The last virtual field trip to the Farm Fair

Sgt. Edwin L. Kaewell still needs a few Yahoos

In a earlier blog entry you met Edwin L. Kaewell, a Civil War reenactor who endured near hundred degree temperatures in his replica Union woolen uniform for four days at the recent Burlington County Farm Fair July 20-23, 2011, as he tried to recruit new volunteers for his reenactment unit based on the 23rd NJ Regiment Volunteer Infantry known as the Jersey Yahoos.

Another soldier of an earlier era cheerfully explained to onlookers how to load and fire a Revolutionary War type flintlock firearm. Jeff Macechak, Education Director at the Burlington County Historical Society,  demonstrated the weapon at several intervals throughout the day right outside our History Faire tent. And I couldn’t help from jumping every time he did it.

Jeff’s flintlock demo was the centerpiece of the special exhibit that members of the Children’s History Center at Burlington County Historical Society created that obviously held appeal for kids of all ages. The Children’s History Center knows how to tailor hands-on local history lessons to the interests of school groups and families.

In full Revolutionary War garb, Jeff endured the elements to instruct the rabble in loading and firing a flintlock firearm.

With my short-sleeved shirt and cold drink in hand, I felt like a piker watching another sergeant overdressed for the weather carrying out his duties without complaint. But here he was, pitching his history-lesson-in-disguise to the kids, explaining terms like “flash in the pan” and inviting them to smell the rotten egg odor of the sulfur after firing the weapon. Here’s a video I shot with my iPhone of Jeff loading and firing the flintlock musket.

I went back to my perch beside the fan in the tent and my thoughts wandered to past family vacations and day-trips to Philadelphia, Williamsburg, Jamestown, Boston, Washington, DC, Plymouth Plantation, St. Augustine, and other such historic sites.

I guess because I grew up with my grandmother taking me to New York City in 1957 to see the Mayflower II, it seemed natural for me to take my own kids to see the same ship at Plimouth Plantation 30-odd years later. I grew up with a love of history, even if I was not always a fan of the school version of history. With all the uncertainty about our future, do you think there is still a value in emphasizing our history?

Keeping cool in the History Faire Tent

My kids probably thought that all parents planned such educational outings. They took it well because they knew that after that next Civil War battlefield might be a stopover at Busch Gardens, Sea World, or Disneyworld.

I was gratified to see that many parents took the road less traveled at the County Fair, away from the amusements and food vendors, and ventured over to our History Faire tent with progeny in tow. If you attended, what did you think of our first History Faire? And what ideas or suggestions do you have for the next? I know at least that I’ll need to bring a bigger cooler and more ice.  – John McCormick, Gaslight News editor

Report from the Front (of the History Faire at the BurlCo Fair)

Edwin L. Kaewell shows his unit's colors

A recent USA Today article claimed that as many as 50,000 persons in the US take part, at least occasionally, in the hobby of Civil War reenactment. One of the most impassioned and enthusiastic students of local history that I met at the History Faire at the County Fair in Columbus, NJ last week was the solitary Civil War reenactor who bivouacked at the entrance to our tent each of those four sticky searing days.

Edwin L. Kaewell hopes to capitalize on the resurgence in interest for reenactment for the 150th anniversary of the Civil War by forming a squad for the 23rd Regiment NJ Volunteers—a regiment in which at least two Riverton residents served during the Civil War.

Gerald photographed all 3 sides; then I joined the views.

Since HSR President Gerald Weaber and I had just spent the previous two weeks readying our Society’s History Faire display on Riverton’s response to the Civil War, I was drawn to Mr. Kaewell’s earnest recruiting appeals to passers-by and was already imagining that his success could eventually benefit a part of our own mission as well—to create an awareness of our borough’s Civil War  heritage.(See a 2 min., 45 sec./28.7 MB video clip here.)

Many reenactors assume a “persona,” of a historical character which they create, complete with backstory, while others represent real people. Using first-person interaction, Civil War reenactors often recreate the daily activities, thoughts, and behavior of these characters and speak as if they were living in the 1860s.

