Another Flag… and Marching through March
- Jason A. Sumner
- 2 days ago
- 8 min read
Another Flag…
Yes, of course, thanks to our friend Lieutenant Jennings.
In the transference of responsibility for the company, I was tasked to transfer the company colors to Lieutenant Jennings. Given that they are to rest with the company’s commanding officer. The thought of having my own colors that would stay with me as I serve the battalion crossed my mind shortly afterwards.
I therefore turned to Levi with a request to reproduce a standard Philadelphia Depot Issue Flag for me, one which would not feature a regimental designation and that could be applied to a number of different needs in my various undertakings across the living history hobby.
I am quite proud of the work he has placed into the flag and will be very proud to display it wherever I go in the field and elsewhere. I am even more grateful to have a great friend and pal in Levi, who puts his heart into our hobby and as he shares the many talents he has in the creation of beautiful flags for our cause, feeding our company for many of the past years, and for sharing sage wisdom with our company members. He has become the glue that bonds the company together and there is no other way to express how valuable he has been to our efforts in living history and to the membership of our living history family.
About the federal colors I chose for this particular project, the colors of the 6th Regiment, New Hampshire Volunteers, which was one of many issued for service from the Philadelphia Depot. The original colors were produced utilizing either silk or essence of silk, though my reproduction is made of cotton, as such will be much more durable for use in the field. Another consideration is both the cost and working with a material that we have little experience with.
Recap of The Battle of Olustee - Olustee, FL - February 2026
Back in February, myself and seven members of the 31st Alabama, made the trip to Olustee, Florida for the annual reenactment at Olustee. I can report to you that it was a great time, and it all began with a stop in Columbus, Georgia at the National Infantry Museum.
We decided to visit to the National Infantry Museum as it was a place many of us had not visited before, including myself, and featured a number of excellent exhibits. I was very happy about this stop on our journey south and thought it well worth our time!
Pictures from the National Infantry Museum in no particular order
Arrival at Olustee
We arrived at Olustee with a decent amount of daylight remaining, which was a wonderful happenstance. This afforded us a great deal of time to register with the park service and then find those of which we were falling in with for the weekend. Once they had been located, we set about establishing our camp for the weekend, which consisted of a fly tent, a shebang, and a dog tent.
Once settled in, we took time to rest and enjoy each other's company. This event was very well attended, and we found ourselves in a sea of canvas within the Confederate camp. Having gone Federal the year before, we had decided to investigate the Confederate side.
The battle was not too much different overall then it had been the year prior, except that we were routed and driven from the field, having remembered us as doing the said "routing" the year before. I enjoyed the battle for the most part, though I did not particularly ascribe to the manner in which some orders were executed or how poorly the drill was conducted among other units. Not to be critical or insulting to anyone; however, I felt that some company's in attendance were not driven by the history or the accuracy but were otherwise engaged in their own interpretation of what we do as a whole. This made the experience difficult to navigate given my expectations for this event.
I found myself a casualty about halfway into the fight and took advantage of a rare opportunity to commit to the farb and snuck from my haversack my cell phone from which I recorded a small of amount of footage; nothing spectacular, but something to give an impression of the event overall.
There was a victory in our efforts at Olustee, if not on the field, then it was with the fine assortment of items we procured from the wonderful selection of sutlers present at the event. I cannot comment publicly about my financial decision making and irresponsibility; though I can adequately report that I remain a generous benefactor to a number of the sutlers who patronage our events. I could additionally argue that I am quite well supplied by this point in my career as a living historian.
I've not much more to offer on this year's event at Olustee, other than we met some really nice folks and had a great time enjoying each other's company. We departed on Sunday morning given the expectation of rain and knowing that we had a long drive back to northern Alabama ahead of us, which would be better accomplished by being dry and comfortable.
Artillery Training - A real blast at Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park
I attended Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park’s Artillery Training “School of the Piece” at the conclusion of February and beginning of March. The training consisted of two days of drill on the piece in the different positions of the crew and learning the many particular details regarding operation of the piece. For the training, we used the park’s three-inch ordinance. The crew needed to operate the piece consists of seven positions, each role having a very specific function and purpose. Normally, this would be the portion of the article in which I would elaborate in great detail about the role of each position; however, I find that such would be best reserved for a future article and time. I personally found the number three and number two positions to be my favorites to work; however, I appreciated greatly the veteran crew at Kennesaw, as every question I had was quickly answered by members who have many years of experience using the piece and who were willing to show myself and others how to properly and safely carry out each positions task. There is a great deal of emphasis that was placed on safety, especially when in the number one and number two positions given proximity to the front of the piece and given the nature of their particular responsibility.
