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I deal
with many questions when I do demonstrations of 18th century life. An
extremely frequent question asked is; “Why do you dress up like that and do
all this?” This question comes from kids and adults and is a fair question
when a common person sees someone wearing clothes and doing a craft that is
200 years out of date. Why? Well
the answer is a simple one. I love history! To myself, and many of my
re-enacting friends, the love of history goes far deeper than a few text
books or swinging through an old building while on vacation. Our love of
history takes me from simply “knowing” about something of history, to wanting
to relive history. |
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Consider
this thought for a moment: If a
friend returns from vacation and begins to tell you of a spectacular place
where they had more fun than any time of their life. They tell you over and
over of what they saw or did. Yes, it sounds interesting, but can you fully
share in their experience? Not really. But … if you went to where they had
been and did the things they had done, then you could more fully realize just
what they experienced and deeply understand what it was they felt. This is
why we recreate everything just as they did, to more fully understand the
history we read. |
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Re-enacting
is not just for the 18th century. People around the world re-enact their own
history and culture. Here in the United States, people recreate history from
the Native American Indians, the earliest European settlers of the mid
1600’s, and even to the soldiers of World War II. Depending on the location,
the public can often find a wide array of history being recreated. Pilgrims,
French & Indian War, the American Revolutionary War, Lewis & Clarks
epic exploration, the War of 1812, the Spanish—American War, The Texas
Revolution, the American Fur Trade era (1800—1840), the Civil War, WW I, WW
II and on and on. Where ever there is history, no matter the country, there
are those who want to recreate that history. Re-enacting
is considered a hobby. Just as a man may have golf as a hobby, recreating
history is mine. As a hobby, however, it is something that we prefer to share
with the public. By demonstrating our learned skills, or by recreating a
battle, we share with the viewers a little of our knowledge in hopes that the
public goes home having learned something. Often, but not always, we even
share our hobby with our families. There are times where my whole family
attends a re-enactment together. My two boys, particularly, enjoy these
outings. What, you
say? Children re-enact? Certainly! There were kids all throughout history,
right? And what would be more natural than seeing kids at an 18th century
event. I have enjoyed watching mine and other children play 18th century
games around a fort. Historically correct games such as; Hide & Seek, Duck—Duck—Goose,
Soldiers, Tag, Fishing, Chase and even the ever popular … tree climbing. It
is amazing the fun children have at these events. They are not allowed to
have TV’s, radios, or video games, but they do keep themselves occupied much
like your ancestors did! Do they ever get bored? Not my sons. They look
forward to each trip! Adults do
have a different type of fun. Re-enactors usually have two sets of friends.
Friends at home that they live near and visit often, and a set of friends
that they get to see and visit at re-enactments. At an event, there is gossip
to catch up on, shooting competitions to brag about, campfires to share,
knowledge to relate and stories to tell. Re-enactment friends are just as
real and as close as those at home. But these friends are from around the map
that you only see a few times a year at history events. |
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To
re-enactors, this is more than a hobby. It is a passion to most all of us. A
passion to understand, a passion to experience, and a passion share the love
of history that is inside of us. |
