Chickamauga AAR Thread

[Eric Tipton]

Had a great time at the event. It was good to put on the gray again, and great to see our bretheren from the ANV. Always good to see our friends down south. I thought that the impressions look excellent collectively for sure. I will write more later - still unpacking. What did everyone think?

[tenfed1861]

Bland food.Bad heat.Headaches.Rough feet.Sun burnt.Good times.

[coastaltrash]

Headed out of Gulfport Thursday morning to meet Jeff Thompson, Charlie Lehman and Tommy Patton in Hattiesburg, Ms. Arrived in Chattanooga at about 2 am and crashed for the evening, followed by touring in the morning. Riding to an event with this bunch is something I have been looking forward to almost as much as the event.

I want to thank the guys that fell in with 7th Texas Co C for the weekend. Terry Sorchy did a great job as 1st Lt, Busenbark was excellent as 1st Sgt, Joe Blunt and Silas Tackitt did great as 2nd and 3rd Sgts and Cpls Bill Backus, Eric Tipton, Brian DesRochers, and Ryan Protz did outstanding as well. The drill on the company level was very good and a personal highlight for myself. I thought the company performed great from the Sub Altern down to the last private extremely well.

Thanks to the Battalion staff for putting the event together, looking forward to returning to Chickamauga again on a later date. I was extremely impressed with the entire event. Seeing the Stonewall Brigade for the first time in the same...well...similar...well in a Confederate Uniform at the same time with the WIG was very impressive. I could tell that from head to toe each man did a lot of research and spent a good chunk of change and it showed!

I would have to say the most impressive thing of the entire event was the skirmish line! The massive line moving across the field on Saturday afternoon was second only to watching the line disappear over the crest of the hill on Sunday. Great time and well worth it. Actually getting a chance to talk to some guys I have been around and never had the opportunity to talk with was reason enough to travel.

The top part of the weekend was sitting in the candle light on Snodgrass Hill with Skip Owens, Justin Runyon and Joe Blunt listening to Jim Ogden give us great accounts of the area. Sitting around with good friends and listening to history is hard to beat.

[jones56ga]

Howdy Yall,
I had a great time as a corporal in Co. A. I especially enjoyed being able to compare our impressions (AOT/ANV). Being able to relive the battle in real-time was amazing as well.Thanks Tripp, Hunter, and eveyone else who came together to make this event a great time.

-Ricky Jones

[HighPrvt]

Had a great time at my first WIG event. Enjoyed meeting a lot of new folks, especially the "Real" Texans. The demos, while a bit taxing were great fun, especially the stroll up Horseshoe ridge. Hope everyone made it home safely.

[Daryl Black]

Fellows,

A quick note from the interpreters' side of things. Excellent work overall -- the crowds were big (roughly 350 on Saturday alone), the visitors engaged, and the visuals provided by the battalion effective and dramatic. The real time movements were wonderful -- we had quite a few visitors attend all of the programs who were enthralled by the sense of scale they were provided. Had a few people ask about the possibility of doing something similar for the Federal side of the story. 125th Ohio? Just a thought.

[Spongebucket]

Bully to All!!
As a former interpreter at the site, this event was a pipe dream for many of us who sat in the summer sun behind the visitor center. Thanks to the organizers and thanks to the participants who helped make a vision a reality.
I think all can say they were impressed by the skirmish demos and the distance covered. The time while on the Brotherton field turning and seeing the 7th SC and thinking "wow, they really do look like yankees" (Good showing fellows). There are always things that were good and bad...but all in all, I had a great time. I want to thank the officers and NCOs (not just battallion level) but in my company. The corporals in my platoon did an outstanding job (having not worked with them before). They did there jobs when asked and were attentive to the men in their respective sections. Thank you.
My biggest dissappointment was not being able to go into a full out gorilla fight with Landrum on Sunday....next time buddy.
My hat also wants to go off to the site. Starting with Jim Ogden (who was Yoda to Landrum , Owens, Runyon, myself, and a few others with historical tales on Sat. night), Daryl Black, PhD, Keith Bohannon, PhD and W.O. Jeff Hodnett US Army, and the rest of the NPS staff.
Hmmmmm"Yankee Tigers"? Sounds good to me.
Thank you all fellers,
Joe Blunt

[Eric Tipton]

125th Ohio?

That one is my favorite monument on Snodgrass Hill. Portray Ohioans at Chickamauga? Well sure. :D

[HighPrvt]

The time while on the Brotherton field turning and seeing the 7th SC and thinking "wow, they really do look like yankees" (Good showing fellows).
Joe Blunt

Those of us on last picket duty Saturday night saw the the 7th SC's picket detail march past us in the dark. They would have been engaged if we didn't know who they were. They really looked like Yankees in the dark.

[Mtn.Guerilla]

Well all I can do is echo many of the comments already posted. This event was truly a great expierence, right in my own backyard. Co. A 7th Texas, thanks for letting me be one of your Cpl.'s, it's an honor to participate in such a fine event, with a great set of men and officers. Also thanks to Joe Walker for being a great Sgt. and being kind enough to give us NCO's information on the actual first person we were portraying. It was really a unique opprutunity to portray someone that was actually there, and try to get into their mindset. Also the skirmish line on Sat. was amazing. I had the privledge of being the VERY last man on the far left and it was quit a impressive sight. It was also an honor to be involved in an action that hadn't been performed on that scale, since the war.
" I lost 5 lbs. in 2 days, thanks to the AoT diet & excersise plan ! "
------- thanks, AoT :D

[trippcor]

Wow what a great event!!! How many times does one get to see companies from the ANV and AOT working side by side, a horse drawn artillery piece and limber, and a battalion sized skirmish line all at one event?? This was a first for me.

To the men of the Waco Guards, it was an extreme honor to have commanded such a fine company this weekend. You all did an amazing job of portraying the Waco Guards and honoring their memory. I am sure they would have been grateful for what we accomplished this weekend. I hope everyone left Sunday feeling as if they done something special and done it well. I know I did. My hat is off to each and everyone of you. I hope to serve with you all again in the near future. (Hint: register for Outpost)

A special thanks to Joe Walker and Tim Bell for providing lots of information on the Waco Guards including rosters and bios. It helped make the event even more memorable.

