Re-enactors will be on site through Sunday

  

By Gerald Ensley •Tallahassee Democrat Senior Writer • March 5, 2009

Prepare for smoke and thunder! The 32nd annual re-enactment of the Battle of Natural Bridge is staged Sunday at the state park south of Woodville.

The Battle of Natural Bridge took place March 6, 1865, just a month before the end of the Civil War. Confederate forces defeated the Union Army to ensure the popular trivia question: What is the only Southern capital east of the Mississippi River that was not captured by the Union during the Civil War? (Answer: Tallahassee.)

Re-enactors camp out at the park all weekend. They lead tours for schoolchildren on Friday, do military and historic demonstrations on Saturday, and then re-enact the battle at 2:30 p.m. Sunday.

Attendance has been growing, with an estimated 4,500 spectators last year. There is no admission charge, although $3 donations are encouraged to defray costs.

"My experience is people are interested in history and culture," said Barry Burch, manager of the seven state parks in the Tallahassee area. "It’s fun watching the cannons go off and the re-enactors doing their thing."

On Feb. 26, the state completed purchase of 55 acres adjoining the current seven-acre park. That property, owned for decades by the Rakestraw family, contains most of the actual 1865 battlefield. It also was the site of prehistoric Indian settlements and includes a variety of important hydrological features.

Plans call for converting the Rakestraw home into a visitors center. The annual re-enactment will be expanded, allowing more groups and educational tours. Displays will be erected around the park explaining its archaeological significance and environmental importance.

"I’ve managed parks for 30 years and I think this one is going to be a gem," Burch said. "This park is going to bring good economic benefits to Woodville and Tallahassee."

The event draws 200 to 250 re-enactors from all over the nation. Organizers have tried for years to attract black re-enactors — the 600 to 700 Union troops at Natural Bridge were almost entirely black soldiers from the 2nd and 99th U.S. Colored Infantry. Several of the black soldiers in the battle were awarded the Medal of Honor.

"(Black re-enactors) are mostly in the northern states; Florida has had trouble getting a group going," said Chris Ellrich, commander of the Leon Rifles re-enactors. "Maybe it’s the economy, but we’d love to have them."

Part of the battle’s lore is that the Confederates won thanks to reinforcements of old men from Tallahassee and teen-aged cadets from West Florida Seminary, the forerunner of the today’s Florida State University.

In actuality, the battle featured more than 500 members of the regular Confederate Army, numerous reserve and militia units from around the Big Bend as well as Tallahassee, and 20 to 25 cadets from the West Florida Seminary. The Confederate forces may have swelled to as many as 1,000 troops thanks to the addition of militia and reserve units.

The Confederates won the battle with superior numbers, twice as many cannons as the Union forces (six to three) and the advantage of an entrenched defensive position.

The cadets likely stayed behind the lines as reserves, said Bruce Graetz, a senior curator at the Museum of Florida History. They suffered no injuries, though one cadet was killed when he fell off the moving train that carried the cadets from Tallahassee to Woodville.

"The legend that the battle was fought just by old men and young boys is a little overblown," Graetz said. "But I don’t want to dismiss the role of the reserves, militia and cadets. The fact that so many turned out for a battle that late in the war is notable."

Article published in the Tallahassee Democrat on March 5, 2009