Fort Knox slates mid-July Civil War encampment

Fort Knox State Historic Site in Prospect will host a Civil War encampment July 16-18. Scheduled events include artillery firing, skirmishes between Yankees and Confederates, and demonstrations of Civil War camp and garrison life. (Brian F. Swartz Photo)

Join Maine at War as we travel in time to the 1860s as Fort Knox State Park hosts a Civil War Living History Encampment from Friday, July 16 through Sunday, July 18. 
The three-day event will feature living history demonstrations of Civil War life, including camp life, cannon firing, garrison operations, and guard mount. Participating units are: Co. A, 3rd Maine Infantry Regiment; Co. B, 20th Maine Infantry Regiment; Co. A, 15th Alabama Infantry Regiment;6th Maine Battery; 2nd Vermont Infantry Regiment; 118th New York Infantry Regiment. 
The Northeast Topographical Engineers will display surveying and engineering equipment used by army engineers during the Civil War.
Re-enactors will demonstrate military drill and parade, and the 6th Maine Battery will periodically demonstrate loading and firing a replica 10-pound Parrott rifle that, when fired at Fort Knox, creates a loud echo over the Penobscot Narrows.
The military camps will be open to visitors, who are encouraged to talk with re-enactors and questions about military life during the Civil War.  
During the weekend, authors and historians (including John Weaver and Brian Swartz) will provide informative presentations on the Civil War while using Fort Knox as a unique backdrop. 

A Union re-enactor chops firewood at his unit’s camp set up at Fort Knox in Prospect. The fort will host a Civil War weekend Jul;y 16-18, 2021. (BFS)

Union re-enactors and Confederate re-enactors from the 15th Alabama will demonstrate military maneuvers while skirmishing on the Fort Knox grounds. 
The duo band Long Journey will perform old-time songs and Civil War camp tunes with which people can sing along. 
Events will kick off on Friday afternoon, July 16. For a full list of events, check out the Friends of Fort Knox website at www.fortknoxmaine.com. Also, check out the Friends of Fort Knox page on Facebook.
For additional information, call 207-469-6553 or email info@fortknoxmaine.com.

“Swartz delves into the personal stories of sacrifice and loss…” — Civil War News

If you enjoy reading the adventures of Mainers caught up in the Civil War, be sure to like Maine at War on Facebook and get a copy of the new Maine at War Volume 1: Bladensburg to Sharpsburg, available online at Amazon and all major book retailers, including Books-A-Million and Barnes & Noble. —————————————————————————————————————–

And coming in mid-July: Passing Through the Fire: Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain and the Civil War, being released by Savas Beatie.

This new book chronicles the swift transition of Joshua L. Chamberlain from college professor and family man to regimental and brigade commander and follows him into combat at Shepherdstown, Fredericksburg, Gettysburg, and the Petersburg and Appomattox campaigns.

Drawing on Chamberlain’s extensive memoirs and writings and multiple period sources, historian Brian F. Swartz follows Chamberlain across Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Virginia while examining the determined warrior who let nothing prevent him from helping save the United States.

Be sure to order your copy at Amazon!

—————————————————————————————————————–

Brian Swartz can be reached at visionsofmaine@tds.net. He enjoys hearing from Civil War buffs interested in Maine’s involvement in the war.

Brian Swartz

About Brian Swartz

Welcome to "Maine at War," the blog about the roles played by Maine and her sons and daughters in the Civil War. I am a Civil War buff and a newspaper editor recently retired from the Bangor Daily News. Maine sent hero upon hero — soldiers, nurses, sailors, chaplains, physicians — south to preserve their country in the 1860s. “Maine at War” introduces these heroes and heroines, who, for the most part, upheld the state's honor during that terrible conflict. We tour the battlefields where they fought, and we learn about the Civil War by focusing on Maine’s involvement with it. Be prepared: As I discover to this very day, the facts taught in American classrooms don’t always jibe with Civil War reality. I can be reached at visionsofmaine@tds.net.