Civil War Days return

Mike Sciacca

Bodies were strewn like rag dolls across the green, sprawling

lawns of Huntington Beach Central Park last Saturday. Ghost-like

apparitions of smoke floating through the air indicating that a major

battle had just taken place.

It had.

For the seventh consecutive year, the city of Huntington Beach

hosted Civil War Days, an event billed as a “living history and

reenactment” of one of the most defining moments in our nation.

Huntington Beach joins Anaheim as being the only two cities in

Orange County to host Civil War DaysThe public came out en masse to

see the true-to-life reenactment that concluded Sunday. They strolled

through the park to see pup tents erected throughout the grounds,

“Suttler” booths selling period costume, artillery demonstrations and

of, course, the several hundred volunteers dressing the part of

soldiers, generals, women and children of the day.

“I come out to this every year and enjoy it just like I did the

first time I saw it,” said James Bryant, 41, of Huntington Beach.

“They do an awesome job showing us what it was like to live back in

those days.”

The highlight for most, including Bryant, were the battles, of

which there was one on each of the two days. Although the crowd of

several hundred who had gathered Saturday at the east end of the park

were anticipating the weekend’s first skirmish, they were still

startled -- some even jumped -- when that first, powerful cannon shot

reverberated throughout the park.

Central Park certainly was a place where the past met the future.

Confederate soldiers did battle with their Union counterparts. The

women were dressed in restrictive hoop skirts, bonnets and gloves,

and many carried parasols. They watched their “loved ones” fight in

battle, several taking shelter under a shady tree.

Their dress was in sharp contrast to the rest of the onlookers who

were decked out in today’s fashions: baggy shorts, tank tops and

stylish sunglasses, some even filming with video cameras.

Lisa Sandoval became involved with Civil War Days a year ago when

the Corona resident joined the American Civil War Society. She got

involved, she said, because her boyfriend, Mukhtar Bari, 27, had

volunteered his time as a soldier.

The two were part of the 69th New York State Volunteers and the

Irish Brigade.

Bari fought in Saturday’s first battle while Sandoval stood and

observed.

“It’s an amazing experience to be part of this,” said the

22-year-old Sandoval, who has done previous reenactments in San

Diego, Oceanside and Encino. “Doing this has furthered what I already

knew about the Civil War. What we volunteers do is live exactly like

they did in the Civil War period. We came out here in the park and

everything is correct to that period, from food to clothing. My

costume is correct all the way down to my undergarments.”Camps were

set up throughout the park, each segregated by a group’s regiment.

Each camp had its own cook and Dutch ovens were used. Food

consisted of pork salt, eggs, coffee beans and hard tac -- a large,

dense cracker-like food that, Sandoval chuckled and said, “doesn’t

taste that great and lasts a lifetime. But the soldiers lived off of

it.”

They ate off tin plates, drank out of jugs, and “slept on the

floor,” Sandoval said.

A “suttler” was a person who, during the Civil War, sold goods to

soldiers who sought out other amenities than what was rationed.

Suttler booths last weekend offered the public the sale of period

clothing, plastic swords and firearms, hats and photos.

Following the conclusion of the first battle, which drew hearty

applause and was won by the Union, an infantry and artillery

demonstration was given. The history lesson included the use of a 58

caliber Springfield musket that, one solider said, could fire three

rounds per minute.

A few Union soldiers who took part in the first battle passed out

their hats to the crowd, seeking donations to pay for gun powder and

other artillery for future reenactments.

One soldier informed the crowd that it cost “five or six dollars

every time we fire a cannon.”

The crowd responded enthusiastically, including Bryant, who

generously tossed a $20 bill into the hat.

“They put on a great presentation for us, showing us how things

used to be,” Bryant said. “The battles are amazing and something

everyone should see. I hope they come back to Huntington next year.

I’ll be out here again.”

* MIKE SCIACCA covers sports and features. He can be reached at

(714) 965-7171 or by e-mail at michael.sciacca@latimes.com.