Redcoats & Rebels at Old Sturbridge Village 2011

The weekend of August 6 & 7, I attended the ninth annual Redcoats & Rebels at Old Sturbridge Village.  I was present for last year's events as a spectator and experienced a very different perspective this year as distaff with the 5th CT.  It was reported that this year provided record numbers for both participating reenactors and for visitors, and I can easily believe it!

 

British tents on the Old Sturbridge Village Common for Redcoats & Rebels, 2011. 

Saturday morning I arrived and upon registration was directed to the area where our regiment was supposedly encamped.  Since I've been to OSV before and knew the layout pretty well, I didn't think finding our group would be a difficult task.  Unfortunately, I was directed to the complete opposite side of town from where our camp actually was.  After a great deal of wandering and several inquiries, I made my way to the lower fields and luckily ran into our Commander as he was leaving the morning meeting.  We then walked over to our camp, which was hidden in a back field covered with furrows and where the grass was quite overgrown (oh the grasshoppers!), which made spotting the furrows difficult as you walked.  Despite our unlucky camp ground, it was wonderful to see everyone and to have the opportunity to bond with some more members of the group.

Girls dipping candles in camp at Redcoats & Rebels, OSV 2011

After lunch, the ladies followed the men to the field for the battle reenactment.  We staked a position near the fence in order to capture some action shots.  Unfortunately, as they started retreating, we ended up in the line of the redcoats' fire and we had to retreat as well!

 

Saturday's Redcoats & Rebels battle reenactment at Old Sturbridge Village.

 Since our camp was rather distant from the other sites, we unfortunately did not have many visitors to interact with on Saturday.  Some of the children in the camp next to us dipped candles and I managed to get a few stitches done on a new jacket.  In the afternoon a few of us took a stroll through town to enjoy the fife and drum music and to visit some of the other camps and open exhibits.  We ran into a few acquaintances (although I am sorry to have missed Mary from An Historical Lady!) and stopped for some photo ops along the way.  After dinner, some of our members presented an evening of music in the tavern and we all gathered to attend.  Our Commander debuted his gorgeous new gold silk banyan (lined with sea green silk) and cap, both his own creations!

Our Commander prepared for a fun evening in his new gold silk banyan and cap

(this photo, unfortunately, does not do his work or the stunning color justice!),

with his new friend Franken-Stein in hand.

I did not stay for the Jolly and as I drove out of the parking lot to head home for the night, the rain began to fall.  That was an interesting drive home.  It poured all night and was still coming down in the morning.  Even with the inevitable mud and the probability of canceled events, I drove back to OSV on Sunday morning.  On my way to our camp, I stopped at some shops to catch brief reprieves from the rain (and to make some purchases as well!).  We remained gathered under our fly until the rain ceased just after noon and the humidity and sun came rushing back.  With the battle called off, we began packing up and bid farewell to each other until our next event together.  Most of the other groups had gone or were packing up early as well, so I took some time to visit some more exhibits before leaving town.

The main staircase at the Salem Towne House, Old Sturbridge Village

As always, I've included a few photos from the weekend in a flickr set for your enjoyment.