I just took my one of my 9 year olds to ‘The Blue & The Gray’ Grant Takes Command, a Civil War Reenactment and Encampment in Moorpark, CA. The Rotary Club puts it on and it takes place every year about 30 minutes from us and it’s actually the biggest civil war reenactment on the west coast. My kid is quite the little Civil War buff, I sometimes wonder whether he was reincarnated from a soldier that died on the battlefield. He’s just so knowledgable on the subject and never gets bored with it. He reads about it constantly, watches shows about, plays an Xbox game about it, dresses up as a soldier and more. He even built a battlefield diarama on a full sheet of plywood that sits on my dining room table so he can have battles using the soldiers he bought on our summer vacation in Getytsburg and Antietam. Basically, the kid lives and breathes the Civil War.
So at the reenactment, volunteers come as Union and Confederate soldiers to participate in thebattles and camp overnight. The battles take place in a big cornfield with cannons and pyrotechnics, it’s really great. Here’s a photo from the night battle.
It’s a great history lesson for both you and your kids. By watching the battles, walking around the camp and talking to those partipcating in the event, you take a step back in time to see what our country went through and how many lives were lost.
Now on the bright side, there’s shopping to be had. I got suckered into purchasing a blue Union soldier jacket and a bayonet for his rifle. At least when the kids had their little battle, he was well prepared!
