A Battle in Middletown

Sunday was a dreary, gloomy day, having rained overnight and during the early morning, the sky blanketed with thick rain clouds threatening to pour down at any moment. But Brian and I kept to our plans and drove out to Middletown to watch the 155th anniversary battle re-enactment of Cedar Creek, the last major battle in the Shenandoah campaign, where the confederates lost the battle, a loss that led to the re-election of Abraham Lincoln. The union soldiers had been burning crops and destroying farms in the Shenandoah valley, a 75 mile stretch of land, to ensure the confederate army had no food supplies, an act referred to as The Burning.
I was very excited to see this re-enactment since the previous two years had been canceled. 2017 because of a bomb found on site, apparently quite sophisticated, I was informed, and then last year protestors had ensured another cancellation. This year security was understandably tighter, but on this Sunday the spectators seemed to be few. Saturday had been crowded, as it was the actual day of the battle anniversary and also the weather had been sunshine with blue skies, but I preferred today's overcast gloominess. The morning of the actual battle had been shrouded with fog when the Confederates began their attack, so it seemed fitting that the re-enactment today would begin the same way.

There were about 2300 re-enactors on the field today and I was astounded at the size of the camps, multitudes of white canvas tents on each side of the field. I had been expecting just a handful so seeing the size of these two bases made me stop in my tracks so I could take it all in. Civilians and soldiers all dressed in their historical outfits made me feel like I was stepping back in time. As we walked about, peering under canvases to see clothing vendors, hat and belt makers and uniform supplies, I felt strange and dressed incorrectly. It was a scene straight from 1864, people going about their business and acting as though 2019 didn't exist. I wanted to duck into a tent and get changed immediately. This nearest camp was the Confederate camp, the Union troops about half a mile on the other side of the hill.

Small groups sat around fires, wood smoke drifting slowly across the fields, as they ate breakfast and drank coffee. I even noticed that their mugs came from the era they were re-enacting. I chatted to a few, wondering if they were cold, but their woolen attire kept them toasty warm, although I couldn't imagine that the rainy night previously spent under those heavy canvas tents could have been too comfortable. I touched a few of the thick canvas tents as I passed and they were sodden.
We chatted to a gentleman who had set up a surgery, frightening metal utensils next to a dummy on a table and a wooden box filled with glass bottles containing 52 medications, only one of which was a preventative, the rest were cures. He showed Brian and I a roll of horse hair used for stitches. The surgeons had discovered that boiling these in water gave them elasticity which avoided breakages and using the metal forceps to remove them from the hot water had inadvertently invented sterilization, and thus reduced wound infections. There was even an embalming table on display.

We came across this scene, which I had thought was a marriage being acted out, but after Brian listened for a few minutes, he informed me it was a Catholic mass and the couple were actually reaffirming their marriage vows. We stood quietly by, honored to have been a part of this intimate group.

The Union camp in the distance and the Confederate camp behind us as we walked through the soggy grass, leaving the confederate camp to visit the 'other side'. I was impressed at how realistic the layout seemed to be. The camps were a good distance from each other, which seemed to be off putting to the rest of the spectators as we didn't see any other folks walking over the fields to inspect the Union camp. We found out later that it was accessible from the road but we felt we got more out of the experience when walking across the huge divide, treading the ground on which so many hundreds of troops had fought on 155 years before.

We arrived to see that the Union troops were readying for battle, checking that their guns fired properly after the damp night. They cleaned, loaded and fired, then marched and twirled in place. I wasn't sure if this was for our benefit or to loosen up their stiff joints but I enjoyed watching the routines.

After a prayer, a colonel waited a few seconds and then in a deep voice growled, "Send the enemy to Hell, gentlemen." I had to chuckle.We heard quite a few comments like this throughout the afternoon, I wish I had recorded them all.

A few of the officers on horseback were enjoying cigars as they discussed strategy, wafts of delicious tobacco smoke drifting past my nose as I watched them. The officers talked in a small group and then orders were barked out, it was time to advance to the battlefield. And this re-enactment would take place on the exact same ground as the original 155 years ago. It gave me a few goosebumps as I thought about that and marched alongside them. They played their parts well, looking straight ahead and practically ignoring Brian and I. They looked like soldiers mentally preparing for battle.

We followed the Union troops as they marched from camp and towards the top of the battlefield. Nobody told us not to follow all the way but after about 50 yards of marching beside them we felt we should leave and return to the other side of the battleground where the spectators appeared to be collecting. We walked up the hill and met the Confederates, also marching and preparing their lines.

I was thrilled to see a woman and child resting on a wood pile near the battle ground, and supposed this might have actually happened at these battles, relatives watching and praying for their loved ones who were about to fight.

The lines of soldiers faced each other across the wide expanse of grass and rock outcrops and then the cannons fired, making me jump. The explosions shook the ground and my insides. Small orange flames spurted from the muzzles followed by great clouds of smoke that hung low over the field like a fog. Every so often a huge smoke ring belched out from the bores, but I didn't manage to capture one of those with my camera, I was too busy watching the men advancing towards each other. The Confederates were loud, screaming the Rebel Yell, originally learned from the Native Americans and used to intimidate the Union soldiers. It certainly intimidated me and at the start of the battle they appeared to be winning.

Lt. Gen. Early had managed a surprise early morning attack on the Yankees and thought the battle won when the Union soldiers retreated, but while his army were relaxing and relishing their supposed victory, Maj. Gen. Sheridan rallied his troops together and ferociously beat their opponents down and won the battle. We couldn't see a great deal because of the huge cloud of smoke that hung in the valley surrounding Heater House where most of the fighting was taking place but we got the gist of what was happening, thanks to a tannoy system that had been set up for the spectators, explaining each step of the battle.

Heater House, like many other homesteads, fared badly in the battle. Two of Caroline Heater's sons joined the Confederates, while Caroline was for the north, having come from PA. Her husband was a southerner but they had no slaves. They opened up their home to Union troops, who then treated it badly, eating all the livestock, ripping down fences for firewood, and taking the farm machinery. The Heaters applied for compensation but it wasn't until 30 years later when they received $5500, half of what they had applied for. The home is now a ruin but Cedar Creek Battlefield Foundation have set up a fund for donations to restore the building since it is one of the few buildings left in the valley showing seldom seen construction techniques.
The field went quiet when it was apparent that the Union troops had won the battle and a lone bugle played Taps while everyone stood silent. This had been an exceptional afternoon, and Brian was so enthusiastic about the experience that he plans to look into joining a re-enactment group. We left as the rain began to fall, troops from both sides joining together as they slowed marched back towards their camps, the smoke still hanging low over them so they appeared as ghosts slowly disappearing from view.