Summer of 2015 Events

A list of the events happening for the 2015 reenacting season.

27th Inniskilling  Light and Grenadier Companies, French and Indian War

May 16-17th, Quebec City, Canada

A small French and Indian War event

June 6-8th, The Fort at #4, Charlestown, NH

French and Indian War

First event of the season for many of the reenactors, this should be well attended. The Fort itself is a replica of a 1744 fortified village, lots to see here.

July 11-12 Pirate Festival, New Bedford, MA

The crew of the Dark & Stormy may be sailing the high seas and  looting off the shore of Massachusetts.

July 18-19 Founder's Day, Lighthouse Point, Ogdensburg, NY

French and Indian War

27th Inniskilling and the crew of the Dark & Stormy will be attending.

August 7-8 Crown Point Historical Site, Crown Point, NY.

French and Indian War

27th Inniskilling will be in attendance. The Dark & Stormy crew may also be there.

August 15-16 Rabble in Arms Lake Champlain Maritime Museum, Vergennes, Vermont

Revolutionary War, complete with replica of  Benedict Arnold's boat, The Philadephia.

Sept 12-13 Plattsburgh, NY

War of 1812

Crew of the Dark and stormy will be there, as will the Inniskilling troops

Sept 19-20 The Fort at #4, Charlestown, NH

Revolutionary War

Sept 26-27 Fort William Henry, Lake George, NY

French and Indian War

Crew of the Dark & Stormy 1740-1815

Please be aware if you'd like to know if I will be at an event, please email me. It's likely I will be attending the events above, but sometimes life gets in the way.

2014 Schedule of Events

My summer schedule isn't completely set yet - so this list  may change. Some weekends we have multiple events available, however which event I will be at is undecided. 

2014 Events

May 16/17
Timeline event, Quebec, Canada
Fort William Henry, Garrison the fort

June 7-8
The Fort at Number 4, Charlestown, NH
French and Indian War with the 27th Inniskilling

June 14-15 
Bolton Landing, Lake George, NY
French and Indian War with the 27th Inniskilling

July 5-6
Hubbardton, VT
Revolutionary War with the 29th Light Infantry 

July 19-20
Fort de la Presentation
Ogdensburg, NY
Navy with the boat Dark & Stormy
French and Indian War with the 27th Inniskilling

August 9-10
His Majesty's Fort at Crown Point
Crown Point, NY
French and Indian War with the 27th Inniskilling

September 13-14
War of 1812
Plattsburgh, NY
Navy with the bateau  Dark and Stormy

September 20-21
Roger's Island
Fort Edward, NY
Navy with the bateau  Dark and Stormy

Oct 11-12 
F and I event at Fort William Henry, Lake George, NY
Revolutionary War event at Kingston, NY

August 20-21 2011 in Vergennes

Coming up next- the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum's Colonial Trades and Crafts Weekend. I'll be doing my Sailor impression this weekend there. The Dark & Stormy needs a bit of repair as she hit a rock coming in at Ogdensburg, so our boat willl not be in Vergennes. However there will be other boats, as well as many different 18th century talents being shown, so there's plenty to see.

The remainder of the reenacting season

July 30-Aug 1 Galway Lake, NY
The crew of the Dark & Stormy along with other naval units will be setting up on a private beach and sailing on the lake.

Aug 14-15 Crown Point, NY
27th Inniskilling.
http://nysparks.state.ny.us/historic-sites/34/details.aspx

Aug 21-22 Rabble in Arms at the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum, Vergennes, VT.
The crew of the Dark & Stormy
http://www.lcmm.org/museum_info/visit.htm

Sept 11- 12 Battle of Plattsburgh (War of 1812)
Plattsburgh, NY
The crew of the Dark & Stormy.
http://www.battleofplattsburgh.org/blog/?page_id=5

Sept 25 - 26 Rogers Island
Ft Edward NY
27th Inniskilling
http://www.rogersisland.org/

250th Anniversary Event July 16-18 2010

Fort de la Presentation in Ogdensburg, NY

July 16, 17 & 18

Innskilling 27^th Regiment of Foot, Grenadier & Light Companies.

