The New Guard

Conner Prairie

Fishers, Indiana

May 16-17, 2015

A threat of rain was of some concern over the projection of warm weather, but it was a weekend I looked forward to as the first battalion event of the season.  This would be the first event with Danny Linkous as colonel of the Independent Guard Battalion.  Duane Clarke and I retained our positions of Lt Colonel and Major, respectively.  "Black" John Porter was on sick call that kept him from participating, so the colonel asked Lt Jim of the 19th Virginia to fill in as adjutant.  

The companies joining the Independent Guard included the 1st Tennessee, with members from the 9th Kentucky and 19th Virginia falling in with them, the 44th Tennessee, the 5th Kentucky, 50th Virginia, 5th Virginia, 4th Virginia, and Austin's Battalion.  5th Virginia consolidated with the 5th Kentucky to form a significant company.

With lows above sixty, it was simple to keep warm Friday night in my A, and in the morning I decided to pass on breakfast before attending the sergeant's call and officer's call.  We were to win the day's battle, but there was much question as to how it would go, since the Yankee commander was also new and unknown.  Col. Linkous had the feel that Col Jesse Poe of the Army of  Wabash had a fighting style similar to his own--one that was aggressive--so we were hopeful for a battle that would prove an enjoyable challenge.

Morning parade opened with Col Linkous taking the adjutant's role since acting-adjutant Lt Jim was not familiar with the parade duties of the adjutant, and the colonel also wanted to be sure to walk through the process with the companies to correct mistakes.

Once through parade, Col Linkous had the battalion break into separate wings for drill, I taking the left wing with the 1st Tennessee, Austin's Battalion, and the 4th Virginia.  I took the men down to the battlefield and kept drill pretty short--perhaps 10 minutes--covering the skirmish drills and wheels that Col Linkous was concerned about.  After I was satisfied with the results--the companies all seemed to handle the commands well (though I saw a little rust build-up in one of the companies), I turned the drilling over to the individual companies to drill at their discretion.

We were to win the afternoon battle.  The colonel split the battalion four ways--right wing waited on the left flank of the battlefield, among the viewing crowd, the 4th VA deployed as skirmishers to harass the Yankees, the colonel would attach to the 44th Tennessee and put pressure on the far right, while I took the left wing at the rear. 

As rain drizzled down, soaking our wool (except mine, since I was among the few who wore a poncho) I took the men down to the road we were to defend as planned, and waited.  I expected to face an entire Yankee company, but none was to be found. Instead, a small band of Henrys and a few cavalry challenged us.  The 4th VA, deployed as skirmishers faced a far stronger force near where the right wing would join the battle, but with the force before us, and I not sure where more Yankees might be hiding (was there more that would enter to our right flank?) and also not sure if the 44th TN would be able to come around in time to support us, I held ground, deployed as skirmishers instead of advancing.  The pressure was light, with the cav only briefly attempting to flank us, when the captain of Austin's expressed a bit of his impatience to put some pressure on them, though it was not until Capt Sharp decided to push forward that I moved the wing to keep up.

From that point, the battle went quick.  It seemed that for every step we took, the Henrys fell back three.  I halted the wing when the Yankees took defensive positions behind the fence.  At that time, I saw a clear opening on the right that was undefended and unnoticed. As I glanced around to see how the rest of the battle was progressing, both Capt Sharp and Austin's Captain came to me to request that Austin's take that far right position on the Yankee's flank, Capt Sharp suggesting he would provide support for the maneuver.  Since they were reading my mind, I just shouted, "Go, Go! Go!"  As Austin's got into position, only one Yankee noticed and responded, turning to direct his fire on Austin's.  Austin's managed to get a single volley off, and the Yankees surrendered, ending the battle.

The rain continued for awhile, and most of us were pretty soaked.  Everything below my knees was drenched.  The weather cleared up when we headed to the dining hall to enjoy a meal of chicken Parmesan.

Late that night, Col Linkous came to our camp in the 1st Tennessee with the Yankee commander.  We learned that Col Jesse Poe was a member of the 44th Indiana and fought us at Fort Wayne a few years back.  Our conversation directed to goals of working together to support the hobby.  I was impressed with the man, and hopeful of seeing more corroboration between the two sides of the reenacting hobby.

