Fresno revisits the Civil War
Photos courtesy of Fresno Historical Society
More than 20 historical figures will be portrayed at the Civil War Revisited, including Abraham Lincoln and Sojourner Truth. The event, held at Kearney Park, is put on yearly by the Fresno City and County Historical Society. In past years more than 30,000 spectators have attended.
(below) The Civil War Revisited has grown in size to the largest annual Civil War reenactment west of the Mississippi. Reenactors will stage four hour-long battle reenactments over the course of the weekend
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By Morgan Steger
The Collegian
Gun smoke will hang thick over the grounds of Kearney Park this weekend, as the Civil War Revisited returns to Fresno.
The reenactment, now in its 17th year, features nearly 2,000 reenactors dressed in exacting detail like soldiers of the era, over 20 volunteers channeling historical figures such as Abraham Lincoln and Harriet Tubman and artisans practicing crafts ranging from blacksmithing to quilting.
Giving a taste of life in the 1860s to the 30,000 people who come out to the reenactment is what the Fresno City and County Historical Society, the events organizer, aims for.
Creating an authentic experience means volunteers must eschew modern conveniences, at least for the weekend.
“The reenactors aren’t allowed on the premises with iPods or cell phones,” said Carole Lester, the historical society’s director of events and public relations.
Instead, reenactors suit up, grab their black powder rifles and hit the battlefield for four hour-long battle reenactments, featuring cannon fire and skirmishes on horseback.
This year the reenactment’s theme, “War on the Water,” will focus on naval warfare and is centered on a replica of the H.L. Hunley, a Confederate submarine that will be on display.
Fresno State history professor Melissa Jordine, who has presented history lessons at the Civil War Revistited’s outdoor classrooms for the past three years, will give a talk about Confederate naval strategy both Saturday and Sunday.
Going to War?
• The Civil War Revisited is held at Kearney Park, on Kearney Blvd.
• Admission is $9 for adults and $5 for children 6-12, per day.
• Battle reenactments are at 12:30 and 4:30 p.m. Saturday and 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. Sunday, each lasts an hour.
• Fresno State history professor Melissa Jordine will present “The Naval Strategy of the Confederacy” at 3 p.m. Saturday and 1 p.m. Sunday at the Main Street Classroom.
• The theme, “War on the Water,” centers on a replica of the H.L. Hunley submarine.
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Jordine said that the reenactment, while not entirely historically accurate, is a great way for students to see what a Civil War battle might have looked like.
“I think that it is a good way to get a better idea of what life was like during the Civil War,” she said.
Many students associate the Civil War with land battles, but naval breakthroughs like the Hunley were important innovations, Jordine said.
The Hunley was not exactly a blazing success.
Three test versions of it sank and the fourth time, the Hunley sank a Union ship, only to promptly sink itself, Jordine said.
Still, it had an impact on naval history.
“It begins that process of people thinking about different types of navies and naval ships,” she said.
Naval history lessons are just one of the many presentations offered during the weekend. Other topics include love letters of famous soldiers, women’s role in the Civil War and battlefield medicine.
The reenactment, which started with about 500 soldiers and 200 spectators 17 years ago, has grown into the largest annual reenactment west of the Mississippi.
“This is an opportunity to talk to people that are major history buffs,” Lester said.
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