CivilWarTalk Throwback Thursday, 1-23-2020

James N.

Colonel
Annual Winner
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Asst. Regtl. Quartermaster Antietam 2021
Joined
Feb 23, 2013
Location
East Texas
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This week Throwback Thursday revisits a now-forgotten time and location ca. 1978-80 when my friend Ed Owens and I journeyed to assist in training the crew of another friend Roy Beckett who had just built his own replica mountain howitzer and limber. Roy lived in Central Texas near and east of both New Braunfels and San Marcos and was an anesthesiologist when he wasn't reenacting or flying his plane; presumably this was somewhere in that region. Above, Sergeant Ed and Roy are riding on the limber box while I walk alongside, followed by the crew members whose names I have unfortunately forgotten; below, the crew in battery at their post positions with myself acting as gunner though I'm uniformed as an officer.

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Anyone else having (preferably) old Civil War-related photos, mementoes, or memorabilia from reenactments, other activities, or events; or vacations or other travel is welcome and encouraged to share them with us in this weekly thread!
 
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That caisson...

I can't help but wonder what blueprints were used or inventive nature.

Not a very far throwback, but since big guns be the subject, 2016 Perryville Reenactment.

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Perryville was a fun event, filled with many laughs and a prank I pulled that many from all over are still laughing at, and my mother is still ashamed of me for pulling it.

One incident I'm remembering happened soon after we set up camp. Some boys from the "8th Texas Cavalry Terry's Texas Rangers" were set up not too far from us, and every one of them was from Chicago!

They seemed nice enough, but I remember one man from their unit talking near our camp about how they got to be Confederate for the event because of who they were friends with in the park or something or other, and how "Well a bunch of guys were coming from Georgia and Alabama who wanted to be Confederate cavalry, but are going blue now. Besides we have to portray Texas cavalry because folks down in the South don't know anything about riding horses."

At that I went and interjected and told the man "Just so you know Southerners do know a thing or two about horses." with his reply being "Well if they did we wouldn't be able to portray Texas cavalry, Texans can't even do it!" I finished by saying with a smile "Well there's a lot of Texas cavalrymen who've come up here and are in this camp, besides, your talking right next to a camp full of real Texans and you keep it up you might find several pairs of boots and brogans kicked pretty far up your ---."

That nice feller all the sudden had other things to do....
 
That caisson...

I can't help but wonder what blueprints were used or inventive nature...
Not really a caisson but a farby limber, built expressly so it could be pulled by a single horse; the box wasn't detachable either as I remember.
 
Be still my heart, Is that you in a Confederate uniform? and what is on those sleeves?
I took the opportunity of wearing the Columbia Military Academy greatcoat modified by the aforementioned Robert Justice since this was an "unofficial" occasion and not a reenactment. I had him tailor it without facing color and a first lieutenant's collar bars and sleeve braid so I might wear it in various circumstances and branches. The black background to the collar bars suggested use in a medical impression like here with Doug Garnett @1863surgeon and Jim Langley at Spring Hill, TN back in 2007 when we were surgeons for Granbury's Brigade:

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