Through the night I struggled to keep warm since keeping dry was not possible, though remembering the frigid weather of Franklin helped to heat me.

At daybreak I fried up some bacon and eggs before heading over to officers' call.  Today we would lose, and only divide by wings, with the Lt Col detaching with the 5th KY as vanguard skirmishers.  Based on the plan Col Linkous discussed, I drilled my wing even shorter than Saturday, covering the basic maneuvers I was concerned with only twice.  The companies nailed the maneuvers each time, so I was confident that we would take the field for the battle in good order.

The sun shone brightly as we set our positions on the battlefield that afternoon.  I had my wing stack arms and rest at the back of the field, waiting for the Yankees to enter the field and engage the 5th KY.

When the fighting began, Col Linkous had me wait until the second artillery barrage to take arms and join the fight.  I advanced the wing in a column of companies, bringing them forward into line once we were within range to support the 5th KY.  We fought hard, and when the Yankee cavalry tried to flank us, I had Austin's refuse.

But it was not long before we were on the retreat.  I ordered a backward march for about ten paces.  We managed a single firing, but the Yankees kept the pressure on.  We could hardly keep up--each time I brought the men back, they were lucky to fire a single shot before having to fall back more.  The rest of the battalion soon joined up with us, but we were taking casualties all over the place.  The battle quickly turned to complete chaos--it was at the point of fast reaction and survival.  The companies were all mixed up.  At one point Capt Sharp took a hit, falling into the grass and somehow getting a blade of grass up his nose all the way into his throat.

When we fell back to the road, those of us that remained surrendered, ending the battle.

The battle was among the best I had been involved in, even though we lost.  Both days were my first commanding solo, and I found that I think I actually like losing better than winning.  When you are supposed to win, you have to be careful not to push so fast and hard as to end the battle in five minutes, but you also must take care not to leave an opening where the opposing force can take advantage of, and then alter the entire scenario (or try to save the scenario by reacting in an irrational way).  When losing, you can throw all caution to the wind and try things without regard to caution.  If your actions throw the balance in your favor, you only need to open opportunities to the enemy to give the advantage back to the opposing force.

This battle confirmed that Col Poe of the Army of the Wabash is the aggressive type of commander Col Linkous suspected.  I look forward to meeting them again.

Yankees in Gray

Conner Prairie

May 17-18, 2014


Everything written here are my sole opinions and observations and do not represent the opinions or observations of anyone else or any organization. 

Conner Prairie gained a reputation for being very strongly favoring of Yankees and not so supportive of Confederates.  In the past, the Yankees placed pickets to prevent access to the Confederates to the park’s Civil War living history village, even though there really was no reason to. One incident in particular even caused the 1st TN not to return until this year.
This year we were given promises that access would not be restricted, so we hoped for the best, and all worked out.  I hoped, though, that none of our guys would bother the Yankee camps.
We did have a guest company fall in with us that hadn’t been part of the Independent Guard before.  This company came to us as the 4th Florida, but they were more used to wearing blue as the 4th Ohio.  We welcomed them in our ranks.
The 4th Florida was a little small in numbers, but the 154th Tennessee was able to fill them out with only a few of their numbers attending.  The 50th Virginia carried the colors as is their preference, being filled out with members of another company.  Also joining us was the 44th Tennessee, being a strong force, along with the 4th Virginia and the 1st Tennessee.  The 1st TN was a bit weak in numbers, but were helped out with three members galvanizing from the 7th Kansas.
The Saturday battle was rather simple.  The 44th TN was sent down to the left flank to face the cavalry.  The 1st TN faced Henrys on the right flank.  I took position between the main battalion force and the 44th TN to relay the colonel’s commands.
Unfortunately, the Yankees pushed us hard, with the Henrys firing like shouldered Gatling guns, blazing away like a farbie Rifleman.
The battle concluded with our numbers nearly completely decimated.
Sunday started as any Sunday—rather quiet.  I warmed my breakfast over a brazier Capt Sharp was using to keep him and Pvt Marcotte warm underneath the company fly.  We had morning parade and a very brief drill.  The rest of the day was clear until first call at 1:30 pm.
We formed up and advanced down the hill. The 44th TN led the way as vanguard, facing the cavalry and dismounted cavalry with their Henrys.  The 4th VA advanced to the right flank into the woods to hide from the Yankees.
I took position halfway between the 44th TN and the main battalion to act as messenger for the colonel.
The rest of the battalion advanced forward, facing the main Yankee battalion, but before advancing past the 44th TN, the IG double-quicked into position on the 44th’s left, pushing the Yankee cavalry back.
As the Yankee battalion advanced and the cav were put in check, we moved back into the center of the battlefield to face on the Yankees.  The colonel sent the 1st TN up the right flank to face down the unit of Henrys, while the 4th VA came out of the woods.  With so much going on, confusion could be seen within the Yankees.  The Henry unit fired away with reckless abandon, and when they were completely unloaded, the 1st TN charged upon them, forcing them to break and run, unable to reload in time.
With the Henrys out of action and the cav pushed back, we surrounded the Yankees.  We started pushing forward into the Yankees, accelerating as we saw that the Yankees had gone into disarray.   The battle ended with the 4th FL taking the Yankee flag and the 1st TN capturing the Yankee colonel.
The battle was good, with constant action and maneuvering.