[DougCooper]

Also the skirmish line on Sat. was amazing. I had the privledge of being the VERY last man on the far left and it was quit a impressive sight. It was also an honor to be involved in an action that hadn't been performed on that scale, since the war.
" I lost 5 lbs. in 2 days, thanks to the AoT diet & excersise plan ! "
------- thanks, AoT :D
Was wondering who that was way down on the left of the line (400+ yards away). :D

I was lucky to for once have a non-stop flight to an event and Mike Ventura waiting on me at the airport. We did a Braves game and together Silas, Mike and I visited Kennesaw Mountain (note to self - attend the 2008 event), Pickett's Mill and Resaca (saw the 500 acre GA State Park) and ate as much southern food (BBQ, Biscuits, Fried Chicken and Waffle House) as I could. Thanks Mike!!!

The mark of a good commander and staff is knowing when to be flexible and always keeping the men's welfare and the mission in balance. Art Milbert and his staff did that very well. We never spent any more time in the sun than was necessary and he was always calculating the schedule and the movements to ensure we got 'er done an efficient way that was both a great experience for the spectators and us. Thanks also for the Guard Mount scenario and Skipper Owens' work as OOD.

Kent Oestentaad and his horse drawn gun was a great addition - those boys knew their biz, as usual, and stayed safe and professional during the misfire procedures. Hope they have good chiropractors - the boys bouncing on the wheels were hanging on for dear life a couple of times. :eek: We cheered them loudly as they came thundering by and went into battery. One of the unfortunate things in the campaigner end of the hobby is the low number of times we get to see that.

We sweated like...well like nothing since Vicksburg :eek: Water discipline was good. Temps were 89-91 and humidity ditto. Nobody needed a heavy blanket at night...nor a blanket at all... The forecast was perfectly accurate and my only concern is there may have been just a few folks whose mind said go when their body said no...so having an honest and accurate assessment of your fitness ahead of time is important, for the benefit of yourself and the organizers/leadership of events like this.

Not sure everyone knew that Saturday's program was in real time - a SUPERB idea. Going up the hill toward the South Carolina monument near the end I glanced over at Silas behind Co C and we just smiled...as the hair on the backs of our necks stood up and the sweat poured down our faces.

Food issue was real enough (sparse and accurate), and got the troops thinking about managing their rations. The heat kept everyone more focused on thirst than hunger.

The NPS folks and interpreters were oustanding...in fact, some of the best I have ever heard.

The 96 Rifles was a great company - it all clicked like we were veterans...which I guess we are, albeit from about 10 different organizations. Jerry's Kids (Stiles) had a good time.

Coolest moment for me was commanding our company's skirmish line and seeing that the left guide was 400 yards away and company commander Jerry Stiles was 80 paces back and battalion commander Art Milbert farther than that, each with a bugler. Skirmish done right, by the bugle. Field glasses actually came in handy.

Second coolest was waking up Sunday AM and seeing fog among the monuments and guns and seeing Chad stroll out to blow assembly of the buglers in the pre-dawn light.

Speaking of our 4 tooters, they were outstanding - being surrounded by simultaneous reveille from all of them each morning was annoying, as it would have been. :D Seriously, they greatly added to the event and the education of everyone on the calls.

The AoT/ANV contrast was striking and brought home just how dangerous it was for Longstreet's men in the smoke and haze of battle at the real deal and for the Yankees who withheld fire thinking friends were in front.

One special highlight for me was reuniting with comrade Charles Pinkham from my first days in the hobby. It was good once again seeing comrades from all over the country and hearing the words from Neill Rose and other's at Church Call. Neill also coordinated some truly entertaining letters from home, cooked his secret recipe Low Country Plantation Rice and did interpreting for NPS...a busy man!

Thanks to everyone involved for bringing the army back to Chickamauga in such an impressive way.

And finally, God Bless the memory and soul of Lt JC Lovelace, Co H. 7th South Carolina Infantry (my character), KIA September 20, 1863.

[75thbugler]

I had a great time, I will never forget seeing the skirmish line moving by the bugle definatly one of the high points for the weekend. Thanks to my fellow buglers and the 7th South Carolina for having me hope to do it again sometime.

[hpotter]

Y'all I had a blast at my first WIG event. The park was fantastic and it was great putting faces with names. It was great meeting everyone from all over this great country. Only now can i really visualize the accounts of the battle. Looking forward to future events. Under five weeks til another great time.

[HighPrvt]

Mr. Cooper,
As I read over your account of the weekend I could smell the dust, and powder,and taste the beef, and sweet taters all over again!!!:D

[LWhite64]

We had nothing but good comments at the Visitors Center, just wish I could have been out there with you all. I did get some pics and will try to post some of them soon. As always we appreciate what you all did for the site, a Fed program would be most welcome, we havent had a large scale US program in a long time. Have to start thinking about that one, need to pick one to be able to be on battleline road since we are restoring that part of the field.

Lee

[Texyank]

All,

From a spectator's standpoint you all did a wonderful job. I had never been to the battlefield before and it is a very beautiful site.

I was on the way back to VA from TX and planned the stop in on Saturday knowing that the event was going on (didn't know you were going to be there Doug).

My lovely and charming daughter had the meltdown of her life (she's 2) and had to be banished to the van during the presentation so she didn't ruin the other spectators' experience.

My bride took some pictures:

[KathyBradford]

Here is an AAR from 1863. Tilden Kleckner was in the 21st Ohio, Co. A, with George Thomas. He was wounded September 20th. His brother Absolom had been killed at Stones River almost nine months before. This was written from the Camp General Field Hospital on October 26th, 1863, to his brother's widow.

In the previous letter, he had sent word that "if his Daddy votes for Vallandigham that he never wants to go inside of his house again and he wants you to tell his father." He and eight men in his company had had their picture taken and sent home. "...you must not let them look at that picture too much for it will not be healthy for a copperhead to look at it too much."

