AMESBURY'S Ma. CIVIL WAR ENCAMPMENT 2006

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The following was sent to me to pass along

Those who may be near the area I hope ypou are able to go..

Regards,
Steven

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AMESBURY'S BARTLETT MUSEUM
Presents

CIVIL WAR ENCAMPMENT – 2006

FREE! – NO FEE!

Sat. & Sun. - MAY 20th & 21st

270 Main St., Amesbury, MA

Celebrating a continuing Exhibit -

"AMESBURY AT WAR: A Tradition of Service & Sacrifice"

Honoring all who have served and who are presently serving our nation

"It is history that teaches us to hope." – Robert E. Lee

Amesbury's Bartlett Museum is a not-for-profit organization dedicated
to the preservation of artifacts relating to Amesbury's rich heritage.

AN INVITATION FOR PARTICIPATION

LADIES, GENTLEMEN, PARDS,

Last year Amesbury's Bartlett Museum presented one of its
most successful events ever with over 200 visitors in less than 8
hours. We sponsored an amazingly eclectic event with the help of a
number of talented and dedicated individuals who have an interest in
the Civil War, military & local history.

Saturday & Sunday, May 20th & 21st, 2006 the Museum will again offer
up our grounds for a cooperative Civil War Living History Encampment;
we had such great success with the last one that we are hosting an
optional two-day event with an optional overnight stay including a
campfire with home brewed "pop-skull," music, revelry and
camaraderie. We are again requesting participation, keeping in mind
that no participants would be required to be there for both days.
This Civil War cooperative will be a great place to recruit and/or
get out information about your unit / organization (especially since
Sunday is "Be A Tourist in Your Hometown.") Civil War enthusiasts,
freelance reenactors, impressionists, and living historians are
welcome to attend. This is a FREE PUBLIC event requesting voluntary
public donations ONLY for the support of the museum and/or special
interests – e.g. Monument preservation/restoration (see NOTE below).


LAST YEAR:

The Exhibit:
Artifacts from the Revolutionary War through Present Day with a focus
on the Civil War, including various unique items of interest and a
fantastic diorama of the battle at Hatcher's Run by Richard Nichols.
(Both the 11th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry and the 5th
Massachusetts Artillery participated in this battle.) You will
probably never see such an excellent WWI uniform as we currently have
on display and I doubt that you'll ever see such a great, wonderfully
preserved WWI Machinegun.
And much more - with gratitude to (curator) Regina Moscardini and
husband Paul, "Buddy" Knapp, & Richard Nichols

Prior Event Participants:
The Merrimack Valley Civil War Roundtable; Members of the New
Hampshire Civil War Roundtable; Members of the 11th Massachusetts
Volunteer Infantry Civil War Impressionists; various "freelance"
Civil War Living Historians; among others – featuring Eleanor
Becotte, Bill Hallett, Sid Smith, Rob O'Hannon, Hank McCarl, and Mr.
& Mrs. Brown who were gracious enough to be on-hand to educate the
public. Information was available pertaining to regional Civil War
Veterans – compiled from local histories and records by "Ski"
Iworsky, Christopher Gwinn, Paul Jancewicz and others. Last year we
also had Mr. James Ballou, the world's leading expert on the B.A.R.,
to share his knowledge.

We showed a nice DVD of a Gettysburg Remembrance Day parade and had
many "experts" inside and outside the museum. The neighbors were
GREAT! They gathered in support and many area children drilled and
learned much about the War Between the States amidst the blank firing
of period replica rifles.

What happened last year was very encouraging for me. It showed how
many groups could work together for a common purpose without allowing
petty differences to get in the way of a common goal. I will be very
clear here: My personal dream is to make this a yearly event,
eventually (some day) culminating in an actual battle Reenactment at
the Woodsom Farm, located about 1 mile away.


THIS YEAR:

We hope to have everything that we had last year plus:

Homebrew, Hardtack and History – brewed and cooked by a grateful
lover of all things past and future. It is a very personal aspiration
for me. *see: "Born To Remember" below

We are hoping to gain the participation of a local artillery unit
(5th MASS Battery E), one or two musicians, and possibly individuals
portraying Confederate soldiers and/or civilians.

