Redcoats and Rebels 2013

Our unit returning to camp from Saturday's battle.

Redcoats and Rebels, OSV, 2013.

This past weekend was Old Sturbridge Village's 11th annual "Redcoats and Rebels" weekend, when the 1830s village gives way to the Revolutionary War years of over 50 years past to host the largest New England reenactment of the year.  Our unit has been attending this event for as long as it has been running (see Ashley's posts from years past), but this was the first time I've personally been able to make it, and I had a splendid time.  Of course I missed Ashley; it still feels strange attending events without her, since reenacting has always been our "sister time" together.  She couldn't make the long trip from her new home to attend the weekend's festivities, and everyone in our unit noticed her absence and expressed regret at it...though that was typically swiftly followed by a qualification that no one should feel too bad that Ashley was missing the fun, since she does get to play in the 18th century every day for "work" now...;-)  So because this was the first big event that we've missed being at together, this extra-long post is as much for Ashley as it is for general blogging purposes!  :-)

The British encamped on the village green.

Redcoats and Rebels, OSV, 2013.

Another view of the British camps with the Union Jack flying high.

Redcoats and Rebels, OSV, 2013.

I drove up to OSV (too early) on Saturday morning with a couple of other ladies of the distaff and arrived bright and early to settle into the camp that had already been completely set up the evening before by some of our most dedicated and diligent members.  The morning was warm and sunny, so after helping to tidy up after breakfast (which we just missed, alas!), we sat under the kitchen fly catching up with everyone. 

Our camp at Sunday nooning.

Redcoats and Rebels, OSV, 2013.

Photo by TMW.

The view of one side of our camp from the road.

Redcoats and Rebels, OSV, 2013.

Photo by TMW.

This year, we had a fantastic location in the School House Field, right on one of the main paths between the town green and the farm fields in which the larger military demonstrations took place, so the visitor foot traffic through our camp came in an unrelenting stream of dozens of people at a time throughout the weekend.   To a group like ours, full of people who love to talk (and love even more to talk about the hobby and history we're so passionate about!), the chance to interact with hundreds of friendly and inquisitive visitors is what makes an event like this extra special and even more fun than our usual battle reenacting weekends.  I loved seeing so many families learning together, with kids visiting in mom-made costumes, eyes bright as they discovered a new (old) game or tried on a hat for a memorable picture as they asked questions about what we were wearing.

C preparing the spinach salad for Saturday's dinner.
Redcoats and Rebels, OSV, 2013.

Preparing Saturday dinner for 35 hungry souls.
Redcoats and Rebels, OSV, 2013.

Mistress M, who oversaw the food planning and preparation for the weekend,

did an incomparably splendid job, as always.  Thanks again for all your hard work!

Redcoats and Rebels, OSV, 2013.

After preparing and eating dinner, several of us ladies headed over to the "Runaway Runway" to partake of one of the cleverest and more humorous activities on the schedule.  Hosted by the Ladies of Refined Taste, the "Runaway Runway" is precisely what it sounds: a fashion show of working-class clothing with models dressed to replicate descriptions from 1770s runaway advertisements.  And who should I happen upon as we went into the show, but two of the models themselves - none other than the delightful Miss Emily (of Emily's Vintage Visions) and her finance!  We didn't get much of a chance to chat before the show, but spent some time afterwards catching up with each other.  And we also finally got our picture together!  Despite collective weeks spent together over the past few years while working on our shoes and everything, we had never managed to get a "formal" picture before, so here it is!  Unfortunately, it had to be sans Ashley this time, but next reunion, we'll get the three of us!  :-)

With Miss Emily.  I'm in love with the scarlet red lining of her bonnet's brim.

Redcoats and Rebels, OSV, 2013.

Because I hadn't been to OSV since a sixth-grade field trip way too many years ago, I spent much of the afternoon touring the village with some of the ladies and some of the younger members of our unit.  We skipped the battle that afternoon, opting to keep sight-seeing instead, and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves wandering in and out of the trade shops and houses and stopping to visit with friends from other groups.  One of our stops was to a fellow CT militia unit, whose camp was clear across the village from ours.  Several of their members had taken part in our hearth cooking workshop back in February, so we were thrilled to see them again and excited to find that they were putting their new skills to most excellent use to feed their large number of weekend attendees.

