Glendale AAR Thread

[Charles Heath]

Boys,

I had fun, how 'bout you?

Thanks to all who attended, donated, baked hardtack, worked behind the scenes, allowed us to use their land, fetched stuff, directed traffic, parked cars, hauled water, moved and fired artillery, baked pies, moved garbage, visited to say "hey," and 1,000 other tasks, found ammunition, didn't find hams, didn't tear up crops and fields, did be kind to the flora and fauna in environmentally sensitive areas, or otherwise participated, and as one last shameless plug for preservation donations, or maybe not the very last....yes, they are still being accepted.

The Saturday night snoring from the federals at "Camp Hay Rake" could be heard clearly and loudly on the shoulder of Willis Church Road. :D

[ley74]

Heck, I could distinctly hear Pete McCarthy from Longbridge Road. Sound ordinance? What sound ordinance.

[Stonewall_Greyfox]

Wow!!! What a great event...this one may have topped Payne's Farm in it's intensity.

Thanks again to Jerry Stiles and Claude Sinclair, who provided me the honor of being the 2nd Cpl. for 1st Platoon...and portraying Cpl. Henry Fox of the 47th VA.

Question: Do we really have to wait 2 years to get the best VA soldiers together? I would love to see us get 1-2 events a year where we could portray larger companies/battalions in Virginia's Park Systems.

For those at the wounded station: I hope that I wasn't too dull during the little 1st person interaction we had. I felt it an eirily awkward experience being both wounded and in the "care" of the enemy. Without getting into the cliche topics of discussion, I found our conversation limited...I attempted as best I could to portray my fate card, and Cpl. Fox who had a serious wound to the shoulder and a massive loss of blood. Thankyou for the experience.

Thanks Again to the event organizers and staff, for another AWESOME weekend!!!

P.S. It seems that I lost track of my hatchet Saturday evening from the wounded station...If anyone came across a hatchet not belonging to them, I'd appreciate the return of this.
Paul B.

[robwall1861]

I had a GREAT time as well....have never done that much skirmishing before, especially in the woods. Paul, it was great to meet you and be "comrads in arms" with you for skirmishing.

Thanks to everyone who made this event possible....I had a great time and can't wait to do it again.

[Malingerer]

My thanks to all those who made this weekend such a memorable event. Even with gas at $3.50 a gallon it was well worth the eight hour drive. As always I learn a few lessons to take home with me: 1. )Keyboard campaigning is a poor substitute for the real thing - which is to say, I need to improve my physical fitness level because I was flat wore out Saturday evening. 2) The Deer Tick population of tidewater Virginia is not likely to end up on the endangered species list anytime soon. 3) Anytime pie is involved at an event, harsh words are going to be exchanged and feelings are going to be hurt. Thanks again to all the event sponsors - your hard work made for a memorable event.

[5thMIkeydet]

Big thanks to the organizers for this event. I definately agree with the earlier oppinon on the deer tick population. I might also add that sitting in class today made me appreciate the effects of poison oak much more than I had previously considered.
Deffinately some highlights for me were the cobbled together holding actions with my comrades of battle and then running through the woods looking for stragglers and running into the Reb pickets a couple of times with one round left.
Plus, the mail call on the march out was... interesting...:wink_smil

[Hardtack Herring]

My son Levi and I were late arrivals to the event so we missed out on most of Saturdays events.

Upon arrival to the CS Saturday night campsite we were immediately put to work clearing limbs from a road. Once that task was finished we were sent off to the picket line

There we stood watch for an hour or so. Once relieved we met up with some pards and learned there had been some skirmishing early in the day. They pointed out a group of a dozen or so Yankee prisoners that were under guard.

With not much to eat in the confederate camp we spread out our blankets and went to sleep.

It rained a little off and on Saturday night. Despite the rain I slept pretty good. I was more worried about the ticks I had heard about.

Woke up Sunday morning to the call of the bugle. Roll was taken, arms were inspected and off we went. The march on Sunday morning was very easy, not too long not too short. The rain did not bother me very much either. At this event we were soldiers and did not have to worry about our instruments becoming water logged.

Several of us close by in the line of march began telling period jokes ( Thanks to the Conundrum Thread and the book (Do you ever get it up) I think that made the march more enjoyable.

The rain intensified and by the time we reached Malvern Hill we are all soaked. Once we arrived , the event ended and everyone went home.

I think there were suppose to be some programs at Malvern Hill on Sunday but the weather just was not going to let that happen.. I was looking forward to doing something at Malvern Hill.

So our opinion is we both had a good time. Only complaint I can think of is the rain cutting the event shorter than I hoped.

By the way guys, we found 0 ticks on either of us !

[Soup Bone]

Might I suggest the Bully Buy for May be a deal on 200 mg. of Dioxclyine? I think the entire Shocker Mess visted their Doctors today to get their prescriptions.

[NoahBriggs]

Recycled from the Love & Laudanum (http://www.authentic-campaigner.com/forum/group.php?groupid=20) social group.

Friday - camped with the rest of the battalion after a three hour drive from Northern VA to past Richmond. I discovered once I got there I had forgotten to bring my repro medications! No laudanum, no chloroform. My anger was dissipated somewhat by Kevin O'Beirne, who remarked that my meds could have gotten lost in the HQ transfer during the Seven Days Campaign.

Saturday - up early, rations issued - boiled beef and hardtack. Arty and infantry drilled and I hung out at registration, where, might I add, I had my only interaction with the general public. Around noon we stepped off on our march around the battlefield. I lugged the surgical kit in a carpet bag; all of my other personals were dangling off of me like the world's most insane horse harness. We plodded about a half mile to a place called the Parsonage on Willis Church Road. This was where I was supposed to set up a bandaging station.

