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Gunpowder smoke fills air at Civil War re-enactment in Arkansas
Americans unite in Battle of Prairie Grove Civil War Re-Enactment.......approximately 1500 re-enactment soldiers from all over the United States re-enacted battle on 150th anniversary of pivotal battle in Arkansas.
Credits:
Edward Lane
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More than 1200 Civil War re-enactment soldiers charged up and down the battlefield and fired guns at each other Sunday in memory of the 150th anniversary of the Battle of Prairie Grove, Arkansas.
This was a much happier day than the original battle on December 7, 1862, in which 2,700 soldiers died in a day of fierce fighting during America's Civil War.
There were no casualties today as no lead bullets were fired from the muzzle-loading one-shot rifles, according to Jack Hill, a Civil War historian from Wichita Falls, Texas who drove seven hours from the flatlands of his home area to the Ozark Mountains to witness one of the pivotal battles in this nation's history.
Hill said many of the soldiers in the Civil War fired one shot muzzle-loading rifles which expelled minnie balls up to a range of 1,000 yards with reasonable accuracy.
"They were conical-shaped, hollow bullets which could kill up to a distance of a thousand yards," Hill said, as he snapped photographs of the re-enactment soldiers in action today.
Although smoke from the cannons and muskets filled the sky today, there was no real danger to the participants. Hill explained why.
"While a powder bag is pushed down in the cannons and a friction primer ignites the shots that are fired today, there is no real risk of anyone being killed," Hill said, as he took a photograph of a cannon belching smoke so thick observers couldn't see for a few moments.
Hill was taking photographs for his Civil War Roundtable group in Wichita Falls, Texas.
The sounds of the cannons were loud enough to sound authentic as shock waves caused leaves to jump off the prairie in northwestern Arkansas where the actual battle took place 150 years ago.
Hill explained that the rifles used in the re-enactment today were also safe since only blanks were used, although gunpowder caused gunsmoke to erupt from the ends of the barrels.
"The Confederates in this battle probably had several six-pound cannons while the Union soldiers had some of the Napoleon 12-pounders," Hill further explained.
Hill clicked some photographs of two regiments of blue-uniformed soldiers charging up the ridge as they fired their rifles at the gray-clad combatants at the top of the hill.
"Getting one shot off in 20 seconds was considered good in those days. If a man could fire three shots in a minute he was really doing well with the rifles they had," Hill explained.
When one of the observers in the crowd asked Hill why many of the soldiers didn't appear to be wearing standard uniforms he explained "that many of the soldiers didn't really have what we would consider uniforms today. For example some of those butternut-colored outfits (brownish-gray) turned that shade because their women washed them in pecans. As they were washed more often they sometimes even turned to the white color you see in some paintings of the day."
Dan and Karen Dantzler, two longtime friends of Hill from Fayateville, Arkansas, were able to join the Navigator representative during the re-enactment. Dan, who is a United States Army veteran, said, "The chances of those soldiers who had to use the older muskets which fired round balls were almost nil of hitting the enemy."
Hill said that earlier in the war many of the men had only their own shotguns or muskets available to use, although by the end of the war most soldiers had the more accurate single-loading rifles.
Readers interested in finding further information regarding the Battle of Prairie Grove may click on the website.
Although the battle was a virtual draw, many consider it a tactical victory for the North as General Thomas C. Hindman and his Southern troops were forced to retreat south that night after running low on ammunition. As for the effect on the overall war, the stalemate secured northwest Arkansas for the Union.
The re-enactment today was described by one onlooker as a way of honoring all the brave men who gave their lives on this battlefield no matter which side they served on.
http://www.examiner.com/article/gunpowder-smoke-fills-air-at-civil-war-re-enactment-arkansas
- Civil War re-enactment
- December 2, 2012
- By: Edward Lane
- Subscribe
Americans unite in Battle of Prairie Grove Civil War Re-Enactment.......approximately 1500 re-enactment soldiers from all over the United States re-enacted battle on 150th anniversary of pivotal battle in Arkansas.
Credits:
Edward Lane
0 Email
Places & Faces newsletter
Related topics
Advertisement
More than 1200 Civil War re-enactment soldiers charged up and down the battlefield and fired guns at each other Sunday in memory of the 150th anniversary of the Battle of Prairie Grove, Arkansas.
This was a much happier day than the original battle on December 7, 1862, in which 2,700 soldiers died in a day of fierce fighting during America's Civil War.
There were no casualties today as no lead bullets were fired from the muzzle-loading one-shot rifles, according to Jack Hill, a Civil War historian from Wichita Falls, Texas who drove seven hours from the flatlands of his home area to the Ozark Mountains to witness one of the pivotal battles in this nation's history.
Hill said many of the soldiers in the Civil War fired one shot muzzle-loading rifles which expelled minnie balls up to a range of 1,000 yards with reasonable accuracy.
"They were conical-shaped, hollow bullets which could kill up to a distance of a thousand yards," Hill said, as he snapped photographs of the re-enactment soldiers in action today.
Although smoke from the cannons and muskets filled the sky today, there was no real danger to the participants. Hill explained why.
"While a powder bag is pushed down in the cannons and a friction primer ignites the shots that are fired today, there is no real risk of anyone being killed," Hill said, as he took a photograph of a cannon belching smoke so thick observers couldn't see for a few moments.
Hill was taking photographs for his Civil War Roundtable group in Wichita Falls, Texas.
The sounds of the cannons were loud enough to sound authentic as shock waves caused leaves to jump off the prairie in northwestern Arkansas where the actual battle took place 150 years ago.
Hill explained that the rifles used in the re-enactment today were also safe since only blanks were used, although gunpowder caused gunsmoke to erupt from the ends of the barrels.
"The Confederates in this battle probably had several six-pound cannons while the Union soldiers had some of the Napoleon 12-pounders," Hill further explained.
Hill clicked some photographs of two regiments of blue-uniformed soldiers charging up the ridge as they fired their rifles at the gray-clad combatants at the top of the hill.
"Getting one shot off in 20 seconds was considered good in those days. If a man could fire three shots in a minute he was really doing well with the rifles they had," Hill explained.
When one of the observers in the crowd asked Hill why many of the soldiers didn't appear to be wearing standard uniforms he explained "that many of the soldiers didn't really have what we would consider uniforms today. For example some of those butternut-colored outfits (brownish-gray) turned that shade because their women washed them in pecans. As they were washed more often they sometimes even turned to the white color you see in some paintings of the day."
Dan and Karen Dantzler, two longtime friends of Hill from Fayateville, Arkansas, were able to join the Navigator representative during the re-enactment. Dan, who is a United States Army veteran, said, "The chances of those soldiers who had to use the older muskets which fired round balls were almost nil of hitting the enemy."
Hill said that earlier in the war many of the men had only their own shotguns or muskets available to use, although by the end of the war most soldiers had the more accurate single-loading rifles.
Readers interested in finding further information regarding the Battle of Prairie Grove may click on the website.
Although the battle was a virtual draw, many consider it a tactical victory for the North as General Thomas C. Hindman and his Southern troops were forced to retreat south that night after running low on ammunition. As for the effect on the overall war, the stalemate secured northwest Arkansas for the Union.
The re-enactment today was described by one onlooker as a way of honoring all the brave men who gave their lives on this battlefield no matter which side they served on.
http://www.examiner.com/article/gunpowder-smoke-fills-air-at-civil-war-re-enactment-arkansas