Sunday of that weekend included a practical examination in which we rotated through each position on the piece and were monitored and examined for our carriage, attention to detail, footwork, and execution of each role in the operation of the piece. This practical exercise was followed by a written test, thirteen pages in length mind you, and quite critical of safety, nomenclature, and roles on the piece. To say the training was quite thorough is an understatement. I personally feel that they have left no stone unturned in stressing the correct way to safely and properly operate the piece and I am proud to have had the opportunity to do this training with the crew and staff at Kennesaw Mountain National Park. I am very much looking forward to serving on the Park’s Artillery Crew this year!
Battalion Drill at Chickamauga
The Battalion held its annual drill at the Gordon Lee Mansion in Chickamauga, Georgia on Saturday, March 14th. The event went quite well with a number of companies participating in the drill. The drill began promptly at 0600 with the formation of the battalion into three companies. Organization of the men was conducted prospectively by the company officers and the Sergeant Major, who is tasked with forming the Battalion. Once formed, the companies reviewed school of the soldier, from shoulder arms to right shoulder shift arms, to support arms, to order arms, fix bayonets, unfix bayonets, to order arms, and rest in place. Following the “school of the soldier” each company counted by two and prepared for movement. The purpose of this is to establish each “file” when men are moved from line of battle to columns of four. Completion of this task leads to the movement of the battalion, with the men then faced either left or right, requiring the two’s to step up and between those in front of them when faced right and the one’s to do the same when faced left unless instructed otherwise. This is not all, companies are often arranged and ordered by the height of each man, when counting two, this is designed to place the taller man to the rear rank. When in "Files" the taller man can adequately fire over the man to the front of him.
The battalion was made to practice moving from "line of battle" to "columns of four", facing each direction (Left, and Right), until a general satisfaction was achieved among the senior battalion staff officers. From this point, the battalion was moved to the front lawn of the Gordon Lee Mansion. Once moved to the front of the mansion, the battalion was given instruction on the composition of structure for the battalion, from the enlisted man to the full complement of the battalion. Colonel Graham explained the role of each member in building up to battalion, from the individual, to the “file (2),” to the “comrade of arms (4),” to the “squad,” to “platoon,” to the “company,” and then the battalion wing and finally the entire battalion. After explanation and examples were given, the battalion divided into three separate companies and commenced into Skirmish Order Drill, which consisted of breaking the men into comrades of arms, and then into skirmish order, from which a deployment of skirmishers was made in good order.
The battalion reformed afterwards and proceeded to battalion level drill, which consisted of moving the battalion from one front to another, either forward, or to the rear and so on as was called for by the commanding officer. Each movement was explained, executed, and then practiced ensuring that the men understood the nature of the movement and the purpose of it as well. This practice will never place us on the level of the men who drilled daily within the conflict. They were vastly superior in their ability to execute flawlessly, very complicated movements, while maintaining excellent order. Our efforts, though quite inferior serve to pass as representative examples for modern eyes. Our dedication to the practice of such undertakings, however, should be considered noteworthy and most admirable given our intentions and most noble purpose of honoring this particular era within our nation's history.
Dissertation Milestone
I am so very proud to be working on a dissertation focused on the emergence of cultural leadership within civil war reenacting. My work has, as of the 17th of March, entered into the research portion of the dissertation having received approval from the Internal Review Board of my University. This is a significant milestone as it represents the more enjoyable portion of the work and the nearing of its completion. My sincere hope will be to finish this work by June-July of this year.
I cannot stress enough the pride that I have felt in doing this very much original research and the blessing from all that I have learned throughout the process. I will be working with not only fellow reenactors, but also National Park Service Personnel to complete this research. Once completed, this particular work will present an exploration of civil war reenacting from a more organic view, within, and at its core, as it seeks to answer three specific questions regarding how cultural leadership is exhibited, connected to, and made meaning of, throughout the work reenactors do when in the field and working to educate the public.
Here's to a wonderful 2026 season, as April will see the Hardee Guard Battalion's return to the field.
Comments