This three day weekend will be the last 250^th anniversary event for the French & Indian War in the state of NY. Known as “Founder’s Day:” locally it is a featured event in the I Love NY campaign http://www.iloveny.com/What-To-Do/Events/Founders-Day-Weekend/16504.aspx and will have lots there to see.

You can wander through the camps: French, British; Native; and Naval. See an 18^th century Boat race. Watch land battles or war on the water every day. Presentations on various bits of 18^th century history will be held at the neighboring Freight House restaurant. A Ball will be happening on Friday, Fireworks on Saturday and various other activities on the grounds during each day.

Details can be found on the schedule at http://www.fort1749.org/storage/pdfs/2010%20sched-1.pdf

Pictures from previous years can be found at http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=ogdensburg&w=84498068%40N00

Come see us, this one will be the biggest event they have ever had at this location.

Hubbardton Battlefield Event this weekend

July 10 - 11 Hubbardton, VT
23rd Royal Welch Fusiliers Light Company

We'll be encamped this weekend at Hubbardton, VT on the only battlefield entirely in vermont. Its a State run historic site with a small visitors center featuring an excellent diorama that explains the whole battle action for you. http://www.historicvermont.org/hubbardton/

This a small reenactment which makes it nice for visitors. you can get up close to everything and have an excellent opportunity to interact with participants. We usually have British regulars, Provincials, Americans and German troops there. http://www.hubbardton.net/gpage1.html

Pictures from last years event can be found at http://www.flickr.com/photos/bartnnick/

A schedule of events can be found here http://www.hubbardton.net/gpage3.html and be aware admission is $5 per person, children are free. Wear good shoes as the ground is uneven, no reconstruction has been done here and most of it is just as it was left 233 years ago. Theres no shade so sunscreen is a must too. I'll be with the 23rd, but since I'm not cooking, I'lll most likey be wandering through the british camp. Come visit us!

The Burning of Kingston, NY

October 17 & 18 - Revolutionary War - Crew of the HMS Dark & Stormy - The Burning of Kingston, at Kingston, NY.

The Royal Welch Fusiliers will be at this event in force, however the HMS Dark & Stormy is involved in the naval battle. So although I may wander from the one camp to the other, look for me with the boats as I'm doing my naval impression here.

Weekend details: (feel free to share with anyone you think might be interested) There is a Revolutionary War event happening this weekend at Kingston (rain or shine) and I'll be there playing a sailor on HMS Dark & Stormy. If you've ever wanted to see 'one of those things i do' this is about as close to Pawling as I get. We'll be camping at Kingston Point Park.

Saturday, 10-12 AM the boats will bombard the shore and then there will be British troops landing & fighting the Americans Around 1:30, someplace uptown, there will be a small squirmish and the brits will round up some refugees & capture them. There is also going to be some sort of Boat action at the same time; i should be on the boat. that evening there will be a ball at City Hall, but i do not expect I'll be there. I have a formal dinner to go to, and then I will be at the Pillaged Tavern in camp, or can be found singing in the Naval Camp. Its one of those sailor things we do.

Sunday Boats lauch at 10, bombardment of the shore starts at 11, troops will land and then there is a land battle then a boat battle at 1ish. Battles should end before 2. Once Battles end and folks get back to camp, everything starts coming down in a hurry. A lot of folks like myself have traveled many hours to get there, and have to work the next day, so getting home becomes pretty important. I figure what with stopping to eat, I'll get home after 10 if I'm lucky, probably closer to midnight.

Typically you can observe the camps and wander through during the day. See the different folks and ask them about what they are doing. Also there will be Sutlers there (Merchants) selling different things you might use or keep as souveiners. (shoppings good no matter what the century.) If you wander through the camps, check the boat camp after the battle, see if the crew of the dark & stormy are around; thats who I'm with. I go by "Beck" in my sailor impression in case you're asking for me by name. Hope to see you there.

