendees a look at what everyday life was like for women and children during the war. And there will be a army hospital displaying the gruesome reality of 19th century battlefield medicine.
“There will be a medical unit demonstrating medical techniques, like amputations,” Thompson said, adding that medical technology from the Civil War period, which lasted from 1861 to 1865, will be discussed.
When the soldiers aren’t fighting on the battlefield, they will be in an authentic soldiers’ camp to answer questions that attendees have on subjects ranging from equipment to why they are fighting in the war. Reenactors will assume a character based on the side they’re fighting for and the state their unit comes from and try to respond to questions in that character.
For example, Thompson, who is in a Tennessee unit, said if someone asked him why he was fighting he would tell them that because his state was invaded by the Union, which is what a confederate soldier from Tennessee would have said.
Thompson expects at least 100 reenactors – who will come from California, Nevada and Oregon – to take place in the event.
Thompson, who has been a scholar of the war between the states since he was in grade school, took part in his first Civil War reenactment nearly two decades ago. He said he likes the adrenaline rush that comes with the smoke, rifle shots and cannon blasts on the battle field.
“Some friends invited me out one day,” he said. ‘After doing that, I was pretty much hooked.”
The event will take place on Sept. 10 and 11 from 9am to 5:30pm. Battle reenactments will occur each day at 11am and 3pm.
Luke Roney covers politics and the environment for the Free Lance. Reach him at 831-637-5566 ext. 335 or at [email protected].