Dear Sister,

It is with a great amount of pleasure that I embrace this opportunity of answering your ever welcome letter which I received a few days ago and you can rest assured that it was a welcome messenger, especially to a soldier that has to lay on the flat of his back all the time and suffer the pain of a gun shot wound. But when I enlisted, I enlisted to fight for my country and do my duty as a soldier and it was my misfortune to fall in the great Battle of Chickamauga. I fell at my post doing my duty with a number of other boys out of our Regiment and now I will have to bear it as well as I can. My wound is a pretty bad one. The ball went in below the left knee and extended downward. The ball was in my leg five days before it was cut out. Since that time I have had my leg lanced twice and now it is discharging freely and doing as well as can be expected. I think from appearance at this time I will get along pretty well. I am in the field hospital two miles north of Chattanooga. I am taken as good care of as can be in a place like this is. Solomon Wells (brother-in-law of Steve Leonard) is here helping to take care of our boys. It is not like being at home, but I am a great deal better off than some other poor soldiers that fell in to the Rebels hands. No doubt you have heard before this time who was killed and wounded. John (Leonard) was taken prisoner, and Joseph Camp (Kampf). We all thought that the Battle of Stone River was a hard fight, but it was nothing to what this battle was. Cannonballs, shells and bullets fell around us as thick as hail. Our army is in and around Chattanooga. Our pickets and the Rebel pickets converse with one another every day and exchange papers. You spoke in your letter of sending me some money. You need not mind it. I have some money and there is no chance to buy anything here and if I need any I can get it of some of the boys. Give my respect to father and mother. I hope that father can see by this time the folly of voting for a traitor (Vallandigham). You tell mother that if she wants me to come home that as soon as I am able I will try and come home.

I will have to close my letter for this by requesting you to write soon as convenient if you please. Letters do as much good as anything I can get now days.

Written for Till by Rufus Fellers, member of Company A, 21st Ohio. For further particulars inquire of Joseph Pickett. Yours with respect. Direct to Tilden Kleckner, Co. A, 21st Ohio Regt, in care of Lieutenant Daniel Richards.


Her brother, John Leonard, was taken prisoner that same day. He was sent to Libby Prison and then on to Andersonville where he died of scurvy.

Tilden Kleckener died three weeks after this letter on November 18th, 1863, from his leg wound. He is buried in the Chattanooga cemetery under a Buckeye Tree. His cousin John Kleckner of the 49th Ohio who was killed at Missionary Ridge is buried close by.

[Kiev Thomason]

Gents,
It was great seeing all my old pards and making some new ones.I thought all in all the event went very well.I want to say another BIG thanks to all of you who made the trip .With out you folks it would have never worked.Looking down the line and seeing Stiles and his men and also looking at the WIG in contrast....WOW!I wish there was more events like this.
I hope no one died of hunger ,but as some folks say....we tried to keep it real!

Please take time and sign up for our Outpost event:baring_te.It will be here soon !

Once more...THANKS !

[Eric Tipton]

Here is a photo I took a few years ago at Chickamauga of the 125th OVI Monument on Snodgrass Hill. Dig the tiger.

One of the highlights of the weekend for me was actually camping ON Snodgrass and then attacking it... although I had mixed feelings about the assault since there are so many Ohio monuments up there. ;)

[Peachfuz]

I for one thought the beef ration was pretty darn tasty. I grabbed a decent sized hunk moments before we formed up to move on Saturday morning. I regretted got getting more when I woke up hungry on Sunday, yet not hungry enough to take one of the chucks that were left over and the flys had been working on.
I had an amazing time, well worth the travel, time and money. One of my hopes for the event was that we would produce a “uniform” company to contrast our friends in the AOT and I think we did that well. Thanks again to Neil Rose who went above and beyond to get my English gear done and to me, I think it contributed greatly to the goal stated above. The drive back home was interesting as a bunch of fire ants had made it into the van and proceeded to munch on me was I drove down the highway. At least I didn’t get pulled over, right Jer?

[JohnBoy401]

Great event! Had a blast.......By the way, does anyone have the recipe for that cornbread?:eek:

John Runyon
Co. A, 4th VA
SWB

[Iron Scout]

Rich,

That's too funny regarding the ants. Having not seen an ant all weekend, imagine our suprise opening the van and finding ant trails in all directions. I'm sure the folks at Enterprise won't find it as humorous as we did!

Anyway, our group had a wonderful time and found the event well executed and above expectations. I stayed behind to do interp Saturday with Jim Ogden and Daryl Black and have to say the skirmish line across Dyer was something to behold. Even at the extreme distances from where we stood, the differnces between the AOT and ANV were very marked. When folks say it would have been easy to mistake Kershaw for Union, this is quite the understatement.

While not an AAR by any means, here's a few highlights for me personally:

-Seeing Dan Gidick carrying that huge slab of beef with thawing juices running in all directions. I literally could smell it in the rear of the column Friday evening.

-The overall uniform appearance of the Ninety-Six Riflemen including a large amount of English equipment.

-Cooking for the company Saturday evening. Call me crazy but I always enjoy this!

-Sitting around Sunday morning with fellow Believers and allowing God's Word to speak to us.

-The fantastic view of the skirmish line slowly progressing up Snodgrass Hill.

-Horse drawn artillery! Need I say more?

-Fantastic weather and good friends in both the AOT and ANV companies.

-Having a USMC Korean War veteran commenting on our uniforms as being "Yankee". Couldn't ask for a better way to open an interpretive discussion...

-Seeing the SWB vans roll up Friday evening with "JB Kershaw Rulez...and Chickamauga or Bust" written on the windows!

-Solid leadership across the board.

Hat's off to everyone who travelled so far and organized a great event.

Regards,

Neill Rose
PLHA

[coastaltrash]

Wanted to also add that the rice so kindly provided by Neill and some of the other ANV guys was probably the best food item I have had at events next to a Carriecake.

[DougCooper]

I forgot to thank Mark Timms for the turnip greens - after a day and a half of good beef and outstanding starch, my taste buds were startled at having vegetables suddenly thrown upon them :D

Kathy's letter reminds us of the real deal that keeps folks like us coming back to places where sacrifice and valor were common virtues. The Rangers thanked us for our work with the twin reminders that the veterans had created this first of all Battlefield Parks for two reasons:

1. As an eternal remembrance of what happened there, for both sides.

2. As an educational lab for future generations.

We revere #1 to the depths of our souls and we have an awesome responsibility to carry on #2. There is no higher calling in the hobby than that gentlemen.

Job well done last weekend. I hope we can continue to raise these kinds of numbers (battalion strength) as it greatly expands the interpretation possibilities...and enables us to practice battalion maneuvers regularly, something we need to keep us sharp.

See you at Outpost.

[toptimlrd]

Well,

Let me first say that you definitely had to be in excellent condition at this one due to the heat and humidity. I will admit I was definitely one of the stragglers at Snodgrass and at the end of the day Sunday. I was rather chagrined as this is only the second time I have had to fall out of a march. bear in mind I live in Florida and am originally from North Georgia so the heat wasn't much of an issue but I had grown unaccustomed to the humidity. Spent a lot of time before the event hydrating and working on getting in shape but still fell out. I'll be trying to find somewhere to do quite a bit of hill climbing befoe Pickett's Mill next year, that one should be intense.

