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Aversboro 2001 Reenactment Photos

Those wild and crazy guys, the Bush Brothers ( aka as Privately Knaughte and Ben Tover)  met me at my tarheel father's house at 12:30 to load up our gear into his 1993 Dodge Caravan.  We then headed south on I-95 and picked up 2 more wild and crazy guys, Jack Hefestay and Dan Paterson (aka as John T. Banter and Dan Jeris) at the commuter lot off of Route 123.  Mr. Dan Jeris was running late due to a pain in the ass user of ours known only as The Pill.  Anyway, we headed on off at around 4:30 and got to the campsite around 10:00 p.m.  All along the way as Jack and I sipped diet Pepsi, our pards Jeff  and Dan sipped Budweiser and got sillier and sillier, especially Mr. Jeris.  Lets just say that although he didn't get close to his 2000 record of 17 at Bentonville, the sight of his playing the theme to the movie Patton and yelling "I love the smell of battle, I feel like f#*&&G killing somebody" was well worth it.  Don't worry yours truly was driving. The boys got to chill the whole way down.

We found a place to setup camp with the First Pennsylvania, a great bunch of guys.  We ran into our IA pards, Tom Piston, Andy Breeden and Christopher Wilson along with Shirleen (aka Miss Bea Haven).  Thanks Tom for the blanket, I sure needed it due to the 20 degree weather at night!   We all shared a few spring waters and then went to bed.  I  couldn't sleep due to the cold and also the sound of some incredibly loud snoring from my pards.  At around 2:30 a.m. I felt a dark form hovering over my bedroll, this dark form kept saying "its fricking cold".   So I took pity upon my pard and hell I was "fricking cold" too, so Mr. Dan Jeris and Private Pekker headed on off to sleep in my father's van.     I found out that the loudest snorer of our motley crew was definitely Mr. Dan Jeris!  I got little sleep but awoke to our van getting violently shaken by those wild and crazy Bush Boys at around 6:30 a.m.  We all then headed over to camp for some fried salt pork and bread.  Thanks Jeff for the bread, we all had plenty to eat over the weekend.  We then formed up for company drill and thanks to Miss Bea Haven, the Sarge and Mike Cecere found us and fell in. 

Dan Jeris, John T. Banter, Ben Tover, Privately Knaughte, Sarge and Elwood Pekker kneeling in front
(thanks Heidi for modifying my vest, my "tumors" were less noticeable) I've got so many layers on to bulk me out, Shirleen and I joked I looked like Pat from SNL!   Photo by Dan Paterson taken by Shirleen

Dan chills out Saturday afternoon and no that's not spring water in the bottle its root beer!  Photo by Ann aka "Elwood"

The Pennsylvania boys were fun and our Captain was a little off due to his being on some major pain killers, but their first Sargent corrected him when the Percacets messed him up.  Our Captain's name was Bull, which we ribbed him for and being a good sport he didn't care.  We had an hour break before Battalion drill and the Bush Boys and I headed on off for Dirty Billy's.  We made him $255 richer by my buying a slouch hat and the Bush boys buying 2 forage caps.  We then headed on back for Battalion drill which went pretty well.  Major Good was a great leader and we broke at noon for lunch and then formed up at 1:00 p.m. for the battle in full gear.  We all went in with our knapsacks and haversacks.  My thighs really got a work out from going in with a full pack, but it was fun and well worth it.  Besides its what they did and is more accurate.  The rebs were behind some breastworks and on the second volley a bunch of the 7th went down.  The rebs then pushed back to their second set of breastworks and then the entire battalion fell apart.  We'd have to come back and get them tomorrow.

Miss Bea Haven shares some coffee with the troops.     Photo by Ann aka "Elwood"

Dan cooks up some salt pork.   Photo by Ann aka "Elwood"

Christopher comes for a visit from the lonely trenches of the IA.   Photo by Ann aka "Elwood"

Jack wonders what the heck Steve is eating!  Photo by Ann aka "Elwood"

The Fowl Muskets in the trenches.   Photo by Ann aka "Elwood"

The fowl muskets chill out before Sunday's battle.   Photo by Ann aka "Elwood"

We all then went back to camp to stow our packs and then we all went off sutlering.  We ran into many pards along the way, Bill Johnson of the Longstreet Memorial Fund, good old Charles Heath of the rowdy pards, young Bobby Smalls of the LR, Miss Lorraine of the Raggedy Mess.  The event staff gave us a good old Carolina BBQ dinner of pulled pork, beans and cole slaw.  We then went back to camp to relax and down a few spring waters.  Our pards from the First Pennsylvania taught us a new song, which we'll have to show our pards at the next event.   The only complaint we all had was the lack of firewood.  Thanks to our part beaver pard Mike, we had more firewood then other groups, but it wasn't the greatest wood to burn.   We all were tired and fell asleep early.  But around 3:00 a.m. I again was visited by a dark form hovering over me saying "its friggin cold".  So I went to my Pa's van with my pard and we awoke and went on back to camp.  It was so cold that our canteens had slush in them and there was frost on everything.  We all huddled around our meager fire and ate some breakfast.  Thanks Miss Bea Haven for the bacon, it was more appetizing than salt pork!

We all relaxed and formed up around 1:00 pm. with full packs for battle.   The battle was delayed by some yahoo in the IA area who brandished 2 pistols and shot somebody in the face just barely missing his eye and almost hitting our pard Christopher.  The coward then ran off while the medical teams took care of the poor guy who was hurt.  JERK, I hope you get banned from all future events.  Well the battle finally got under way and this time the Federals won.  We all then headed on home.  We bade farewell to our pards the Sarge and Mike and Miss Bea Haven, the Pistons and Christopher.   Our motely crew stopped on the way north at the actual battle site.  Its got a nice little museum.  They are in the midst of getting some memorials  up to both sides. If you get the chance stop on by, its well worth it.

The First Line where many a southern boy lost his life,  Photo by Dan Paterson

The graveyard where many of the unknown dead are buried,  Photo by Dan Paterson

Dan Jeris, Privately Knaughte, John T. Banter and Ben Tover of the Fowl Muskets
Photo by Dan Paterson taken by Elwood Pekker

We got to the commuter lot at around 11:00 p.m. and bade farwell to Dan and Jack.  The Bush Boys and I then headed on north and hit a major traffice jam in Alexandria around Telegraph Road before the infamous Wilson Bridge.  90 slow minutes later we passed the accident causing the delay, a hazzardous waste spill from a tracktor trailer near the Indian Head Highway exit on the Maryland side.  We got to my father's at 2:15 a.m. and I made some coffee for the guys.   I only had a 30 minute ride home, they had 90 minutes before the eastern shore.  But  all in all except for the lack of firewood, a grand time was had.