I should explain the Parsonage consisted of two identical chimneys enclosed in a wooden fence. I called the place the Two Towers - Isengard and Mordor. I was stationed there for the afternoon - the NPS hoped to bring some visitor traffic to an out-of-the-way spot at Glendale Malvern Hill. Warning - there is a reason it's out-of-the-way. Nobody knows about it, nobody cares. I and my designated casualty got not one visitor - lots of drive-by wavings, but nobody stopped.

Around five pm I was extracted from this intellectual purgatory and reinserted into the woods by Charles Heath, where I hooked up with the rest of the Company. At this point we were playing on the newly-acquired CWPT land, which was a real treat. I arrived in time for a quick skirmish with four casualties total - two Federal, two Confederate. Our boys took off and I and nine other fellows got gobbled by the Rebs for the next twelve hours. I apologized to the man charge of the Rebel mob - it may look like I was withholding medications from the Rebs, but I had nothing of the sort for them or us. I also told him that around here we worked under Asklepios, and uniform color is irrelevant. He was satisfied and I was temporarily paroled to do my duty.

Casualty 1 was the Federal company commander, ball through the leg. I told him I had no anesthetic and recommended he use his hanky or something else on which to bite - there being no bullets available, hint-hint. I simulated probing the wound and extracting the ball, then suturing the wound, and winding a bandage around it. In the future I think I should read up on bandaging legs - mine did not seem to fit tightly, and I forgot to do the fold in front. Whatever the case he had left with the rest of our company and was not around.

Casualty 2 was a ball through the arm near the wrist. I probed for the ball and extracted it, pronouncing him very lucky as the ball went between the bones.

Casualty 3 was a Rebel who, upon examination appeared to have been hit in the shoulder with a secondary fracture of the clavicle. I probed the wound- the pain was horrid, and I decided not to do anythning with it. To extract the ball or do anything else with the wound sans chloroform would break my Hippocratic Oath - First Do No Harm. I left the wound open so it could drain properly, and with some assistance we peeled off his coat and vest.

Casualty four was Reb #2 - shot in the chest and feeling it. Much to my surprise it paid to be thick-skinned - he had a hole in his coat, and one spectacular bruise under the right nipple, buth the skin was unbroken, which could only mean he had been hit by a spent round.

The Rebs guarded us and all of us bedded down for the evening. Small fires materialized out of the ground up and down the path. We shared rations, smokes and stories and went to sleep. Virginia ground is hard - my shifting around for the least uncomfortable spot kept getting interrupted by brief hours of sleep. More fun as I woke to the insidious pattering of rain on and off during the night. Nothing a rubber blanket could not handle, but still enough to make me uncomfortable.

Next morning we packed up and marched out. It rained steadily from then on, and the event was regrettably canceled. Still, I had fun.

[Dan Wambaugh]

Had fun up at Malvern Hill. Public turnout was a bit discouraging but the new friends from the NPS artillery group alone were worth the trip, as was the dedication ceremony we performed for the USSS men interred at the National Cemetery. Felt a bit envious of those of you marching off to the fun, but getting to fire Sharps rifles on the same ground as the original guys was very cool.

Thanks for the invites, the logistics, and for the excellent ham hock that was given a good home.


Best,

Dan

[bholt61stny]

I too, echo all of the comments about thanking everyone who helped put this event together. It was a real pleasure being able to come to this event and fall in with a great bunch of guys. It was my first time to the Malvern Hill Battlefield and needless to say it wont be my last.

Overall the event was great; the march was long and at times through some very thick brush, but nothing stopped us from doing so. The mail call on the Union side was definitely very interesting and made for a great laugh. The tactical was pretty good and though being captured by the Confederates they managed to treat us nice and even paroled us. The rain wasn't a big deal either except driving home with the smell of wet wool in the car.

Thanks again to those who helped make this event possible and I look forward to more events like this one.

Brian Holt

[Texyank]

The event was really a great experience. The grousing that went on during the march was certainly a very accurate reflection of the common foot soldier. At one point when it was particularly distasteful I recall thinking to myself that we were all crazy to do this. That feeling quickly gave way to imagining the courage, devotion, and yes, naivete, that led these men to leave their homes for the uncertainties of war.

The most vivid memory was skirmishing in the woods and stumbling upon a 5 to 6 ft black snake. I know I moved a foot up and back in one (graceful I may say, as well as, immediate) movement. I don't think I screamed like a little b%tch but I can't guarantee that I didn't. Ask Grumpy Dave.

The camaraderie was excellent as always and we made one helluva 11 man sh'bang on Saturday night. Thanks to my comrades in battle who made the event even more enjoyable.

Thanks to Ley, Petey, Hannibal, and Heef, who did a great job putting together the event.

Bravo Zulu

yer pard,

[Shockoe Hill Cats]

Friends,

My own experiences have be more appropriately cited by my fellow comrades-in-arms, Private Brian Holt and Sergeant Joe Bordonaro (then) of the 4th Pennsylvania Reserves. As previously described, I was also thoroughly entertained by this weekend's smaller delights (i.e. the mischievous western letter, Surgeon Noah Briggs [ace impression, sir], getting up to answer the morning roll call, being taken prisoner [& keeping Lieutenant O'Beirne's article in mind :rolleyes:], the cracks of rifle and cannon fire in the distance, &etc.).

Aside from the event organizers (who, of course, have our gratitude), I'd like to personally recognize guide Joe Caridi and Private Bill Birney. Joe, I really appreciated the extended hand of VCU friendship. Go Rams, go! And Bill, you were a model soldier and volunteer to us all weekend. My hat's off to you.

To me, the most rewarding part of the Glendale & Malvern Hill event was contributing to the battlefield and catching up/spending time amoungst friends. That, and well... the Mechanicsville Cracker Barrel? :wink_smil

If you haven't been to this beautiful piece of land, go and you'll see why it's worth saving.

