I spent the weekend at Military Through The Ages event at Jamestowne Settlement in VA. This was a timeline event that allowed the public to look at military units from all of history, there were Vikings, Renaissance warriors, Teutonic knights, soldiers from the thirty years wars, and many other groups and time periods. These folks do museum quality impressions, to include camp set up, clothing, weapons, and camp life. This was the first time that we had ever attended this event and I didn't think we had much of a chance to win any of the contest, since we were the new kids on the block. However, I didn't take into account our own Ms. Nancy who organized and directed the unit for the various judging. We won second place in the camp display contest. I have no doubt that we would have won the camp cooking contest also, if we would have had written documentation on the food that was prepared. (Which we didn't know was required)
James, our new cook, with the assistance of Miss Nancy had prepared two meals, one for the officers consisting of Lobscouse and Spotted dog as well as a simple Ration stew for the enlisted men. We hoped that would show the distinction between the two classes We also had a few squirrels on the spit for the adventurous. The judges LOVED the food and said it was historically accurate, but due to the lack of documentation, we lost points. James and Miss Nancy allowed we would get them next year.
I think that this was one of the better events I have ever attended. It gave us a chance to see what other folks were doing in other time periods as well as to network a bit. I met other medical types from the Revolution, Civil War, WWI & II and a medieval herbalist who wanted to share resources with us. It's a good chance to see what others are doing and pick up ideas on how to improve your presentation. I am sure that some folks got some ideas from us too. Speaking of ideas, I saw some Union Sailors who had a set up that looked pretty good, I didn't have time to talk to them, but will the next time.
If you get a chance, a time line event is well worth your time if you want to go.
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9 minutes ago
2 comments:
Sounds like you did have a good time. The Union sailors you saw were our friends, the Tidewater Maritime Living History Association (Tmlha). I have known them for many years now and actually credit them for helping me get started. When the old heads are around, they are top-notch! As for the cooking competition, you will find it hard to beat their cook, Eric. He won the blue ribbon this year!
I noticed they had the look about them, as if they knew what they were about. Brought their own stove out into the field, which impressed me. If I had felt up to it I would have visited with them a bit. Next time I will.
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