On June 5-7 members from Company C of the 1st US Sharpshooter and Berdan's Aid Society consisting of SGT Mike ,CPL "Rich" aka Antina, PVT Erik, Mrs Lisa and Mrs Kate were privileged to attend the festivities at the old State Capitol.  The goal of this event was to help educate the public about the Sharpshooters role during the American Civil War as well as to provide color to the festivities. 

Friday, consisted of  basic set up of camp and getting ready for the coming of the next day when the site opened. 

On Saturday all the redactors paraded threw the streets of Springfield from the old state capitol to the new state capitol.  Under the watchful eyes of the statue of Governor Richard Yates we attended a ceremony in honor of the Illinois Militia and the Illinois National Guard while decked out in the colors of the 66^th IL.  From Here the attending troops marched back to the Old State Capitol in full formation to attend the morning flag raising.  During the parade back one member was fortunate enough to ride in a horse drawn carriage with one of the honored speaker from the ceremony, somehow Lisa always finds in the right place at the right time.

After the flag raising the camps were open to the public and those in uniform switched to the greens of the 1^st USS.  From that time forward the five of us had a constant crowd of curious people interested in who we were and what we did.  Mike, myself, and for part of the day “Rich” answered questions and educated the public about both the 66^th and Company C, while the ladies did the same for the Aid Society.  While the soldiers had the equipment essential to a fighting man in the field the ladies had several items that would be sent to help ease the soldiers life in the field on display.  Some craft items included Mrs Lisa's Inkl loom as well as Mrs Kate's spinning wheel. Both displays fascinated the populace so much that we were still answering question well after the camps closed. 

Many of the children attending the event were put on a mission to find items at each camp in a sort of scavenger hunt.  Some items on the list included Rifles, brogans, and Union/Confederate bills.

My favorite thing on the list was the bonus item of finding General McGregor (one of the unit mascots) . Some of the hints to allow the kids to figure out who he was were “ He is short in height and He likes to barks orders.” These lists once completed could be turned back in to the registration tent for a period toy, like a yo-yo or whistle.   

On Sunday the members of the unit decided to tour the Lincoln Museum.  We had the pleasure of examining many wonderful displays such as one of Mr. Lincolns stove pipe hats and two performance pieces about the life and times of Abe Lincoln.  My personal favorite was entitle “Ghosts of the Library”.  I was enthralled by the story and teared up a bit at the story twist. No I won't give it away, you will have to see it yourself.   Upon returning to camp we had an hour till we could break camp and continued educating those folks who braved the threat of rain to come out to the site.  We enjoyed a bit of rain that lasted about a half hour, then packed up.  The unit left the site at 3pm on Sunday June 7^th, hopeful to return next year. 

Erik Moan 

Photos Courtesy of the Pennocks