As to the event itself, it was well done and impressive. From the ration issue (great job on the rations, the beef was great and the cornbread very tasty Kiev) to the last demonstration of skirmish on Sunday. The midnight march to our first camp was enjoyable and the incredibly long skirmish line up artillery ridge was a sight to behold. I've been doing skirmish drill for years and have NEVER sen it done on that scale. Although I was in the rear by the time we got to Snodgrass, watching you boys assault that (what seemed like) vertical slope had to leave the crowd in awe.

Bein on the 10:00 to 12:00 picket line was also one of those "moments". Looking across that field and only being able to see the next picket's sillouette in the monlight put me in the moment.

Huzzah's for Art Milbert, Tripp Corbn, Justin Runyon, Pat Landrum, Brian Hicks, Terry Sorchey and everyone else who took on a leadership role at this event, you all did an outstanding job.

It was great meeting many of you for the first time and to those of you whom I have known for some time. I look forward to seeing you again soon. Hopefully someone got some good pictures and may put this event in the Historian, I think it was a great event worth talking about.

[Daryl Black]

Fellows,

Just wanted to echo the comments about the "yankees" we had on the field. It was amazing to see the dramatic contrast. A major point about confusion and ranges on the battlefield was driven home just before the first Sunday program. I stood on the tour road and looked at the battalion in the woods. At a little over 130 yard the line was nearly invisible -- and I knew where to look. The ANV company was IDENTICAL in appearance to Federal troops at this point. An incredible learning experience.

As to a U.S. event -- how about a unit from Willich's Brigade? Allows for movement on the field from Winfrey Field to Battleline Road. Also would provide an interesting set of interpretive opportunities to talk about Willich's "advance firing" move on Kelly Field. 15th Ohio? Good regimental out there on these boys.

[RelicRoomGuy]

"Kathy's letter reminds us of the real deal that keeps folks like us coming back to places where sacrifice and valor were common virtues. The Rangers thanked us for our work with the twin reminders that the veterans had created this first of all Battlefield Parks for two reasons:

1. As an eternal remembrance of what happened there, for both sides.

2. As an educational lab for future generations."

Been great to read here how well the PLHA's SC impression went! Just an observation on the above:

During the Span-Am, troops trained on the old battlefield, among them more SC soldiers rather ironically wearing blue (real, official Federal blue that time); I notice that many of our SC 1898 ancestors took great pride in that, writing "Chickamauga" on their canteen covers, taking tourist photos there and so forth. Remembrance, and the deliberate continuation of the tradition - and union, for a common purpose, with the sons of their fathers' foes - were strong there. Certainly it was an "educational lab"...Span-Am logistics were a nightmare.

First battlefield set aside officially to preserve the soldiers' heritage - and soon called upon to help perpetuate the martial skills and spirit the nation needs. Thanks for keeping it up this weekend!

[NC5thCav]

I must say I had a blast. I enjoyed meeting some people in person the first time. Seeing the diference in the ANV and AoT troops was a real eye opener. The Sunday morning service was one of my highlights of the weekend, thanks Neil. The only downside was that some critter tried to make a meal out of my CD as it aired on the clothes line last night. It now has two large holes that I have to figure out how to fix:cry_smile.

[bAcK88]

This past weekend was a pretty neat experience for me. The 7th South Carolina fought a couple of blocks down from me at school at Fredericksburg and I visited Raymond countless times this summer so it was cool having that somewhat personal touch for me.

I want to thank all the men of Company C for a fantastic weekend. This event was the first one that I was ever an NCO. Even though I studied the duties prior to the event, I needed "on the job" learning, so 1st Section, 2nd Platoon thanks for putting up with me.

Many people said it before, but the highlight for my weekend was the contrast between the ANV company and the AoT companies was wicked cool. Also the skirmish line going up the to the South Carolina monument (what hill is that, because I thought that was Snodgrass Hill but I've been told wrong by others) and the rallying on the reserve Sunday was just something that is rarely seen at events.

I've only been doing this for 2 years, but Chickamauga was the finest living history that I've ever attended! I hope to see all you again next month at Outpost!

Bill

[NC5thCav]

Also the skirmish line going up the to the South Carolina monument (what hill is that, because I thought that was Snodgrass Hill but I've been told wrong by others)

That was Horseshoe Ridge.

[JStiles]

It's taken me a little while to collect my thoughts on this event, but here goes. First, before I talk about the highlights of the event from my perspective, I'd like to thank the two guys who I worked with most closely. Art Milbert and the WIG staff did an excellent job, start to finish. Even though the web site stated that the event was co sponsored by the WIG and SWB, Art did the lions share of talking to the park and coming up with the demo sequences and agenda. Excellent work Art.

The other fellow is Neill Rose. Neill and I started talking about doing a Kershaw's Brigade element at Chick quite a while ago and it was great to see it come to pass. Neill did a ton of research on Kershaw's guys and he, along with Craig Schneider made a lot of the gear/uniform parts worn this past weekend. It's always a pleasere to work with Neill.

Many thanks also to Doug Cooper for stepping up and being our Lt this past weekend as well as our hard working group of NCOs. Craig, Eric, James, Jeff, Mark, Scotty, Dan and Phil- Thanks guys.

Thanks as well to all the guys who came together from all over to form Co. H 7th SVI for the event. You guys showed up prepared for what lay ahead and were ready to rock. I thought our impressions both collectivey and individually were really great. From my perspective, the drill was top notch as well. When you can do a wheel on the move with a 40 man company right off the bat with no prior explanation and it's done just as the manual states, that's really something. You are to be commended.

Lastly thanks to Joe Long and his folks for writing all those letters. They really added to our experience at the event and were very much appreciated.

Ok, enough with the mushy stuff, here are my highlights:

All the cool impressions and marked contrast between the ANV guys and AOT.

The MASSIVE skirmish line on Saturday afternoon.

Seeing the horse drawn arty come rumbling by at a trot.

Our camp location Saturday evening.

Neill's rice pudding.

Runnin' scared from Joe Blunt.

Sleeping on arms Friday night.

Seeing Co. H 7thSCVI first formed Friday evening.

Hearing about the Pink Panther of Chick story (yowser).

The van rise down and back with my group of village idiots.

