McDOWELL 2001:
The Columbia Rifles’ After Action Report
Edited by Kevin O’Beirne

McDOWELL, Va. – On May 4-6, 2001, the Columbia Rifles participated in the McDowell reenactment in the mountains of southwestern Virginia.  This lengthy report is compiled from the participants’ after action accounts.

Pre-event
Kevin O’Beirne: McDowell 2001 is over and I believe the event accomplished much, if not all, that it set out to.  I had a heck of a good time and was extremely honored, privileged, and proud to command Company C (Columbia Rifles).  Hats off to Lt. Col. David “Duke” Culberson, Adjutant John Cleaveland, and the whole Federal battalion staff for a lot of hard, pre-event work that made the re-created 3rd Virginia (U.S.) function like clockwork in the field.

The Columbia Rifles made significant contributions to the Federal planning effort.  Charlie Heath and, in particular, Jay White contributed some great historical research.  Dave Grieves put together a website for the re-created 3rd Virginia (U.S.), and Steve Tyler contributed a good deal of historical information to the website, together with incredible historical information on Companies A and C, which facilitated proper first-person impressions.  The Rifles’ Mike Peterson served as the battalion chaplain and performed a great deal of pre-event research on the man he portrayed: Reverend Curry of the 3rd Virginia.

We were initially assigned as Company A and a few weeks before the event we were switched to Company C, primarily because we had more than enough men to contribute to the color guard.  The final roster of Company C in the field was over fifty men!  At the last minute, Jeff Sherry, who was to serve as the 2nd Lieutenant, had to cancel out—his expectant wife was starting to have contractions—and Chris Piering agreed to fill the 2nd Lt.’s role on short notice.  I couldn’t have made a better man than Chris.  The change resulted in some last-minute shuffling of ranks and roles, but in the end I think we had truly first-rate men in each role.

Dave Grieves: Though I came to it rather by default, it was a great honor for me to serve as the color sergeant of the re-created 3rd Virginia Loyal Volunteer Infantry.   We had a first rate group of fellows as the color guard and—seeing how we were attached to the Columbia Rifles—were part of a bully color company.  The color guard included most of the 122nd New York members as the event, plus several members of the Columbia Rifles.

Set-up/Friday Evening
Kevin O’Beirne: The event had something of a “mainstream” feel on Friday/Saturday in the town—we were camped in small field near the creek, by the Sugar Tree Store, and auto traffic went by all night long.  There were a few reenactorisms in some of the camps here and there but nothing really glaring.  There were a few men in other companies who acted at times as if McDowell was just another reenactment, but I suppose the hobby will never be fully populated by folks who understand what they’re supposed to be portraying.

Most of the company was on-site by 6:00 p.m. and went through the now-unfamiliar task of setting up the canvas.  We were quartered in A-tents that first night, and our street of sixteen tents made an impressive sight.

The automobile traffic was a “low-light” of the event.  Yeah, McDowell is a real town, but perhaps the camps could have been situated to be away from the roads.
At my request, Sergeant Garr Gast inspected each man and his weapon as he entered camp, and was busy with this duty from 4:30 p.m. Friday through 11:00 p.m. that night.  It was a thankless job and Garr handled it professionally and without complaint.

The Federal command did a fine, period- and scenario-correct ration issue.  The men were ordered to bring their own coffee and a few hard crackers.  The issued rations were provided through donated food acquired by Lt. Col. Culberson and a levy of $20 on each company and staff officer.  The Federal command distributed 277 lbs of corned hams—something that Orderly Sergeant Tobey likened to “dunged ham”, 300 lbs of cabbage, 90 lbs of onions, and 1,000 lbs of white potatoes.  All these items are documented as having been foraged and issued to the original 3rd Virginia (U.S.) in early May, 1862.  Kudos to all who made it happen, from Lt. Col. Culberson to Don Hubbard to our own company commissary officers, Sergeant Paul Irish and Corporal Mark Herzog.

The Federal officers’ dinner on Friday evening was relaxing and enjoyable, although champagne toasted in a very dirty tin dipper leaves something to be desired.  Many thanks to Lt. Col. Culberson for financing the officers’ dinner out of his own pocket.  We received a few words from the Lt. Col. about what was expected of us and had a chance to socialize and mingle.  I had the honor to receive, on behalf of the Columbia Rifles, many, many compliments about our organization.  Several officers expressed surprise that we didn’t have hundreds of copies of The Columbia Rifles Research Compendium for sale, as if the CR is a traveling bookstore…
After the officers’ dinner, we had to schlep to the far end of town for a meeting with Confederate officers, to which both Lt. Piering and I went fully armed.  We returned to camp by 9:45 and held a brief meeting of the company, after which most of the men turned in for the night.

On Friday night, the locals in the house next door to our campsite had a screaming, drunken beer blast, complete with loud music.  Around 11:30 p.m., one of the partygoers was puking ten feet from the tents of our men.  Because the bi-annual McDowell reenactment was pretty much the largest thing to happened in the town since the original battle, I had thought that the locals would cooperate more than they did to provide a more period-correct atmosphere.
Friday night several of our men, including Corporal Steve Tyler was assigned to guard duty.  Steve wound up as the only corporal at one of the outposts, and had to post each relief himself all night long.  He turned in a great job, but was exhausted and unavailable to us for much of the next day.  With Corporal Mark Herzog assigned to the guard on Saturday, our fifty-man company had only two line corporals.

