This noontime I will be in Middleboro at the Eddy Homestead, portraying Joshua Eddy, a Revolutionary War veteran, for the Eddy Family Association's annual gathering. My wife, daughter, and a couple of other members of our colonial militia will be there with me.
My wife borrowed a gigantic Eddy Family genealogy book from a Eddy family member in Fairhaven. When I have a chance, I'll see what I can find out about the Eddys in Swansea.
Now I'm off to clean the musket.
Eddy Family Homestead, Middleboro
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FairhavenGuy
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- Real Name: Christopher J. Richard
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FairhavenGuy
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Hi Kat!
Glad to hear from you again. We've all spent the last week thinking about you and Stef.
Joshua Eddy, the head of the Middleboro clan, was a local militia leader and he also fought in the Continental Army under Washington. I portrayed Joshua. My wife portrayed Lydia Eddy and our daughter was "little Lydia." (For a four-year-old she did remarkable well at responding to the "wrong" name. . .) Another militia member was along, too. He and I fired the muskets at the end of our presentation.
The other night, I plowed through this huge Eddy book with thousands of names in it. By accident I found a few in Swansea, but I might take forever to find the right ones.
Glad to hear from you again. We've all spent the last week thinking about you and Stef.
Joshua Eddy, the head of the Middleboro clan, was a local militia leader and he also fought in the Continental Army under Washington. I portrayed Joshua. My wife portrayed Lydia Eddy and our daughter was "little Lydia." (For a four-year-old she did remarkable well at responding to the "wrong" name. . .) Another militia member was along, too. He and I fired the muskets at the end of our presentation.
The other night, I plowed through this huge Eddy book with thousands of names in it. By accident I found a few in Swansea, but I might take forever to find the right ones.
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Kat
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FairhavenGuy
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It was quite warm in the clothes, but unlike actual Revolutionary War soldiers I didn't have to wear my long wool coat in August.
Our presentation was a rather general one on life during the 1770s. In Fairhaven three times a week we do a similar thing at Fort Phoenix on the harbor, but there were include on the local history about the British attacks and things specific to "old Dartmouth." (From 1664 to 1787 the communities of Dartmouth, Westport, New Bedford, Fairhaven, Acushnet and part of Tiverton were all one large town--Dartmouth.)
For the Eddy clan last week, we threw in a few details about Joshua Eddy drilling militia members on Middleboro Green and dropped a few family names, but mostly we talked about and showed off the clothes we wore, the items a militiaman carried, some of my wife's more interesting accessories, and the toys that children played with. Chuck Cromwell, the commander of the Fairhaven Village Militia, talked about his Brown Bess musket and my Pennsylvania-style rifle. We then demonstrated firing them.
This afternoon we were doing the same thing at Fort Phoenix. Tomorrow morning at 10:00, I'll be guiding the "Fort Phoenix Minuteman Tour," which I present every Friday from June through September.
Our presentation was a rather general one on life during the 1770s. In Fairhaven three times a week we do a similar thing at Fort Phoenix on the harbor, but there were include on the local history about the British attacks and things specific to "old Dartmouth." (From 1664 to 1787 the communities of Dartmouth, Westport, New Bedford, Fairhaven, Acushnet and part of Tiverton were all one large town--Dartmouth.)
For the Eddy clan last week, we threw in a few details about Joshua Eddy drilling militia members on Middleboro Green and dropped a few family names, but mostly we talked about and showed off the clothes we wore, the items a militiaman carried, some of my wife's more interesting accessories, and the toys that children played with. Chuck Cromwell, the commander of the Fairhaven Village Militia, talked about his Brown Bess musket and my Pennsylvania-style rifle. We then demonstrated firing them.
This afternoon we were doing the same thing at Fort Phoenix. Tomorrow morning at 10:00, I'll be guiding the "Fort Phoenix Minuteman Tour," which I present every Friday from June through September.
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Kat
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Is this expensive for you?
I don't know if you care about recompense, but is there any donation toward your re-enactment efforts or do you pay for all the accouterments that you can find to include in your demonstrations?
I can't believe your daughter is so old already!
She was certainly cute when we saw her before!
I understand your bride makes some of the costumes?
Do you have any piece that is priceless?
And it sounds like you performed for "The Eddy Clan?" How did that come about?
It almost sounds like you are in the Theatre!
I don't know if you care about recompense, but is there any donation toward your re-enactment efforts or do you pay for all the accouterments that you can find to include in your demonstrations?
I can't believe your daughter is so old already!
She was certainly cute when we saw her before!
I understand your bride makes some of the costumes?
Do you have any piece that is priceless?
And it sounds like you performed for "The Eddy Clan?" How did that come about?
It almost sounds like you are in the Theatre!
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FairhavenGuy
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- Real Name: Christopher J. Richard
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The hobby can be expensive, especially for clothing and muskets. All the things we use are reproductions. Many are available from catalogs and online. In lots of cases the people who deal in these things are re-enactors themselves and sell items to help pay for their hobby.
Our group--The Fairhaven Village Militia--does a little bit of fundraising to buys some items of "community property," such as tents, iron pots for cooking and things that we as a group can all share and benefit from. All of our clothing and personal gear is provided at our own expense, though.
When we make appearances for scout troops or schools, we sometimes get a small donation that goes to the group.
Lori (my wife) has done quite a bit of sewing for us this year. She made an English "bed jacket" for herself, a dress for Emily (which can be let out as she grows) and two checkered shirts for me. The more complicated things we buy.
The most expensive suit of clothes I own is my re-enacting outfit. (But that's not saying much, because I'm almost as much of a tightwad as Andrew Borden.)
