Exploring the War of the Rebellion ( the American Civil War 1861-1865) at Willowbrook

Each year 19th Century Willowbrook Village has offered camp life and drilling re-enactments of the Union Army. This has been exclusively done by the the Third of Maine Re-enactment Group from Auburn, Maine. Last year, the sesquicentennial of the final year of the war was our most developed program in some years. This development of many of the day's activities was inspired by an arrangement with a large homeschooled group, who had visited the museum on other occasions, and who wished to partake in programming focused on the Civil War. The program developed was combined with the public event. We hope that this type of programming will continue to be developed further and be a characteristic of this annual event through the addition of other re-enacting groups and those who wish to present various aspects of both military and civilian life during the Civil War. We invite groups and individuals interested in contributing to this annual event to contact us ( 207-793-2784, director@willowbrookmuseum.org).

The following is the programming that was presented at our 2015 Civil War Event:a camp of approximately seven tents and canvas awnings, including one that served as the center of a presentation of a civilian Sanitation Commission. These commissions served a number of purposes during wartime. They were largely comprised of civilian women who would both raise funds for medicine and bandages for wounded soldiers as well collect materials for the making of bandages. In some urban centers like New York the Sanitation Commission organized contemporary fine arts exhibitions in the outdoors. Art work was donated by artists or collectors for sale to the public to raise money for bandages and medicine for wounded soldiers. Civilian activity during the war may have included meetings in which women cut bandages from donated cotton sheets.

A presentation pf sanitation commission activity during of the war. Willowbrook presented index cards with biographies of real soldier to a group of visiting children. Many of these children were with a large homeschooled group that had been invited. They came to the event in period costumes of there own making further adding to their learning experience as well as other visitors to the event. The card included  injuries sustained by that soldier during a particular battle. Additionally, children were given a reference resource that characterized the treatment for such an injury during the war. Through the assistance of some of the museum's costumed interpreters, children role played these soldiers and through the use of stage makeup, props, and bandages prepared their wartime injuries.

Among Willowbrook's hands-on offerings are re-creations of the H.M.S. Titanic's and Carpathia's Marconi Radio Rooms. This two rooms located at opposite ends of our Hands-On History Building include faux instrumentation imitative of the real radio rooms that included wireless telegraphs. We offer six working telegraph keys and sounders in the two rooms. Visitors can explore Morse code communication through the twelve working instruments which include late 19th century and early 20th models in addition to keys and sounders built from kits by our staff for the purpose. For our Civil war Event we thought that it would interesting to marry these telegraphs sets to the secret codes used by bot the Union and Confederates in conjunction with the telegraphy of that time. We reproduced multiple examples of coding wheels from the wheels that young visitors cut out and assembled for use with our telegraphs. An interpreter facilitated code sending and receiving among those participating.

One of the newer additions to our living history presentation is a working Victorian Kitchen which includes a working circa 1880s wood burning kitchen stove, cast iron sink with hand pump, and other period appliances. Visitors churned butter and participated in baking as part of the day's program. Hard tack, the staple of many a soldier in the field, was one of the products of the day. Many remained at the end of the day!

Volunteer interpreter Ruth Durfee and staffer Johanne Vaters lead activity in our Victorian Kitchen.

Have you ever changed a wagon wheel? Visitors were able to check this off their bucket list. In our 100 foot long carriage house, our Democratic Carriage was pulled from the collection in addition tpo one of the comprehensive collection of wagon jacks we have. The jack was ratcheted by each participant and using a buggy wrench removed the wheel hub nut. The wheel was removed and spun around once freed from the axle. The exercise was reversed and repeated by a half a dozen visitors.

High Tea on the Durgin House porch. part of our Civil War event has always included scenarios from civilian life. Served by costumed volunteers tea and pastries are served on linen table clothes. There is silverware and china included at each of the ten tables. Pastries are homemade and delicious. Re-enactors this year were invited to partake transporting onlookers back to another time. in 2016, we hope to have a fashion show  of both men's and women's 1860s clothing in our ballroom.

Visit our collection of Civil War artifacts in the Durgin Barn. You can also read local Civil War letters transcribed for easier reading in the Durgin Barn just outside the orientation video room. There are additional Civil War letters to be found on the walls of the Hands-On History Building.

Blacksmithng Too:

Visit our school house where our costumed school marm leads visitors in a lesson classroom etiquette---mind your Ps and Qs because she wields a history stick!