The Rebel Invasion

May 18-29, 2013

Conner Prairie, Fishers, IN

We are a band of brothers

I hadn’t been to Conner Prairie since 2006, long before I started getting serious into this hobby.  The 1st Tennessee had a bad experience there a few years back—the same year I started getting heavy into this hobby—and haven’t been back since.  This weekend they chose to attend Sharon Woods, in Sharonville, but the Independent Guard went to Conner Prairie so my duties as major called me Indiana, especially with Gettysburg coming up, and I needing to be involved in the drills.

Native to the soil

The weekend started simple enough—I arrived early and set my tent next to the colonel’s, then dug the fire pit.  I loaded us up with firewood, which was pretty easy considering the wood pile was about ten paces from the pit.  A quick run to porcelain and I could see the sutlers a short hop away, so remembered my need to buy an extra set of stars for my brevet promotion for Gettysburg.  Absolutely everything was close.  Even the battlefield was close—you could practically give a swift kick to a nearby cannon and watch it roll down the hill right onto the battlefield.

There was just one little caveat—apparently the Yankees were playing at some sort of game.  They set up pickets to their camp, and all Confederates were prohibited entry.  You might think this would make sense—after all, we’re supposed to portray enemies—but this was to continue even through the night, after the public had gone home.  Even then, the occasional event where this occurs is okay—but where I’ve seen this, there is always a way around it.

Nationals make sense for this—such events are too big and where the reenactor out too much—you aren’t even interested in entering the camp of the other side.  But although Perryville played this game, they offered an out—they could enter camp with an escort.

Conner Prairie had numbers of about one hundred per side—not exactly a large event.  Often we have friends on the other side we’d like to visit with.  The 4th Ohio Company B, for example—my original company when I first started Civil War reenacting—was there.  But there was more there—the Yankee Camp was in a small period village, an exhibit called “The Civil War Journey”, and many of the Confederate soldiers had a desire to visit this exhibit.  So, the “out” we agreed upon with the Yankee commander—where Confederates could enter exhibit—was that they had to remove their coats, and women could have no confederate pins.

Fighting for our liberty with treasure blood and toil

We understood that for the public they wanted to follow this impression.  And when the public went home, the exhibit was closed.  We agreed to the removal of coats and no pins and pass the word on to the individual companies, thinking all would be well.  Of course, we as Confederates have no such restrictions.  The issue was put to rest, thinking that all was well.

But it appears that the Yankee commander must think there is a Confederate spy behind every tree.

Anyway, the Saturday battle went well—we were supposed to lose, so we pushed on the field, and then let the Yankees push us off.  I saw the 4th Ohio push aggressively, so I though about sending last company, on my wing, out to flank them to stop their advance—but alas!  They only had three survivors.  That plan was not going to work.

