Meet the Member: Katie and Brian Richards

Mr. Purdue
Tell me a little about your 21st century life. Where do you work? Family? Hobbies and interests other than reenacting?

Mrs. Richards
Brian and I (Katie) live outside of Grand Rapids, MI with our 3 boys (Ben, age 7, Teddy, age 5, and Lincoln, almost 2). Because our boys are so young, we spend a lot of time playing outside and at neighborhood parks and playgrounds. We love going to Walt Disney World and are impatiently waiting for our next vacation to visit The Mouse. Our family loves Lego and there’s always a work-in-progress somewhere in the house. Brian is an avid woodworker and is in the process of renovating our basement to add 2 extra bedrooms, a media room, full bathroom, pantry of my dreams, and a laundry room/work space for me. It’ll be a HUGE life upgrade for everyone!

Brian and I have really unique and special work situations. Brian is a web developer-turned-trainer who runs a business hosting and organizing digital conferences about WordPress. He’s been teaching others how to make better websites for almost 7 years, which is a long time for a web entrepreneur! I am part of a marketing team at a web hosting company based in San Francisco. Specifically, I run an advocacy program (in marketing speak, it's a program that harnesses the experiences of the company’s ultra-loyal, passionate customers to power marketing and community engagement.) In reality, I spend a LOT of time communicating with our customers and our internal teams, making connections between them for special projects. Both of us work from home, which gives us flexibility to be involved in our boys’ lives in a very fulfilling way.

Mr. Purdue
How and when did you get into Civil War reenacting? When and how did you become a member of the 24th Michigan?

Mrs. Richards
I’ve always loved history and have had different periods of obsession for several different eras (Egyptology! Revolutionary War! Regency! Civil War!) but Victorian-era American history I found especially fascinating. One summer in late high school, I decided to find a Civil War reenacting group, contacted the 24th by email, and met Sheri Giffin at Charlton Park. I was able to convince my parents that camping in funny clothes with strangers wasn’t that dangerous and I’ve been enjoying the hobby ever since (16 years, almost half my life!). Brian got roped into the hobby when we married but since his schedule is so different and we’ve found its easier to NOT take our young ones camping, he often stays home for events and visits on day trips when possible.

Mr. Purdue
What do you enjoy most about reenacting?

Mrs. Richards
I love being able to tell stories to spectators that allow them to see life from a different perspective.

Mr. Purdue
Are there any special skills or talents that you would like to use in reenacting?

Mrs. Richards
I spend a lot of time at work diving down one research rabbit hole or another. I’ve developed what I like to call “semi-professional stalking skills” and love to use those skills to deepen my knowledge of daily life during the Civil War.

Meet the Member: Mark Scygiel

Mr. Purdue
Tell me a little about your 21st century life. Where do you work? Family? Hobbies and interests other than reenacting?

Mr. Scygiel
I work at Four Winds Casino in Security management and have been there for 13 years. I’m happy married, going on 12 years now. My other interests are playing golf, and collecting hot wheels and matchbox cars.

Mr. Purdue
How and when did you get into Civil War reenacting? When and how did you become a member of the 24th Michigan?

Mr. Scygiel
I got into reenacting from my dad Greg back in early ‘96. We were in Gettysburg and saw a living history event by the PA monument. The 24th Michigan was there and my dad signed up and fell in ‘97 And year later I joined. Six years ago I decided to go green and joined the 2nd USSS Comp B (Michigan). I am still an active member of the 24th; those are my boys, I’ll never let them down!

Mr. Purdue
What do you enjoy most about reenacting?

Mr. Scygiel
I enjoy reenacting because I feel like I want to keep the history alive and show others what it was like being a solder in the Civil War.

Mr. Purdue
Are there any special skills or talents that you would like to use in reenacting?

Mr. Scygiel
I like to show more of my shooting skills as a Sharpshooter and show the spectators what the qualifications were like

Take time while camping to play some Dominos

Take some time and enjoy exploration of soldier’s games during the American Civil War. Sitting in a Civil War era fort, Historic Fort Wayne, we learn to play Draw Dominoes from an 1864 printing of Hoyle’s. To further add to the connection with history, we are doing so with an original set of dominoes! Check out the video from http://civilwardigitaldigest.com/page...

Civil War camping trip

Went camping cooked food fought rebels, shot cannons!!

