Well, another season is winding down for those of us in the north-east.  Yeah some of the guys plan to play in Buffalo, NY in February (lived there, done that, don't really know who'd wanna do it voluntarily, but a lot do ). But for us, civilians, what can we talk about here that will help you to prepare for 2008?   What kind of goals do you have in regards to attending events?  Just trying to get this forum kick-started.  

Linda.

Linda,

I believe your better half is going to the event in February. I do hope he's planning on wearing shoes!  

A question I would have is how do folks handle modern health and comfort items for small children at Civil War events?  

exactly what details would you like bill?

as for comforts... my children dont mind sleeping on the ground (in fact they frequently do at home, they choose it over their beds, no clue why!).   i do allow regulat night clothes right now, generally in cooler weather i have the girls wear sweatpants with a nightie, boys wear their regular pjs.  the girls have their modern dolls to sleep with, i hide them come morning and they dont come back out til they climb into their blankets.  i have some toys for them, but not many, my children love exploring and playing with dirt

modern health... i keep a modern first ad kit on hand at all times. i do a lot of off the beaten path ways if they get sick though. burns are always treated with honey and then wrapped up so the honey doesnt drip everywhere. i use tea tree oil for insect bites, scraps, cuts, infections... so i will keep some of that in my first aid kit also.

i always keep a pot of water by the fire. get the right pot with lid and you can get that water boiling, then take it off and put it next to the fire, even after sitting out overnight its still pretty hot.  ill dip a washcloth in to wash hands for after bathroom trips or before we eat, or just to get the dirt off my children (which is actually a hopeless cause!). but i do always have hot water just for that cause. its even nice to use at night to do a quick washing of their hair if necessary. or to brush out snarls and pomade in the morning to redo it all. we use modern toothbrushes, toothpaste and floss.  mine dont get sugary foods all that often, but ill bring them snickerdoodles for that sugary snack, or make a cake in the cast iron. they love fruits and veggies, so those are easy to bring. they do love smores though and i do bring the stuff for at least one night (yah i know).

anything else just ask.

One of the things I would like to discuss is our age vs. what we know. An example, matches not being invented until 1849, would people of an adult age in 1860 not know how to start a fire with flint and steal? There are other examples, this is just one that came to mind first. I would suppose there are many other things we should know. Anyone else have any ideas? I think little details improve our impressions greatly.


Beverly Simpson

Quote :

yankeebelle wrote : One of the things I would like to discuss is our age vs. what we know. An example, matches not being invented until 1849, would people of an adult age in 1860 not know how to start a fire with flint and steal? There are other examples, this is just one that came to mind first. I would suppose there are many other things we should know. Anyone else have any ideas? I think little details improve our impressions greatly. Beverly Simpson

That is actually a good question and could apply to the military as well.  What should you know for your age?

If you are an older civilian or soldier, what would your schooling have been vs younger personas.  

What should a 10 yr old know about farming vs someone who is in their 20s or 30s?  

10yo girls would be able to cook most meals on their own if not close to. that would put my 11yo pretty behind

i would think a young person would know how, especially since a young girl does know how to cook.

A 'saving attitude'--keeping and useing the smallest things:

Many period receipts call for stale bread crumbs--essentially, yesterday's leftovers recycled into today's meals.

Patching and mending--in a skilled manner, not so one looks like a clown or hobo.

Being careful with expendables--extinguishing candles and going on to bed, banking a fire rather than building it up----realizing that these were items that came with a cost at the time, and need to be utilized carefully.

I bet I know what Miz Beverly is going to lay out for Christmas gift, at least for the ladies of a certain age,

The biggest god-send to reenacting with children has been Liz Clark.  I don't know where I'd be without her, not that I have children in the 21st century; but all my characters have. The last event I attended was the Algonquin Mill Festival just outside of Carrollton, Ohio.  Well, it isn't really an event, I was the only CW person there, but the mill was built by my gggg grandfather, and I was portraying my gg grandmother (who had 12 children ranging in ages from 9 months to 22 years!)  Good old Liz sent me a list of all the things that a child of those ages could do at home, and that was a definate blessing!

One thing that I was also blessed with is great aunts. They were packrats that saved every scrap of paper no matter how big or how small, and no matter how important or unimportant it was. Then, when they had to sell the house and move to a retirement center, my mother's brother got everything and didn't bother going through it and put it all in his basement.  Well, when they moved -- I saved the papers from the county trash heap!  

In this heap of papers was an autobiography written by my great grandfather, and my ggg grandmother's reminiscences.  They may be of some interest to others as they are her reflections of life as it changed from rural western NY state 1818-1835 and then her move to Dayton, Ohio in 1835 on up to the date it was written in 1900.  It gives a pretty good account of life on the "frontier."  She even talks about matches.
http://www.lindatrent.homestead.com/EARLYREMINISCENCES.html
This material is one of a kind, and copyrighted by me on my website, and soon to be new book on the Barney Stevens family history, so please do not reproduce for anything other than your own private use.

Perhaps I'll think more clearly and be able to provide more info in the morning.  Till then,

Linda.

Shouldn't we also know more about our surroundings? What were good natural herbs for cooking? What could we make a rope of if we didn't have any? All of these things were brought up in a discussion recently.

Also, wouldn't a women know how to harness and drive a wagon, buggy , plow the field etc.

This all would also apply to men.

I am trying to decide where I wish to start my studying and learning this winter. Some of the skills I already have, but want to have as many more as I can.

