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| Top Photo: Coehorn Mortar – Bottom Photo: Ordnance Rifle | Mountain Howitzer |
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| Logan Guard | |
The Colonel Crowther Foundation recently announced the units that will be providing artillery and infantry demonstration during Colonel Crowther Day Weekend Saturday, August 4 and Sunday, August 5 at Reservoir Park in Tyrone.
“We are very happy to have these two outstanding groups join us for this special weekend,” foundation President Bob Hileman, Jr. said.
Many people will recognize The Logan Guard, a group of very talented musicians, who reenact the 46th Pennsylvania Regiment Band. The group also reenacts Company A of the 46th Pennsylvania Volunteers. They will participate in infantry demonstrations as that unit.
Also participating in those demonstrations will be the infantry unit of The Blue and Gray Brigade. This unit is of special interest for residents of Blair and Huntingdon counties. They reenact Company A of the 110th Pennsylvania Volunteers, the regiment commanded by Colonel James Crowther. The Blue and Gray Brigade, as stated on their website, is “a fellowship of independent reenactors and living historians throughout the state of Pennsylvania and neighboring states, mainly focusing on the American Civil War era.”
Captain Mike Gherrity, a resident of Birmingham, commands their infantry unit.
Of special interest is the demonstrations that will be presented by the artillery unit of the Blue and Gray Brigade. They reenact Independent Battery H, “Pittsburgh Thunder”. And there will be plenty of thunder during the weekend. The reenactors will display and fire three artillery pieces, an 1854 six-pounder Mountain Howitzer, an 1851 twelve-pound Coehorn Mortar, and a full scale 1861 three-inch Ordnance Rifle. These are not original pieces but are exact reproductions.
“Reading about the times a Civil War soldier faced the enemy on the battlefield and descriptions of engagements where they faced artillery fire helps us to understand what they experienced,” foundation President Bob Hileman, Jr. said. “But when you witness a living history demonstration where the cannons are fired, you are able to more fully appreciate the reality the soldier experienced on the battlefield,” he added.
