Shenandoah National Park – June

The Federal Government seems supremely good at not doing useful things, particularly big & important useful things.  Things like a minimum wage that an adult could actually self-support on & truly universal affordable health care.  But  Our Feds do manage to get nice little things right from time to time.  One of these nice little things is the Senior National Park Pass.  For a one time fee of $10.00 anyone who has reached their 62nd birthday can have a lifetime pass to Our Fabulous National Parks as well as reduced fees at most parks for camping and the like.  Since I live less than 20 miles from a National Park I bought one of these passes the week of my 62nd birthday.

Thus I found myself heading up US Hwy. 33 with my camera beside me on a bright & sunny day in mid June after a morning of painting the siding on the rear of my house.  I wasn’t bound out for a major expedition, just a nice leisurely drive up to Big Meadows & back.

Big Meadows

Big Meadows is a naturally occurring meadow area that straddles the ridges of the Blue Ridge a bit north of were I live.  The ground had a fairly high water table & the trees common to the mountains don’t like having soggy roots.  Its a grand place to come for night time sky watching too.

  Small Grove of Trees near the Visitor Center

Summer was in full force at my house but up here it was still spring.  The Fiddlehead ferns were all bright green & prime deer food while the wild flowers were busting out all over.

  Looking east at the North end of  Big Meadows

There wasn’t much of a breeze at ground level but the clouds were shifting & moving from much stiffer winds up were they were. 

South of Big Meadows Overlooking Greene County

As I left the Meadows to go home the temperature was starting to drop even though it was barely mid afternoon.  A front moved through near dark & brought cold rain with it. 

Nearly 2 weeks later Da Urchin & I used my pass to again take an afternoon drive into the park.  (The pass covers the vehicle & all its passengers).  

Looking Northeast Down the Shenandoah Valley

We entered the SNP from Front Royal & drove south stopping at any pull-outs that caught our fancy.  At this end of the park most the view points look into the Valley.

Looking Towards Front Royal

Part of Front Royal can be seen in the upper right of this picture.  The trees and ground cover have lost their bright greens of spring already & put on the darker hues of summer.  The seasons move faster up here.  It was a glorious summer day & a most relaxing drive.

Trevilians Station – Battles

I saw a billboard for this event coming home from the Spring OVPR.  I checked out the web site, discovered it was a cavalry only event, and promptly put it on my calendar.  Horses, horses not by the tens but by the hundreds.  Cavalry battles as the main event.   How could I not go? 

So on a warm steamy June Saturday that promised to get warmer & steamier off I went to a farm in Louisa county.  The farm is available for events as well as raise beef cattle & heritage seeds.  So there was plenty of open fields for the event.  And there were horses everywhere.  Hundreds of horses.  Cavalry heaven.

Union Cavalry Unit

 Another Union Unit

There were Union re-enactors  from New England, New York, Pennsylvania and Maryland based on the license plates in the Federal parking area. 

  Two Ranks of Union Cavalry

 Union Color Guard

Riding Into Battle

Typical Union Cavalry Soldier

The Union army favored smallish horses and bought a great many Morgans and Canadians.  In fact they bought so many Morgans and Canadian horses (a breed originally from France) that it was decades before the breeds numbers recovered 1860 levels.

The Battle of Trevilians Station occurred after JEB Stuart’s death.  The Union forces were well supplied with breech loading carbines and revolvers although sabers were still carried. 

Confederate Cavalry Line Advancing

The Confederates advanced across the field in two groups of two ranks each.  Teaching horses to advance like that in straight ranks takes more than a bit of practice.  The Union cavalry outnumbered the Rebel cavalry at the Battle of Trevilians Station .  Here at the reenactment the reverse was true, but then we are in Virginia.

Typical Rebel Cavalry Soldier

This man has a revolver and a muzzle loading carbine slung on his right side.  He’s riding a gaited horse which he had to purchase with his own funds.  My daughter pointed out that even in the re-enacting world the 2 sides were riding noticeably different horse breeds.  This different would have been more pronounced during the Civil War at least here in Virginia.  Out along the Mississippi River states the Rebels had fewer gaited horses and more stock working ponies from west of the river.

Dismounted Cavalry

Cavalry usually fought dismounted with one man in four holding the horses.  The other 3 men would deploy in an open skirmish line.  Troopers would mount up & redeploy as the needed.

Dismounted Cavalry Skirmish Line

Safety is important.  No one wants any man or horse injured.  The event organizers used hay bales to indicate where dismounted men should be.  Men on horseback had “lanes of travel” to ride around the “man” areas.

Rebel Horse Artillery

Both sides had horse artillery units.  These cannons are much smaller and lighter than the usual Napoleon and Parrot cannons used by the regular artillery. ( The Union canon weren’t positioned where I could get there picture.)

The Rebel Commander Wade Hamilton

The main battle started before noon.  Later there was a dismounted only battle which began when two skirmish lines bumped into each other. 

 Federal Skirmish Line Deploying

Rebel Skirmish Line Advancing

 Rebel Color Guard

Federal Horse Artillery Firing

This event is held on alternate years.  The viewing area is shaded and runs along the whole length of the field.  The event is very well set up with the horses’ well being the number one priority.  Water troughs were everywhere and refilled throughout the day.  Horse trailer parking was right along side the unit camps and there were both horse vets and EMTs on site.