Saturday Morning
Kevin O’Beirne: On Saturday, Reveille came at 6:00 a.m. and before the last note died away, all fifty men were in line and Orderly Sergeant Tobey commenced calling the roll.

Mike Peterson: As a “Holy Joe” lounging around battalion headquarters, I noticed that on both days the Columbia Rifles were the first to turn in their morning reports.  I had to bite my tongue to resist blatant cheerleading.

Chris Piering: I particularly enjoyed the early morning detail to obtain the colors from the Colonel by the entire color guard under my escort.  This was my first high point of the day and, while it was not done 100 percent correct, it was better than I have ever seen before.

Kevin O’Beirne: We formed up before 7:00 a.m. in full marching order and proceeded to the battalion parade.  Orderly Sergeant Tobey, Lt. Piering, and I all went in “fop dress”, including sashes and, in my case, gauntlets.  Mark the sight well boys—you won’t see that again soon!  At the battalion level drill could have been better, as usual, but overall it was pretty decent.  I especially enjoyed how the battalion did a much-better-than-usual job of assembling the battalion by the book, which was a first for me.

Lt. Col. David Culberson, Rowdy Pards, Federal Commander: Assembly of the regiment took a while and put us a tad behind schedule.  When formed, the 300-man regiment was quite impressive.  Clearly, almost everyone had come prepared to participate to the fullest.  The Columbia Rifles were particularly impressive with a company of over fifty men.  These boys do not play—in fact, I am sure a good half of them probably quit school because it included recess.
Dave Grieves: One of my best “moments” was at dress parade.  With our hats off, Mike “Reverend Curry” Peterson led us in prayer, as the wind stirred the flag and the silk lightly brushed my face.  Wow.  I can’t put into words how touching that was.

Kevin O’Beirne: Despite many warnings in advance that this would be a very strenuous event, many reenactors attended McDowell 2001 who were physically unable to hack it.  This is a recipe for disaster.  A prime example was Rich Bryant of the Rockport Mess who was assigned to Company C but fell out looking terrible at Saturday morning’s dress parade.  Some of us seriously thought he was having a heart attack.  He was transported to Staunton by Curt “Heinrich” Schmidt and did not return to the event.  He eventually recovered, but this should be a reminder to all of us: don’t try it if you can’t hack it.

Following parade, portions of the battalion were inspected, after which the battalion was dismissed.  We returned to camp and many of the men took advantage of the local hospitality and obtained breakfast at the local fire department.  We re-formed at 9:00 a.m. and marched to the parade, from which the battalion marched through town and posted guards.

The civilian reenactors were excellent, and I’m very glad I didn’t get pegged in the head with a thrown potato.  There were plenty of flying vegetables, despite the fact that, the night before, the officers had been ordered to account for all issued vegetables lest they be used against us as missiles.  Our own Lt. Piering was assigned as the Officer of the Guard and, with the duty company, performed fine service keeping the secessionist civilians in line throughout the day.

Chris Piering: I get a lot of credit from Kevin, but Corporal Herzog was a driving force in the success of the duty company on Saturday.

On Saturday, I do not know how many times I went up and down the main street in town chasing troublesome civilians, and I still think we should have burned the danged Stonewall Tavern for the sedition and treasonous acts of its owner and patrons. Another highlight was the two “Dutch” guards—Ross Dilts of the Columbia Rifles and Bill Cross of the Kearny Guards—who were charged with shutting down business at the Stonewall Tavern.

Ross Dilts: Bill Cross and I discovered that we both knew German, so in an instant we decided to incorporate it into our impressions and have some fun with the civilian reenactors.  Bill and I spoke only in German.  The civilians were taken aback and, thinking we were really “Dutchment”, a spectator attempted to translate for us.  It was the finest first-person “moment” I’ve ever had in all the years I’ve been reenacting.

Chris Piering: The Dutch guards feigned absolutely no understanding of the English language.  When the local beauty attempted to beguile them and entice them to treason with womanly charm and demon rum, she was foiled by the language barrier.

Mike Peterson: My role as the Federal chaplain gave me a couple of “moments” that brought home the reality of the Civil War for me.  The first was when I attempted and failed to act as an intermediary between the Provost—ably portrayed by Lt. Gang—and the ladies of the town.  I incurred the Lt.’s contempt for dealing with treasonous civilians and urging the ladies to make it easier on themselves by signing loyalty oaths.  It was beautifully done sustained first-person impression by all.  The female tavern keeper whom I escorted away had me totally fooled by her tears and distress.  I was left shaken by this little microcosm of the tragedy of the whole war—here were Americans and Christians truly divided, and there was nothing I could do to bridge the gap between the two.  The whole conflict was there in miniature.

Kevin O’Beirne: The battalion marched to a large field outside of town.  There we did about an hour of company drill, followed by another hour of battalion drill.  We practiced a lot of maneuvers and the drill went pretty darn well.  We came off the Camp of Instruction knowing that we needed to study the manual and drill more, and the company drill at McDowell showed significant improvement over the COI.  We still need to work on things but overall our drill is “looking up”.  I’d like to thank Orderly Sergeant Tobey and Corporal Jerry “Gramps” Grehl for providing knowledgeable advice on drill when I requested it.

Dave Grieves: Serving as the color sergeant forced me to start paying more attention to battalion drill than I usually do as a private in the line.  Before the event, I read everything I could find, including a very good, as-yet unpublished article on color guards by John Tobey, to help ensure I would not let folks down.  It sure helped that the boys in the 122nd held a color guard drill prior the event.

