Upcoming Lynn events bring Civil War to life

LYNN – The annual Civil War encampment bringing history from 150 years ago to life has become a nearly month-long event that a local organizer said is unique to Lynn.?I don?t know of any other place that does this,” said historian Larry Campbell.Centered on Lynn Common and nearby historic sites, the encampment features men and women who dress up as Union Army soldiers as well as Abraham Lincoln and Ulysses S. Grant. Planning for the encampment began last week and continues through this week leading up to Memorial Day events and visits by reenactors – individuals who recreate historical figures through dress and speech – to local high schools starting on May 27.Campbell anticipates more than 20 local schoolteachers will attend a forum this Saturday at the Grand Army of the Republic building, focusing on Civil War history. He said local students in 2012 and 2013 enjoyed Civil War-related events planned for the high schools on May 27, 28 and 29.?The teachers have stepped up their involvement and a lot of the kids from the history clubs know more than we do,” Campbell said.Grand Army building curator Robert Matthias said many of the reenactors involved in the encampment during the past two years are returning to Lynn this month, including the 5th Maine Regiment and the Salem Zouaves representing elite troops who wore colorful uniforms.The reenactors set up camp on Lynn Common, and the encampment is open to visitors on Saturday, May 31.?The encampment starts on Friday (May 30) night. There was a rainout the first year; it was hot the next year, and this year it will be perfect,” Matthias said.School visits by reenactors lead up to a history “bee” with the winning school receiving a $500 donation for its history department.Even as encampment planning gets underway, local photographers continue cataloging 1,243 portraits of Union Army veterans on display in the Grand Army?s Andrew Street building. Greater Lynn Photographic Association members photographed portraits for preservation using digital technology.Members Ken Jordan, Fran MacDonald and David Kourtz are also photographing 550 pages of personal histories written by some of the veterans. The accounts will be digitally preserved so that they can be linked up with the photographs as an online research resource.Jordan said the histories are contained in a three-inch-thick, leather-bound book titled “Personal War Sketches.” Each brief account includes the veteran?s “most memorable day in the war.”?We will link each page to a photograph and you?ll be able to look at it,” Jordan said.The encampment includes a May 30 dinner at the Masonic Hall on Market Street at 6 p.m. for encampment members and a May 31 6 p.m. franks and bean supper at the Grand Army building where the history bee winners will be announced.A June 1 morning memorial service at St. Stephen?s Episcopal Memorial Church – burial site of Civil War veteran Charles Reddington Mudge – rounds off the encampment.