Historical interpreters staging a living history encampment stay in character as Civil War soldiers, giving visitors the feeling that they are learning first-hand about life in the 1860s. All participants–presenters and spectators–engaging in such an authentic living history experience will probably understand the legacy of freedom and unity that the Civil War bestowed upon our Nation as well as the soldier’s experience and sacrifice in a way that no book can convey.

Imagine a future July Fourth in which a squad of Civil War reenactors dressed in their Prussian blue woolen coats, sky-blue trousers, and heads topped with kepis marches in the parade or stages an encampment as part of those festivities.

Even better—imagine if we in the HSR could give enough research and support to the unit that would encourage some members to role-play the part of a historical Rivertonian and incorporate actual events into their person’s backstory.

History Faire tents housed Civil War displays made by historical societies

To mark the Sesquicentennial of the Civil War, each of the participating historical societies at the Burlington County Farm Fair displayed information and artifacts relevant to their respective community’s response to the conflict. A check of past newsletters shows that the topic has received little attention, except as it related to other subjects, so we have some catching up to do.

With so many Civil War history and genealogy enthusiasts, quite possibly, some readers of this column may have a head start on us, so we sincerely invite anyone with more facts or suggestions for sources of information to please contact us.

What we are initially looking for are additional names of Civil War veterans who have spent some part of their life in Riverton, either before entering service or afterward. A preliminary examination of records yielded at least 16 veterans’ names associated with at least eight different regiments in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. See that veterans list here. We appeal to our readers to dust off those family albums and shake those family trees to see if we missed anyone.

Ultimately, a comprehensive treatment of Riverton’s response to the Civil War needs to include much more—the actions of women on the home front while men were at war; the support of some normally pacifist-believing Quakers who fought to defend their abolitionist views; the effects of conscientious objectors; the influence and support of clubs, fraternities, churches, and various institutions; and the contributions of the business community to the war effort, and more will all be investigated.

The following brief abstract of the 23rd NJ Volunteer Infantry Regiment is part of the research on Riverton and the Civil War which we exhibited, and we post it here as a down payment on what is certain to be a larger body of research over the course of this four-year observance of the Civil War’s Sesquicentennial. The chronicle of this unique regiment may stir someone to enlist in Edwin Kaewell’s reenactment unit or perhaps support his effort materially.

A short biographical sketch of the two known Rivertonian members of the Jersey Yahoos completes this segment. Here is the bio for Private Job K. Bell  and here is the bio for Private Albert VanSciver.

For more information on the four-year-long commemoration of the Civil War, and a foot-in-the-door for starting your own research, here are three suggestions:

We thank County Historian Joe Laufer for a great experience at the first History Faire at the County Fair in Columbus, NJ, and we look forward to doubling our display area for the second. It afforded an unmatched opportunity to interact and network with members of other historical societies as well as a chance to try those amazing pulled-pork sandwiches at the nearby Amish food vendor stand. There will be more to report about our Farm Fair encounters in another post. – John McCormick, Gaslight News editor

P.S. Here’s another old Moorestown image, courtesy of one of our patrons of postcard collecting. He writes:

“An early view of 101 E. Main Street at Chester Ave. in Moorestown.   Afterward, this store would become Doughten’s and then later Matlack’s store.  This is an early view and is a card that I had never seen before in all the years I have been collecting postcards.  Please add this to the Riverton website.”

A Favorite Corner in Moorestown

 

 

 

 

 

 

P.P.S . Regarding the comment made about the above Garrigues’s Cash Grocer post card by resident fact-checker Paul Schopp. my postcard collector friend who contributed the above scan writes,”Thanks, and Paul is quite right…. Thanks for keeping me accurate.”

I must echo my friend’s remark. Pullleeeze do not hesitate to tell us when we get something wrong.  When I was in the classroom and one of my students pointed out a mistake I had made, I encouraged them to keep score as a devious way of getting them to pay closer attention.  So start counting. I’m just glad that Gerald and I aren’t the only ones reading this column.  – John McCormick

The man who makes no mistakes does not usually make anything. ~Edward Phelps