Kevin O’Beirne: It was quite hot and humid and by 11:15 a.m. the Lt. Col. dismissed the battalion.  Sergeant Tobey conducted the company back to camp while I went to an officers’ pre-battle meeting that never quite materialized.  In camp the boys ate dinner, lounged, and attempted to stay out of the sun.  We were to re-form for “battle” in the early afternoon.  Shortly after lunch, Sergeant Tobey and I ran the company through a 30-minute firing drill to make sure that everyone—CRs and guests alike—were on the same page with respect to firearms safety and authenticity.

Mike Peterson: One moment that had me busting with pride was on Saturday afternoon, when the provost/civilian thing was getting out of hand and Adjutant Cleaveland was looking for more troops to reinforce the guards.  I volunteered to roust out the Columbia Rifles, who were camped just across the bridge, and quickly met and informed Lt. Piering of our need.  He took off at a dead run and in no time a squad of men led by Orderly Sergeant John Tobey double-quicked 300 yards through the town to help us.  Now those boys were busy all day and they were forming the battalion to go engage the enemy on the outskirts of town, so they were tired and red-faced, but they nevertheless hustled up the road.  These men looked and acted like real soldiers.

Saturday Battle
Lt. Col. David Culberson, Rowdy Pards, Federal Commander: The 3rd Virginia (U.S.) formed and marched off to do battle with the secesh forces on time and in proper shape.  We skipped moving into a column doubled on the center because there was insufficient room in the area.
Lt. Piering led our duty company to the front as skirmishers and the battalion was deployed. “Chaplain Curry” blessed our efforts and soon thereafter the cavalry hotly engaged the Confederate skirmishers.  Skirmishing developed the enemy’s front and a slow waltz of forces ensued.  Skirmishers from both sides fell back on the main force.  Ours fell to the rear to act as a flying reserve company and did good service in that role later in the battle.  The cavalry fell back and did likewise.  All the while, our field music cheered our efforts with martial airs.

Mark Herzog: The Federal Right Wing—which included Company C—executed “By the right of companies to the rear” and other maneuvers in fine style on Saturday.  At that time, I was serving as a corporal in the duty company.  After we traded the obligatory shots with the Confederate skirmishers, the duty company took up a position in the rear as the reserve.  From that vantage point we could see the benefits of battalion drill, and our wing was outstanding!  Even if only a few in the crowd recognized what was happening it was well worth it.

Lt. Col. David Culberson, Rowdy Pards, Federal Commander: Our Right Wing, under Major Bob Crickenberger [with Company C – Ed.], advanced followed en echelon by the Left Wing, led by Captain Bill Sterner.  The Right became hotly engaged while the Left encountered distant shots from the wood line.  The Right Wing pursued the Confederate left well down the field and the 3rd’s Left stood its ground in reserve.  The Confederates fell back into the woods. There they apparently regrouped and made a determined foray into the field.  We became generally engaged all along our front.

Rob Willis: I believe I was the first Federal casualty in Saturday’s battle.  After my musket misfired, I “fell” back out of line to get it fixed.  I became a “real” casualty when, out of nowhere, two overly enthusiastic young stretcher bearers kidnapped me.  Then, lo, there was the strong shoulder and tender words of Chaplain Curry [Mike Peterson] helping me to the rear, which was fortunate because, by this time, I was “bleeding to death” and their wasn’t a surgeon in sight.  It was interesting that, when I glanced over at the spectators, I saw in their faces looks of true concern for me.  After blessing and tending to me, the Chaplain glanced up to see more fellows streaming to the rear.  I was genuinely dismayed when he left my side.  Luckily, a young Irish private with a shoulder wound dragged up next to me and we engaged in some neat first person for the rest of the battle.

Mike Peterson: My other “moment” was in administering comfort to the “dying” on the battlefield on Saturday.  There was some great first-person by the “stricken” men and I could quickly sense which ones were in earnest.  The prayers we said together were devout and heartfelt.  After I finished with the first fallen men I looked up and it seemed to me as if there were dozens of men lying in agony—who should I go to next?  The lung-shot young Federal who died after the battle in the hospital in front of the Presbyterian Church left me deeply moved.  I had to tell him that he wasn’t going to his earthly home as he wanted, but to his heavenly home, and his gasping as we prayed left me in tears afterwards.  The Confederate surgeon in this scene was also first rate.  I left with a deep and newly felt appreciation of the horror of the battlefield, something I never really felt before when in the ranks as a private.  These feelings still lingered with me and were all the more poignant as, on Monday morning after the event, I walked through the quiet beauty of Antietam’s sunken road.

Kevin O’Beirne: In the original battle of McDowell, Company C of the 3rd Virginia lost only one man.  The spectator battle lasted for an hour and we lost quite a bit more than one man.  Sergeant Tobey was not content to let our casualties “drop and die” and repeatedly went down the line encouraging the casualties to make their way to the rear, even telling the men the type of wound they had suffered.  The casualties dribbling to the rear from Company C made for a much more realistic spectator battle.  In addition, for a change, the “battle” was fought at more-correct, longer ranges than is usual in reenacting.

Dave Grieves: As Jeff “Sparky” Henion pointed out, being in the color guard gives one a chance to see the battles from a different point of view than a private or even a file closer.  Not having to worry about firing and loading lets you look around a bit.  The “battles” at McDowell were worth watching, too!