Our friends from another CT unit put their new cooking skills to work with this splendid

display of culinary abilities.  While we were cooking for 35,they had to prepare enough food for 60!

Redcoats and Rebels, OSV, 2013.

A group of ladies keeping cool the 18th century way.

Redcoats and Rebels, OSV, 2013.

The Brits returning to their camp after the battle.

Redcoats and Rebels, OSV, 2013.

The Brits returning to their camp after the battle.

Redcoats and Rebels, OSV, 2013.

Although OSV closed their indoor sites and interpretation programs at the usual time that evening, they left the village as a whole open to visitors until quite late, which gave the guests more time to visit in the camps and watch as we prepared and consumed and cleaned up after supper.  By the time dusk fell and 8 o'clock came around and the park closed to guests, the majority of our group prepared to head over to the famed evening Jolly.  Exhausted from our early-morning drive, however, I and the other ladies with whom I'd driven opted to depart for the evening and headed to the mosquito-free and shower-awaiting comfort of our hotel room.

Evening shadows begin to fall over the camps scattered in the farm fields.

Redcoats and Rebels, OSV, 2013.

Back in camp early the next morning, we again helped clean up after breakfast and then got to work on lunch early.  As we were preparing a chicken stew, we wanted to give it maximum simmering time before lunch.  Well, that, and the tasty aroma of things cooking over a fire is always the ideal way to draw in visitors to camp!  :-) 

Some of our youngest members tending to the morning fire.

Redcoats and Rebels, OSV, 2013.

Once that was on the fire, we settled down to do a bit of sewing.  B began the process of trimming a new hat with some delicious red satin ribbon she purchased at Monmouth a couple of months ago, and K was working on finishing up a new shortgown, as was I.

B and K taking advantage of some down time with a bit of sewing.

Redcoats and Rebels, OSV, 2013.

And then I got a very special surprise: a visit from family friends who had driven up from CT to spend the day!  After nearly a lifetime (no exaggeration, we've known them that long!) of hearing me and Ashley go on about how much we love Rev War history and reenacting and sewing historic clothing, they decided it was time they saw for themselves what it was we're always going on about!  Believe it or not, they'd never actually seen either of us in costume before, so they got quite a kick out of it!  One of them told me he was pleased to see I looked just like I did in all the pictures he's seen!  ;-) 

Sunday lunch was a chicken and wild rice stew with mushrooms, beans, and carrots.  Yum!

Redcoats and Rebels, OSV, 2013.

Photo by TMW.

I gave them a quick tour of our camp and then we headed off to do a bit of sight-seeing together before I had to head back to camp to help with dinner, at which point they departed to watch the British troops assemble on the green before following them to the battle.  I missed Sunday's battle as well, as C and I stayed behind in camp to keep an eye on everything, but I didn't mind and my friends very generously shared their pictures afterwards.

Our men beginning to muster for battle.

Redcoats and Rebels, OSV, 2013.

The Brits marching past our camp on their way to the battlefield.

Redcoats and Rebels, OSV, 2013.

Sunday's battle, Redcoats and Rebels 2013.

Photo by TMW.

Sunday's battle, Redcoats and Rebels 2013.

Photo by TMW.

Ah, the necessary anachronisms of the reenacting life!

Photo by JHW.

C is currently working on putting together her second camp-appropriate outfit, so while waiting in camp for the battle to end, we whiled away the time talking about styles and fabric options for new items.  You might recall that she began her very first bedgown at our distaff day back in June, and she wore it this weekend.  Didn't it come out lovely?  And speaking of which, K also sported the floral print neckerchief she finished during our sewing gathering over that weekend as well!  It's so fun seeing finished projects "come to life" at events!  :-)

C beginning work on a new apron, while sporting her recently-completed bedgown.

Redcoats and Rebels, OSV, 2013.

