The Civil War Preservation Trust (CWPT), Stonewall Brigade, and Columbia Rifles are pleased to announce a semi-immersive living history event, “After the Battle: Fredericksburg 2007”, to be held on October 26-28, 2007 on part of the Fredericksburg battlefield.
The event site is CWPT’s 207-acre “slaughter pen” property, site of heavy fighting between Stonewall Jackson’s corps and Union troops under John Gibbon and George Meade, near the southern end of the Fredericksburg battlefield. The site was preserved when CWPT acquired it in June 2006 for $12.5 million, making it the most expensive purchase — and one of the most significant — in CWPT’s history. Outside the boundary of the National Park Service’s property, few parts of the Fredericksburg battlefield that saw significant fighting remain unspoiled, except the “slaughter pen” site.
The event will feature opposing picket lines portraying what happened at the “slaughter pen” in the days immediately following the December 13 battle — from the evening of December 14 through December 15, 1862 – including opposing picket fire, a truce for collecting the wounded and burying the dead, and a Federal field dressing station.
Approximate participant numbers are envisioned as follows:
• Confederate: 50 to 75 infantry.
• Federal: 50 to 100 infantry and three to six medical portrayals
The total number of participants is not capped. The potential exists for a limited number of mounted personnel, portraying couriers. Unfortunately, we are unable to accommodate artillery at this event.
At the request of the CWPT, the event will include a limited public interpretation aspect: a guided tour of the site for spectators, led by National Park Service ranger Frank O’Reilly, author of the 2002 book The Fredericksburg Campaign: Winter War of the Rappahannock. The tour will be approximately two hours long on Saturday afternoon and is limited to 200 people. Mr. O’Reilly, an active preservationist, has agreed to support the event by leading the tour and contributing his research to assist the event planners.
This event will be held on the only undeveloped part of the Fredericksburg battlefield that saw significant fighting where a reenactor event with opposing forces can be held. All other sites are either within the National Park Service park (where opposing force portrayals are prohibited) or developed and unavailable.
This event is co-sponsored by the Stonewall Brigade (Confederate contact Mike “Dusty” Chapman, dustyswb@comcast.net) and the Columbia Rifles (Federal contact: Kevin O’Beirne, kobeirne@adelphia.net). The event team includes most of the same folks who planned and ran the 2005 Payne’s Farm event in cooperation with CWPT. An event website will be up in the winter of 2007 at www.stonewallbrigade.com.
We are looking for dedicated reenactors with good late-1862 portrayals to help us commemorate the battle of Fredericksburg and its aftermath. We hope to see you at “After the Battle: Fredericksburg 2007".
The event site is CWPT’s 207-acre “slaughter pen” property, site of heavy fighting between Stonewall Jackson’s corps and Union troops under John Gibbon and George Meade, near the southern end of the Fredericksburg battlefield. The site was preserved when CWPT acquired it in June 2006 for $12.5 million, making it the most expensive purchase — and one of the most significant — in CWPT’s history. Outside the boundary of the National Park Service’s property, few parts of the Fredericksburg battlefield that saw significant fighting remain unspoiled, except the “slaughter pen” site.
The event will feature opposing picket lines portraying what happened at the “slaughter pen” in the days immediately following the December 13 battle — from the evening of December 14 through December 15, 1862 – including opposing picket fire, a truce for collecting the wounded and burying the dead, and a Federal field dressing station.
Approximate participant numbers are envisioned as follows:
• Confederate: 50 to 75 infantry.
• Federal: 50 to 100 infantry and three to six medical portrayals
The total number of participants is not capped. The potential exists for a limited number of mounted personnel, portraying couriers. Unfortunately, we are unable to accommodate artillery at this event.
At the request of the CWPT, the event will include a limited public interpretation aspect: a guided tour of the site for spectators, led by National Park Service ranger Frank O’Reilly, author of the 2002 book The Fredericksburg Campaign: Winter War of the Rappahannock. The tour will be approximately two hours long on Saturday afternoon and is limited to 200 people. Mr. O’Reilly, an active preservationist, has agreed to support the event by leading the tour and contributing his research to assist the event planners.
This event will be held on the only undeveloped part of the Fredericksburg battlefield that saw significant fighting where a reenactor event with opposing forces can be held. All other sites are either within the National Park Service park (where opposing force portrayals are prohibited) or developed and unavailable.
This event is co-sponsored by the Stonewall Brigade (Confederate contact Mike “Dusty” Chapman, dustyswb@comcast.net) and the Columbia Rifles (Federal contact: Kevin O’Beirne, kobeirne@adelphia.net). The event team includes most of the same folks who planned and ran the 2005 Payne’s Farm event in cooperation with CWPT. An event website will be up in the winter of 2007 at www.stonewallbrigade.com.
We are looking for dedicated reenactors with good late-1862 portrayals to help us commemorate the battle of Fredericksburg and its aftermath. We hope to see you at “After the Battle: Fredericksburg 2007".
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