Submitted by Bootlicker on

On April 9, 1865, at Appomattox Court House, the Civil War ended for many of the Union and Confederate soldiers and civilians. I suggest that we, as living historians and/or reenacters, celebrate our grand hobby by wearing our period clothing on this day. This idea came out of the January meeting of the Maine Militia Forum's first Kitchen Conference.

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Strangely enough, thats a

Strangely enough, thats a drill day for us...... work on stacking arms? or chargeing bayonet? after all its 1861 in our first person world.....Sumpter gets fired on the 12th?
Seamus

"it is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifing......nothing"
MacBeth

PRIMA NOCTA

Still have my parole

I was in a huge reenactment of the surrender when I was with the 6th VA, Company C, in 1983 while living in Norfolk, VA. We marched along the same path that Gen Mahone allegedly took, stopping in the middle of a field to read the orders of surrender. We then took our battle flag and cut it into small pieces, the same as Mahone's brigade did that day. Each of us placed our piece in our hat bands so we could say that the flag was still flying as we marched in to stack arms. It was one of the saddest reenactments I ever participated in. There were around 10,000 or more reeenactors there that day and as the Confederate Army marched in, we were saluted by veterans and the only sounds you could hear was boots crunching on the dirt and gravel road, the clink of tin on wood, and orders spoken and repeated barely above a whisper. There wasn't a dry eye among the group, Union or Confederate.

I still have my piece of that flag and a prisoner's parole printed on the same press used after the surrender. It's one of the most vivid and impressive memories I have from any reenactment.

Heck yes I'll be wearing the uniform that day!