Good evening to everyone. I am sure many of you are getting
ready for the traditional Memorial Day Civil War reenactment at Century Village
in Burton Ohio. For many of us this is the first event of each year. For me
this will also be the first year that I will serve as the overall Federal
commander for our troops at this event. Over the course of the last nine months,
along with my Confederate counterpart Col. Tim Perry, we have been working to
redesign this event and take a fresh approach to a reenactment that has been
part of the Ohio schedule for many, many years. In an effort to do so, we will
be trying a number of new things this weekend both from an organizational
standpoint and a presentation standpoint. Some of these things will undoubtedly
be very well received by our fellow reenactors, and other things may not work
as well as we might hope. All I am asking is for those of you attending to
please keep an open mind and help us refine the ideas that will be useful in
creating a much better event for years to come.
As part of this restructuring we have looked at two major
elements of this event that impact us as reenactors. The first being the layout
of our camps. We have designated specific areas for Confederate troops and
Union troops. Some of you may be in the same place that you have been for
years. Others may be in a new area. The main goal being a better organization
to our camps in general. That is why it is important for all units and all
family groups to check in with Federal headquarters prior to set up. As a
reminder, due to school programs during early in the day, reenactors are not
permitted to set up prior to 2 pm on Friday.
The other element of this event that we are striving to
redevelop is of course the battle scenarios. For those of you who've been
following the Century Village Facebook page, you know that the size of the
battlefield we have to work with has been greatly increased. The location of
the spectators will actually be transient. Their experience will start in the town
green and they will move to the battlefield area for the larger engagement.
With the number of troops we have attending this year (there are currently 116
Confederate INFANTRY pre-registered), we feel we will be able to more
accurately portray a Civil War skirmish with a broader “paint brush”, at the
same time creating a better experience for the reenactor on the field. With
this in mind we are going to need the participation of civilians as part of the
scenario in the town green as well, as a number of civilian reenactors who can
hold a rope line so that spectators have a designated perimeter during the
skirmish in the town. I will cover this in more detail with each of the company
commanders during our Friday night meeting.
One of the other things I would like to touch on before the
weekend arrives is the new registration process we put in place this year. As
with reenactments in Pennsylvania, Virginia, Maryland, and other states, many
Ohio events are going to require that each unit provide a certificate of
insurance as part of a national reenacting organization. Some of you may not
realize that as a leader within the reenacting community, the liability of
someone getting hurt at an event can be put directly on your shoulders. Be you
the Union commander or a company commander. That is why so many large
reenacting organizations now require their members to participate in a group
insurance program. It protects ALL of us. Sorry guys, but I am not willing to
risk my home and my business because someone was being stupid with a musket.
Certificates of insurance from all of the large organizations participating
have been provided to the event organizers. If you are planning to register as
a walk on, and you are a Union reenactor, please be aware that the folks at
registration have a list that will help them verify you are indeed covered
under your national organization’s insurance policy. When you sign your waiver
at registration you are also verifying that you are part of one of those
registered companies covered by a national insurance program. If you plan on
walking in and making that claim without it being true, better think again!
Okay, enough of the legal bull. For those of you not already
registered, please be aware that you will not be provided a meal Saturday
evening. You must have pre-registered to receive a meal ticket. Importantly for
everyone who registers as a pre or walk
on, make sure to keep your registration token on you at all times. Both Col.
Perry and I negotiated long and hard for a lower registration fee, and the same
registration fee for walk on participants, with the promise that every
reenactor would pay their registration. A representative from the Confederate
Army will be checking all Union troops for their tokens prior to the battle. We
will be sending a representative to inspect the Confederate troops at the same
time. If you do not have a registration token you will not be taking the field
for the battle. END OF STORY. That was the agreement we made with the event in
order to cut the registration fee in half as well as a lesser fee for children
reenactors.
All right all right! My head is spinning already from all of
these things we have to remember!
For everyone's benefit, below is a copy of the Federal
schedule. As you can see we have a lot
going on. It will be important for company NCOs and officers to be at the
Friday evening meeting to discuss the details of the weekend.
Friday
9:00 pm - NCOs meeting (Federal
HQ)
9:30 pm - All officers meeting (Federal HQ)
Saturday
5:45 am - Silent reveille
6:30 - 7:15 am - Tactical
7:00 am - Reveille for those not participating in the Tactical
7:30 am - Morning reports due at Battalion HQs
7:45 am - Consolidated reports due at Federal HQ
9:00 am - NCOs inspect camps
9:30 am - Dress Parade
9:45 am - Company drill
10:15 am - Battalion drill
10:45 am - Mail call
1:00 pm - Form up/inspection arms
1:15 pm - March to the staging area
1:40 pm - One company deployed on patrol
1:45 pm - Skirmish in the Green
2:00 pm - Main battle scenario
5:30 pm - Event dinner (for pre-reg only)
8:00pm - Ball
Sunday
7:00 am - Reveille
7:30 am - Morning reports due at Battalion HQs
7:45 am - Consolidated reports due at Federal HQ
8:45 am - NCO inspect camps
9:15 am - Dress parade
10:00 am - Church
11:30 am - Form up/inspection arms
11:45 am - March to the school
12:00 pm - Stack arms, lunch in the field
12:45 pm - Skirmish on green, Federals parade in Burton
1:00 pm - Main battle scenario
1:45 pm - Back in camps, out of state troops may get vehicles
3:30 pm - Local troops may get vehicles
Lastly, I would like to thank the officers who are
going to be serving on staff this weekend. The following is the Federal command
structure:
Col. Christopher Smith, Brigade Commander
Lt. Col. Don Van Meter, Deputy Commander
Capt. Paul Baltzer, Brigade Adjutant
Maj. Bill Smith, Artillery
Maj. Mike Dallas, 1st Battalion Commander
Staff TBD
Maj Bob Penix, 2nd Battalion Commander
Staff TBD
I am very much looking forward to seeing all of you
there and having a fun and safe weekend.
Your Servant,
Chris
Colonel Christopher Smith
Federal Commander, Century Village Civil War Reenactment
