Members of the 8th Regiment, Illinois Cavalry (Civil War Reenactors) stand at rest during the Memorial Day ceremony in Elburn, Illinois. This group hails from Woodstock, Illinois.
Yes, those are wool uniforms and they stood in the hot sun for over an hour. They also participated in last years "Elburn Days" festival when they set up a civil war era campsite.
The attention to detail on their uniforms and equipment is amazing.
Don't Forget.....the The Back Porch is open.
7 comments:
I have to wonder about one bit of detail, though. Do you suppose if those were real rifles they would have held them with the muzzle pointed up at their bodies in that way?
Love the photo's. I am in the Jamestown/Williamburg/Yorktown area of VA. and love the civil war history. They have reenactors here sometimes. I would love to attend a big one sometime where people stay for a few days.
Thanks for the wonderful post.
Pablo - these are real guns. They shot off a three-shot volley. Since they are single-load, there aren't any bullets in the gun as they stand at parade rest. If they were to attempt a 21-gun salute it would take all day. There are at least two steps, maybe three to loading a bullet.
Autumn- Civil War reenactors are only the tip of the iceberg around here. We also have a huge contingent of World War II reenactors that set up historically correct campsites. One student, a college history major represents a German soldier from a division of the SS. We also have Voyageurs, who interpret the French hunters and trackers that traveled and worked in this area. Let's also remember the historical and agricultural living history efforts. WOW...lots of history being maintained around here.
Zanne beat me to it, but I was going to say those are definitely real guns if those reenactors are worth the title.
I have a lot of experience reenacting 1740's colonial Spanish soldiers and we wore 12 pound wool coats all summer long, but you were soaking wet with sweat underneath it so it really wasn't as hot as it looked.
As for speed of fire...you would be amazed at how fast a well trained soldier can load and fire. We were using flintlocks and could get off 3 shots in one minute. You read that correctly.
Hi Zanne, Willard J Watson dropping by and taking the time to say how much I admire what you are doing here. I posted a photo everyday in the gallery for a two week and a three week period just to see what it was like. First of all I ran out of things I wanted to post pretty quickly. I started carrying my camera everywhere I went. I enjoyed the challenge but it does take a lot of time. The big thing that I could never do is write the great copy that you do. Anyway, good job, I like it and you have inspired me photographically.
Ron(molehillbill)
I'm happy to be seen as an inspiration to anyone. My kids would never believe it though.
When I attended the dinner to accept Garfield Farm's award, a nice young lady asked me about my inspiration. What shot out of my mouth surprised even me - - MY DEADLINE. Which is in fact the truth. A daily deadline forces you to find inspiration in the most unlikely places. Always looking, always scanning for possibility.
Thanks so much for visiting.
This is one of my favorite pictures. But I think I said that about the flag too. Oh, well, they are all fabulous.
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