Lt. Col. David Culberson, Rowdy Pards, Federal Commander: Somewhere back in the woods the Confederates had broken off several companies which slipped down along our left flank concealed by the riverbank.  Our battalion front had made a slight right wheel that presented our left flank “in the air”.  The secesh slipped around and behind us, coming out of the riverbed and engaging our left.  Our mounted troops engaged them with dispatch and slowed their approach.  At this point, the Left Wing faced about and began to pour heavy fire into the Rebel flanking force.  After being so engaged, the Rebels fell back and retreated to their main line.
At this point the firing slowed to a few desultory volleys.  Our plan had been to replicate a portion of the fight on Sittlington’s Hill during the original battle of McDowell and the maneuvers and engagement were carefully scripted.  After it was done we were within five minutes of our estimated time for the end battle, and everything went off like clockwork.  We retired in good order and the regiment left the field to return to camp at about 4:00.

Kevin O’Beirne: The company returned to camp to cool off, water down, and clean weapons.  We had only 45 minutes before our next formation!
Saturday Evening/Possum Hollow
Lt. David Culberson, Rowdy Pards, Federal Commander: The regiment reformed at 5:00 p.m. in full marching order for supper.  Filing into the field next to the fire department, the regiment fronted, opened order, and dropped knapsacks.  The citizens treated us to a fine repast and we had an hour and a half of rest and camaraderie, mingling with our pards in gray.  It was a welcome scenario break.

Kevin O’Beirne: At 6:30 p.m., the battalion formed again and the march to Possum Hollow commenced.  There were a lot of overweight, out of shape guys at the event, and I was dismayed to see that fully half of the Federal battalion opted to remain in the fixed camps in town that night instead of coming with us to Possum Hollow.  This reduced the strength of the 3rd Virginia (U.S.) from nearly 300 men to about 150.  Because of a few “losses” from the company during the day due to health and exhaustion, Company C marched to the Hollow with about 40 men, comprising over one-quarter of the battalion.

The three-mile march to and from Possum Hollow, together with the fantastic scenery that accompanied it, made the whole event more than worth it.  The first mile was along a modern highway and occasionally an automobile passed the column at the speed of a mild walk.  One such vehicle, filled with three or four occupants, passed the rear of the company where Sergeant Irish was marching.  Normally Mr. Irish is a quiet man, but when one occupant of the vehicle said, “These damn Yankees ought to go home,” the Sergeant roared at the car’s occupants, “We’ll burn your house down, you son of a bitch!”  A new and everlasting nickname was born: “Torch” Irish.

Mike Peterson: The beauty of the country was incredible—I’d never seen this part of the Old Dominion before—and the views of the hills and valleys fading softly into the horizon was achingly beautiful.  During the march, I watched some young lambs skipping, just like they do in cartoons, on our way out of town.
Joe Albert: And did everyone notice that Kevin only fell down….once!!!

Kevin O’Beirne: It’s a good thing we have Josey to keep track of this for us…

Possum Hollow is magnificent and has truly beautiful scenery.  The Hollow itself is a snaking canyon over two miles long with steep sides.  A dirt road with a snake rail fence on both sides runs the length of the canyon, and there’s a very scenic, decidedly Nineteenth Century-looking farm at the far end of the Hollow.  Back up the Hollow, one couldn’t hear the noise of distant car- and truck-traffic to spoil the mood.  We got to the end of the Hollow at dusk.  We had some firewood and our potable water supply was from a real mountain spring.

Lt. Col. David Culberson, Rowdy Pards, Federal Commander: We covered the three mile march in an hour, including a ten-minute break.  Our pace was quick but not tiring.  There were no real stragglers and no one lamed as a result.

Kevin O’Beirne: The boys were rolling out their blankets as a few stray raindrops commenced falling.  Because we had no tents of any kind, shelter was a concern.  Lt. Col. Culberson came over and informed me that the men had the farmer’s permission to camp in the small barns that dotted the property—each barn had a ground floor and a loft, was about 25 feet by 12 feet, and housed a load of straw.  When given permission, the boys didn’t have to be told twice to get under cover.  Company C took up two full barns and, in the barn I was in, the 25 men were crammed in like cordwood.

Paul Rainey: There are many great memories that I brought home from McDowell, one being Saturday night in Possum Hollow—“most spectacular” describes the scenery.  The straw barn was a most welcome place to rest my head after a very, very long day.  My mess mate, Corporal Ryall, was the first to discover the barn’s hidden treasure, straw, which kept us from sleeping on the many rocks and cow droppings on the ground outside!

Dave Grieves: Saturday evening I witnessed the best “Civil War scene” in my living history career.  From our little barn on the hill, I could see the farm below us, with small cook fires surrounded by Union soldiers, and absolutely no modern intrusions.  It was quite wonderful.

Mike Peterson: Saturday night in Possum Hollow was interesting, especially when I persisted in trying to boil my coffee in the rain.  I was so intent on it that I did not notice the 100 or more men around me disappear into barns and shelters!

Kevin O’Beirne: The 25 of us crammed into one barn spent the evening lying on our blankets, trading stories and jokes, and singing a few songs.  Garr Gast sang a hilarious ditty about a Dutchman who’s wife ran off with another man, leaving him with only a bottle of schnapps.  Because of this Garr acquired a new nickname: “Schnapps” Gast.