Fondly,

[Charge Bayonets]

I wish someone would put up the pen and ink drawing of Skinny Annie.

My vote for the cover.

Who threw the Mrs. Dash in half the hardtack dough?

I thought it a good event all together. Thanks to the organizers for all the hard work.

[Charles Heath]

Who threw the Mrs. Dash in half the hardtack dough?

Those were simulated "tasty sweepings from the shop floor." You know how those government contractors like to stretch the flour with whatever happens to be available at the time. I didn't ask Joe what some of the crunchy, somewhat disgusting, evil looking bits were, but even I have my limits. Nothing harmful really.

Jason covered the Cracker Barrel. Bev and I nailed the Waffle House. Both bases covered, although between Payne's Farm, The Wilderness, and GMH08, we have a new trend developing in the form of strip mall Italian restaurants. Gee, I wonder why?

Nice photo of the beef! Mmmmm. On sale, and we saved $118 with the Food Lion MVP card.

[bholt61stny]

Nice photo of the beef! Mmmmm. On sale, and we saved $118 with the Food Lion MVP card.


I never had the experience of eating boiled beef until this weekend and I must say it was very good; my hats off to those who boiled it...I don't remember who said it but I heard someone say "You can't burn boiled."





Brian Holt

[westcoastcampaigner]

The event was really a great experience. The grousing that went on during the march was certainly a very accurate reflection of the common foot soldier. At one point when it was particularly distasteful I recall thinking to myself that we were all crazy to do this. That feeling quickly gave way to imagining the courage, devotion, and yes, naivete, that led these men to leave their homes for the uncertainties of war.

The most vivid memory was skirmishing in the woods and stumbling upon a 5 to 6 ft black snake. I know I moved a foot up and back in one (graceful I may say, as well as, immediate) movement. I don't think I screamed like a little b%tch but I can't guarantee that I didn't. Ask Grumpy Dave.

The camaraderie was excellent as always and we made one helluva 11 man sh'bang on Saturday night. Thanks to my comrades in battle who made the event even more enjoyable.

Thanks to Ley, Petey, Hannibal, and Heef, who did a great job putting together the event.

Bravo Zulu

yer pard,




Haha...I was right next to you and YES you screamed like a girl and from what I could see in my perifial you were not graceful. Then again who can be graceful when a 5 foot black snake asks them to dance? Be glad it wasn't a copperhead. It was good getting to know you guys and working with you. We all had a great time despite the rain on Sunday and enough ticks to keep us busy picking at ourselves as though we had lice.

To those requesting copies of the drawing of Skinny Annie you will have to press Paul Boccadoro of the Liberty Rifles. He is the person who received the letter with her in it and we all had a period moment as he read aloud the most provocative and funny letter from his cousin stationed out west. Dare he post the drawing as a candidate for next months AC cover photo? Could be risky.


Best Regards,

Josh Sawyer
Liberty Rifles

[NoahBriggs]

Who was the Skinny Anne letter vic- I mean, recipient this time?

Edited to add - thanks to the fellows on both sides - it's nice to work with reenactors who actually simulate realistic wounded with no goofiness.

[SCTiger]

deleted, apparently discussions don't happen here anymore.

[dusty27]

Greg,

Are you serious about critiquing this event? Shouldn't you have taken part to be able to critique it?

Getting sick along the way is fine. Returning when it is convenient to you is not.

I'd worry a little less about what WE were wearing, saying, and taking and worry about how YOU can finish a full event.

Man.....................

[Jim Peterson]

Well Guys;

I'd say that the afternoon ration issue went pretty well. One bite of pie was a treat. The technique for eating taters was interesting. The Soupbone "eat it like an apple" technique seemed to be favored by a good many, I saw a few doing my slice it and smoke it a bit before dipping it in the sugar and crunching it down. In fact just about everything appears to be dipped in sugar before eating.

I'd say the majority went for the "eat it fast and flop down for a rest" method. Although a few grommet cooks went all out and fried up a tasty meal.

You just can not improve on the setting when in the late afternoon after the fight, the company worn out, out of water and standing in formation back where we ate supper and the Captain says "Boys we're going to hit them again" "But we're out of water". A slight smile with a nod of his head and off we went.

[JStiles]

I'd like to thank all the folks who had a part in organizing the event. It's never easy and the larger the event, the more difficult, throw in a march and it increases several fold. Special thanks to Pete McCarthy, our guide on the CS side. Without him we, or I should say I would still be out there. Saturday was, in my opinion, pretty physically demanding. I applaud the officers and NCOs for their sense of duty and to the men for their sense of devotion. One person who stood out for me was John martin. I'm 37 and I was whipped at the end of the day Saturday. John is 63. He just kept going, one foot in front of the other. You gotta admire that.....Jerry Stiles

[Bill]

Well Guys;


I'd say the majority went for the "eat it fast and flop down for a rest" method. Although a few grommet cooks went all out and fried up a tasty meal.

Jim,

I was one of those "grommet" cooks. Sliced up the ham, potato, and green onion in my boiler. Added some of the sugar and set it on the fire to boil for a while. I added a more water as it boiled away. Turned out pretty darned good. Of course, I was mighty hungry!

BYW, what exactly were those hardtack made from? Obviously nothing that exists in nature. I had three of them in my coat pocket during the march back to Malvern Hill. The coat was soaking wet, but the hardtack was still hard as a rock.

I had a great time at the event. Thanks to everyone involved.

[Charles Heath]

Jer,

John Martin is my hero. We needed to get an item to him late Saturday, and none of us on the Kabuki Team knew his real name, so we said "just get this to 63," and the boys will know who that is. He didn't come looking for it later, so he must have received it. I'm tickled he completed the event, and I hope he had a good time.