Trevilians Station – Camps & Carriages

Reenactments aren’t all morning dress parade and battles.  The military camps are open to visitation (except during the battles) and most events have a variety of activities of the era but not necessarily of the war.  This event had a nice array of non-battle activities and presentations, too many for any one person to attend in fact.  This is very good.

Union Horse & Saddle

This nice gelding has a army issue saddle blanket, saddle, saddlebags and halter.  His rider hasn’t put the army issue bridle on him yet.  On the march he would also have a picket pin & rope, a nosebag for feed, a bag of grain, a shelter half and a canteen as well as his rider’s overcoat and various other small personal possessions. 

Union Picket Line

Army regulations had cavalry encampments located on the perimeter of the infantry camps & near water.  Human comfort came a distant second to horse comfort.  All the camps had shade for the horse lines at this event with plenty of horse troughs that were refilled throughout the day.

Nice Reproduction Tack Stand

Stands like this one were common in fixed garrisons.  That’s a nose bag hanging on the left side.

 Unit Tack Stand

This stand keeps everything off the ground and out of the mud.  They had a canvas tarp cover for it too.

Confederate Camp

The camp streets were wide enough to drive a pickup & horse trailer down them.  The horses could go through camp 4 abreast with room to spare.

Confederate Soldier

The day got hot & muggy.   Quite a few soldiers took a quick nap between the mounted and dismounted battles.

 Camp Kitchen

I really liked the design of this camp kitchen.  There’s 2 shelves inside spaced for cans up top, plates in the middle, and tall containers at the bottom.  One side box has spices and the other has utensils.  The top box keeps the period appropriate containers out of the way & secure.

Best Union Tent Ever!

This is without a doubt the best campaign tent setup I’ve ever seen.  The wood sides are corn crib slabs and have notches to lock them in place.  The bed is more corn crib slabs that fit in more notches.  The vertical tent poles are saplings cut to size and debarked.  There is no ridge pole, instead ropes tension the ridgeline.  The tent itself is a 6x6x6.  Its dry, its roomy, and there’s a straw filled tick on the bed boards.  Awesome, just plain awesome.

19th Century Style Doctoring

This lady was explaining to one and all the techniques of 19th century medicine and surgery. 

The Apothecary

This lady was explaining how pills were formulated and made.  She also talked about home remedies and herb lore.     The Confederacy was very dependant on home remedies because the blockade made so many of an apothecary’s  usual ingredients unavailable.

  Field Apothecary Kits

Few medicines were available pre-made.  Apothecaries made pills, salves, and infusions as needed.

 Federal Bugler

This bugler gave a lovely talk and demonstration of the bugle calls that governed a cavalry soldier’s day and gave him commands on the field of battle.

Period Musical Concert

These folks played the dance and parlor music of the era.  They were quite good although it was too warm to dance.

There were also seminars on telegraph operations, home front activities,  spies & spying,  the role of women in the war effort, and various children’s activities as well as a living history camp with period school lessons.  

And a Parade of Carriages, all sorts of carriages pulled by all sorts of horses. 

 4 Person Carriage & Team

This Handsome Carriage Horse

Was Pulling This Handsome Carriage

 Heavy Draft Horse Team in German Tack

 Hansom Rig and Pony

Another Pony Hansom

There were also 2 blacksmiths on site doing demonstrations and selling their wares.

Gypsy Jane’s Blacksmith Friend

I really enjoyed this event in spite of the muggy heat and I only got a bit sunburned.  Next time I take more water & pack a lunch. 

Tidewater Road Trip – Jamestown Nat’l. Park

I have been to Jamestown Nat’l. Park twice before but both days were cold & rainy.  So I have toured the museum at the Visitor’s Center but hadn’t seen much of the site itself.  Today the weather was perfect & Jane & I got there in time for the 1st ranger tour of the day.  It is a most excellent tour & well worth the time.

Cap’n. John Smith

John Smith probably saved the Jamestown colony from itself but he certainly wasn’t an easy man to get on with.  My personal sympathy goes to the men who had to share a very small boat with one who considered himself to be one very big man. 

 Turtles on the way in

The Jamestown site is fairly large & has all sorts of interesting wildlife to watch.  Deer, geese, squirrels, rabbits & eagles – they’re all here.

Seal on the Church

There are church ruins on site from a house of worship built after John Smith’s tenure.  A coat of arms like this one once graced it front.

Outdoor model of the 1st Jamestown Settlement Fort

This model of Jamestown is based on the written records as confirmed by on site excavations. 

Crosses Marking were Bodies were Found

The more the site is excavated the more there are bodies found buried nearly everywhere inside the settlement perimeters.  Everywhere a body is found a cross is placed.

There is a 2nd museum in the vicinity of the original settlement which is very good.  Photography isn’t allowed inside this facility in part because 2 skeletons from the site are on display.   Personally I abhor actual human remains on display anywhere no matter what  excuse is used.  I like Canada’s law in this regard: skeletons found by any excavation or exposed by nature & found maybe scientifically studied for up to 3 months but must then be reinterred.  Any & all bodies found must be reinterred after 3 months.   Period.  No exceptions.  The people who were buried at Jamestown & disinterred by on site excavation should be respectfully reinterred.  Period.  No exceptions.  Putting such a skeleton on display is the worst kind of disrespect.  (End of rant).

Jane & I also went to Jamestown Settlement today.  There the gardens were all growing with enthusiasm & the hens laying eggs hither & yon.  Jane hadn’t seen much of that museum last time we were there so we toured it also until we just plain wore out.  The drive back to home was uneventful & we were both very happy but tired puppies.