I believe the year was 1986. My parents took my brother and I to watch the reenactment of the Battle of Sabine Pass. Since I grew up in the exotic town of Port Arthur, Texas, it was a very short drive out there. I had no idea that I had grown up just a few miles from the site of one of the most improbable victories in the annals of military history. (Okay, so I may be exaggerating a little.)
I remember watching the recreated battle and being amazed by the sound of the artillery and rifles. They even had a mock ironclad (the USS Clifton, I believe) offshore firing at the Confederates. Afterwards, we walked through the camp and I got to talk to some of the participants and also get some pictures taken.
Fast forward to 1997. I participated in my first reenactment. I was now reenacting the Battle of Sabine Pass just as I had seen done 11 years earlier. What a thrill! I have been reenacting off and on ever since, though sadly not as much as I would like.
Anytime someone questions the money I've spent on Civil War gear, or books, or trips, or movies, or anything else related to that, I look back to the September day in 1986 and blame my parents for taking me out there in the first place!
I am Lee Hutch and I am a Civil War Addict.
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