People love to
dress up and recreate their favorite points in history. Some are more hardcore
than others. Participants pitch tents, cook over a fire, sleep on cots and try to keep it as "real" as possible. Others prefer to
dress up and mingle for fun. Serious money is invested in costumes and equipment.
Is there any
historical benefit to reenactments? Some. Groups differ in their adherence
to detail, but many have closely studied and strive for as much realism as
possible short of actually dying of gunshot. You can learn a lot
should you attend one of these events or find a participant willing to help you
with research. Reenactors love talking about their passion. You might even be
inclined to participate.
Recollections provides a list of the Top 29 Reenactment Societies for the Revolutionary
war, Civil War, War of 1812, Spanish American War, WWI, WWII, and Korean War.
Wikipedia also has an extensive list of reenactment societies from the Middle Ages
to the world wars. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historical_reenactment
Another
possibility is living history museums. There are many scattered throughout the
United States and around the world. I will list a few examples.
Conner Prairie
near Indianapolis, Indiana takes you to 1800s Indiana including a Lenape Indian
village. http://www.connerprairie.org/
Canterbury Shaker has 25 restored original Shaker buildings, 4
reconstructed Shaker buildings, and 694 acres of forests, fields, gardens,
nature trails, and mill ponds under permanent conservation easement. http://www.shakers.org/visit/touring-the-village/
Colonial Williamsburg in Virginia is the largest reenactment village covering
the 1800s South. https://www.colonialwilliamsburg.com/
George Ranch near Houston, Texas explores 100 years of Texas history on a 20,000-acre
working ranch featuring historic homes, costumed interpreters, and livestock. https://www.georgeranch.org/
Greenfield Village is located within the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn
Michigan. Nearly one hundred historical buildings
were moved to the property and arranged in a "village" setting. The
museum's intent is to show how Americans have lived and worked since the founding of
the country. https://www.thehenryford.org/visit/greenfield-village
Historic Deerfield in Massachusetts is an authentic 18th-Century New England
village. The 18th and 19th-century houses of the village center, many on their
original site, are filled with antique furnishings range from the first English
settlement to the Arts and Crafts Movement in the early 20th century. www.historic-deerfield.org
Historic St. Mary's in Maryland depicts life in a 17th century colonial
plantation. https://hsmcdigshistory.org/
Old Sturbridge's outdoor living history museum in Massachusetts depicts 19th-century
New England. https://www.osv.org/
Old World Wisconsin living museum takes you to an 1880s village built by
German and Scandinavian immigrants. https://oldworldwisconsin.wisconsinhistory.org/
Plimoth Plantation in Plymouth, Massachusetts is an open air early pilgrim settlement. https://www.plimoth.org/
Strawberry Banke Museum in historic downtown Portsmouth, New Hampshire, is an
authentic 10-acre outdoor history museum dedicated to bringing 300+ years of
American history in the same waterfront neighborhood to life. http://www.strawberybanke.org/
For extensive
lists you can turn to Wikipedia:
International: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_open-air_and_living_history_museums
Next week, we take a look at Film Reenactments.
For advanced worldbuilding check out SBB Build A World Workbook in print and ebook.
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