Following the battle, I met up with my friends again and we spent the remainder of the afternoon wandering around town together seeing buildings we hadn't yet had a chance to visit.  Around 4, the sky started to look pretty threatening, so my friends decided to head for home (and generously took my new favorite hat home with them so it wouldn't get poured on!  Thank you!!!), and I scampered back to camp to help quickly pull tents down before everything got drenched.  Fortunately, it only ended up raining lightly for a quarter of an hour or so, but we decided to head out a little early and start our long drive home.

Returning safely to camp.

Redcoats and Rebels, OSV, 2013.

Another weekend, another set of fantastic memories!  With the exception of UTR, this is my only major summer event for this year, but it certainly lived up to its promise and was even better than I could have hoped it to be!  There are a multitude of photos of the weekend on flickr that can be easily found with a search; my own set is here, with apologies for its limited nature because I was too busy most of the time to have time to get too many pictures!  Many thanks to the W family for filling in the holes with their pictures and permitting me to use them for this post!

On both days during the weekend, I wore new outfits - a gown the first day and a jacket the next - so stay tuned for two new Threaded Bliss posts coming up very soon!  If you've joined us on Facebook, you've already seen a hint at what the gown project might be... :-)

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.

"Redcoats & Rebels" at Old Sturbridge Village

A view of the military tents from inside the Fitch House

I am the first to admit that I do not take full advantage of the cultural opportunities close to home (I guess I prefer to drive 8 hours to Williamsburg instead!), but I am determined to do better. As part of this endeavor, I drove up to Sturbridge, Massachusetts the other weekend for the special event, “Redcoats & Rebels” at Old Sturbridge Village. I visited OSV once or twice with school groups when I was younger, but remember very little from those visits, and unfortunately had not been back since. I was hoping to visit during the ALHFAM conference this past summer, but unfortunately could not make it to the conference this year.  So, when I saw that there was an 18th century event, I just knew that I had to go. Somehow I managed to convince a good friend of mine to accompany me on this adventure. She had never been to OSV or any type of historical reenactment event, so I was excited for her to finally get a glimpse of what intrigues us so much about it.

The sun falls through the front door of the Fitch House

Old Sturbridge Village began as private collections of New England antiques belonging to the Wells family. As their collections grew, they wanted a creative way to display their interests. In the 1930s, they bought a large piece of property from David Wight and began transforming it into a small village where trained professionals could demonstrate the trades and techniques which produced the items in their collections, which could now be displayed in homes or buildings as they would have been used in their time. Several historic buildings were moved from various locations to serve as the backdrop for this working village. The village opened to the public in June 1946, and today the conglomeration of buildings, artifacts, and demonstrations provide an interpretation of New England life from 1790 to 1840.

An interpreter demonstrates cooking at the Freeman Farm

Interpreters recruit some help with the wood

The kiln at the pottery (or the pizza oven as one young visitor called it)

Most of the regular museum exhibits (if not all) were open during this special weekend, so we took the opportunity to take a look around. First, we took a walk through the Salem Towne House. The house was built in 1796 in Charlton, Massachusetts and moved to OSV in 1952. The interior decorations, furniture, and other items reflect the time period of the 1820s when the house was inhabited by Salem Towne, Jr. and his wife Sally, along with their nine children and hired help. While most attributes of the home are decidedly New England in style, the front entrance hall and the upstairs hall reminded me very much of the Wythe House in Williamsburg. I think the brightly colored wall paper may have something to do with this.

Towne House, upstairs hall

Towne House, downstairs hall, looking out the back door

A close-up of the hall wallpaper and mirror downstairs

One of the most interesting aspects of this house to me is the upstairs “ballroom” which spans the width of the house. Interpreted in this room are two bedrooms, one on each far end, with a work space in the middle. Trees are painted on the walls and on the ceiling is a gorgeous deep sky blue with Masonic symbols painted at one end of the room. Salem Towne, Sr. was a founding member of the Lodge in Charlton which held meetings in this room for almost ten years.

Towne House upstairs ballroom, looking to the left

Towne House upstairs ballroom, looking to the right

Towne House upstairs ballroom ceiling

Just before the battle began, we popped into the Saw Mill, which is a reproduction built by OSV in 1984. We only walked through quickly, but it immediately reminded me of the mill where Pa (Michael Landon) worked in Little House on the Prairie.