"Good," of course, is a variable term, but what was sucking hind tit in the hot, cold, dry, wet, sweaty, tick-races, etc., during the weekend somehow comes back in a little happier glow of light later on in the week. Ever notice an event that whips your ass during the weekend, suddenly looks a lot better by about the time a week has passed, the ticks have been pulled (or fattened up for the livestock auction), and the soreness goes away?

Part of the time honored Andrew Jerram philosophy of reenacting is "It sucked. It sucked. It really sucked. It sucked so much it was great." I try to keep that in the back of my mind when forming the mental aspect of an event, and how the participants should feel at certain points along the way. When you read the background material, and the Men of '62 complained about skirmishing through the woods east of Richmond, I believe that print will jump off the page in a more experienced light. It's a heck of a difference between performing skirmish drill in a park-like setting, and moving and grooving through the woods, over hills, ravines, wetlands (step lightly, boys), briars, etc. In some places, it is difficult to see a man not 20 feet away in those woods. Do that for several miles and a few things jump from the pages of history the next time you read about them.

The SWB and friends in the form of Co. I, 47th Virginia, really shined at Glendale-Malvern Hill 2008. The NCO cadre provided that strong structure known as a backbone, and the one time I was able to get between the main company and the advance on Saturday was right about the time you folks were locating your ammunition, and the advance party had moved to the Whitlock House area. Certain aspects needed to work like clockwork at that time, from the artillery insertion (modified a couple of rods to the west in anticipation of the rains and geting a lowboy out of the pines without causing too much damage to truck, trailer, piece, limber, trees, snail darters, etc.) , placing the fire suppression bucket at the CS resting point near the 17th Virginia Ravine, and making sure LHG Mobile Water in "Blackie" was able to shunt from the old and new Whitlock House ruins to a position to serve the fed resting spot at "The Intersection" that would become the CS Saturday night camp. Sticking with the schedule was what allowed us perform certain tasks in the background without being too dang obvious about it. Your bugler was great. As has happened at other events, the Kabuki could hear the calls, and knew where you were and whether or not you were on or off schedule.

Petey and Joe did darn well as guides. If one reads the accounts of the Peninsular Campaign, and the Seven Days in particular, guides were used, and those civilian guides gave the armies mixed results. Moving troops overland is one of the most difficult tasks in this hobby, if not the most difficult. Co. I, 47th Virginia performed superbly, and the Boys of '62 would have been proud. Having both commanders unable to attend any of the walk throughs presented a special challenge, and Petey only had two trips along the route of march. Joe had a couple more, but the look of the land changes from the depths of winter to the time when the dogwoods and redbuds are in bloom, and the leaves are emerging on the trees. In another two weeks, we would not have been able to easily find much of the NPS boundary line on the right flank, in spite of their well placed flagging to keep the hunters in check.

A few months ago, our beloved Cupcake mentioned a suggestion about "why not have an event where folks march a certain distance, and keep the gearhead stuff to a minimum." Well, here was the event for that. Nothing material was out of the reach of the average CW reenacting enthusiast. Because of that, as he predicted, some participants who normally wouldn't try this sort of madness, er, um, genre of event, came out and had a fine time. Excellent suggestion.

On a comical note, Bev put the following caption under Soupbone's image in the photo section of the listserver: "The Shocker." Ham that he is, that photo is definitely a good one. Terri took some photos from her vantage point as a Kabuki with the LHG's water truck, and if my low tech world can get them from the CD to the photo section, I'll post them fairly soon.

One of these days, we'll get another crack at that dang dump site.

[dusty27]

Charles,

"Shocker" is a 2E moniker that some may recognize. Check out "Bone's" hands.

Thanks for the event. It was a ball-buster.

[SCTiger]

I'd worry a little less about what WE were wearing, saying, and taking and worry about how YOU can finish a full event.

Man.....................

A real mean spirited response online, but lets see you do that in person. I have finished plenty of campaigner events. See you at Pickett's Mill. Bring your A-game Dusty.

[Charles Heath]

"Shocker" is a 2E moniker that some may recognize. Check out "Bone's" hands.

Dusty,

Yessuh, I had to 'splain Soup's digital positioning to Bev last night. The title seemed most appropriate. I take it you have seen the rather large truck rear window decals of this same hand gesture? ;) Okay, enough of that.

From the very beginning, we said this was "not for the faint of heart," and it wasn't the typical waddle around the park mobile living history. Ley pointed out something important that is well worth repeating here. Not many years ago, that Malvern Hill unit was pretty tiny. The lady who still lives in the Crew House sold a portion of her land to the APCWS, and the site expanded greatly. You may or may not have seen some of the first class survey monuments in the piney woods, but they are there, and reminders of the current NPS boundary. The Murrow family and friends sold more land to the CWPT only recently, as you have read in the CWPT's Hallowed Ground magazine, and mailings.

In a gutsy move, and with The Slaugher Pen debt hanging over their heads, the CWPT picked up a heck of a chunk of the Glendale battlefield. Realistically, the steep slopes, wetlands, and other sensitive areas are not prime building lots, however, a heck of a lot of that land could be cut up into residential lots, as we speak. A slump in the housing market is actually helping the battlefield preservation situation at the moment, but to return to Glendale for a moment, the NPS and CWPT folks were very concerned that we would tear up the real estate, and leave a wake of destruction behind us. Those concerns were very real, based on some recent precedents, and working with the environmental issues was "a heck of a thing." A very good thing, I might add. I'm hoping the rain began to dissolve some of the cartridge tubes and arsenal pack wrappers, the few cleaning swatches we missed are sinking into the leaves and mud, and the heavier rains washed away the footprints.