Jerry Stiles

[Malingerer]

My sincere thanks to everyone who made this weekend such an outstanding example of what can be done in the world of living history. Special thanks to: Officers Jerry Stiles and Doug Cooper, 7th SC NCO s and to Neill Rose (who's timely and well spoken prayer at the SC monument was a highlight for me personally... um along with his now famous, lowcountry rice pudding). Hard to go back to work after this one. No - literaly, I was too exhausted to go back to work on Monday.

[blackhattertuck]

By the way, does anyone have the recipe for that cornbread

In a large bowl, put some cornmeal. Add a dollop of lard. Bake?

[JustRob]

I had mixed feelings about the assault since there are so many Ohio monuments are up there.

Eric,

You weren't the only one. While visiting the monuments on Snodgrass Hill I said a little apology to the Federal Old Ones for walking around their positions in Confederate uniform, especially since I'm a Yankee myself.

I need to do this in Federal blue some time. Hopefully soon.

[Malingerer]

Eric,

You weren't the only one. While visiting the monuments on Snodgrass Hill I said a little apology to the Federal Old Ones for walking around their positions in Confederate uniform, especially since I'm a Yankee myself.

I need to do this in Federal blue some time. Hopefully soon.

Uh... Rob, wern't you the one belting out choruses of the "Bonnie Blue Flag" and "Dixie"?

[PalmettoGuard]

Good site + good Living historians + good weather + good leadership = Great Event.

I had a lot a fun at this one.

The ANV company really was great impression-wise. My hat's off to everyone that brought their A-game impressions to this one. This company looked good. (And so did the AOT companies).

It was fun to be in a Battalion sized formation and do Battalion drill

My thanks to the good folks at the SC Relic Room for the letters they sent along. They provided a good chuggle on a hot day.

I never knew Rice Pudding could have such healing powers!

My compliments to the WIG staff for the handling of logistics. There was always water available despite our constantly moving from site to site.

It's always good to be in a Jerry Stiles/Doug Cooper led company.

[JustRob]

Peter,

That was me. No reason not to honor the Confederate Old Ones. For the record, I only sang Dixie. I don't know the words to Bonnie Blue Flag well enough.

I pay respects to and beg pardons from the Old Ones when crossing their ground in their opponent's uniform. I did the same when standing in the Sunken Road in Irish Brigade kit.

This was an amazing weekend for me. Seeing the battalion sacked out on Monday morning before the assault up Horseshoe Ridge was a moment. The difference in uniforms was impressive.

I'm still not sure what people are saying about the cornbread. The batch I had was a disgusting salty mess that made me sick. I didn't know it was possible to screw up cornbread that badly.

Thank Heaven for the fellow that shared a potato and onion with me on Saturday night to make the meat ration palatable. It was true Christian charity.

Riding to this event in the Shocker Mess "Chicamauga or Bust" van was worth the trip. You should have seen the grafitti we erased before we got there. Meeting the Danimal was also an event.

[NC5thCav]

While visiting the monuments on Snodgrass Hill I said a little apology to the Federal Old Ones for walking around their positions in Confederate uniform, especially since I'm a Yankee myself.


It was my honor to be camped just down the hill from the monument to the 58th NC, my g-g-grandfather's regiment. He had deserted earlier in the year but returned to duty in August of 1863. Me and some of the Tarheels took a little stroll up there Saturday evening. It was quite a moving moment to be sure.

[coastaltrash]

That cornbread is hit or miss. Taken from an original recipe, made on the measurements of an original piece of CS cornbread, Kiev was a cornbread making machine for this event and the effort was appreciated. Believe me, it can't be as bad as the batch I made with sour lard!

Anyone have any more pictures from this weekend?

[Coatsy]

"I'm still not sure what people are saying about the cornbread. The batch I had was a disgusting salty mess that made me sick. I didn't know it was possible to screw up cornbread that badly."

Rob.... That was the real recipe. Nummy Num Num!!!!! No Crisco in it, but some nice LARD and a few pinches of salt.

Cleans the system out very well.

[roundshot]

Would love to see some pics of the ANV contingent, if anyone has some to share.

[Dignann]

That was the real recipe. Nummy Num Num!!!!! No Crisco in it, but some nice LARD and a few pinches of salt.
I think the consensus among me and my pards was that it did taste rather awful. That said, lacking much else to chew on, come Sunday morning it was much appreciated.

I had a very good time this past weekend and thank the folks involved in putting the program together. Y'all were very good hosts to those of us that made the trip from back east.

Eric

[DougCooper]

I loved the cornboard...er...cornbread! For once the stuff stayed together and could be consumed at leisure, and twern't bad at all. This whole event was a culinary adventure - in variety if not in volume.

I kind of hinted at this on an earlier post but if there is one thing we need to do more of, its battalion drill with at least 3 companies... 4 or 5 being better. Because the entire event is all about the manuevers being performed as per the original unit, and there is LOTS of room and nothing else to do, we get an entire weekend of drill but with that historical context on the original ground. Can't beat good training and good history.

I would love to see us do the 2nd Minnesota or one of the OVI regiments.

[JustRob]

For the record, the peanuts were quite good.

Being a Yankee, I've never seen raw peanuts before. They roasted up quite nicely.

[Coon Dawg]

Anyone have any more pictures from this weekend?

Patrick ~

I took a bunch of pictures. Lots of the ANV and AOT as well as lots of the skirmish line.

Whenever I get them downloaded, I will provide everyone a link.

Joel Phillips

The Flatlander's Mess (http://flatlandersmess.googlepages.com/home)

[Kiev Thomason]

Great event! Had a blast.......By the way, does anyone have the recipe for that cornbread?:eek:

John Runyon
Co. A, 4th VA
SWB

Yes! As I:confused_ will never need it again!!!

Two table spoons baking soda.
One of salt
Two cups Rye flour
three and one half corn meal
half cup of melted pure lard

Mix in all the above with enough water to make the stuff look about like cement and pour on a bread pan and roll about one half inch thick.Cut with a greasy hard tack cutter and bake at 350 for about 45 Min.

[ley74]

As a Southerner, the peanuts were just dandy, even raw. Where ever they came from must have had the sweetest soil on earth.

Neil Rose gets a star for the "don't ask" rice dish and church call on Sunday morning. It was great to catch up with many folks.

Hats off to Jerry and the entire crew of NCOs and officers of the 7th SC. It was a spectacular sight watching the percision of the skirmishers' drill. A heartfelt thanks to Jerry and Doug for making sure my adventure was all it could be.

What a beautiful park!

