"The War Between the States"

Click on each photo for a larger version.

Mr.Jeff Rector came to speak to Mrs. Norris's class on February 13, 2002 about the experiences of the artillery man in the Confederate Army during the War Between the States.  His grandaughter is in Mrs. Norris's class.

Confederate reenactors don't call 'The War"  the "Civil War".  They say there was nothing civil about it.  Mr.Rector recomended the book, Company Aytch, by a local man, Sam Watkins, who lived through the war, as a good way to find out about the foot soldiers' way of life.  Sam Watkins lived about 4 miles from where our school, in Columbia, Tennessee, is now.

A soldier wasn't properly dressed unless his top button was fastened.	Shoes were brogans, not made with a 'left' and 'right'.
Sabers were heavy and awkward.	A saber was kept in a sheath.
Revolvers were easier to use than a saber.	Mr.Rector has two different types of revolvers.
Brogans form to your feet after you wear them a while.	Reenactors wear the same kind of clothes the soldiers wore, they're just not as worn out as the real soldiers' clothes would have been.
A reproduction Enfield rifle...	has a bayonet...
that can be useful in many ways.  The most clever use is to make a candle holder out of it that can be stuck in the ground.	Hard tack has to be softened up to be eaten.  Corn can be parched and eaten. (sort of like Corn Nuts)  Yum.  Do you like soggy or crunchy food better?
.	Thanks to Jeff Rector for sharing his fascinating hobby with our fifth grade students and making history real for them.

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Click to see Mr. Rector's second visit with friends

Created on 02/14/2002