Fort Walla Walla Days! from the front lines

When I got up this morning, the first thing I did was to bring in the Walla Walla Union-Bulletin from the front porch. We'd seen a reporter and a photographer at Fort Walla Walla Days! yesterday and I was hoping to get some free 'pr.' I was not disappointed ... there we are at the 'centerfold' of the front-page section in living color! "Civil War Reenactment at Fort Walla Walla a Blast" with a couple of color photos. Yaaay! The story is online, too: http://www.union-bulletin.com/articles/2009/06/14/local_news/090614bcivilwar.txt

We had a blast ourselves yesterday, meeting and greeting all the historical interpreters, some of whom have been attending the event for many years. Included this year are lots of kids, who kept things lively with their small-scale uniforms and boundless energy. I stopped at a local grocer's on the way in this morning to get them a box of ice cream sandwhiches, a small salute for their efforts.

The battle re-enactment was won by the Confederates this year, but the biggest winners were the 200 or so members of the audience who were treated to cannon blasts, frontal assualts, and a host of military tactics appropriate to the 1860s. "A good time was had by all" hardly covers it.

At days' end, we gathered all our volunteers and event participants for our annual 'Fiendship Dinner on the grounds near the pioneer village. We 'ate fat' on picnic fare, donated to a great extent by Super 1 Foods, Safeway, Andy's Foods, and Grocery Outlet. Their generosity and community spirit makes a lot of what we do possible. Our hat is off to their dedication.

We're about to get after it again today, with another battle scheduled for early afternoon. Grab the kids, call your friends and tell 'em, Meet me at the Museum!

Construction news: For those of us whose 'inner five-year' old still likes dump trucks, Friday was a gas. The ground had been leveled out during the week so that morning trucks laden with gravel began spreading their loads in our new parking lot. I imagine this means paving will begin before long, too. Stay tuned!

Today's photos show (from the top down) dump trucks spreading gravel, our friendly little trooper girl, the crowd watching the battle, a couple of Spanish-American War re-enactors, and a contingent of Confederates ... visitors on the grounds can see where those 'Rebs' hoisted their flag on the windmill on the upper grounds. I laughed my head off this morning at their ingenuity.

The clip below is a little of the 'Battle for Fort Walla Walla Park' yesterday afternoon. Enjoy!