The Saw Mill

For museums, it can be a struggle to get visitors involved enough to truly comprehend what it was like to live in a particular time period. Showing live portrayals of trades and crafts is always a wonderful avenue, as are hands-on exhibits, which I think OSV has accomplished with some innovative ideas. One such interactive experience is the Fitch House, which allows visitors to roam freely throughout the house; they can sit on the furniture, open drawers, and try on some clothing of the time.

The Fitch House offers a full hands-on experience

Plenty of drawers to open and papers to read inside the Fitch House

Children can try on 1800s clothes

Also in the hands-on category is a life-sized replica of a cow where visitors can actually “milk” the “cow” to get a sense of some daily farm chores. Don’t worry, they have plenty of real animals too!

We had the chance to "milk" the "cow"

This was the eighth annual Redcoats & Rebels weekend at OSV and it's been called the largest reenactment in New England, with over 800 reenactors participating. The troops, who all hail from New England, offered an extensive and varied look at the military participants of the time. (A full listing of the troops can be found in this press release.)

The military tents were visible as soon as we walked into the village. The common green was full and tents were erected on every spare piece of ground. Each group of tents was identified with a marker indicating the regiment and offering a brief history of the group being portrayed. I found this to be very helpful, since most of the tents did not have regiment names and numbers on them.

Walking into the village

Tents on the common with the Center Meetinghouse in the far back

We strolled through some of the camps and took a look at some of the medical instruments laid out. The Stow Minutemen provided some fife and drum music and the Kings Rangers hosted a brief lesson in dance. I think the overall ambiance and the actual battle reenactment were portrayed successfully. I have seen some concerned comments regarding the lax standards of authenticity at this event. I am not involved in military or camp reenactments (yet), so I do not think I can offer a very accurate or fair assessment. I did notice some interesting choices in clothing, most particularly in the women; however, I did not study them too closely, as I assumed that they were most likely visitors dressed for the occasion, who cannot be monitored as such (and which we all know can sometimes result in some mortifying choices).  Speaking of dress... On the schedule was listed "Ladies of Refined Taste: A Fashion Show."  As the presenter explained, it was not going to be a show of wealthy fashions after all, but rather some examples of the working class instead.  At first I was disappointed, but this ended up being a very neat idea.  The presenter read various runaway ads from the 1770s; as she read each one, an interpreter dressed as the described runaways passed through.

This was my first time experiencing an actual battle reenactment. I’ve seen plenty of military demonstrations and camps before, but not an actual battle. We watched the troops line up at the town common and followed in a large crowd as they made their way over the covered bridge and down to the Freeman Farm fields. One of the British troops separated and marched back into the woods behind the fields.

The troops preparing to march into battle

We stood on the hill and watched as the guns and cannons began to fire. It is an interesting experience: the battle taking place is so real, from the authenticity of the uniforms and weapons, to the fire and smoke of the cannons and guns, and even the falling of injured men, but the “audience” is so calm, even excited as they snap pictures and lift their children to see the action. I also felt a similar experience at Under the Redcoat as the British troops marched in to take over the city. The spectators where we were standing were very quiet and it was as though we were watching a parade. I’m sure we would have all been much more frightened if we were actually there at the time.

The spectators

Redcoats vs. Rebels

As the battle progressed, we made our way further up the hill to stand along a fence near the pathway. One of the OSV employees monitoring the crowd was close by. I overheard him explaining some of the intricacies of the event to interested visitors. The morning prior to each battle, they hold a meeting to discuss how the fight will progress. Apparently, it never goes as planned – they never know exactly where the troops will go or how long it will last. Part way through the battle, fire ceased and we were asked to make way for paramedics. A few moments later, with no sign of any paramedics (at least from my view), battle commenced. Apparently, it was not a serious injury. Since the Redcoats won the battle on Saturday, it was predetermined that the colonial army would win on Sunday. Below is a video of the Redcoats final retreat over the fields: