“A Civil War Reenactor…but why?”

This is perhaps the question I get asked the most when I am “outed” as a Civil War Reenactor—or Living Historian in our community parlance. I have thought about this question quite a bit since I was sucked into a hobby which, to play upon Shelby Foote’s summation of the Civil War, now occupies the crossroads of my being. And believe me, the reasons are as complex as the reasons we went to war 149 years ago. However, let me attempt to give you three reasons why I (and a few of my comrades I think) am a reenactor: a love of military history, escapism, and an obsession with the drama that is the American Civil War.

Like many of my Sykes comrades I’m sure, I have always loved military history. Military history books, toy soldiers, war movies, and pop guns occupied an important part of my childhood universe. Indeed, I know I and a number of my fellow Regulars are probably military veterans because of our love of the military and/or what it means to us individually. Captain Hanson Served in Vietnam. Eric served in the Navy. Don fought in the First Gulf War. I served two tours in Iraq. Regardless of our reasons or whether we served in the military or not, I know we all share a love of military history which has brought us together.


Although I cannot speak for my pards on this subject, portraying a Union Soldier of the Civil War offers me an outlet from the stresses of modern life. When I don my uniform, I ritualistically shed all my ties to the modern world. I take off my wristwatch. I turn off my cell phone. I take off my modern clothes. I cast off the new to don the old. When I don my uniform, I am not the same man who works eight hours a day, forty hours a week in a fabric covered box—I am Private Walling, Company C., 2nd U.S. Infantry Regiment, Sykes Regulars. When I don my uniform, I only have to do what I am told. I don’t need to know what time it is. I don’t need to meet deadlines. I don’t need to answer the phone or use a computer. All I have to worry about are the concerns of any private in the Union Army: following orders, finding shelter, and caring for myself and my equipment.

In summing up America’s fascination with the Civil War Shelby Foote said: “It was the crossroads of our being, and it was a hell of a crossroads.” Indeed, just as the Civil War defined who we are and who we would become, so too does it engage us like no other part of the American experience. To say it engaged me would be an understatement. To put it honestly, the Civil War sucked me in like a swirling vortex. It’s an American tragedy with more vibrant characters, scintillating stories, and drama than Hollywood could ever hope to encompass in a single film. We’ve been making movies about it since the invention of film and writing about it since before the guns fell silent. Yet despite our best efforts we cannot agree why we fought it or why the North won it and the South lost it. Yet like the itsy-bitsy spider we keep trying. We keep searching for answers. We keep researching the men, the stories, and the reasons why it started and how it played out the way it did. I am sure my comrades would agree with me on this point.


Love of military history, escapism, and an obsession with our greatest drama. Those are the big three I list when answering the question of why I decided to become a Civil War Reenactor. I know there are other reasons. I know some people desire an immersive historical experience, a connection to the past, or live action role-playing—I could go on and on. But whatever the reason, I know all the men of Sykes are ultimately united in a camaraderie gained from our humble quest to honor the Regulars of the Old Army.