Yes, we should know more about our surroundings, and what we should know would depend upon where our characters lived: north/south, city/country; their socio-economic status; and occupations.  

A lady living in a city may have never harnessed a horse, and have no idea how to do it, while a lady in the country very well may have harnessed a horse numerous times.  On the other hand, a true 'lady' of the country would probably have a stable hand to do that for her.   The same would apply to driving and plowing, etc.  

A lot of country women also learned to do these things when the chores needed done and men weren't available to do them (off to war).

When I was organizing Struggle for Statehood, we had a work weekend where we built a log hut on the event property.  I had the opportunity to harness a horse and drag logs and other things to the site.  I really had fun doing that.  Working with livestock and getting them to do things that you want them to do is very rewarding, but it is also a rather big challenge at times.  

Perhaps we should have a list of country things and city things.

Anyway, NOW off to bed.

Linda.

Linda,

Thank you for your post and sharing your information. It was a very interesting read. It answers some of my questions very well.

Linda,

I think that would be a very interesting list. I think that is a wonderful idea.

I will start with the countrydon't know much about city living)

Gardening ( veg, flower, kitchen)
Food preservation
Fire building
horse driving and harnessing
plowing
cooking
livestock care
weaving
spinning
carding
harvesting


These things I list with the impression of a lower class person in mind, mostly thinking of someone who may not have help available or limited help. Also, as you stated, we have to remember women who's husbands were off to war and they became necessary for survival.

My grandmother was 93 when she died in 1983.  She came from an affluent family but lived in a rural setting.  She used to talk about what a social event hog killing time was.  Her stories seemed to indicate it was a community wide activity in which both males and females were involved.

City things, with some small town things as well, and no, I don't know all of these:

How to purchase things in a store (when to ask, when to look, how to handle your account and passbook)

How to use public transportation (hack, horse cars, railroads, packets, stage coaches, etc.) including reading schedules, checking baggage, purchasing tickets.

Who to tip and what services to expect at restaurants, hotels, railroad stations, etc.

How to deal with beggars and what dangers to look out for (pickpockets, etc.)

How to find a drink of water or use the "restroom" when you're downtown.

If you have your own buggy, what to do if it or the horse "breaks down" or you have an accident with another vehicle or pedestrian.

How to use a bank, deposit, withdraw, write a check, take out a loan, etc.

How you mail and receive letters and packages of various sizes, including freight.

How to send a telegram

How to get your laundry done, how long it takes, how much it costs

Where women go, where men go, where children go, where white and black people go, like... can/do men sit in the "ladies car"? Do children go into bars? Do ladies eat at every restaurant? Do races segregate in horse cars? Railroad cars? Hotels? Stage coaches? Stores? Theaters?

What are the unique attractions in your home city? Cincinnati observatory? Barnum's museum? The Smithsonian? Where are the bad places you don't go, and why?

What paperwork occurs and who's responsible for it when someone is born, dies, is married, starts a business? Do you pay taxes on real estate, income, or need a license? How do regulations affect what you do?

Who are the poor people that see doing the most menial jobs? Blacks, Italians, Irish? What stereotypes abound about them?

Is there a police force, a constable, a small claims court? Who do you report a crime to, or how do you take care of minor legal issues with your neighbors?

Hank Trent
hanktrent@voyager.net

Hank,

Thank you for your addition. Many things I had not thought about.

The paperwork thing is another area I have questions about. What would have been common paperwork to have on your person.

Thanks everyone for your input. This board seemed like the perfect place to start discussing these things.

Wow! Okay, so what started out simple has grown complex.  Let's start a new thread and pick out just a few of the questions that we're most interested in.  We can cover them all over time, but we have to narrow this down a little.

Geez, I wanted to kickstart the civilian portion of the forum, and look what I got myself into.  Seriously though, we need to start new threads and concentrate on a few things at a time.

There are a few websites that I'm thinking about that have some primary source information about traveling.  Is that a good place to start?  At least one thread?  Again, we can have four or five or even six threads going, but we need to have focus.  

Linda

Sorry Linda,

I have been thinking on these things a great deal lately and am very excited about them. We can start where ever you wish. Can't wait to get all the information together. What a great resource this will be.

Beverly Simpson

Quote :

Sorry Linda, I have been thinking on these things a great deal lately and am very excited about them. We can start where ever you wish. Can't wait to get all the information together. What a great resource this will be.

Hey, no need to be sorry, I'm thrilled that people have replied with so many different things.  Another thing that I was thinking is recreation: hunting, fishing, horse racing, etc.  

And time.  The time in Frankfort, KY is not the same as the time in New York city, for example.  Learning to set your period watches to period time is another fun thing to learn.  

So many different things to think about.  

Linda.

On the topic of shopping in stores, I just ran across this, which gives a descrïption of what it's like to enter a "first-class dry goods store" in New York. http://books.google.com/books?id=7pFMfJ8gBHkC&pg=PA169 (starting at the bottom of the page and continuing to the next). I always thought the reason clerks waited on customers from the start was because of the cheapness of labor then compared to now, so more personal service was affordable. The author indicates it's due to the fact that shoplifting would be rampant if customers were allowed to actually wander the aisles unsupervised.

Hank Trent
hanktrent@voyager.net

Linda,

We are going to learn about horse racing this year at Perryville on the Farm. Should be lots of fun.


Can you explain further about the time change stuff.


Bev