The final weeks of the Reenacting Season

- Sept 12-13 - War of 1812 - The crew of the HMS Dark & Stormy - Plattsburgh, NY.
This event has both land and naval troops in the battles. Also Saturday there is a period boat race. Last year the HMS Dark & Stormy came in 5th, this year we actually know what we're doing so the hope is we'll do much better. http://www.battleofplattsburgh.org/index.html

- Sept 19 & 20 - Revolutionary War - 23rd Royal Welch Fusilers - Gelston Castle in Warren, NY.
This is a new site for the company, but we are looking forward to the event, which is sponserod by both the British Brigade& the Continental Line organizations.

- Sept 26-27 - French & Indian War - 27th Inniskilling Regiment - Rogers Island, Fort Edward, NY.
A smaller location than most, this event gives guests a chance to visit with the troops and you'll be just yards away from the battle action. Several boat crews will be on the river here, depending on the plan you may see them in action during the battle. This event some of us will portray the 27th troops, some of us will be crewing on the HMS Dark & Stormy. http://www.rogersisland.org/Rogers%20Island.html-

October 17 & 18 - Revolutionary War - Crew of the HMS Dark & Stormy - The Burning of Kingston, at Kingston, NY.
The Royal Welch Fusiliers will be at this event in force, however the HMS Dark & Stormy is involved in the naval battle. So although I may wander from the one camp to the other, look for me with the boats as I'm doing my naval impression here.

August 8 & 9 at Crown Point, NY

August 8 & 9 - French and Indian War - 27th Inniskilling - Crown Point, NY.


This weekend is the annual French & Indian War encampment at Crown Point, NY. At this site you get to see the ruins of not just one but two forts. The French Fort Frederick is the older of the two - and the French blew it up in 1759 when the British approached it, as they knew they couldn’t hold it and didn’t want it used against them. Once the Brisitish arrived, they decided to build their own fort…not on the ruins of the first, but in a slightly different spot. The British fort was never formally named and is known as "His majesty’s fort at Crown Point". This much larger fort has the walls of two of the barracks buildings still standing, and a small narrow path at the top of the earthen walls, so you could indeed walk around on the tope edge of the fort in most places.

The French forces are typically encamped over by Fort Frederick, and the British are usually parked out near the water’s edge. Originally this was a "maybe attending" event for our group; however it seems we have several folks interested in coming out to play, so there should be more than just one or two Grenadiers to be seen. Bring comfy shoes, a cooler, and plenty of sunscreen to spend the day exploring the site and checking out the encampments. Originally there was no battle here but tactical demonstrations will be held mid-day for folks to see how it might have happened, as well as some naval interaction with period boats.

July 11 & 12, Hubbardton VT

July 11-12 - Revolutionary War - 23rd Royal Welch Fusilers - Battle of Hubbardton, in Hubbardton, VT.

This weekend we have a small and fun event happening right here in VT. The Battle of Hubbardton is one the colonists lost; however their delaying actions at Hubbardton gave the army the time needed to set up to defend the supply post at Bennington. If the British had captured Bennington, Saratoga would have been a much different event. Without Saratoga, the colonists may not have had France's support and therefore won the war. So although a losing battle, Hubbardton is important to our history.

This is one of the least disturbed revolutionary war battlegrounds anywhere, and the only one in Vt. There is a small vistors centor and a walking tour you can take on the grounds. There is a small fee to view the encampment and battles will occur mid-day Saturday, as well as 8 AM (yes 8AM!!) and 12:30 on Sunday. The size of the event really lends itself to seeing the camps and the people up close, a great place to talk to folks about what they do.

July 3, 4 & 5 - Fort Niagara, NY

French & Indian War - Fort Niagara, NY - We'll be headed out to Western NY this weekend. I have been to this site before; Its got lots to see besides the Reenactors. Visit the 'French Castle' or climb up in the blockhouse - lots of beautiful scenery and history to check out.This is the 250th anniversary celebration at the fort, more information can be found at
http://tiny.cc/8lwhP . We're right on the lake, and a side trip to Niagara Falls is easy enough to do while you're here. We expect the 27th Inniskilling will have a large turnout at this event as its one of our main events plus its a three day event which we don't do often.