After that rather extraordinary feast the park supplied, I joined the Lt Colonel and the 50th Virginia for a round of cards they called “Screw your Neighbor”.  It was not something I had heard before, and as they described it, it was a rather strange game.  The best way to describe it is that it was like Uno, with a normal deck of cards, and a small, but very strange, twist.  Needless to say, I began to understand the appeal as the night wore on and a couple of them had a few shares of whiskey.  Still, it wasn’t Euchre.  But, in a pinch, it’ll do.

Sunday morning drill provided a good experience as to what we could expect for Gettysburg, as the Lt Colonel took command for drill, and I filled the Lt Colonel position.  It was a very good experience, and I learned a bit of what to expect—and how I can work with the Lt Colonel to make Gettysburg the best experience for everyone.  I am more anxious than ever for Gettysburg.

We also learned of the treatment our soldier got attempting to visit that Civil War Journey exhibit.  One report we got was that our soldier refused to remove his coat—well he was warned, and there was nothing to be done about that.  But another report of another soldier was that he did remove his coat, but he refused to remove his kepi, so was prohibited entry.

Now, we did not agree to the removal of hats.  Everyone in the Civil War period wore hats—it was taboo to go outside in public without one.  They might just as well go without trousers as without hats.  Yes, a civilian hat would have allowed passage, and many Confederate reenactors wear civilian hats (myself included most of the time), but many reenactors only have one hat—that being either a military kepi or forage cap.  So the rule for hats—which we never agreed to—basically outright blocked about half of the Confederate reenactors from entering the exhibit.

And when our rights were threatened,

So, Colonel Julian hatched a plan.

The cry rose near and far—

The Sunday battle was every bit as good as Saturday’s.  I saw a few more crowd there, probably due to the better weather (there was a bit of rain Saturday morning), and the Yankees kept us busy working to take our victory.

I did hear a small complaint from a captain or two from our battalion that the field for us to work in was too small.  They did cut off a good portion of the battlefield used in the past so the public could get in closer to the action, but I think all it did from our perspective is add to the challenge.

After the battle, we reformed, cleared weapons, charged the crowd, then marched in column behind the Yankee battalion.

All the way to their camp.

Hurrah for the Bonnie Blue Flag that bears the single star.

It was quite a long hike—but it was worth it.  To see their stunned faces as we crossed the bridge where the pickets had stopped our men before was a prize to be treasured.  We marched around the square, serenading them with “The Bonnie Blue Flag”.

The bridge where the Yankee pickets restricted access.

I’ll step on a bit of a soap box here and make my point—this is just a hobby, and most of us have friends of both sides—some even play on both sides.  Giving the public an authentic experience is one thing—and okay to me—but give us a way around it (removing hats is not a way around it).  In my opinion, the only place it is appropriate to completely ban the opposing sides in the hobby from the other’s camp would be at a national event—but even then, what does it matter after hours when the public has gone home?  Sometimes, we only see our friends at reenactments.  This thing that the Yankees pulled at Conner Prairie is the single big reason the 1st Tennessee has not returned.  It led to an incident they have not forgotten, and are not likely to forget any time soon.  I have to ask those Yankees responsible—of what value is that anyhow?  Would you rather there not be any Confederates at the event—perhaps make it a living history only?  The 1st Tennessee is not the only group I’ve heard that has issue with this policy.

Although the access issue mattered little to me personally, I felt angered for the treatment of men under my authority.  No, I don't offer a solution--but a solution does exist.

In spite of this, we did have fun.  It is an event I will remember--and like I said, we were close to everything, while the Yankees had quite the hike to get to sutlers, dinner, and the battlefield.  I think if Confederates go and just accept that the Yankees are to be left alone in their little corner, then the rest of the weekend can be enjoyed.  Perhaps our little escapade through their camp sent our message.

Edit:
I want to reiterate that the weekend in general was good--I would return.  Set aside the issue with the Yankees, and all is good--very good.  Perhaps the best way to handle this weekend is to simply not deal with the Yankees--they are going to be trouble, so just let them be.  We were treated well by the coordinators, and it was well worth the trip.  As for the Yankees--well, that indigo dye messes with your head.  Apparently some readers had a different impression from what they read.


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