Civil War Living History Weekend & Reenactment

The 24th of Michigan made its way to the Civil War Living History Weekend & Reenactment in Sidney Ohio, September 20, 2018

This Civil War Living History weekend will feature Union and Confederate reenactment soldiers, battle scenes, military and civilian encampments. Scheduled hour-long major battles will be presented along with Union/Confederate skirmishes sporadically each day. Cannon and rifle fire will add to the realism and drama of these experiences. Also planned for the weekend are a series of living history educational programs that will feature first-person accounts about life during the Civil War era.

A Review of The Rush

Once I picked this book up, I couldn't put it down. I finished it in a few days. The book is The Rush, America's Fevered Quest for Fortune, 1848 – 1853 by Edward Dolnick (2014). Mr. Dolnick wrote his book after consulting many diaries/journals of various participants in the Gold Rush, although he concentrated on 5 specific 49'res. Two made the trip west by sea and the other 3 by land. Two did very well and the other three made it back East with no real monetary gain. 

This book is very appropriate for us Civil War reenactors since 8 years after the Gold Rush, the war breaks out. This is recent history for the citizens of 1861. In fact, a couple of 49'res are mentioned who eventually served or even died in the war. Lucius Fairchild, commander of the 2nd Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry, was a 49'er and is mentioned several times in the book. 

The impact on the United States, especially California, was huge. “In the four years from 1849 to 1852, more than 1 percent of the American population moved to California. To put that number in terms of today's population, picture three million young Americans giving up their jobs, leaving their families, and rushing off to a barely known destination thousands of miles away.” 

This book covers the discovery of the gold, the slow dispersal of the news back East, the long, arduous journey to the gold fields, and the back-breaking work itself. It follows the fortunes gained and lost. The book tells of the lives destroyed or broken by disease, accidents, and the lawless miner community itself. It a story of luck, avarice, ruthlessness, and hope. I can't recommend this book enough. 

Submitted by Craig Decrane

A Review of How to Be a Victorian

I was in the library a week or so ago and I noticed a book, How to Be a Victorian (2014). Well, I had to pick that one up. It is sub-titled, A Dawn-to-dusk Guide to Victorian Life. It is written by Ruth Goodman, a reenactor from Great Britain. She is a consultant for the Victoria and Albert Museum and was involved in a TV series called Victorian Farm. 

I am about half way through the book and I have found it fascinating. Yes, it is written by a Brit so some of it does not apply to us Yanks. However, frequently she mentions specific situations that apply to “America”. The Victorian period starts in the late 1830's and goes to the turn of the century so it does not all apply to our time period. The early stuff is fine, since an older person in the 1860's would be aware of the earlier part of the century. The late 1800's stuff obviously does not apply to us, but I still found it interesting. 

I think just naming the chapters will probably give you a good idea of what the book covers.

• Chapter 1 Getting Up

• Chapter 2 Getting Dressed

• Chapter 3 A Trip to the Privy

• Chapter 4 Personal Grooming

• Chapter 5 Morning Exercise

• Chapter 6 Breakfast

• Chapter 7 The Main Business of the Day (this is as far as I have got so far) 

I believe this is a valuable book for us 1860's reenactors. There is plenty of stuff here for you to try. In many cases, the author tried several period concoctions or methods of doing things and then gave her opinion of what worked best. She is trying to make it easier to live the life of a Victorian. It depends how much you want to immerse yourself into the time period. At the least, there would be some words that you could slip into conversations, like “miasma”. 

Submitted by, Craig DeCrane 

A Review of 12 Years a Slave

12 Years A Slave, out November 1st 2013, is  based on the book of the same name. Written by  Solomon Northup and published in 1853, it chronicles the account of his kidnapping and subsequent years as a slave in the Deep South. The movie holds nothing back from Northup’s brutal descriptions of slave life. Brilliantly played by Chiwetel Ejiofor, Northup takes us on an emotional rollercoaster with the very first image. From sweet scenes with his family in Saratoga, New York, to vicious slave whippings on a Louisiana cotton plantation, the movie succeeds in pulling you in and horrifying you all at once.

It runs the gamut of slave life: a master who treats his slaves as human beings, and one whose behavior is both bizarre and brutal; going from singing in the cotton fields to mourning a fallen slave; attempting to run, and the myriad punishments for doing so. Here, too, is depicted the deepest despair in a beautiful slave who catches master’s eye, and the terrible consequences to which jealousy can bring both men and women. Filled with moments of exquisite tension, perfectly musically underscored, the movie will leave you shaken.

