MANSFIELD — Valerie Hamill did more than tell Mansfield City Council about a planned Civil War “living history” event coming up at South Park.
Dressed in a hoop skirt from that era in American history, the woman from Galena, Ohio, made the upcoming two-day event come to life in council chambers.
She did it by describing some of the planned events people can see, hear and do during the admission-free encampment at 100 Brinkerhoff Ave. on June 8 and 9 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
“What herb would you use to remove freckles? Or to settle an upset stomach? Or to heal an amputated arm?” Hamill asked.
“How do we do photography? The Civil War songbird, the songs of of our music, Steve and Lisa Ball, one of the premiere civil war musician couples.
“So you want to be an army nurse?”
“How about Lt. George Erasmus Dixon the third and last captain of the Confederate submarine, the Hunley?”
“These are some of the presentations we’re going to have,” Hamill said.
The event will take place in conjunction with the Richland Early American Center for History, aka the RichHistory Alliance.
“We’ll be setting up camp on (June 7) with the event open to the public on Saturday and Sunday,” she said.
“It’s just going to be a full living history immersion,” Hamill said, who was joined at the meeting by Annette Pascal from Galena, and her three grandsons, Dane Hamill, Brayden Hamill and Carter Hamill, all from Lexington.
All five were dressed in appropriate Civil War-era clothing and uniforms.
Visitors to the encampment can meet authentically clad and equipped military and civilian reenactors who will discuss the everyday lives of Civil War soldiers and the roles civilians played in supporting them.
Cannons will fire. Log cabin cooking will be done. Surgeons. Blacksmiths. A Ladies Tea. Candlelight lantern tours of the camp. A visit from President Lincoln and his wife.
“We’re just so excited to pair with REACH and the Richland Early American History Group, the log cabins, the stockade house … It’s an amazing treasure gem you have in your city,” Hamill said.
“We did a lot of marketing, a lot of advertising. We have, I think, a very good group coming for our first time,” she said.
“We’re going to have a blast,” Hamill said.
