San Jacinto Reenactment, Apr 24, 2010

As posted on:18 minutes to a free Texas (San Jacinto Day Festival and Battle Re-enactment)

"...Craig Livingston, professor of history at LSC-Montgomery College is veteran re-enactor. As a Temple University student he first performed with the 23rd Royal Welsh Fusiliers in America and has since participated in many others.

“Re-enactments let actors and audience take ownership of history,” Livingston said. “Many of the actors are ‘history buffs’ and scholars who have a deep abiding passion for historical events. This is an act of interpreting the events in an unfolding drama of uniforms, gunfire and traditional music. It gives a sense of the actual magnitude of the event that is awe inspiring. It evokes a sense of being transported back in time. The San Jacinto Festival draws a huge crowd in the south, and in the northeast people will line the roads from Boston to Concord to celebrate the ride of Paul Revere. Re-enactments allow us to experience the ritual of replaying history and make certain that history lives on.”

The admission-free event on the San Jacinto Battleground State Historic Site offers a full day of music, entertainment, games and fun. On the Main Stage, popular local and regional entertainers will perform and demonstrate favorites from days gone by. Visit the Texas Dancehall with twin fiddles and a steel guitar. Listen to a singer who brings an authentic chuck wagon and performs his “Camp Cookie” review. See a display of magnificent birds, or play the tambourine with a band performing with penny whistles, spoons and a scrub-board.

The Children’s Area will include “Phydeaux’s Flying Flea Circus,” a 55’ train complete with whistle and flags, and a Make-and-Take history activities and crafts area.

See blacksmiths, weavers, spinners, quilters and others who will provide a glimpse of life in the early 1800s. Stroll over to the Medicine Show Wagon with its lively medicine man who spins tales of cure-all elixirs and works a little magic. Watch the square dancers and even try a step or two. Take a stroll over to the Battleship Texas, the first battleship memorial museum in the U.S., or visit inside the San Jacinto Monument. Whatever you choose to do, it’s destined to be a memorable day.

Enjoy free admission to the San Jacinto Day Festival and Battle Re-enactment. Combo tickets for the elevator ride, exhibit and movie inside the Monument can be purchased: $12 for adults, $8 for children. Fees for the Battleship TEXAS are $10 for adults, $5 for seniors, $3 for school and youth groups with a reservation, and free for children 12 and younger. Admission fees to the park are waived on Festival day. Visitors are encouraged to bring lawn chairs and/or blankets for comfortable viewing of the Battle Reenactment."