Adding flesh to the bones of history

Oct. 23—For most people, the Civil War is an event stamped in history, long removed from our sight by time's passage.

However, there are still some combat reenactors, who remain determined to preserve this part of American history, and they're flocking to Lebanon this weekend.

Organized by members of the Atlanta Campaign, Inc., a non-profit organization with a mission to bring the past to life, a reenactment of the Battle of Stones River will take place today and tomorrow. The battle was one of the bloodiest of the western theater of the war, with each side sustaining casualties exceeding 10,000 men.

While this weekend's battle won't have that many people, event organizer John Nash estimates there will be more than 2,000 reenactors participating in the event. In addition to the soldiers who will fill every rank from light infantry to heavy artillery, there will be approximately 50 mounted cavalry and more than 30 cannons.

Nash and his partner, Earl Zeckman, know from experience that it takes months of planning to bring something of this magnitude together. Not only do they have to scope out land with appropriate topography, they also have to coordinate thousands of reenactors converging on a single locale. With people from as far away as Alaska, and nearly every state in between, making the trek to Middle Tennessee, Zeckman said that the logistics is like "mobilizing for war."

Nash and Zeckman also put significant time and research into the logistical movements of the troops in the field, and the progression of the battle.

"We obviously know how the battles ended, but there's a lot more to it than that," Zeckman said.

A unique component to this recreation, however, is the improvisation that will take place once the battle commences. Every single regimental movement won't follow the precise paths of the actual troops from the war.

"Moving the pieces around the battlefield becomes a bit like playing chess," said Zeckman, a component of the battle he said he relishes.

Both Zeckman and Nash, as well as so many of the volunteers at the event, care about bringing the past to life in a way that makes it appealing to spectators, young and old. Before the battle begins, students from the area went out to the camp to visit the soldiers and other showcases, like the sutlers (period trade merchants) and Blue-Gray Town.

Nash said that they've entertained and educated more than 18,000 students during the 17 years they've been working on these events, a number he is proud of.

That experience for student spectators involves a departure from the battlefield for a simpler walk through time by way of a passive community section. This is Blue-Gray Town. In Blue-Gray Town there are no rifles or bullets, artillery or cannon balls. Instead, it's a showcase of the lives led by normal people during the 1860s.

"Every one of these soldiers, on both sides, came from professional civilian backgrounds," coordinator Genie Stracuzzi, a Floridian with a passion for period recreation, said. "They were lawyers, farmers, and doctors."

Showing what life was like for these soldiers before the percussive drums of war summoned them away from their homes and families has become what drives Stracuzzi. A strict adherent to detail, Stracuzzi isn't one to let minor details slip unnoticed.

"We don't want visiting students seeing a Coke can or bag of Lay's chips on their tour through Blue-Gray Town," Stracuzzi said.

Stracuzzi travels around the country recreating civilian life for spectators at events like the Battle of Stones River reenactment.

For her, it's an educational imperative to present the guests with a transportative time experience demonstrating life as it was in 1860. She is the first to acknowledge that not every item in her collection circa that time, but finding functioning tools from 1860 is not easy nor inexpensive.

Stracuzzi's delight comes from seeing the moment of realization on the younger children's faces about just how different life was back then. While she said that she loves taking part in the event for her own pleasure, it's the engagement with families that provides her the most satisfaction.

From hard-core to mainstreamers

On Thursday, several reenactors had already set up their campsite. Mat Sterman, Christian Bigner and Harry Keenan were putting the finishing touches on theirs and setting up the Confederate's First Division headquarters.

Sterman is a retired service member. It's something he has in common with a lot of the reenactors. But they come from diverse professional backgrounds.

"There are military service members, police officers, firefighters, engineers, you name it there out there," Sterman — a former military training instructor — said. "I really like teaching, and this allows me and all of us to put a little bit of flesh back on the bones of history."

Uniquely, and surprisingly, Sterman said that in his experience, "It doesn't matter to me or a bunch of my fellow reenactors whether we wear blue or gray. We just focus on the combat side."

There is a contrast of dedication between some reenactors that Sterman described best as authentic campers and mainstreamers. Sterman is one of the former.

"Once I go boots on the ground here, then, I am here for the entire time," Sterman said.

Authentic campers pay close attention to the smallest detail like the fabric and stitching of outfits. Sterman said that some even go so far as to hammer down an accent to speak like they are from that era.

As for those he called "mainstreamers," he didn't mean it as a negative.

"They have the same love for the period," Sterman said. "Everyone falls somewhere along the spectrum."

Whether a hardcore enthusiast or just a pedestrian spectator, the event appeals to all. The site is located on private land by Hurricane Creek Road and Route 231 in Lebanon. The two-day battle starts at 9 a.m. each day and concludes at 5 p.m.

Admission for adults is $15, and children aged 6-17 get in for $5.

There will be food vendors on site, and sutlers markets will be set up to peruse goods from the era to keep as a souvenir.