Quadricentennial Family History and Heritage Day

This weekend's event - June 7 - French & Indian War - 27th Inniskilling Regiment - Crew of the HMS Dark & Stormy - Saratoga Springs, NY.

Quadricentennial Family History and Heritage Day in Congress Park - A free, fun event will have something for everyone including children's games, historical lectures, and period demonstrations. Reenactors from the French and Indian War(this is us!), Native Americans, the War of 1812 and the Civil War will bring history to life. There will be games, face painting, crafters, demonstrations of period domestic crafts and more. Local museums and non-profit organizations will be present to talk about their missions and how they have been a part of Saratoga history.

http://www.saratogahistory.org/programs.cfm

~UPDATE~

We had a fine group of us show for the Family fun day. The new location definitely was bigger and so was the crowd. Many folks took an interest in the HMS Dark & Stormy. Johanna often had a crowd around her as she spun. Eddie was our sole 27th soldier, he was showing folks the types of things a soldier might have had with him on the campaign. Folks seemed to enjoy talking with all of us, and we had fun getting out and chatting with folks.

Culloden in Fort Plain, NY

Our hastily planned trip to Culloden turned out well. There weren't all that many Government troops so our late registration wasn't a problem. The boys went and got a vanfull of wood... and seemed to pick up a few snakes in the process. while it seemed to provide amusement of sorts during the weekend, they did find all the snakes and had them removed by the time it was time to pack up and move out.

The event started Friday night with the landing of the Scottish Prince so we changed centuries rather quickly - usually friday night is just hanging out while Saturday & Sunday are the actual dress up days. This event was a tad different also in that many of the players preferred to use a first person approach to their day, unlike the usual third person events I was accustomed to.

Saturday was a fine day - the boys got some action in, we had some lovely meals, visited with our friends and did some shopping up on Sutler row.... this event was so small it consisted of just two merchants. The ladies were invited to Tea after the battle so I did indeed get a chance to wear my new petticoat and reworked gown. Tea was unlike anything I'd seen before at an event - a musical quartet playing, young servants to share small pastries, silk and brocade gowns, along with a visit from the prince himself.

We had a fine Chicken stew for dinner, and then just about time to go wandering about socializing it began to rain. Most of us choose to stay in camp under our new fly and catch up with each other instead of out visiting in the wet.

Sunday dawned cold and blustery. The scottish camp had had several tents downed by the weather but we were fortunate, a few corners here & there pulled awry but nothing came down about us in our sleep. The traditional Sunday big hot breakfast was well received by all, the ladies gadding about in their cloaks and the lads in their regimentals trying to stay warm in the wind.

We had another fine battle in the afternoon and then a few hours later it was all over. Our temporary home was packed into the cars, and now we have other events to look forward to. Culloden 2009 is over. On to the next!

Countdown to Culloden

Friday we leave for our first event of the season. This is not our typical event; we’ve only done 1745 a time or two before. In this time, it’s the Scottish Clans and the British government at odds with one another. Our fellas play the government troops, and we are surrounded by Kilt wearing men on all sides. There will be bagpipes and most likely some Scottish games, probably a musical gathering Saturday night and yes, a battle on both Saturday and Sunday. More details can be found at http://www.fortplainmuseum.com/eventdetails/2009culloden.html if you’re inclined to come see the spectacle. Fort Plain is a new location for us but I’m told its easy to find, right off I90. I’ll be camping with the British Grenadiers, 27th Inniskilling with the tall pointy caps, which should make us easy to find on the campground. Look me up if you come to visit.

Lexington and Concord 2009

The first confrontation of the Revolutionary War happened on a cold April morning - known now as the battle of Lexington & Concord. This event is recreated every year - and this year some friends of mine in the 23rd Royal Welch and the 29th Regiment of Foot participated. The conflict at Concord bridge was filmed and has been posted on youtube; check out http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=91kOYlkLyK4&feature=related if you'd like to see the redcoats in action.