This event had some costs for the locals. As you could see the majority of the fields were planted in wheat by Fred & Emmett, the two farmers who tend this sacred soil, and Fred held off planting corn (no-till methods, of course) until Monday after the event. As you noticed, the rainfall made the soil a bit wet, and I hope it dries out enough to run the grain drill across by the end of this week, and I hope his big tractor tires mush down the wheel ruts left by a certain little silver-gray Saturn automobile that need not have been in that field Sunday morning. Othewise, the Saint of Short Pump will be out there with a rake and shovel making good on our promises.

In other news, you fellows did really well on the pre-staged firewood, since the land had so much deadfall hanging about, so the remainder was collected and donated to the NPS for use in other living history programs. The keyed-alike industrial duty Master locks on certain gates were donated to the CWPT.

We had a good giggle Sunday morning about the fellows who kept asking about "sutlers." That has been a running joke for a while now. :p

[Stonewall_Greyfox]

I had a GREAT time as well....have never done that much skirmishing before, especially in the woods. Paul, it was great to meet you and be "comrads in arms" with you for skirmishing.

Thanks to everyone who made this event possible....I had a great time and can't wait to do it again.

The skirmishing was an experience...to be able to do it on original ground...and with individuals who conducted themselves in the most proffessional manner was something AWESOME.

Rob, it was nice meeting you as well...Your'e with a great unit, stick with them and learn.

Paul B.

[dusty27]

Greg,

I had no problem with anyone falling out of ranks for medical reasons. What I don't appreciate is them then critiquing everyone who was able to complete the event and went through the battle, slept on hard ground, hurdled more logs than track runners, ate scant rations, dealt with ticks, etc.

I was one of the first people to ask you if you were ok in the field. No shame in taking a break. But if you're going to return, do so full time or don't.

And for sure, don't tell the rest of us how we can improve.

As to our meeting at Pickett's Mill, we won't. I'm not attending.

[ley74]

Since early Sunday, when this weather system started through, we have had 5.5 inches of rain and are expecting a little more today. Fred was not able to plant this week and may loose part of another. Our tire tracks will not approach the damage done by God to that particular spot on Hayrake Field. Emmitt is a happy camper. The wheat looks good.

I will be walking the property on Sunday to take down markers and check things out. The performance bond will expire May 5th and we (yep) need to make sure all is well. The great thing is that you guys love this land so much you take great care to do no harm. This gave us the courage to pony up the contingent dollars to make sure the event went on.

Since I am in the vicinity, it was a real pleasure to spend so much time there over the past five months. While Kabuki is important, I was envious of the experiences you felt.

Almost is getting a rubber snake for Christmas, I swear it. Speaking of Almost (Jason Hanby):

Eternal Father, Lord of Hosts
Watch o'er the ones who guard our coasts
Protect them from the raging seas
And give them light and life and peace.
Grant them from thy great throne above
The shield and shelter of thy love.
Lord, guard and guide the ones who fly
Through the great spaces in the sky
Be with them always in the air,
In darken storms or sunlight fair,
Oh, hear us when we lift our prayer,
For those in peril in the air!
Grant to them Your eternal peace, Oh Lord,
For they have followed your commandment,
That No Greater Love has he, who would give up his life for another.

Amen

Be careful on your cruise and come home safely.

As a community, we are blessed to know many folks who contribute so much. Post eventium depression for me has taken the form of knowing we will never get to do Glendale again. The ground will be safe, however. That should probably be good enough.

[PieBoy96]

Yes, I was the lucky one to receive the pleasurable appearance of Skinny Anne. As soon as I opened the letter and pulled that sketch out, about a dozen faces around me suddenly lit up, haha. At a break in the march, I read aloud the "hardships" of life at a western fort. I won't be posting that gem I got in the mail... just hope that at the next event, your "cousin Billy" sends you a highly descriptive letter, too!

Overall, the event was a good time. I enjoyed the boiled beef, and many thanks to those who cooked it up, as it saved much time and effort for 30 guys cooking up rations around 2 fires. The hardcrackers, despite the Panera ones, were a nice change from the usual Bent crackers, which I find almost TOO yummy to be hardtack. Thanks to Joe for making all the crackers.

The extended tour of the wooded property on Saturday afternoon wasn't too exciting, and I'm glad we avoided that on Sunday (even if it had not rained, I wouldn't have enjoyed it too much). I know that because of the NPS ground we were on, our skirmishers couldn't have rounds as we marched through the woods.. which told us in the ranks that probably nothing was going to happen then. But it was still a nice representation of moving through "unknown" land.

Friday night was a bit chilly, but Saturday night was near perfect sleeping weather. Our huge shebang kept us dry from the intermittent rain, and many thanks to Cody Harding, the Architect of such a structure.

Thanks to the event organizers for putting on the event - it was nice to come meet some new people at a site I hadn't been to before, and I hope to see them all again soon.

[Moose]

Well I guess I'll weigh in.....
First and foremost I would like to thank the other guys on the committee who helped out, Almost, Pete, Charels, and especially Ley Watson, with out whom the event would have not happened, really.

Second to all who came out to the event to help raise money for Glendale. As I was the Federal guide I can not speak of the Johnny's but the Feds were a good groups guys. Got to meet some new people (the boys from the LR and Jason Spellmen), hopefully are paths will cross agian, and soon. Got to mess with my fellow CRs (Grumpy, Kenvin, Brain, and Doug), and got to bring some close friends out of the woodwork (Almost and Hunter). Grumpy did an excellent job as Fed commander, and I would like to thanks Jerry Stiles for putting forth a great effort and for being so paitent with me and the Confederate information.

I would like to make one correction. Grumpy Dave on Sunday said that the organizers spend up to a year planning for these things, he is correct in most cases, but not in ours. We (the event committee) did not get off the ground until November, so we had only 5 1/2 months to put this thing together, so if things weren't perfect folks, please understand, we went from crawl to sprint in thirty seconds to get this thing off the ground.

