During Tuesday’s event, modern day time travelers will meet townspeople and hear their personal stories and points of view on the Civil War
While their numbers are dwindling, there are still some people alive who can share their memories about what is was like in their hometown after many of their men were shipped off to foreign shores during World War II.
But, there is no one alive today to offer their insight into what is was like when able-bodied men went off to fight in the Civil War.
To help provide a modern-day perspective, Storrowton Village will present an interactive, educational tour entitled “Storrowton and the Civil War” on Tuesday. The special event will offer those participating an inside look at how folks in the Northeast coped with the Civil War and the absence of our countrymen who were called to duty or joined the patriotic fervor.
“This is our third year offering our Civil War program which began several years ago in response to the state’s wishes to make sure there would be some recognition of the 150th anniversary of the Civil War,” said Dennis Picard, director, Storrowton Village Museum.
“A lot of organizations in response were looking at how to create programs or exhibits to highlight that period of history, and at Storrowton Village we decided to offer a different slant than focusing on the battlefront. Instead, we decided to turn our attention to looking at home,” he added.
During Tuesday’s event, modern day time travelers will meet townspeople and hear their personal stories and points of view on the Civil War. The “townspeople” are actually Storrowton Village volunteers in character as visitors travel through the Village’s historic buildings meeting residents, shopkeepers, farmers, family members, and tradesmen, all with information and their own experiences to share.
Picard noted that the Civil War presentation, now offered four times a year, is grounded in accuracy.
“While our buildings are all original and transplanted to our grounds, Storrowton is a fictitious village. However, all of the little vignettes we will be presenting are based on happenings in this immediate area and represent true local history,” said Picard.
The tour begins in the Storrowton Village Meetinghouse with an abolitionist, an advocate for ending slavery in the United States, delivering a speech, and then moves to the Blacksmith Shop where young and old participants will learn about job opportunities and the increase in manufacturing during the war and how that impacted tradesmen.
Continuing on to the parlor of Potter Mansion, visitors will gain insight into the women’s efforts to support troops through sewing and making clothing, which was in scarce supply.
Abigail Groves of Springfield will be among the volunteers in costume and character sitting in the parlor.
“What I do is try to talk as an older woman about the effect the Civic War is having on wives raising children, taking care of the farm while their husbands are away, that type of thing. And, I’ve been keeping a diary so that husbands know what went on while they were away,” said Groves.
“I liked the idea of being able to do something like this in the first person, it something a little different for me, but I have to remember to stay in the first person. It’s enjoyable for me and it seems to be, too, for those attending,” she added.
The next stop on the Civil War tour is at Potter General Store for an ear on a conversation between a shopkeeper and customer about the separation of the southern states, lack of cotton textiles, and how suppliers and consumers from both the North and South were affected. The tour concludes in Gilbert Farmstead, where the group will experience the family’s preparation for the wake of one of their members who died while in service to his country.