We were invited to do our presentation at the Eddy Family Association's annual meeting because members who live in Fairhaven know of our activities in town. I went to high school with the guy who is the head of the Eddy Homestead organization and one his cousins was one of Lori's best friends in high school.
As for Emily, she'll be starting pre-school in a few weeks. She made her first appearance in colonial clothes at Fort Phoenix when she was five weeks old. (She slept in a basket all afternoon.) She now pipes in with information when I'm talking to visitors about our equipment.
Mostly, though, she takes a wooden bowl and a horn spoon and makes "bean soup," which is made from dried kidney beans, water, grass, stones, seashells and soil.
Our group--The Fairhaven Village Militia--does a little bit of fundraising to buys some items of "community property," such as tents, iron pots for cooking and things that we as a group can all share and benefit from. All of our clothing and personal gear is provided at our own expense, though.
When we make appearances for scout troops or schools, we sometimes get a small donation that goes to the group.
Lori (my wife) has done quite a bit of sewing for us this year. She made an English "bed jacket" for herself, a dress for Emily (which can be let out as she grows) and two checkered shirts for me. The more complicated things we buy.
The most expensive suit of clothes I own is my re-enacting outfit. (But that's not saying much, because I'm almost as much of a tightwad as Andrew Borden.)
We were invited to do our presentation at the Eddy Family Association's annual meeting because members who live in Fairhaven know of our activities in town. I went to high school with the guy who is the head of the Eddy Homestead organization and one his cousins was one of Lori's best friends in high school.
As for Emily, she'll be starting pre-school in a few weeks. She made her first appearance in colonial clothes at Fort Phoenix when she was five weeks old. (She slept in a basket all afternoon.) She now pipes in with information when I'm talking to visitors about our equipment.
Mostly, though, she takes a wooden bowl and a horn spoon and makes "bean soup," which is made from dried kidney beans, water, grass, stones, seashells and soil.
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Kat
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That's all very amazing.
Did you ever wonder why you do this?
I had a little theory that those who re-enact the Civil War were really there in battle at the time and are back again to live it through all over again because it was so shock-inducing an event at the time.
Sort of like live ghosts haunting?
I really like to try to figure out why people are so drawn to do this sort of amazing thing- which I said was almost like *theatre*. And with your own funds and own long solid work.
I hope this doesn't sound disrespectful: I don't mean it to be.
Does it seem so natural, that maybe you might have done it before?
Did you ever wonder why you do this?
I had a little theory that those who re-enact the Civil War were really there in battle at the time and are back again to live it through all over again because it was so shock-inducing an event at the time.
Sort of like live ghosts haunting?
I really like to try to figure out why people are so drawn to do this sort of amazing thing- which I said was almost like *theatre*. And with your own funds and own long solid work.
I hope this doesn't sound disrespectful: I don't mean it to be.
Does it seem so natural, that maybe you might have done it before?
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FairhavenGuy
- Posts: 1136
- Joined: Thu Apr 22, 2004 8:39 am
- Real Name: Christopher J. Richard
- Location: Fairhaven, MA
- Contact:
It is very theatrical, and I have a history of that. In local amateur theater companies I've performed in some of the old standards, including Ten Little Indians, Come Blow Your Horn, A Thurber Carnival, Fiddler on the Roof, etc. I've also stage managed and designed scenery. In my youth, I performed puppet shows, earning a little extra spending money at birthday parties and the like.
It's been at least 15 years, now, since I been onstage in a true "theatrical" sense, but for the last eight years I've guided historical walking tours in Fairhaven, often in costume, and I've been doing the colonial re-enacting for five or six years.
I'm a born performer, and was first inspired when, at the age of about five, I was taken to New Bedford High School by Mom to see a marionette show by the renowned Bill Baird. I still remember that show.
In August, Lori and I took Em to see a wonderful New Bedford Festival Theater production of Disney's Beauty and the Beast. I wonder if she'll remember it more than forty years from now. . .
I don't think I'm inhabited by the spirits of people past.
It's been at least 15 years, now, since I been onstage in a true "theatrical" sense, but for the last eight years I've guided historical walking tours in Fairhaven, often in costume, and I've been doing the colonial re-enacting for five or six years.
I'm a born performer, and was first inspired when, at the age of about five, I was taken to New Bedford High School by Mom to see a marionette show by the renowned Bill Baird. I still remember that show.
In August, Lori and I took Em to see a wonderful New Bedford Festival Theater production of Disney's Beauty and the Beast. I wonder if she'll remember it more than forty years from now. . .
I don't think I'm inhabited by the spirits of people past.
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Kat
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Oh that's cool! You're an actor!
It's making sense why you enjoy your work so much!
Even to putting out a newsletter.
As to being inhabited by spirits, I was more wondering I guess about re-incarnation- where the person themselves were there then and chose to return, even in modern day, to do it again.
It's kind of a combination Karma- Reincarnation- of you yourself, or they/themselves.
But I see where you're going and I'm glad I asked.
I take informal polls, I call them, to feel my way along as to why people enjoy and/or do the things they do.
Thank you for being open and instructive!
It's making sense why you enjoy your work so much!
Even to putting out a newsletter.
As to being inhabited by spirits, I was more wondering I guess about re-incarnation- where the person themselves were there then and chose to return, even in modern day, to do it again.
It's kind of a combination Karma- Reincarnation- of you yourself, or they/themselves.
But I see where you're going and I'm glad I asked.
I take informal polls, I call them, to feel my way along as to why people enjoy and/or do the things they do.
Thank you for being open and instructive!