As for everyones questions on the hardtack here is the answer:
Batch #1: Nothing special
Batch#2: Slightly green tinted water for a "molded" look (2 cups water w/green food coloring)
Batch#3: Black pepper for the visual effect of "floor sweepings" (1 tbsp. coarse ground; note- need to find a way to get stale black peper)
Batch#4: Coarse ground cornmeal, for off texture and floor sweepings (1 cup of cornmeal substituted for 1 cup flour)
Batch#5: Fine ground corn meal for off texture (1 cup of cornmeal substituted for 1 cup flour)

Glad everyone had a good time.

P.S. - 26 ticks, can anyone beat that?

[Enfilade]

P.S. - 26 ticks, can anyone beat that?[/QUOTE]

NO! But I can tell you that certain parts of my anatomy looked like I had the shingles! All species of ticks really do suck!

The NSR had a good time hanging out again with the SWB. Stiles did great! Dusty was stuck with me most of the time as I was 3rd Sgt and he was Lt of 2nd Platoon- skirmishing, being held in reserve. He just about lost me after I stepped into a tiger trapped gopher hole that I went all the way up to my knee! I couldn't tell whether he led me into it or not...:rolleyes:

Met lots of new folks. Saw lots of old friends. Was hungry, tired, thirsty, cold, wet, exhausted. Pretty much experienced all the stuff a real soldier would have experienced. Except not getting shot at with real rounds. And, we did our part to preserve a little History.

All in all, a good time. I guess I'll see you all again at Pickett's Mill, or in Dusty's case, Fredericksburg.

Mark Berrier
North State Rifles
http://www.northstaterifles.com

[Charles Heath]

Well I guess I'll weigh in....

Didn't you weigh-in just before the boxing match with Petey at Winter 1864? ;)

You are correct about Ley, as the event certainly would not have happened without him, and I really do not know anyone else who would have been able to react as positively to "the new way of doing business," which is likely to send some shock waves through the living history community. That being said, we'll speak of this in a few weeks, as this may be the very factor that drives the hobbies, such that they are, back together in such a way we would never have anticipated.

We (the event committee) did not get off the ground until November, so we had only 5 1/2 months to put this thing together.

That would be 16 November at12:48 pm. I remember it well.

A "normal," if there is such a thing, CR event takes 2 years to prepare, and the first year is generally pure research. Ask Kevin sometime. The cut line for research gave Joe about 3 1/2 weeks to pull it together. Considering the 47th Virginia regimental was at hand, the ORs were available, and two good books about the role of the Penna. Reserves were also accessible, this wasn't as bad of a chore as looking up some truly obscure outfit. As time went on, Joe would find more and more cool details and factoids, and sometimes they were worked into the plans. This battle deserves a really good book, and something beyond the current publication (the name escapes me), which is essentially just a string of snippets from the ORs. Glendale deserves far more attention than it has received.

I'm proud to say I didn't have to bake a single piece of hardtack or ship's bread for this event. That is saying something, too. Over the years, we have had some strange hardtack, but the best had to have been the worm castles at Chatham Manor. Sparky was beside himself with joy that his hardbread finally yielded live, wriggling, honest to goodness worms. Nic "Bug Man" Ellis, Ph.D, verified this, too.

P.S. - 26 ticks, can anyone beat that?

Joe, I keep telling you ticks really dig that EVOO. Lard is the way to go, bro!

[Soup Bone]

P.S. - 26 ticks, can anyone beat that?
Yep, Kendall Mattern of 2nd Va Co. E had a grand total of 48!!!!!!!!!!!

[GreencoatCross]

That's disgusting!!!! In all my years of doing this nonsense, I've only ever had to pull TWO ticks out of my own flesh, and only had to brush off about a dozen more that seemed to not know where to stop for dinner.

48!!!! Blaaaaaaaaaaaaaargh!!!!

[GrumpyDave]

Noah, the bandage stayed on my ankle quite nicely, until I removed it Saturday before bedtime.

Jason, You jumped three feet up in the air and backwards all at the same time at the sight of the snake. I will say that your scream was a loud gutteral manly scream, like a "WWWAAAAAOOOOHH, I hate snakes!!!!!" It was a right nice black snake.

Paul Bocco...., That wasn't a shebang; the thing was so big I kept looking for clowns, midgets and acrobats.


Thanks to the organizers all of you. What a great event.

ticks, ticks, ticks....

[Bill]

ticks, ticks, ticks....


I was sort of gloating in my own head about not getting any ticks on me. Well, I woke up this morning and found seven or eight of the little buggers sucking my blood. They were a lot easier to see today!

Damn things survived four hot showers, before digging in for dinner!

[Charles Heath]

I'm so glad you guys used those four cases of Repel (thank you, Nic Ellis) stationed at the Malvern Hill visitor shelter while registration was open from 3 pm to midnight Friday. I'm under the impression anything less than 90% DEET makes those ticks grow hair on their chests. Speaking of snakes, it was a sight to see Noah sunning himself on the Willis Church Road lay back, and a few feet away on the slope going to the creek was a King Snake that dwarfed the one we found during the dump clean up day -- also sunning himself.

I found one Lone Star tick walking about. Anyone else see one?

[JStiles]

I'm not sure of my exact tick count. I can only say there were many. I'd say somewhere around 30. I apologize for not having an accurate count, but I was more interested in getting them off my CRANK and SACK as fast as I could, rather than counting!........Jerry Stiles

[cprljohnivey]

I sprayed my self down at registration and again at a water stop Saturday Evening after the battle. I think that stuff just made the ticks laugh.

[SCTiger]

And for sure, don't tell the rest of us how we can improve.


