The men had many demonstrations. They practiced drills, they fired rifles and cannons. The children got to march with the soldiers with fake wooden rifles.
There was a tent where a man sold cookies and lemonade. The price for lemonade was three cents. The soldiers said that the prices were outrageously high. Three cents was a lot of money back during the Civil War. The visitors, however, loved the prices.
On Memorial Day, there was a service and a march down to the Danville Cemetery, where the sergeant spoke about two fallen soldiers in the Civil War.
Here are interviews with some of the soldiers:
Sergeant Artillery George Southwick: The war brings a lot of emotion to him because he doesn’t like to see his peers killed. He joined the Civil War for the excitement, and he did not want his friends to have all the fun. General John Buford inspired George. General John Buford was in the cavalry in the battle of Gettysburg. He made the decision to keep the South out of town.
Private David Hare: All his friends joined, so he joined, too. The War is boring at times, because they spend a lot of time at camp, and they do a lot of drills, which David only thinks is necessary for the sergeants. His inspiration is the other men in the regiment. He enlisted for three years, and he will keep that promise.
Private Samuel Hecter: It seemed interesting at the time for Sam to join. He believes that slavery is un-human. He also believes that the way slaves are treated is wrong and cruel. His hero is General Ulysses S. Grant (who later would become President of the United States).
Doctor William Minsinger: William joined his unit because his three sons did, who went by the names of Wil Jr. , Kris, and Keith. He is inspired by Phillip Sheridan, who was in the Shenandoah Valley. Wil feels that the South should not have seceded. He says that the War a lot more prolonged than anyone would have imagined when it began.
Chaplain Richard Swift: He is Chaplain of the Third Vermont Regiment and the light artillery in the First Vermont Regiment. Before Richard was a chaplain, he was a drummer boy. When he was a kid, he would play Civil War, and he did not think about the Civil War again until he was fifty years old. Richard would start studying the Civil War. At age 61, he joined the Vermont Hemlocks.
The encampment was made possible by funds delegated to the celebration of Memorial Day by Paul and Marion Sevigny. A special thanks to Paul Chouinard, President of the Danville Historical Society, who spent many hours organizing the event.
To view the album photos Ross chose to caption, click here.
To view all of Janet Carson’s photo album, click here.
