Reenactment: Battle of Bentonville, 2010

Re-creating the Civil War: Bentonville Battle Was Largest in N.C.,Drew Brooks, Fayetteville Observer, March 21, 2010.

With thousands of spectators cheering and shouting encouragement, one might have thought a major sporting event was being held this weekend in Bentonville, a small town just north of the Johnston County line.

But the "teams" the crowd was cheering for weren't playing a game. They were Civil War re-enactors and aimed guns and cannons at each other while playing out one of the last major Confederate offensives of that war.

Officials with the state Department of Cultural Resources, which oversees the event, said they expect well over 30,000 spectators over the weekend. The estimated 15,000 to 20,000 that came Saturday enjoyed steady breezes and a clear sky - that is, until smoke from cannons and muskets wafted over the crowds from the battlefield. Thousands watched the battle, including large contingents of uniformed Boy Scouts and soldiers.Jennifer Sakeagak, of Jacksonville, said she, her husband and three young children spent much of the day exploring mock civilian and military camps before watching the battle.

A self-described history buff, Sakeagak said she was impressed by the event, which is held once every five years. "We've been wanting to see a Civil War re-enactment for some time," she said. "I enjoyed everything." Sakeagak particularly loved the cannons, which shook the battlefield and rattled the rib cages of spectators. Her 5-year-old son also liked the battle, but he preferred watching the many Union and Confederate soldiers pretend to die.

While most re-enactors simply fell to the ground and were then either left there or "treated" by combat medics, others had more dramatic deaths. One Confederate soldier-turned-thespian, shot a few dozen feet from the Union front lines, fell to his knees and clutched his chest for more than a minute before finally falling over in a theatrical flourish. The re-enactment portrayed an event known as "the Fight for Morris Farm."

The Battle of Bentonville, which began on March 19, 1865, actually included three days of pitched battle involving 80,000 soldiers - 20,000 Confederates and 60,000 Union soldiers, according to state officials. It was the largest battle ever fought in North Carolina. The battle has been marked by a re-enactment every five years since 1990.

Text Source: Fayetteville Observer
Image Source: Civil War Librarian

Reenactment: Battle of Bentonville on Original Battlefield

Thousands Restage 1865 Civil War Fight,Sadia Latifi, Charlotte Observer, March 21, 2010.

Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman brought about 60,000 Union men and boys to Bentonville in March 1865, ready to crush Gen. Joseph E. Johnston's Confederate army.

This weekend, only about 1,100 of Sherman's troops - compared to about 2,500 Confederate soldiers - showed up at Bentonville Battleground to re-create the fight, the largest and last major Civil War battle in North Carolina.

Every five years, thousands flock to the site to remember and re-enact. They take great care to uphold historical accuracy. When they can. "Nobody wants to be a Union soldier," said Raleigh resident Wes Jones, 58, of North Carolina's 6th Cavalry Regiment, Company I. "Playing a Confederate is more fun. Even though we lose, you get to play the underdog."

The Union soldier shortage is a recurrent problem for Southern Civil War re-enactments. To participate at Bentonville, interested Yankees must often take vacation days and travel long distances to an area about 50 miles southeast of Raleigh. "You have to take off almost five days to come here," said Peter DellaVedova, 56, of the 104th Illinois Volunteer Infantry, based in Chicago. "We lost six of our guys on the way down here because a car broke down."

That part is historically accurate - sort of. Many members of the original Illinois unit died while traveling to North Carolina for the battle, DellaVedova said. To deal with the Union shortfall, organizers allow any Federal units to join the battle up to the day of the event. Confederate units must be invited. Sometimes a Confederate soldier, such as Jones, will don a navy blue jacket the first day to level out the numbers. And sometimes, dead Union soldiers come back to life to shore up the North's numbers. Not the boys from Chicago, though. "Our unit says that once you've been hit, you stay on the ground," DellaVedova said.

More than 3,500 war buffs have camped out in tents for days in Bentonville to re-enact the battle on its 145th anniversary. The original battle lasted three days - from March 19 to March 21, 1865 - and spread over 6,000 acres. Confederate dead or wounded . totaled 2,606. The much-larger Union army had 1,646 dead or wounded.

Text Source: Charlotte Observer, March 21, 2010
Image Source: Civil War Librarian

Reenactment: Bentonville North Carolina Battlefield Today

The park, founded in 1965 and portion was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1996. Today the Bentonville Battleground State Historic site includes 130 acres of the battlefield. A visitor's center and the restored Harper House, which served as a hospital for Union soldiers during the battle is on the site.

The Bentonville Battlefield Historical Association and the Civil War Preservation Trust also owns portions of the battlefield not included in the state park, including 901 acres by the CWPT alone. The photograph above is of Confederate reenactors assaulting the Federal entrenchments during the 145th anniversary event.

The photographs above and on the left show the Confederate assault on the Federal right wing. The musket barrel in the the left photograph belongs to Civil War Librarian.

Camping during the event was campaign-style on the original battleground that included Federal entrenchments. The event included two scripted battles. In both battles Federals dug and the Rebels charged.

Text and Image Source: Civil War Librarian

Reenactment: 145th Anniversary of the Battle of Bentonville

The Battle of Bentonville was fought March 19–21, 1865 in North Carolina, as part of the Sherman's Carolinas Campaign that occurred after the capture of Savannah, Georgia in late December 1864. Bentonville was the last major battle to occur between the armies of Sherman and Johnston.
After the battle Robert E. Lee, now the commander of all Confederate armies, received a telegram from Johnston. In the message Johnston confessed to Lee that at most he would be only an annoyance to Sherman.


The 145th reenactment was on a portion of the Bentonville battlefield that has been preserved by North Carolina. Picture above shows Federal reenactors constructing field entrenchments during the second day of the event. The Federal lieutenant is Nick Griffey, Ninth Pennsylvania Reserves, Company A; this organization hails from the Pittsburgh Pennsylvania metropolitian region.

On the first day of the battle (March 19), the Confederate army attacked the right Federal wing and routed two Union divisions. The rebels were unable compell a third division to retreat The next day (March 20), the left Federal wing arrived on the battlefield. On that day and the next (March 21), the armies skirmished and Johnston retreated.

Text and Image Source: Civil War Librarian