Wasn't doing that Doug. I spoke about the hobby in general and you took it personal and attacked me. I hope that the rest of the forum can learn from this, whatever you do, don't get sick in the field with this crew. This of course won't keep me from improving or striving to do better or from attending events. The next time I will keep a better record of what happened and you won't have a health problem to use against me.

See you in the field. Nice "AAR" by the way.

[dusty27]

Greg,

The name is Mike, not Doug.

I took nothing personally. Again, I don't have any problem about anyone falling out due to illness. You were not the only one. If I didn't care, I wouldn't have asked you if you were ok.

My problem with you is after falling out and not going through a large part of the event (battle and overnight on Saturday), you try to fall back in like you didn't miss anything and then report here how we all could improve.

Nothing personal. I'm not the only one who noticed.

[Doug Nash]

Had a great time at Glendale with the rest of the NSR boys and the other fellas portraying the 47th Va. Enough of ticks, hardtack, pig tails, snakes and all that - how about the "Great Pie Swindle" of '62? If there ain't enough pie for everyone to get a slice, says I, then dangit just mush it up and let everyone come up and get a spoonful of it if they want it. The Sgt. doling out the pie simply could not get that idea into his head, try as he might, and opted for the tried & proven method of keeping it for the NCOs & letting the rank and file do without. A tried & proven method (in 2nd rate armies, for sartain sure), but that sure wasn't much of an example of inspiring leadership. Somehow the 1st Platoon figured out the conundrum and doled it out to everyone's satisfaction. Us guys in 2nd Platoon got a hearty "take your ration and clear out!" when we were so bold enough to inquire about the aforementioned pie. Next time I'll bring my trusty old cadet mess hall pie template and carry it in my hat so when a Sgt. can't figure out how to apportion rations, I can hand it to him so he can cut it with precision! (I have to admit that I do have a weakness for pie, that I can't deny!)
Anyway, can't wait til the next event - again, a well planned, well-scripted & organized even - hats off to Captain Stiles for the great job as Co. commander!
Cheers,
Doug Nash
(But if the NCOs didn't eat the pie then who did? We only had one officer, and he was too busy to eat any!! This bears further scrutiny!!)

[parebel]

No NCO's in 2nd Platoon took any of the damned pie, we were too busy trying to saw through the ham and dole it out, which could have been detailed for you to do but wasn't, so you could sit and rest. We waited to issue out the forementioned damned pie because there was a water detail out at the time and we didn't want them to get screwed. We'll be sure to pick you up and burp you after you eat the next issue, and maybe then you'll be inspired.

[Charles Heath]

Boys!

Say, now, with the way you fellers fight over that pair of Elmira pies, let's just say I'm glad we didn't twig shut a couple of corpulent Dutch gals in that bacon box. Naturally, they could have made a small fortune checking you folks for ticks....

I'm longing for yet another walk in those woods right now. The rain soaked, marked up, penciled in, inked over, scribbled on, Steven Stanley map from CWPT that has been in my pocket since Day 1 is probably going to end up in the Columbia Rifles' "Museum" along with some other odds and ends, including a quart can of "O'Beirne's Ass Sap" (the leftover Scott's molasses from Payne's Farm), a certain little green sign (Burkittsville 2005), Stevie's Tail (Bentonville March 2000), and some even more bizarre items from events gone by. Yeah, I guess it was just too early in the war (and the wrong battlefield) for the boys in blue to exclaim they were fighting for the "Fair Parmelia Higgerston!" Long story there, hmmm, maybe too long.....

[Malingerer]

If it's not pie theives at Fort Donelson, it's pie shortages at Glendale. If I've said it once, I've said it a hundred times: Pie will be the death of this hobby!

[parebel]

Peter,
I agree! Let's ban pie from the hobby, and speak of it only as a mainstream phenomenon! I would have much rather had 2 bottles of Oh-Be-Joyful to pies and lope eared Dutch gals! :sarcastic

[Charles Heath]

Boys,

Something about a stolen pie makes it taste all that much better. I hope you lads thanked General McCall for the use of his commissary box later that night when he became your guest for a short while.

In light of all this nonsense about how pies are ruining the hobby (hey, that's my job), and pies being the single most divisive issue in the hobby (ditto), and such, it may be high time for School of the Pie Thief II at Athens, Missouri, this coming August. Between the pie, watermelon, and corn, corn, and more corn, that event lends itself well to gluttony. If the price of gasoline goes up much more, we may have to break out the still at that event to have enough fuel to get home, but I digress.

People remember pie long after the event is done.

[JStiles]

Note to self...If ever presented with the same or similar situation, keep all pie for the officers. Then, any complaints will only be going in one direction!...Jerry Stiles

[Doug Nash]

Hell Yeah Jerry - that works for me! After all, it is both fitting and proper for officers to eat the pie - they have earned it! But it would appear that we had a pie Jonah in the ranks of the 2nd Platoon at Glendale who consumed that tasty bit of Yankee contraband all by hisself. If the NCOs (who had custody of said pie) swear that they didn't eat it, and the rank and file "didnt git none" and our lieutenant was too preoccupied, then someone ate that doggone thing! (it sure as hell weren't me, otherwise I wouldn't be a bitching!!
Cheers,
Doug aka the Piesexual

[CSchneider]

Now, I can assure you all that, while overseeing the rest of the NCOs figure out how to divide 4 pieces of pork, 23 potatoes, 8 onions, 1 pie, and 1 pie somewhere inside a small mountain of ants equally amongst 54 enlistedmen, I saw neither Sergeant Orpen nor Corporal Orpen have one bite of that damn pie. They did, however, jealously guard that pie from those in 2nd Platoon who slinked away when they were asked to go on a canteen detail until the rest of 2nd Platoon returned with water.