Amesbury High School's HAPP (Historic Amesbury Preservation Project) -
and ALL War Veterans buried in Amesbury Cemeteries from the
Revolutionary War until c. 1978. (compiled by teachers and students)
HAPP's motto is: "Dissemination of Information leads to Preservation"

Updated Information pertaining to regional Civil War Veterans –
compiled from local histories and records by "Ski" Iworsky,
Christopher Gwinn, Paul Jancewicz (who recently compiled records from
originals at town hall) and others.

Paul Jancewicz will gladly share and discuss his recent research on
the role of local abolitionists and the important connections between
William Lloyd Garrison (of Newburyport where I grew up) and John
Greenleaf Whittier (of Amesbury where I now live).

Examples of Camp Life, Military Drill, Weapons handling & blank
Firing instruction will be presented.
Various types of period provisions, gear, weapons, etc. will be on
hand for examination & explanation.

Reenactors who bring tents are welcome to sleep overnight on the
grounds if that is to their liking. We'll likely have a bit of
homebrew along with spirited campfire discussions.

If you and/or your unit specialize in a certain presentation that
you'd like to share, just let me know. Again, this will be a great venue to recruit for your unit and/or to gain support for your cause. Museum members are excited to welcome a variety of possibilities for this event.
Note: Sunday is Tourist in Your Hometown Day, so it is likely there
will be a nice turn-out that day. {There are a limited number of "loaner" uniforms that may be available; if you might have need, please contact me ASAP as they will go on a 1st come basis.}

NOTE: {Since my first alert of this important event was sent out, sad
and disturbing news has come to us of the devastating vandalism of
three monuments at Gettysburg including that of the 11th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry along the Emmitsburg Road. Our unit, though heart-stricken and sickened will again work to restore this monument to its original condition come hell or high water. That is part of our mission – to remember – and it makes the success of this encampment ever so more essential.} http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/pp/06047/656355.stm


Thus, I hope that you will consider joining in this effort to educate
and to memorialize, ever keeping in mind those who gave the "last
full measure" in the struggle to define the nature of our nation.
As our ancestor's defiled monument at Gettysburg states:
"ALL'S WELL THAT ENDS WELL!"

[SAVE THE DATE: MAY- Sat. 20th & Sun. 21st 2006 – & RSVP if you can!]

With Respect and Sincere Gratitude,
P.J. "Jancy" Jancewicz,
AHS Social Studies Dept., Bartlett Museum President
a.k.a. – Capt. Sam'l Black, 11th MASS "Boston Volunteers"


A Bit About the Event Organizer – P. "JancE" Jancewicz who was:

BORN TO REMEMBER

"All the past we may leave behind, but this we must never forget,
sacrifices made upon the altar of freedom. These we must keep in
heart and mind." – P. Jancewicz, 2005 (Regarding the death of Lt.
Derek Hines in 2005)

My Day / Our Day: Eleven in November is the Number
ADD It ALL Up…
We all, at one time or another, wonder at the reason for our being –
our purpose in life. I now believe that I was born to remember
veterans and to help others to remember them as well.
I'm not obsessed with numbers, but I am quite taken aback by the
coincidences listed here.
I was born in Newburyport, Massachusetts on the 11th of November in
1963. Eleven November is one day after the Marine Corps Birthday and
it was, originally, Armistice Day because – on the eleventh hour of
the eleventh day of the eleventh month of 1918 World War One ("The
War to END ALL Wars") ended.
My maternal grandfather served as a U.S. Army artilleryman in France
(AEF) during WWI. It was also eleven days after my birth (Nov 22nd,
1963) that World War II veteran and subsequent Untied States
President, John F. Kennedy, was assassinated allegedly by a former
Marine. Kennedy had visited Gettysburg in the summer of '63 (the
Centennial year of the largest battle fought in the western
hemisphere); when asked to attend Remembrance Day [always held around the 19th of November commemorating the Nat'l Cemetery dedication and Lincoln's famed Gettysburg Address
(see Lincoln/Kennedy "coincidences")] the president declined, stating that
he had an engagement in Dallas, Texas.