Though set in 1841, it portrays the life that sets up so much of the foundation for our own time period that the perspective it provides far outstrips the ticket price. 

While the lack of sugar- coating is admirable, it is a violent, and often graphic, view on slave life, and so should not be seen by anyone under college age. Directed by Steve McQueen, and also staring Michael Fassbender, Benedict Cumberbatch, and Brad Pitt (who also produced the movie), it carries an R rating.

By: Debbie L. Jones 

150th Anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg

150th Gettysburg: The BGA Event Gettysburg. The very name evokes a flood of emotions and memories. The Battle of Gettysburg, fought in and around a small Pennsylvania borough on July 1 – 3, 1863 has claimed a rightful place in American history as the most significant battle of America's Civil War. 

As is the case with many national events, two separate Gettysburg observances were held: the BGA (Blue and Gray Alliance); and the GAC (Gettysburg Anniversary Committee). The BGA event was held June 27-30 at the Bushey family farm. Along with Eric Larson from our 24th Michigan, I attended the event, along with 418 other men from Michigan. Our “Michigan battalion” enjoyed the added distinction of actually portraying the 24th Michigan, adding a special flavor to our participation. We participated in the “progressive” portion of the event, in “Murray's Brigade.” Thursday at 4:45 pm an all-hands meeting was held to brief the participants on what to expect for the weekend. At 5:00 pm on Thursday, the men formed ranks and marched off to our temporary camp in the field. Rations were issued: three hardtack crackers, two slabs of salt pork, coffee beans and brown sugar for each man. Adding to the realism, we received the announcement that the army was not certain how long these rations would have to last. Just as it was for the boys of 1863, keeping nourished was a challenge.

An additional challenge was the rugged terrain. Rocks and logs were omnipresent but on Friday, we put the natural terrain to good use by building our own breastworks at our new camp on “Culp's Hill.” The comrades of the 24th Michigan valiantly held their position at all hazards against repeated assaults by the Confederate forces. But the high ground and the impregnable breastworks made our position unassailable. The firefights at Culp's Hill were some of the most intense battle scenarios I've ever experienced. Added to the realism was the fact that for the first time in my career as a living historian, we were summoned to battle by the “long roll,” a drum signal which indicates that the enemy is present and there is no time at all to waste in taking battle stations. We lined the breastworks clad without coats, with our leather accouterments hastily thrown on over our shirts.

On Saturday, we miraculously morphed into the First Maryland Home Guards. The change in impression was necessary because the original 24th Michigan did not participate in Pickett's Charge on the third day of the battle. By a simple change of caps from our dress black hats to our simpler forage caps, the transformation was complete. We fought an intense battle against fellow Marylanders. The raw emotions of 150 years ago came rushing back to us, as we heard to desperate cries of the wounded and dying in the valley below. Col. Eichler and Chaplain Rodney Miller reminded the men to show compassion to our suffering “fellow states-men.” At their suggestion, a humanitarian detail was sent to the fallen Confederates to supply them with water. Several Confederate soldiers, including a major, surrendered to our brave water boys.

Sunday saw the recreation of Pickett's Charge. The BGA event staff went to great lengths to recreate the stone wall and the copse of trees. It was breathtaking to see brigade upon brigade of Confederate soldiers valiantly making their last-ditch effort to pierce the center of the Union line in a desperate effort to carry the field. It was a surreal experience, somewhere between the most amazing reenactment scene ever and acting in a Hollywood blockbuster.

Following Pickett's Charge, Col. Eichler suggested that we honor the sacrifices of the men who fought on the hallowed ground of Gettysburg 150 years ago by marching off the field in full marching order. Although we all were hungry, thirsty, hot, tired and homesick, our pride in our great Wolverine State and our gratitude to the men who actually experienced the horror and hardship of 150 years ago spurred us on. We formed up, and marched off the battlefield singing “The Battle Hymn of the Republic.” We received the hearty cheers and applause of many people along our “parade route.” Many people snapped pictures of us. At one point, someone called out, “Who are these guys?” And the exuberant answer was shouted back, “These are Michigan men!”

Col. Eichler summed up the experiences of the weekend with his brief comments as we prepared to head home to Michigan. He said, “Men, it's a cloudy day. There are many men up there looking over the edges of those clouds, and they're smiling down on what you did here.”

It was a humbling experience indeed to represent the original 24th Michigan at the 150th anniversary of Gettysburg. There were many unforgettable experiences which will remain in the memories of all who took part.

By Guy Perdue