We all had a “magic moment” just before full darkness fell.  Lt. Piering has an astoundingly fine tenor singing voice, and he treated us to a fantastic rendition of “Home Sweet Home”, which many of the boys joined in on the refrain.  This bittersweet song is heard entirely too seldom in the ranks of reenactors, and Chris did it justice, and sent a chill up my spine.  When he finished, there was total silence from those 25 men for a whole minute, with just the sound of the rain outside. This was without question one of the finest “moments” I’ve ever had in reenacting.

Eventually, the rain stopped but we all remained in the barn for the night.  The boys chatted for a while and soon fell off to sleep in the soft straw.  Lt. Piering and I went out about 11:00 to give things a quick look-see before turning in and, when I complimented his singing, he treated me to another song—this time the bittersweet tune, “Shiloh’s Bloody Hill”.

Sunday Morning
Mike Peterson: Saturday night I bivouacked with the Federal command staff in one of the barns.  On Sunday morning, as we were all waking up, I watched Lt. Col. Culberson reach for his gauntlets.  He had left them lying in the straw all night and found a black widow spider on them!  I spent much of the rest of Sunday morning wondering how many more poisonous spiders were in my clothing…

Kevin O’Beirne: Musicians’ Call sounded at 5:45 a.m. on Sunday morning and the company had trouble getting into line until about 6:05—at least five minutes after Reveille.  I was getting annoyed until Sergeant Tobey took matters skillfully in hand by corralling the latecomers and prohibiting them from falling in.  He took their names and later assigned them extra duty.  Hopefully we will see more of this type of “take charge” attitude and period-correct “punishment” at future events.  The men were dismissed and ordered to assemble again by 6:20 a.m. in full marching order.

Mike Peterson: One of the highlights of the event for me was being allowed to lead a prayer for the entire battalion in Possum Hollow on Sunday morning in the gray pre-dawn.  After this simple acknowledgement of the Sabbath, it was time to return to the practice of war.

Kevin O’Beirne: The battalion marched off by the right flank and moved about a quarter-mile down the Hollow, where we stacked arms and cooked breakfast.  Lt. Piering and I climbed up the wall of the canyon to a relatively flat spot twenty feet above the men and broke our fast, I providing a few still-edible hard crackers and he a magnificent hunk of real ham.  It was delicious.  We ate our meal and shared the company of Private Rainey.

During the halt, one company commenced singing an extremely bawdy, non-period song.  This type of crude, period-incorrect behavior, that must be meant only to show to hundreds of others within earshot how dumb some folks can be, ruined some good first-person “moments” and showed once again that some folks “just don’t get it”.

Mike Peterson: I was sitting up on the “wall” of the canyon with Lts. Piering and O’Beirne and, when those soldiers’ bawdy song blasphemed the Sabbath, I commenced throwing small rocks at them.  One stone bonked a “singer” on the top of his forage cap.

Kevin O’Beirne: Many thanks to Chaplain Curry for stoning those morons.

Soon the bugle blew, “Assembly” and the battalion fell in and took arms.  Company B (The Rowdy Pards), under Lt. Mike Murley, which stood guard all night long, guarded our rear with men posted on the steep hills on each side of the road.  The ten or twelve men of the Federal cavalry detachment, together with “Major” Heath of “General Schenk’s staff”, patrolled the road on the line of hills to the east—the direction of the town and from which we thought the Rebs would come.  Lt. Col. Culberson took Captain Sterner’s Left Wing and marched them back up the Hollow.  I was told that the Colonel was guarding the spot where the ridge road intersected with the Hollow road to prevent the Rebs from cutting off our Right Wing.  The officer that told me this (and I honestly cannot recall who it was) was dead wrong—the Colonel had taken the Left Wing all the way out of the Hollow!  Major Crickenberger and our Right Wing were on our own, with only two very small companies of infantry plus Company C.  It would be an interesting morning.

Our plan was thus: when the Rebs came, Company B was to trade a few shots and retire.  Assuming the main body of the Confederate battalion would come straight at us up the Hollow, the Major positioned Captain Hutchinson’s Company A (National Regiment) behind Lt. Murley to give the Johnnies a warm welcome.  Here the canyon was narrow, containing only the road and a small stream, and the twenty or so men of Company A were ordered to hold the Rebs for a few minutes and then retire.  The Major placed us, Company C, about 100 yards behind Mr. Hutchinson’s men at a sharp bend in the road, behind the snake-rail fence.  I told the men to load, keep their packs on, and conceal themselves behind the fence; leaning weapons on the fence so that shiny, telltale muzzles would give us away was forbidden.

The men dozed for over thirty minutes, and it seemed that the only nervous man in the lot was Lt. Piering, who came to me every five minutes expressing concern about our position.  At one point I agreed with the Lt. that we should move the whole company one section of fence to the left, and so the whole company moved twenty feet.  Five minutes later Lt. Piering was back, informing me that he had scouted our position and that he thought we didn’t have a clear field of fire up the road.  He now advised that we move three sections of fence to the right!  “It’s of no account, Mr. Piering.  We will simply fire by the left oblique.  Dismissed.”
Soon we heard shots through the trees to our right front—first the cavalry on the ridge, then Lt. Murley’s men.  In a while, Company B came down the road and passed us in good order, telling us that Johnny was indeed on his way.  I ordered the men to prime and keep down. Soon we heard distant shouts and crashing noises of bodies of men moving through heavy woods, and in less than three minutes Mr. Hutchinson’s Company A commenced firing.  They were facing two or three good-sized companies of Rebs who were pressing them hard, so Company A held out the required three minutes and then double-quicked passed us to the rear. I took my slouch hat off and peered over the fence.  Two hundred yards ahead, the road was filled with Rebs…it was time. “Company C, firing by company!  Ready!  Aim!”…and Johnny up the road saw forty muskets leveled at him from an ambush he was helpless to prevent… “Fire!”  A good volley—crash!  “Load!”  When the smoke cleared, Johnny’s ranks were in confusion.  We gave them a second volley but clearly our men were both poor shots and the Bebs were determined men, so I ordered Lt. Piering to take charge of the colors and withdraw with the 2nd Platoon about 150 yards down the road.

