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Borrego Springs, CA

Saturday, June 2, 2012

I got hollered at today

It was a special day today at the Pickett’s Mill Battlefield State Historic Site. 

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On May 25, 1864, this was the scene of a Civil War battle that resulted in the loss of over 2000 lives.  Sherman and his troops encountered a grave defeat here on his march to take Atlanta.

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I have a general knowledge of the Civil War, but little knowledge of specific battles, so my first stop was at the visitor’s center to view the museum and the movie.  I was happy that I watched the movie first, as that gave me an understanding of the horrific battle that took place in this seemingly out of the way place.  To add to that, a small re-enactment was occurring today.  In 1864, there was a wheat field in the lower left of the above map.  That’s where the re-enactment I observed occurred.

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As I made my way to that field, I came upon Confederate troops readying a grapeshot cannon.  (This is my term for it.  I’m sure these gentlemen told me its official name, but I can’t remember.)  This was an anti-personnel cannon which means the ‘grapeshot’ literally mowed down troops in front of it like a giant shotgun.  In under five hours, 1600 Union soldiers laid dead in the field and forests.

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Along the edge of the wheat field, Confederate troops were occasionally firing off rounds at the Union troops on the other side of the field.  They were expecting the Union soldiers to maneuver to their flank. 

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I decided to walk down the side of the field and visit the boys in blue.  That’s when I got into trouble. Sad smile

Suddenly the guy with the little bar on his shoulder shouted, “Stop Sir!  You are in the line of fire, and we are shooting at those Confederates!”  I, of course ignored him since I’m not a ‘Sir’.  Whoops!  Guess that haircut I got a week or so ago was a little shorter than I thought.  He stomped over and ordered me behind the lines.  I, of course, obeyed.  Only problem was, when you’re behind the lines you can’t see anything.  These re-enactors really take their job seriously.  I thought they only used blanks in their guns.

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My real highlight of this experience was meeting Johnny Lloyd.  He is one of the re-enactors, and was a wellspring of information.  Depending on the occasion, he can wear blue or grey.  Smile  From him I learned that hardtack is really hard!  In order to be edible, troops would first fry their bacon and then soak the hardtack in the grease so it would soften up.  Did you know that they had rubber tarps in those days?  I didn’t, and he even showed me the manufacturer’s seal on the tarp that said Goodyear. (I think. I hope I got that right.  I did recognize it as a famous tire name.)  The tobacco pouch was also made out of that same rubber.  I just always thought it would have been hides or leather of some sort.  Potatoes and other vegetables were also smaller in those days before hybrids and herbicides and such.  I also learned that soldiers wore hobnail boots so that the soles wouldn’t wear out so fast.  They also provided traction in slippery soils.  I always try to learn something new each day, but now I’m good for at least a week!

I’ll have to save where I went this afternoon for tomorrow’s post since it will be a stay at home pack up day for me.  Today was one of those days that was surely a diamond, not a stone!

Thanks for stopping by… talk to you later,  Judy

28 comments:

  1. Very interesting post Judy. I'm sure he didn't think you were a guy unless he left his glasses at home.

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  2. Don't you just love those diamond days? I agree that you found one, today. Great post.

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  3. I love seeing these reenactments. I like to put myself back in that time period. I will say though...I would have been way too scared to fight like they did during the civil war.

    I also didn't know anything about hardtack. Thanks for explaining that.

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  4. What I find amazing is how much I don't know about anything. 1600 Union soldiers dead and I had never heard of this battle. Thanks for the great history lesson about such a sad time in our history.

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  5. Very informative Judy. It seems there is history around every corner if we just search it out.

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  6. a diamond instead of a stone..love that analogy!!..glad you had a good day!

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  7. Its hard to imagine 2000 dead inone field. Who burried them all?

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  8. Wish I was there. :) This is the type of day I love; thanks for bringing it to us.

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  9. Thanks Judy, you've done it again! Great post and history lesson.

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  10. It's always a good day when you make it out of the battlefield alive!

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  11. Glad you didn't get shot in the crossfire, Sir!!

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  12. Thanks for sharing your day. Sorry they yelled at you. :)

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  13. Not a real gun? Then go away little man.

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  14. At least you didn't get yelled at from both sides.....

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  15. A diamond day is always good. Glad to hear you heeded the warnings and lived to tell the story.

    I'm like you ... have a general knowledge of the Civil War and though I find the movies in the visitor center disturbing, they do a really good job of helping me to understand the events specific to a particular battlefield. The carnage is always mind boggling.

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  16. Very interesting. I have heard of hardtack but didn't know much about it.

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  17. Loved the post ! I so love history & especially Civil Was History. My husband & I love the re-enactments too... Full of info! GREAT photos
    Have fun & Travel safe
    Donna

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  18. Maybe he just didn't expect a woman to be out in the battlefield... you should have been home tending the fires and hoeing the fields ;-) But aren't the best views always in the line of fire?

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  19. Judy, great post. Where were you when I was suppose to be listening in History Class. It is so enjoyable refreshing our minds through one's blog.

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  20. I have been to many Civil War battlefields, and try to walk them rather than drive through, to get a sense of what the soldiers saw and how it looked to them from the ground. After a while the sorrow emanating from those fields gets overpowering and I have to avoid them for a few years.

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  21. Glad you did not get wounded in battle. They really do take it seriously. but it is a passion for them. I have always found them to be a wealth of information and glad to share what they know. Good post

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  22. Great post. I love Civil War history.

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  23. Well Sir, I've had several friends who were reinactors and they are VERY serious about it and into total authenticity which means they probably know more about their unit and its battles than anyone other than those who originally fought. Great post. Thanks!

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  24. Love history, especially Civil War

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  25. Judy,

    Hello, my name is Herb Coats, and I was the reenactor host from the park’s programs this past weekend. I am so very glad that you enjoyed the time at Pickett's Mill State Park. It truly is a gem tucked away in Paulding County. If you take away the modern road, visitor's center, and the ranger's old house, what you see is what the men in 1864 saw. I hope you were not too put off about being asked to move out of the way by the Federal officer. He is a good guy, and was just concerned about the visitor's safety.

    While we are not firing real bullets, the weapons are still real and fully functional. We do fire blank, black powder rounds, in which we ram the powder and cartridge into the muskets. Flames and the paper still come out of the muzzle, but not at a far distance. As one poster noted, we do take our safety seriously.

    We try to emulate the drill, equipment, uniforms, and mannerisms as closely as we can with using period correct sources, patterns, and drill manuals. Thank you for this article too!


    Herb Coats
    President, Armory Guards
    Living History Group

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  26. Johnny Lloyd is my husband, and yes, he's a wonderful guy! I'm glad you got to meet him. He is a wealth of information.

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