Encampment Weekend

The Westfield Farmers’ and Artisans’ market shared the village common this weekend with soldiers from the past. Reenactors from the Union’s 9^th Cavalry Regiment held their annual encampment at Moore Park on June 7^th – 9^th. While the reenactors whet through their drills on the common, the Amish farm horses kept a nervous watch on the proceedings from their hitching post at the farm market: perhaps they had cause to fear being drafted into the Cavalry!
The troops managed to conduct their maneuvers on foot thereby sparing the local work horses the indignity of launching a cavalry charge. I’m sure the Amish were grateful that the entire bivouac passed without armed conflict – real or imagined!

The weekly market; which, for the first time this summer featured a number of fresh produce vendors, was also graced by the presence of another ghost from the past: Abe Lincoln in the flesh took stock of our local produce and artistic wares. Abe was in town to help the Chautauqua Historical Society celebrate reenactment weekend and to enliven the Historical Society’s summer gala at the McClung Museum with his distinguished company. The Historical Society summer gala is usually our prime opportunity to tour the museum and marvel at the extensive collection of 19^th century artifacts from amassed over the years from local farmsteads and homes. But this year, the late spring evening was so inviting that Barbara and I, along with many of the other guests, spilled outside to take in the refreshing evening breeze and visit with the troops encamped around the Museum. Even President Lincoln abandon the political banter and parlor talk within the walls of the old mansion in favor of a friendly visit with soldiers gathered around their camp fires.

Tomorrow it’s back to the frantic pace of the 21^st century but for a couple days, we took a nostalgic look at our past and slowed down just a bit to commemorate the epic struggle to preserve the republic.