[toptimlrd]

Anyone thinking about publishing an article in CW Historian about the event? If we have some good pictures then it would likely be a welcome addition to the magazine.

I also want to add that maneuvering by the bugle was a welcome addition as well.

[coastaltrash]

I would stick away from using melted lard, as that's what caused the infamous lard pockets. If anyone is interested I can give you the recipe of the cornbread hardtack along with the dimensions of an original piece of CS hardbread, and a recipe for CS hardbread made from Flour that everyone seemed to like at Fort Donelson.

[albrandon]

"I'm still not sure what people are saying about the cornbread. The batch I had was a disgusting salty mess that made me sick. I didn't know it was possible to screw up cornbread that badly."

Rob.... That was the real recipe. Nummy Num Num!!!!! No Crisco in it, but some nice LARD and a few pinches of salt.

Cleans the system out very well.

Hey, Coatsy,

I wasn't at this event, but I hear there was an excellent photo shot of you in the woods. :D

Affectionately,
Amber Brandon

[boozie]

Had an great time at this event. Loved the horse drawn artillery, it's always fun to watch. Wish someone would do Lilly's Battery, doing the same thing at Chickamauga. Anyway it was very cool to watch the skirmish line move off over the hill and out of sight on Sunday. The bugle with the reserve would blow and then you could hear the others blowing the same call over the hill. Shows how important those guys really were. My favorite part was being able to sleep on Brock field the first night. It was special to me since I had family members in Strahl's Brigade.

Thanks to the WIG staff who did a great job and also to Captain Landrum who did a great job and put up with me as his Orderly for the weekend. Thanks to Sgt. Blunt and Tackit, it was great meeting you and the company ran so smooth because of your hard work. I talked to many new faces and remembered some old faces from our eastern brothers. The contrast was eye opening between the AoT and ANV companys. As stated before, thank you Neil for the rice pudding, thank you Kiev for the Turkey, and thank you Sgt. Hicks for sharing your haversack Sunday morning.

It was an honor to serve you company C, you boys made it look easy while having fun.

[Coatsy]

Amber,

Well it wasn't a photo shoot, but the guy was a little off. I was only taking care of some business thanks to the Confederate "Lard Pockets". :eek:

And Landrum, don't be hate'n on the "Lard Pockets". They did their job.:tounge_sm

[jones56ga]

Herb,
I figured you had posed for the guy:D.
Ricky Jones

[trippcor]

I have posted a few images from the event on the WIG website. If anyone has anymore please send them my way.

[Dignann]

One of the demos, mostly artillery with Ogden/Rose narration, posted on YouTube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V_TgSHUev5k

Too bad it's not longer, as it just misses our skirmish line demo.

Eric

[samarshall]

I just wanted to say thanks to the boys of Company C, Mr. Harding, Frito-lays and I had a blast this last weekend, We all look forward to Outpost, And hope to see you all again. Oh and also this time we will try to get our registration in earlier.



Seth Marshall

Liberty Rifles

[HighPrvt]

One of the demos, mostly artillery with Ogden/Rose narration, posted on YouTube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V_TgSHUev5k

Too bad it's not longer, as it just misses our skirmish line demo.

Eric


Never the less, it was cool to see us marching down the road, and taking arms. Would love to see a video of our skirmish line moving across the field, and up the hill.
Thanks for the link.

[charding4496]

Ive gotta echo what Seth said. All three of us had a great time. You never know what to expect when you fall in with completely new people and in this case I was definitely pleased. It was nice to make some more friends to fall in with the next time I get a hankering to do Western Fed or Army of Tennessee.

Our event got off to a bit of a rough start while wandering the battlefield trying to find everyone Friday night. Fortunately we found the parking lot thanks to a reluctantly helpful and spotlight happy local police officer. An hour or so walking in circles and we decided to give up and sleep in the field by the parking area. A quick ride from a park ranger in the morning had us back on track though.

It was nice seeing a few familiar friends such as Jerry Stiles and some of the folks from back east but I really enjoyed making even more new ones! Thanks to Capt. Landrum, Lt. Sorchy, and the rest of the leadership in company C. Also thanks to everyone who provided the information on the different units and movements throughout the event. Sgt. Blunt, I hope we weren't too much of a handful for you and the rest of second platoon!

I really enjoy falling in with new people and seeing how they might do things a bit differently. There were a few nuances to drill which I appreciated, among other things - heck I even finally learned how to properly stack arms by Hardee's revised. But I gotta admit you all gave Seth and I a shock to see how excited you all got at the sound of the bugle for roll call Sunday morning!

Even though the event was great, my favorite part of the weekend was making the exhausting climb up Buzzard's Roost on Rocky Face Ridge to see the grave of Pvt. Disney from the 4th KY and not to mention the great view. To see the terrain and rifle pits up there really changes your perception of that sort of combat. You can look at it on maps but its amazing when you see it in person.

Anyway, thanks again everyone. Ill definitely be headed to Outpost!

Cody J. Harding
Liberty Rifles
http://www.libertyrifles.org

[Eric Tipton]

Now that I have had a few days to catch up on real life, I just wanted to throw out my personal observations from Chickamauga. I'll try not to repeat too much...

First, as everyone has mentioned, the contrast between the AoT and ANV was interesting, especially for a Yankee such as myself. While marching with the ANV in front of the column, I kept having an optical illusion that I was in Federal ranks. Kind of made me feel at home. :D

Not having done nearly as much research on the Confederate side, I would have to say that the impressions overall were very good. I have been waiting to wear my Columbus Depot Jacket for a couple of years and was thrilled at the chance. One thing I noticed - my Confederate clothing seems lighter than my Federal stuff. I also noticed that wearing light gray and butternut is ALOT better in the Southern sun. The temperatures at times approached (but did not surpass) Vicksburg and at least we weren't walking solar panels this time around... although the fellas in the ANV might have a slightly different take.

A lot of new guys in NCO positions and all seemed to be attentive and competent. Water details were run on an almost continuous basis and we drained canteens at the behest of officers, sergeants and corporals alike. One thing I have always noticed at authentic events is that the first time we drill at each event, it is almost like starting over again. It was a slow year after Vicksburg for us, and I'll admit that I was rusty myself. I was glad that we got out and did company and battalion drill and skirmish drill. Sure wish we could collectively build a larger core of regulars to work this a bit. ;)

We stayed with Kiev, since we had a site visit south of Atlanta for the weekend and personally saw, experienced and loaded the now infamous cornbread ration. I kind of ate my quota standing on his porch Wednesday night partially due to the novelty of eating something different than the typical hardtack issue. Man, all I can say is that he baked 450 of those things and it looked like a gigantic piece of cornbread exploded on his back porch. What a mix of taste - salt corn and slip-and-slide material. Nummy!

