The Battle Of Spotsylvania Court House Reenactment

I was never much of an American history buff, but the longer I live in Virginia, the more I'm taken in by our history. I find myself wandering the local battlefields taking shots of cannons, trenches, cemeteries and all kinds of Civil War remnants. I begin to understand the passion behind saving the battlefields after chatting with members of the CVBT. And after attending my first Civil War reenactment the other week, I see the enthusiasm of the reenactors.

But as I attended this event, many questions began popping into my head.

Like, why do the reenactors do this time and time again? What's the motivation behind these events? I understand this is all volunteer. What drives one to travel all over the country to replay the events of the Civil War?

And a barrage of other questions popped up as I walked around the living history area and watched the reenactment

Where do they get the uniforms?

Who do the horses belong to?

Where do the tents come from?

Who decides who plays who in the event?

Who decides who lives and dies during the battle?

Where do the guns come from?

Obviously there are no live shells in the guns and cannons, so what are they shooting to make all that smoke?

How do the kids get involved?

Are reenactments family events for the reenactors?

Who's responsible for set up and take down?

These may be minor questions, but from what I saw, reenactments are a huge undertaking when you look at everything that's involved. I've been learning about Civil War history since my days in elementary school. Now that I've seen my first reenactment, I dig deeper.

So if there's anyone out there who has insight into these questions, comment or drop me a note. My curiosity is piqued.

Kerri

Magpi Studios