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Military history: Photo gallery: Civil War reenactors at Gettysburg

Photos by Joe Gromelski, Stars and Stripes
Online edition, June 24, 2007
As part of the 21st annual Civil War Heritage Days at the Gettysburg National Battlefield Park in Pennsylvania, volunteer groups of  reenactors offered visitors a look at camp life during the war. Among them were the 20th Maine Infantry and the United States Sharpshooters, who also demonstrated battlefield tactics.

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T.J. Youhn of Hollywood, Md., a member of the 20th Maine Volunteer Infantry Company E, plays some music.

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A demonstration of some of the equipment Civil War soldiers carried on marches that sometimes extended for hundreds of miles.

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The Civil War bayonet was three-sided, a particularly deadly design that is now outlawed by the Geneva Conventions.

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A look at how Civil War soldiers slept.

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The United States Sharpshooters of the Civil War were organized by Herman Berdan of New York. To qualify, a soldier had to be able to put ten consecutive shots into a 10-inch circle at a range of 200 yards.

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Attending Saturday's events during Living History Weekend, in contrasting states of authenticity, were 11-year-old Jack Wagner of Norfolk, Va., and five-year-old Michael Chambers of Gettysburg.

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Although his attire lacked the 1860s flavor of other attendees', Michael Chambers was proud of his melon-rind helmet (designed by his mom) and "bazooka."

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T.J. Youhn explains aspects of Civil War life to Jack Wagner.

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T.J. Youhn displays a Civil War revolver, which took about 10 minutes to reload.

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Members of the United States Sharpshooters reenactment group march to a demonstration of battlefield technique.

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The 20th Maine Infantry awaits its turn during a firing demonstration.

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Tom Slusser, right, of the United States Sharpshooters describes the uniform to spectators at Gettysburg. The green uniform was at one point augmented by a gray overcoat, but its distribution was discontinued by the Union army after "friendly fire" incidents.

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Slusser shows how the pack was worn, with the mess kit strapped to the middle. The pack was manufactured by Tiffany's, the famous New York jewelry firm.

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Sharpshooters take their positions in the field. Their rifles were able to fire about 10 rounds per minute, compared with about three for a regular rifle.

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A sharpshooter fires his Sharps rifle, producing a large cloud of smoke. The main targets of the sharpshooters were horses, since these were likely to be carrying officers or messengers.

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During the Civil War, the 20th Maine was commanded by Col. (later General and after the war Maine Governor) Joshua Chamberlain.

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The 20th Maine demonstrates how soldiers would bite the end off a paper cartridge before loading their rifles. This technique meant that a soldier was required to have at least two opposable teeth.

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Rifles were loaded through the muzzle. Not only were soldiers in danger from enemy fire as they stood to reload, but a stray spark could cause the weapon to discharge early as well.

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Soldiers used the ramrod attached to their rifle to set the bullet in place. Replacing the ramrod on the rifle properly was a key part of the routine, because if it were to be lost, the weapon's only use would be as a club.

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20th Maine soldiers fire a volley. Since reloading took about 20 seconds, and an onrushing enemy could cover lots of ground in that time, the volleys were staggered.

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Reloading between volleys.

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T.J. Youhn demonstrates how little chance a soldier would have had in any situation but one-on-one during a bayonet charge.

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Reenactors show the spectators (at left) what it would be like to be on the receiving end of a charge.

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Karl Lang of Huntington, Pa., thanks the spectators at the end of the demonstration.

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The 20th Maine returns to its camp, followed by Michael Chambers.

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