Bethlehem Civil War Reenactment
William and I went with the scouts to the Civil War reenactment in Bethlehem today. It was a very interesting event and would have been a lot more fun if the weather would have cooperated. Spring has finally arrived in the Lehigh Valley but old man winter is not happy about it and has treated us to very wet weather and cold
temperatures more often than not. Today was in the low 40′s, it stayed dry most of the morning, but we stayed around just long enough to get poured on as we left. Oh well, it was still a good time!
The actors in these reenactments amaze me with their dedication, knowledge and desire to share. most of them had spent the night in their period tents and actually live the weekend as if it were 1861 (with porta-potties, some concessions to the modern world are necessary).
The day started with a march down Main street in downtown Bethlehem. The soldiers conducted a recruitment at the end of the march and convinced a number of locals to “sign up”. Three of our boys from the scout troop decided to join. They lied about their age so that they could fight for the cause, but it’s OK, the war is only expected to last 90 days or so. That is what President Lincoln said. He seemed like a nice fellow, if a little awkward. He didn’t seem too concerned about the rebels, even though they surprised our boys in a couple of battles.
We visited the blacksmith shop on the way to the camp and watched them forge basic tools. They had a fire, so at least it was warm!
The encampment had everything you would expect, a quartermaster, cooks, tents, an operating table (yikes!) and all the other “comforts” of home. Check out the gallery for my favorite photos from today.