The poor Rebs apparently thought that 2nd Platoon was the entire company leaving in a hurry, and they advanced on the double-quick, and the 1st Platoon let them get within 100 yards before rising up and again blasting them with a good volley.  It was like shooting really dumb fish in a barrel.  We traded a few more volleys, and then there were gray skirmishers coming down the steep canyon wall to our rear so I ordered the platoon to fall back.

The 1st Platoon was made of stern stuff, and we fell back about 50 to 100 yards at a time, loading on the march, and then came to the right about halt, fired again (usually by rank), held our ground for a bit, and eventually retreated.  We eventually reached a place where the canyon opened to about 70 yards in width, where we halted and held the Rebs at bay for several minutes, giving the rest of the wing time to hook up with the Colonel and the Left Wing—quite some distance to our rear.  If I’d known how much our “brasses” were exposed, we probably wouldn’t have been so tenacious in our withdrawal down the Hollow.
Here a number of Reb skirmishers were seen on the slope to our right and Orderly Sergeant Tobey took four men, splashed across the creek, and leapt into the woods beyond.  I soon saw graybacks running as best they could back up the steep slope, and the Orderly’s detachment returned to the platoon.  The platoon was still calm and rock-steady, although Corporal Tyler looked a tad nervous at times.

About a company or two of Johnnies took cover behind some rocks about 150 yards up the road and, to save ammunition, I had the boys engage in some sharpshooting.  Apparently marksmanship is poor in Company C, because not a single Reb was hit.

Paul Rainey: I hope the Lt. accepts my regrets for missing my “shot” at those Johnnies hovering around the road pursuing us.  Although at least I tried...I seem to recall that Josey Albert never did pull the trigger when the Lt. ordered him to.  It seems he kept making excuses...

Steve Tyler: There were many times on Sunday when I felt the urge to break and run—but somehow I also felt a need to stay with my company.  Those were “period moments”.  I did not want to be captured, shamed, or killed.  This was a dilemma the boys we represented surely faced.

Kevin O’Beirne: Eventually the Major and ADC Lt. Pannier came up the road, congratulated our defense, and ordered us to rejoin the rest of the battalion.  I must say, Lt. Pannier and Adjutant Cleaveland seemed to be everywhere that morning!

Lt. Col. David Culberson, Rowdy Pards, Federal Commander: It struck me at about this time that, through the use of runners, mounted troops, foot and mounted ADCs I was communicating and controlling troops over a distance front to rear in excess of three miles and flank to flank of about a mile, and never once resorting to the radio. Astonishing!

Kevin O’Beirne: It was quite amazing to see just how far we had to march to catch up with the rest of the battalion!  Followed by some secesh skirmishers who did not annoy us much, we eventually reached the enormous open field at the head of the Hollow.

Lt. Col. David Culberson, Rowdy Pards, Federal Commander: The rattle of muskets started in our front and soon our Right Wing appeared, making an orderly withdrawal in the face of the enemy.  Captain Will “The Terrier” Hutchinson led Company A into the field, and the huge Company C (Columbia Rifles) made its lumbering way in and all the companies fell into their places in the regimental front.  The colors were placed to the rear and center.  More martial airs serenaded the engagement.

Kevin O’Beirne: After a short rest, Major Crickenberger ordered Company C to deploy as skirmishers on knolls to the right.  After we deployed, our line covered a front nearly 500 feet in length.  We waited, at most, ten minutes and then the secesh revealed themselves.

Lt. Col. David Culberson, Rowdy Pards, Federal Commander: The plan was to draw the Rebels out of the Hollow and into the meadow, where we would ambush them.

Kevin O’Beirne: The Rebs didn’t show much imagination.  They greatly outnumbered us and came right down the Hollow into the Federal line.  From our elevated position, we had a good view of the battle raging in the northwestern 20 percent of the huge meadow.  Soon skirmishing broke out above us too, but was first contained by the Federal cavalry and then another bluecoated company moved across our front, negating our effectiveness.  The situation down below was becoming critical and the Major ordered Company C to assemble on the wing.

Now commenced great exertions.  There were Rebs all over the meadow and we advanced, fired, retreated, and repeated the process many times.  Much of the time we moved at the double-quick, in full marching order, without a shred of cover.  The boys did extremely well and made me very proud.

Mike Peterson: From my somewhat detached position as the chaplain, I was able to watch the Sunday morning running battle unfold and roll up the canyon and across the hills and fields.  It was an amazing sight.

Kevin O’Beirne: The Sunday morning “fight” was actually kind pretty fun; I didn’t think I’d ever enjoy “a powder burner”—that’s what it was—again but, indeed, I enjoyed it immensely.

