By John A. Miller

Interpreting a Civil War soldier can be very rewarding and also very challenging. Anyone can put on a Confederate or Union uniform, walk the streets of Gettysburg and talk to people about their views of what went wrong with the battle or what went wrong during the course of the four years of the American Civil War. However, the problem with this is that the person's own opinions and interests are heavily based upon what they think is fact and not what is actual fact. I have dubbed these types of people as “sidewalk know it alls” and if they are wearing a generals uniform, they are nothing more than “sidewalk generals”.

A true living historian will base his impression on historical fact. When educating the public through an interpretive program, several things are crucial. First, know your presentation and organize yourself. Create your main theme and then develop your sub themes. Know what it is you are portraying and know the facts. It is easy for someone to buy a uniform and all of the accoutrements in order to go out and burn powder. But what happens if the public engages you? Are you prepared? How would you answer questions about your impression? I have witnessed the downfall of reenactors not knowing their uniform and gear and then making up answers as they go. Never tell the public a lie. It is always best to say I don’t know and then find someone who can answer that question. So prepare yourself.

The part that is the most challenging to many is researching. You need to crack open the books that explain why each accouterment or garment was issued and what was the proper use for that item. This is where a lot of reenactorisms come into play. To build a good impression, you need to research all of the facts from what it is you are portraying, have a good attitude about what it is you are portraying, including a plan of how you are going to interpret that to the public. There are different time periods, as well as theaters of war where different uniforms as well as accouterments were issued. This is more true to the average Confederate soldier than his counterpart in the Union Army.

Study up on uniforms and equipment. This will help you to interpret the tools of the soldier. If you are new to the hobby, especially if you are portraying a Confederate soldier, please read my article the article "Re-enacting a Confederate Soldier, A Guideline for the New Recruit.” Explain why you chose to wear the uniform you are wearing. Many people prefer one to the other. Research the reason why you wear the uniform that you do, even if you wear both. After you have researched your impression, it is necessary to research the mind set of what it is you are portraying. For someone portraying a Confederate soldier, the issues of slavery and states rights come to mind. But were these the only issues facing a soldier fighting for the South? Further research shows that there is so much more than those two topics. What about what it is you are portraying and why? Different states had different cultures and beliefs. Immigration was in full swing here in America. The German and Irish immigrants had totally different cultures and views. Religious views were also very prominent during the Civil War, more so than today.

Study up on the political climax of the time period leading up to the American Civil War. Look at how the media in America today reports on current events. The media today for better or worse seems to be very biased. Could this have played a role in America before the Civil War? If you study up on the political aspects of the Civil War, you can develop a great impression based upon historical fact using current events as an example.

Are you portraying a volunteer, a conscript forced to join the army or were you drafted as a substitute for someone else? This aspect is missing from the world of Civil War re-enacting and is not always present during living histories. Something else that is not portrayed in the hobby with accuracy is desertion and how soldiers deserted the army because they knew their families were suffering at home.

Do you live in a big city, or a small town? Do you live in the mountains or in the country? What is your occupation? Use that as part of your impression as well. Use your daily life as another building block to your impression and relate that information to the public. Are you married? Do you have children? Connect these topics in your presentation. What are your hobbies? This is just as important as the authentically made uniform and equipment you are wearing. A great example for me is where I work at, the South Mountain State Battlefield.

A recreational resource at South Mountain State Battlefield is the Appalachian Trail. Many people love to connect to nature and hike the A.T. Compare your marching duties to that of a hiker. Explain how fatigued a soldier would get from a hard march from South Mountain to Frederick to that of a hiker in comparison. Compare the load a soldier carried to that of a hiker. Food is another resource. These topics, people can relate to if they are into that type of recreation.

You don't need to immerse yourself to the point that you stop connecting with people when educating the public. In other words don't allow a first-person impression to interfere with relating to modern-day subjects. Everyone knows you’re not from the actual Civil War. So don’t sell it to them. There is a time for first-person impressions and there is also a time when it is not appropriate. It depends on the type of program that you are doing.

Connecting today to the time period of the Civil War and interpreting that to the public is very simple. For example, my wife made several of my Confederate uniform jackets. I can connect that subject to the Commutation System knowing that a loved one from home made that jacket stitch by stitch. Knowing the time and effort she put into making that garment to see that I am clothed in the beginning stages of the Civil War. In return I can interpret not only the Commutation System, explaining what that was, but also the daily life of a civilian. From there I can link that to my personal feelings that I am wearing something that she made for me with love rather than a garment that you were issued later through the Depot System.

Interact with the public. You can spend several minutes interpreting many of the above mentioned topics because people can relate to that with their daily lives and then they can compare that to someone who fought in the American Civil War. Once you connect to people, then you can start interpreting the events, the mind set and the uniforms and equipment that shaped the Civil War soldier and how he is perceived today. Grab their attention and give them something that they can relate to personally. In the end, you have all of the tools you need to do a one hour program. You have an authentically made uniform, the accouterments and equipment, you have a good attitude of what it is you’re presenting and most importantly you have an understanding of the mindset of the average Civil War soldier.