I love visiting Chickamauga. The battle is so interesting and the site is very well-maintained and picturesque by it's own right. Didn't get around to as much of the field this time around. We even managed to avoid any traffic jams around Atlanta during our visit, which was a definite plus.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I had mixed emotions about our assault at Snodgrass Saturday and Sunday. My homeboys from the 9th, 64th, and 125th Ohio are three that I know of right off-hand that have monuments on the hill. I'm sure a lot of people who would be interested in doing the 125th Ohio in a future living history, present company included.

I thought that the schedule of demonstrations and drill was well-balanced and kept us busy enough not to get bored, but gave us enough down-time to recover from being out in the heat.

Thanks to all you guys who put this together. It was a stellar living hoistory that allowed us to follow the path of the battle. The weather was excellent. The camaraderie was great, as usual and Pat Landrum and the rest of the NCO's in our company worked well together. Although I mentioned what I saw as rustiness early in the weekend, the entire battalion started to get warmed up as we got out in the field.

Thanks for the southern hospitality and good to see old friends. Now, time to get my Yankee stuff ready for a little running around in Tennessee next month. ;)

[coastaltrash]

Joel,
Look forward to checking them out when you get them uploaded.

[Mtn.Guerilla]

As a Southerner, the peanuts were just dandy, even raw. Where ever they came from must have had the sweetest soil on earth.

Neil Rose gets a star for the "don't ask" rice dish and church call on Sunday morning. It was great to catch up with many folks.

Hats off to Jerry and the entire crew of NCOs and officers of the 7th SC. It was a spectacular sight watching the percision of the skirmishers' drill. A heartfelt thanks to Jerry and Doug for making sure my adventure was all it could be.

What a beautiful park!


I get those peanuts in bulk thru my business and you can thank the great state of Georgia for the soil. For those going going to Outpost as Confed, there will be some real dandy parched corn.

[JustRob]

For those so interested, I discovered while on guard mount that it takes just about one hour to recite all fifteen decades of the Rosary.

Rather than stave off sleep and boredom, I kept watch for the enemy and kept watch with the Lord by saying my "beads". My relief showed up a minute after closing with the Salve Regina.

Yet another advantage of being a Catholic soldier.

[Tenthtexas]

Gentlemen,
It is very pleaseing to see all the positive comments about this past weekend. What we, the WIG, has always tried to do is offer events that are different than the norm and that also give us something new to conquer. This event we had Kent Ostenstead and his horse drawn artillery who were superb! They did a fantastic job keeping up and moving with us and on Sunday coming galloping past to unlimber in the field. Also we had 4 buglers this time and a skirmish line that was larger than what we had done before.
Chad Gray, Buddy Jowers, Matt Grubb and Mr. Pfluger were a great addition and worked well together.
I can not thank enough Justin Runyon, Brian Hicks and Kiev Thomason for their support and assisting with logistics to get this event underway. Also, each of the company commanders and their staff and nco's; Jerry Stiles, Pat Landrum and Tripp Corbin. Great job in assembling your men and getting them organized and drilled.
Highlights for me over the weekend;
--Marching out over the cover of night with the moon lighting our way to Brock Field
--Seeing the contrast between the ANV and AOT in uniforms and how well they all worked together
--Saturday morning, being asked by Pvt Marsh Craddock "how much coffee do you put in these boilers" while standing over 8 boilers to make coffee for his company while they were drilling. Tea toddler indeed
--The awesome skirmish line moving up toward the SC monument with no calls but from the bugle
--seeing how many made it up to the monument with very few stragglers at all
--hearing the cheers when deciding to camp on top of Snodgrass Hill rather than down the hill
--seeing the artillery rolling by at a gallop on Sunday morning
--for men that for the most part just got together for the first time at this event, how well they all drilled and marched together. They resembled the well drilled troops they portrayed.
--seeing the skirmish line disappear over the hill at Snodgrass and only hearing the bugles make the calls to adjust movements, as it was done
--seeing the face of Mr. Landrum Sunday morning when his company formed facing the rear of the battalion line of formation and 10 paces away while he was figuring out how to get them turned around and moved up.
--out of 140 registered, having 118 show up.

Thank you all again for your participation in this event. We are working with Mr. Stiles to plan a trip east sometime in the next couple of years.

4 weeks til Outpost, see you all then.

Art Milbert

[Milliron]

--Saturday morning, being asked by Pvt Marsh Craddock "how much coffee do you put in these boilers" while standing over 8 boilers to make coffee for his company while they were drilling. Tea toddler indeed

Absolute #1 moment of the event for me: Congratulating the aforementioned Mr. Craddock for his recent elevation to company "Coffee Bitch.":D

[DougCooper]

--out of 140 registered, having 118 show up.

Art Milbert

That says volumes Art - way ta go! You defeated reenactor math!

The other thing I will always remember were the incredible echoes from the gun fire - cannot imagine what it must have been like those two terrible days.

[Coatsy]

Well it has been a week since I went to the Chick for the LH. I was actually a little “ho hum” about the event when I was traveling up there since I’ve been busy with real life stuff *wedding plans* cough cough *house hunting* cough cough. So getting set up and getting into kit I started to come around.

Friday: Seeing the “Chick or bust” and “Kershaw Rulez” messages on the van windows from the Easterners was great. As Art said, we’ll definitely have to come east soon! I had the good luck to pull up as Joe Walker was showing the Columbus coat to some folks. Getting a real close up at the jacket was a real treat. The ration issue on Friday night was almost comical. The juice oozing from the beef grossed some of the guys in the recreated Waco Guards out and Kiev chastising them added more stories to the Kiev Lore. I’ll say it now, as I have in the past and probably in the future. I despise plain peanuts, but by Sunday as usual I was eating them like candy. As it has been said the march out to the bivouac site was great. Seeing Cap’n Corbin’s shoes spark up and down the road was fun. Thanks Cap’n Sparky! The sleeping on arms as usual makes me grumble, but I bedded down and in no time I was asleep, which is rare for me on a Friday night.