Lt. Col. David Culberson, Rowdy Pards, Federal Commander: Things were hot and hairy as our men were beginning to get really low on ammunition. About this time, the Confederate skirmishers on our right were presented with a rather nasty surprise as Capt. Gang’s flying reserve arose and delivered hot fire into their left flank from their perch on the pinnacle of a nearby knoll.  This caused, as my comrade and ADC Lt. Pannier put it, “all kinds of hatred and discontent” as the Rebels were forced to supplement their skirmishers with two or more full companies to protect their flank.  Between our flying reserve and the treatment Johnny was getting to his front in our well-devised funnel plan, had we been firing lead bullets instead of blanks, the field would’ve been ours.  The slaughter would have been outrageous and the 3rd Virginia would never have had to cross the Bull Pasture River.

Kevin O’Beirne: The field we had to cross was at least a mile square, and was filled with small knolls and dells.  We were working in tandem with Company A as we withdrew, chased by a gray battalion of about 150 men.  Company C got at least 200 yards in front of the Johnnies and I ordered the men to kneel behind the crest of a small knoll.  The Rebs pressed dumbly on in hot pursuit of Company A.  If the fools didn’t watch out, they would present their flank squarely to us…
Which was exactly what they did.  I ran to the Major and said that Company C requested the honor of making a bayonet charge into the Rebel flank, to which he quickly agreed.  I rank back to the company and as I rounded its flank, moving to the front, I ordered, “Fourth Company, attention!  On your feet!  We’re going into these bastards with the bayonet.  Prepare to charge!  Arms, porte!”  Like something in the movies, I positioned myself at the front of the company, sword held high, and yelled over my shoulder to the men, “Forward, at the double quick, CHARGE!”

The yell that Company C let out at that moment was actually scary.  We charged down that knoll right at the Rebs.  Their line saw us, stopped, and recoiled.  Confusion appeared to be breaking out as we bore down on them.  With our momentum, I was afraid we would actually tear into them.  Two companies on their flank let off a ragged volley at the left oblique, and that was enough.  At least a half-dozen of our men went down, our formation was broken, and the rest withdrew back up the knoll.  It was one of the most magnificent charges I’d ever seen at a reenactment, and it made me grin ear to ear to know that I had led it, and that the Rebs had reacted well.

We re-formed and continued to withdraw.  We positioned ourselves to cover the retreat of the rest of the wing through a fence, which was accomplished in good order.

Lt. Col. David Culberson, Rowdy Pards, Federal Commander: The Bull Pasture River was in our rear and we slowly and begrudgingly withdrew toward a predetermined fording place.  We put the colors and music across and the rest of the battalion forded as each company came up.  Reforming on the other bank, we volleyed by wing and battalion.  Johnny had lots of lead for breakfast that Sunday.

Jerry “Gramps” Grehl: The company did very well that Sunday morning, and one of the things I was pleased to see was, when everyone was ordered across the ford, there was no hesitation and not one word of complaint from the men.  This isn’t usually the case when “other” reenactors are ordered to get their feet wet.

Lt. Col. David Culberson, Rowdy Pards, Federal Commander: Suddenly, from our extreme left and at a run, an understrength Bocephus Platoon came flying across our entire Left Wing’s front in a kamikaze charge for the ford.  Taking volley after volley and exhibiting remarkable impunity from its effects, these yahoo partisan rangers violated all the rules of engagement to which both sides had agreed and threw themselves onto the gate at the ford, less than ten feet from the muzzles of our rear guard.  This was the low point of the weekend, and it was aggravated when I was later asked by a Confederate officer to contribute funds to compensate the farmer for the very-real damage to the gate.  Those troops ought to be identified and publicly censured.

Standing on the bank of the river, we poured volley after volley into the gray ranks on the opposite bank.  Soon they approached our right and began making earnest efforts at rallying to cross in our front.  The battalion moved by right of companies to the rear and withdrew through another gate and took a place of advantage on the macadamized road, which commanded a good view at significant height and giving us a fine field of fire.  Here we delivered a volley to the left oblique into the oncoming Confederates, after which the regiment withdrew toward town.

Sunday Battle in Town
Kevin O’Beirne: During the march back to town, the company in front of us—the ones who sang the song at breakfast that moved “Reverend Curry” to stone them—commenced singing yet another non-period tune.  After one verse of this torture, the boys of Company C started singing “John Brown's Body” at the top of their lungs, which completely drowned out the singing of our farbier compatriots.  Well done, lads! We finally arrived back in McDowell and the field and staff officers formed the battalion into successive battle lines across the main road.  Certainly someone somewhere goofed up controlling modern vehicular traffic when, as the battle was about to get underway, Company C had to wheel out of the way to let cars through.

The battle in the town commenced in earnest, mostly for the pleasure of spectators.  We were getting quite low on ammunition.  I wasn’t all that aware of the ebb and flow of the battle, and it’s best to see Lt. Col. Culberson’s report for such details.

The blue battle lines in front of us withdrew and reformed in our rear, leaving us as the front line.  The Rebs surged forward, and the Lt. Col. ordered us, with Company A, to charge the enemy.   We advanced up the road at the double-quick to within fifty yards and the Rebel line blasted us with a good volley.  About six or seven of our men went down on the pavement (ouch!) and, at my pre-arranged command, the rest of Company C broke and ran like scared sheep.