-Craig Schneider

[Doug Nash]

Hell, since I was on that very canteen detail, it probably disappeared then! Maybe a bear slipped in unbeknownst in uniform and took it - maybe the bear wore a Yankee uniform, for all I know - it was kinda hot and we were a bit dizzy with thirst...
Cheers,
Doug

[robwall1861]

I got my pie and was happy with that:) (I was one of the lucky ones assigned to 1st platoon for the weekend)....Glendale was an awesome event (my first real campaigner one) and I can't wait till the next one (because of upcoming events for my wedding in July I have taken a break from reenacting till August)

I was soaked on Sunday...come to think of it, the rain did an excellant number on my hat:).....

Take Care.....

[Stonewall_Greyfox]

Ironic isn't it that 1st platoon was the "lucky" platoon to recieve the aforementioned mountain of ants pie...?

Funny, we had no problem dispersing this pie to 30+ individuals, who managed to enjoy the tease despite the little army of ants that had laid first claim to it.

Paul B.

[Enfilade]

To hell with the pie! I'm still looking for the liquor ration! Why think about it; a captured Yankee officer with a huge crate and no liquor? Not likely!:angry_smi

Mark Berrier
North State Rifles
http://www.northstaterifles.com

[cprljohnivey]

You think the Pie was the first choice for the ants? I hear tell that the queen ant is quite the lush!

[GrumpyDave]

Those were Yankee ants.

[Private Longshanks]

Hell, I was 1st Cpl. and in 1st platoon, and had to cut up all that damn ham (it wasn't easy), and then ended up not getting ANY pie at all. By the time the canteen detail came back and I got my water, I had just enough time to boil it up with some ham and 'taters in it. I ate about 2 mouthfuls of my "salt soup" and we were on the move so I had to dump it. Then, I got stuck on outpost duty and didn't have any water from before our last engagement on Saturday until Sunday morning!!!! So I don't see why anyone is complainin', as I think Jim Peterson and I did enough for all of us Saturday night!!! And I'm with Mark, where the hell was that liquor ration? I needed it real bad. Soldierin' is a hard life.....

And I thought NCO's had it easy....:cry_smile

Shanky

[Kevin O'Beirne]

I had fun, and only got three ticks. Helluva thing for an upstate New Yorker like me to go from W64 to a mid-April event that had air temps in the 80s, swarms of skeeters, and ticks galore just two months after W64.

I had one of the most interesting, assigned first-person names I've ever had the priviledge to portray. I was the Fourth Pennsylvania Reserves, Co H's "Lt. Abel T. Sweet". I figured if I added another middle name starting with "B", I could have been "able to be sweet". :)

Great job by the organizers in pulling together a good event in only a few months.

[MD_Independent]

Just want to thank the organizers for a great event. It was an awesome experience tramping through the same fields and woods as my ggg grandfathers little brother did as a member of the Fourth PA in 1862. Pretty cool because I grew up on the same farm, working in the same fields, and playing along the same creek as they did. I've always felt closer to them than any other CW-era ancestor I have. This was THE event I've been waiting for since I started in this hobby ten years ago.

Also, there was one generous reb who saved my life, or at least my sanity, Sunday morning when my chewing tobacco supply ran out, and he supplied me with a cigarette while I was filling the canteens for my fellow POW's. To him, I say, Thanks. I am forever in your debt. Nicotine fits suck...
Billy Birney

[ley74]

Billy:

Always great to see you in the field. We were releived when your ride caught up with you.

Take care,

[MD_Independent]

Oh, I was relieved, too.... The girl had my cell phone all weekend while she shopped and studied in Williamsburg, and I was worried some other girl had called my phone or some such... Talk about worried to death... That would've been a tight spot to get out of... Thanks again...
Bill Birney

[Charles Heath]

Billy,

Yes, that would have been a very tight spot, and remember not to give your apartment keys to two or more gals at the same time, lest you encounter an unwelcome surprise some night.

Speaking of giving, shoot Kevin a reply email regarding that nice B&W image of the federal troops from Glendale-Malvern Hill 2008. You'll be honored to know one of your photographs is the lead candidate for the federal tee shirt project. Kudos! For those in the Sumac League, Greg Starbuck has given written permission to use one of his photographs. Thanks, Greg!

Soon, our hard working minions in the Hamburg, New York, "production facility" will be sweating away! Well, kinda-sorta!

[ley74]

Gentlemen:

It is with great pleasure that I present the preliminary accounting of the Glendale-Malvern Hill Living History.

First, once again the Columbia Rifles extends its thanks to all those who participated, in the many forms and impressions. You made the event.

A special thanks goes to Jerry Stiles and Dave Towsen (Confederate and Federal commanders, respectively).

As a result of the accounting below, please feel free to use this post as a receipt that out of each and every registration fee of $25 received, sixty-nine percent (69%), or $17.28 is tax deductible to the Columbia Rifles. These remainder funds from the event will be passed through to the CWPT.

Thirty-nine unique individuals and organizations also contributed $2,544 above the amount retained from the registrations fees. These names will be sent to the CWPT in your individual names and are fully tax deductible.

More donations are also due and and these amounts do not include an indirect, solicited donation for $10,000 from a local Richmonder. Additional donations will be updated here.

We are in hopes that the CWPT will be able to finalize matching funds from the Cabell Trust for the amounts raised. Regardless, for 133 guys this was pretty darn good.

Again, thank you!


Registration Fees $3,325
Expenses (1,027)

Excess 2,298
Donations 2,254

Total to CWPT $4,842

[Charles Heath]

Stumbled across a nice little Glendale article with maps on the CWPT site this evening, and it is worth sharing:

http://www.civilwar.org/glendale08/history/

This event seems so long ago. Wow, it was only April of this year.

[ley74]

You know, we really need to get the key from Bobby Krick and spend the night out there. Least while the ticks and baby coppers are a sleeping.