I joined the U.S. Marine Corps on the 22nd of June 1982 served during
the horrific results of the Beruit bombing and later joined 2/2,
(Second Battalion, Second Marine Regiment) at Camp Lejeune, NC. I was
honorably discharged on the 22nd of June in 1985 whereupon turned 22
as a resident of the 22nd floor with parking in Lot 22 at the
University of Massachusetts in Amherst (founded in 1863). The
Commandant of the Marine Corps, during my time of service, was
another Paul – Paul X. Kelley also from Massachusetts and he was also
born on what we now call Veterans' Day, November eleventh. (Again -
formerly termed Armistice Day for the end of "The Great War," which
was only to be termed the "First World War" after Hitler's invasion
of Poland in 1939 and the start of World War II.)

I served for a time in Korea as did my bronze star recipient uncle
and, much later, my nephew. My dad was a WWII veteran who served in
the Army occupational forces in Germany. Two of my uncles served,
honorably, during World War Two.

I had a cousin who served in the Spanish-American War and ancestors
who served during the American Revolution. My ancestor, John Black,
served in the Eleventh Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry and he was
the first man credited to Newburyport to die (1862) in the Civil War.

He was born on the 22nd of November in 1827. Finally (maybe) - My daughter was born on my birthday, 11 Nov 1998. She and my son are my hope for the future. May they ever remember the sacrifices made that they may be here today. (I guess I'll have to plan my passing carefully to complete this strange series of connections.)

MY EFFORTS AT MEMORIALIZATION
A founding member of the "BOSTON VOLUNTEERS" 11th MASSACHUSETTS VOLUNTEER INFANTRY Civil War Era Military Impressionists
http://morssweb.com/bostonvols/

VFW Life Member

A Bit More about me and my Motives:

Descended from the first settlers of Newbury, Massachusetts, Neu
Amsterdam, and Polish immigrants, Paul Jancewicz is a "retread"
Social Studies teacher at Amesbury High School. He grew up near to
the birthplace of William Lloyd Garrison in Newburyport and is
connected, on the Greenleaf side, to John Greenleaf Whittier of
Amesbury and Haverhill.

Although researching genealogy and local history from the age of
eleven, "Jancy" only discovered his Civil War ancestor, Pvt. John
Black (a sailor born in Derry, NH & the first man of that conflict to
die to the credit of Newburyport, MA) in his later years. Like school-
teacher, Capt. Luther Dame (Jancewicz's alter-ego), Pvt. Black was a
member of the 11th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry. (In fact Dame,
an avid abolitionist, commanded the honor guard that buried Black in
Nwburyport in 1862.)
In 2000 Jancewicz became one of the founding members of the 11th
MASS "Boston Volunteers" – a Civil War impressionist unit dedicated
to memorialization, preservation and education. Under the supervision
and direction of Kevin and Frank Tucker (both veterans and members of
the SUVCW) his unit has raised funds funds to restore monuments and
to pay tribute to those who gave the ultimate sacrifice for our
nation. Initially, the unit raised funds through the SUV to replace a
stolen sword from the regiment's Gettysburg monument on Emmitsburg Rd.
Jancy has met some of the best people he has ever met outside of the
Marine Corps within the dedicated "family" of historical /
genealogical researchers, reenactors and impressionists seeking to
remember and to appreciate.

One of his favorite quotes is:

"Strange is our situation here upon earth. Each of us comes for a
short visit, not knowing why, yet sometimes seeming to divine a
purpose. From the standpoint of daily life, however, there is one
thing I do know: that we are here for the sake of each other, above
all, for those upon whose smile and well-being our own happiness
depends, and also for the countless unknown souls with whose fate we
are connected by a bond of sympathy. Many times a day I realize how
much my own outer and inner life is built upon the labors of others,
both living and dead, and how earnestly I must exert myself in order
to give in return as much as I have received and am still receiving."

- Albert Einstein