Mark Herzog: We bolted straight into the next line of Federals hollering for all we were worth, “Run for your lives!”  The provost—who did such a fine job on Saturday—must have really been in “the moment” as well because he tried to throw me to the side of the road.  My shoes might as well have been ice skates on that pavement and I almost took a nosedive.  I was a bit annoyed at the time but, looking back, I know that we were all stoked up and these things happen.

Dave Cubby, “Company E” (15th New Jersey): Somewhere in the midst of the wild retreat through the town, a company in front of us [Company C, the Columbia Rifles – Ed.] broke, and their men came streaming through our line, hollering, “We’re whipped!  Turn back!” and trying to pull us along.  At that minute, the look of fear on their faces and the chaos around us—particularly by one fellow who was tossed to one side by my company commander—transported me back in time for a minute.  I was truly in the spirit of first person and I’ve never seen anything that looked more realistic in reenacting.

Kevin O’Beirne: We barged through not one but two other Federal lines in our rear, remaining in first-person, and were stopped 150 yards later only when Adjutant Cleaveland leapt into our path, splayed his arms wide, loudly yelled “STOP!”, and rallied us.  For our company as well as many others, it was the highlight of Sunday’s spectator battle.

We saw no further appreciable action that day. The “fighting” pushed us through the town, and ended when the Rebs were blasted by the artillery of Durrell’s Pennsylvania Battery, positioned just over the Bull Pasture River, after which a truce was called.  This was basically the end of the event.  We posed for a company photo by our faithful civilian compatriot, Ray Legere of Maine.  Eventually, I was saddened to give the men the final order of the weekend, “Company C, great job!  Break ranks, march!”

Several of us lingered in town for a few more hours.  We changed into Twenty-first Century clothing, visited some of the craftspeople, and partook in the free (for reenactors) and tasty chicken barbecue at the fire department.  After we had eaten like starved men, the last of Company C hit the road for home.

Final Thoughts
Lt. Col. David Culberson, Rowdy Pards, Federal Commander: The Columbia Rifles were outstanding, to say the least, not only as to numbers but also with respect to appearance, performance, knowledge, and attitude.  You boys are some of the very best in the hobby.  Chris Piering with Dave Grieves and the color guard did an outstanding job exploring a new role and carried it off with aplomb.

Paul Rainey: We were no doubt the best-organized company in the re-created 3rd Virginia, and I feel privileged to be part of the company and the Columbia Rifles.  It is impressive to watch us work together as a team, with everybody doing what it takes, so to speak.

Kevin O’Beirne: Overall, the Federal battalion command and staff did an excellent job, both before and during the event.  This lent a more-realistic feel to battalion schedules and movements than I’ve seen at any other event.  Hats off to Duke Culberson and John Cleaveland and the rest of the staff for a job well done!

Chris Piering: The men of Company C were excellent, and were the reason why other officers kept complimenting Kevin and I so highly on the company.

Kevin O’Beirne: I would be remiss if I didn’t also add that being part of Company C for the weekend was the best thing that happened to me at this event.
Orderly Sergeant John Tobey was truly the model of efficiency and competence, and was the best First Sergeant that anyone could ask for.  Second Sergeant Paul “Torch” Irish did a fine job, and easily handled the daunting task of being the commissary sergeant for over 50 men.  Third Sergeant Garr “Schnapps” Gast did his usual fine job, and also served as the company ordnance sergeant and “authenticity cop” when each man arrived in camp.  Inspecting 50 men one at a time wasn’t a fun task and Schnapps handled it without complaint.  Our corporals, Lonny Ryall, Nate Albert, Mark Herzog, and Steve Tyler, all turned in fine performances.
We worked the corporals and sergeants “for real” (compared to most events) and, to a man, they all responded with great competence.  This is what happens when men study before an event.  Our color guard, made up of Color Sergeant Dave Grieves and Corporals Czerow (122nd), Fleet (122nd), Grehl, Henion, Ivancic (Rockport), Johnson, MacKay (122nd NY), and Pell (122nd), was fantastic.

The enlisted men of Company C proved that they the equal of the best reenactors in the hobby.  I heard no grumbling from the men when they were assigned to guard duty, when the locals in town didn’t seem to always cooperate with what we were doing with the reenactment, and on the march.  What I did hear from the men was some good first-person, and I saw some great reenacting.
While serving on the battalion staff, CR pard Mike Peterson became Eastern Federal reenacting’s first “campaigner chaplain” and was highly complimented by the battalion staff.
Finally, and perhaps most important, thanks to 2nd Lt. Chris Piering for being a rock-steady second-in-command, and a man to whom I turned often for advice during the event.  Chris is an asset to any unit and I was very glad to have him at my side throughout the weekend.  Chris commanded the police guard in town on Saturday and did fine service there, and commanded the Federal skirmishers on Saturday.

Rob Willis: The event was first class in most ways, and that was due to the care and professionalism shown by the members of the CR—the willingness to help everyone else shows that our unit is a real team.

Dave Grieves: Thanks to all who had a hand in organizing the best event I have had the honor to attend.

Josh Cohen: I now fear that a lot of events will be let downs, because McDowell was outstanding.  At this event, I had what was probably my best time ever in reenacting and I thank the Columbia Rifles for having me.

Kevin O’Beirne: Overall this event gets an “A minus” from yours truly.  It was one of the very best I’ve attended in the 85 or so reenactments in which I have participated, and hopefully we will see more such events in the future, and more battalions that are run in the manner of the re-created 3rd Virginia (U.S.).  Hail Columbia!

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