Saturday: Drill, Drill, Drill!!!!! One of the biggest problems with the authentic side is the lack of regular drill that we get to have when we all come together. We all have different ways of doing things, especially those who primarily use Casey’s and those who use Hardee’s. But dang, we clicked! It wasn’t perfect, but it worked. Thankfully, to play on a joke, our NCOs are alive and well. It is a good thing that the leadership within the NCOs of our battalion was top notch! So we all drilled as companies and as the battalion with skirmish drill being the big aspect that the recreated Waco Guards worked on. It was great that ALL of our buglers were top notch and they were helpful in explaining the calls to us. I have been fortunate now to have worked with Buddy, Matt, Chad in the field and they are all great guys. We did our marching and demos for the public, and got to work with the artillery. It is still a great site, even at living history demos to see a field piece be wheeled into line by horse. I’ve been lucky as well to have been at events where Mr. Ostenstead has been at with his crew.

Now I missed the WIG ’03 Chick skirmish a palooza, but dang all! Everyone is definitely NOT exaggerating when they say the battalion skirmish line was a site to behold! It was. It was also amusing to watch Bill Barfus and Marse Craddock navigate the brambles of the low ground next to Horseshoe Ridge as well. Cap’n Corbin makes sure his boys stay out of that nonsense. :) The massed battalion forward to the obelisk was definitely a challenge. I did not really realize how much ground that we had covered and how busy all were until we hit that last rise and everyone was panting in unison. It was then I got to hear the legend of the Pink Panther at the South Carolina monument. Then it was off to storm Snodgrass Hill. Umm. Say what?????? I was tired, but I was going to get “up and over” and we all did! Saturday evening’s guard mount was interesting, but then again, not everyone who reenacts knows all of the nuances of guard duty. One day…… But it was fun to cut up with the guys on Snodgrass while in the back of my mind I was dreading a “Corporal of the Guard, Post Number….” Luckily that did not happen!

Sunday: No Green Eyed Monster assaulted the camp, so all was well. We got together for the last two demos, and usually the Sunday demos are a little lackluster because most folks are thinking about getting home. The Sunday demos were OUTSTANDING! Again, working with the artillery, Art threw a maneuver in that many of us rarely get to do. But it worked and then we deployed as skirmishers in platoons and made it to the ridge line. The last demo was the one were the men went over the hill. I was in the Waco Guards reserve platoon so I got to see the men crest the ridge and then disappear over it. That was a great site! On the way back I stopped to help a pard out that was having some problems, and I watched the battalion move, it looked damn good folks! As a guy who is getting a little burned out of Living Histories, this one was a good turn around, and a great event to boot!

The Good:
~Marching by the bugle
~Beef!!!!!
~Seeing Cody H and Co from out east in Cornfed getup. I didn’t recognize you guys at first, but then again Fire Zouave kits are a little different from Western Cornfeds.
~Good solid leadership, good attitudes, and a minimum of “Who made your blah blah blah?” You really can’t escape it, but it was really to a minimum.
~Sewing Cap’n Landrum’ sleeve together to show him that the Waco Guards really did like him.
~The contrast between the ANV and AOT guys, I got so into the mindset that the ANV guys were total foreign that I really did not talk with most of those guys all weekend because I just couldn’t figure them out.

The Bad:
~Cornbread, sorry Kiev
~Participants whining about people not staying in first person. Um now really…. All of the monuments, the cars coming by, the rangers talking to us, the visitors coming by to see us…. The black top. Come on now…… There were great moments all weekend where I got into it, but I did not expect it to be a fully immersive event. But to each their own.
~Not getting over my “Those ANV guys are foreign, I can’t talk to them”. Eh, next time. But it was good getting to talk to Kirby. And Doug…… Kiev and I did speak to you. But I think the Green Eyed Monster had you attention…:)

The Just Plain Ugly
~Well the cornbread…. Sorry again Kiev.

To quote the evil Heef…… “I had fun how about you?”

[VA-Patriot'61]

I had a very enjoyable time last weekend. I was actually depressed when I went back to work on Monday... I'd rather have been touring battlefields again. Overall it was a great weekend. I was finally able to put a face to many names I've seen and heard over the years and made a few new friends. It was a great first experience in the "western theater" for me.

The ANV company was impressive to say the least. I loved the mix of gear and the eerie appearance friday evening when we formed up, we looked very Northern at first glance. I have to say coming from a military school that prides itself in drill that the ANV company took me by surprise when we were drilling saturday morning, the first company wheel we did was spot on! Everyone seemed to click instantly into the drill manual and what we couldn't do first off we picked up with ease (the Hardees revised version of stacking for example). The ease in learning new things came from our very experienced NCOs and the few old timers among the ranks who spoke up and showed us the way. Having been in the "hobby" since '89 I'd say the SWB and PLHA guys were the friendliest bunch to work alongside having no connections with either group.

It always pleases me to do living histories at NPS sites, to me they are the most enjoyable and rewarding. I hope to see more participation in the future from groups like that last weekend at other NPS and state park sites.

Thanks for a great time to everyone who put the event together, my hat is off to you fellows!

[Pritchett Ball]

I’m real proud to have been a part of this event, at such a historic place.

Two big Kodak moments for me were looking down the skirmish line, wondering how far we were stretched out! The other was the last demo when we rallied, and I looked over to Landrum’s Co. C formed into a square, and saw all those bayonets sticking out!
That sent a chill down my spine.

A learning experience…
The extra Drill we did, was desperately needed…by ME! I sure have some boys to thank for the PATIENCE they showed. I learned I had developed some bad habits. I’m ordering hob nails for my shoes so Tripp won’t have to push me up that hill again!

I gained a much improved perspective because of this event, never having done skirmish drill with such a large number of folk. Marching at night to the bivouac area was neat. The rations were a pleasant surprise. Hearing the last bugle call while I was out on guard duty was hauntingly beautiful. Having to do a quick mending job on my trousers before a demonstration left me reflecting on how many time THAT was repeated in the war.

Meeting new folk for the first time, and seeing old acquaintances is always a highlight for me. I felt humbled to see a fellow like Jim Ogden work his butt off keeping us in water.

NO BUGS! At least I wasn’t bothered by any. I was wondering where they were at, and how the bats flying overhead in the evening kept from carrying their own rations?

An outstanding event, the best one to date for me. Those in charge are worthy of all the praise we can give them. I’m ready for another one, but let me rest a while before we go out again!

Kevin Dally

[toptimlrd]

If I may offer three cheers to Art for his fantastic job as batallion commander.