Re-enactors converge on The Landing in Shakopee for Civil War Weekend

The American Civil War ended 150 years ago.

But re-enactors have kept memories of the war alive, staging battles and other events around the country in the decades since the deadliest war in U.S. history.

This weekend, re-enactors and history enthusiasts will come to The Landing living history park in Shakopee for Civil War Weekend. The events May 2-3 aim to show how Minnesotans lived through the conflict.

"The Civil War era is a real defining point in American history," said Rich Williams, program coordinator at The Landing. "It is important that we recognize what people were doing. This is our way of recognizing Minnesota's role in the war."

Local volunteer re-enactors, also known as live historians, will demonstrate what it was like to be a Civil War infantry member throughout the weekend. The group will cook food and camp at the park, as well as perform military drills that local servicemen would have practiced in the 1860s.

Among them will be Nathan Willar, who has been a Minnesota-based volunteer live historian since 2007, and has participated in several of The Landing's re-enactments for the past two years.

Like many live historians, Willar has spent hundreds of hours researching the Civil War and creating a handmade reproduction of a Civil War soldier uniform to wear at re-enactments. But the time and effort are worth it to create a genuine experience, he said, both for him and the people who come to watch.

The weekend will unfold in front of a background of historical Minnesota houses that were all built between the 1840s and the 1890s. Many were transported from around the lower Minnesota River Valley to the park in the 1970s, in part as way preserve them.

The homes also help the Civil War weekend at The Landing feel genuine, Willar said.

"[The houses] aren't all from 1860 or earlier, but they provide a great backdrop," he said. "There's not a lot of what we would call modern intrusions … So when you look out at that twilight hour it is easy to kind of lose yourself."

Visitors can feel that transformation alongside the historians. Throughout the weekend, attendees will have the chance to dress in Civil War infantry clothing, practice drills and use a wooden replica of the muskets soldiers used.

"If you want to learn what it might have felt like to be a new recruit, we will get you mustered in, we'll get you a dummy rifle, we'll teach you how to march," said Bill Walker, cultural resources manager at Three Rivers Park District, which oversees The Landing.

"If [visitors] want to get really close up and personal, this isn't a huge event, and you have a good chance to come and talk to the actors, so this is a really good opportunity," he said.

While the weekend's special event will follow the Civil War theme, the rest of The Landing's park will function as usual throughout the weekend, with volunteer re-enactors scattered throughout the park in period-style clothing.

"[Civil War Weekend] is a program that complements our living history program," Walker said. "Most of the houses will be staffed with an interpreter … The goal will be to tell how the Minnesota [River] Valley was settled."

The Civil War Weekend is the first of many special event weekends scheduled this year at the park, including a Civil War camp geared toward kids ages 10 to 15 later this summer. Other special events at The Landing run through December and include Irish- and German-themed weekends, a 19th-century baseball weekend and date nights.

"What I like about The Landing is that it provides [re-enactors] a chance to talk with people to share our passion with them," Willar said. "I hope everyone walks away thinking about that."