I want to be a Re-enactor...so how do I start?
By Wynne Eden
People who begin re-enacting often get interested in what they see at an event. You like what you see a couple of people wearing or a vendor selling, and spend some money. The problem is that you may not be lucky enough to buy just the right stuff for the persona you end up portraying. Most folks have lots of cool stuff in a closet they can’t use because it doesn’t fit the time period, locale, or persona they portray.
It’s difficult to know what you need to get started, but you’re at an event and want to buy something. You make a guess, either alone or with help from a vendor who has good intentions but needs to make sales to support their own participation at the event. You want to get everything you need to go to the event next month, but you rarely find all you need for a portrayal at an event, because many items have to be handmade specifically to fit you, and it's hard to decide exactly what it is you should have bought. So what do you do?
The things that make up a re-enactor’s “kit” are material goods: clothing, weapons, tools, cookware, and even furniture. When you start re-enacting you are building another life, another persona, that you want to be as complete as is appropriate for the event where you are doing the interpretation. Think about what it would take to gather all the “stuff” for your present life if you had to start over. Even though we’re re-enacting a period when people had much less stuff--fewer material goods-that could still be both overwhelming and expensive.
So, before you spend any money or jump into a big sewing project, think about a few things:
Where: Where am I? Locale is the first decision you should make, and one that will affect the remainder of your decisions. If you live in South Florida, it doesn't make much sense to portray one of Roger’s Rangers or an Iroquois warrior at local events. You have to stretch the story too far. Think about where you'll participate in events most often, and do some basic research on what the cultural groups in that area were or are, what history or historical events surround them.
When: When am I? Once you know where, and a little about the history of the area, you can select a time period. This will allow you to focus your research and make sure the items you buy or make fit the locale and time period. The events you will be able to participate in help define this. There probably aren't many French and Indian era events in Alaska, so a period such as the Fur Trade era might be your choice.
Goals: What are my goals as a re-enactor? Decide on what sort of events you expect to participate in. If you expect to portray a Mvscogee woman in the 1750's at living history day type events, a member of the SC Colonial militia at battle reenactments, or spend most of your time hunting/trekking with a group such as our Coalition of Historical Trekkers (COHT) (http://www.coht.org), your choices of material goods will be different. For example, you would need to have some cooking gear and basic craft items to give a good demonstration in a permanent interpretive village, but won't need a lot of cookware if you are traveling light on a campaign during the F&I.
Persona: What's my story? Think about the history of the person you would like to portray. It could be a historical figure (not easy to do), someone from your family tree (very interesting to research) or a somewhat generic local midwife, war chief, mother, farmer, blacksmith, hunter or whatever. Think about a simple life history, including age and background. Don't get too hung up in details here, but think about what you would have to know and what material goods you would need to live a day in that person's shoes in the situations you expect to be reenacting. Make a list to help focus your thoughts.
Once you have pretty good ideas about these questions, it's time to do some in-depth research. Head to the local library and read what they have on hand about the history of the time and place you are going to portray. Check the bibliography and links on various web sites. Join one of the many mailing lists, electronic or otherwise out there, and take a little time to read their archives and ask questions, both about specific items or material goods in general. It’s a good idea to keep notes as you research. Write down the author, title, and page number where you saw that quote about tall pointy bearskin hats; it will be important some day.
As you start to study, you may find that your local library may not have what you're looking for, but would probably be glad to have you use their Interlibrary Loan Service (ILL). You need pretty good bibliographic information for the library to request a book. The author's name, full title, year published, and publisher are helpful, as is the "ISBN", or international standard book number. You can find this info with the help of your local librarian, from the Library of Congress' Web site: http://www.loc.gov/, or from the bibliographies in other books and web sites.
Another source of ideas for getting started research is other people. Go to events, and talk to the folks there. Ask them for suggestions of places to find things--craftspeople, sutlers, even museums where material goods are displayed. Most living historians want to help new people get started out right. You should get specific historical citations from people though, not general “they used this” statements. Take that information back to the library, and read some more, or ask for suggestions on books that condense the information for you. For example, Native interpreters have the excellent sources Their Bearing is Noble and Proud (Volumes 1 and 2), by James O’Neill, to help them find the specific quotes on appearance and material goods of Natives during the colonial period. There are many resources for mid-18th century European portrayals, including Beth Gilgun’s Tidings from the 18th Century. Other re-enactors are good sources for where to look for these books.
When you feel like you have enough information to really get started at this, sit down and plan out the Where, When, Goals, and Story. Be detailed about the first two, and as specific as practical about the rest. Make a list of the things you’d like to have.
Once you have your plan together for your persona, you can start to shop or make items. Starting simple is usually the best idea. If you think this way, the cost of getting started in re-enacting really isn't all that high. All it takes to participate in an event is the bare minimum of equipment. Pick a mild weather event, go for the day, and wear basic clothing. For a Native re-enactor, a shirt, moccasins, leggings/breechclout or wrap skirt make a basic portrayal. If it's summer, you can go without the moccasins.
For military portrayals, you may be able to borrow much of the uniform from a local group. Settlers will need the most basic clothing to be “decent”, and would likely benefit from borrowing from others at first, just to see if this is really what you hope it is.
Once you’ve got basic clothing, find a simple cup and wooden bowl, a wooden, silver, or pewter spoon, and you're pretty much set for the day. Wander around, talk to folks. You’ll quickly begin to feel like you fit in.
As you get more comfortable, start working out the details of your persona, such as where you came from, what your job is. This helps identify the other material goods you would have with you. Now you can start to go shopping in earnest!
Be very cautious when you start a project or make purchases, especially of high cost or difficult to make items. For example, it is very easy to spend a thousand dollars on a gun you won't want to use at events because you find out it's just not "PC" for your persona, locale, and time period. You might weave or buy a beautiful hand woven L'Assomption sash, but if you're not a French trader, you may have a hard time working out how that fits your persona.
Before you decide on what you do want to buy or make, please follow these two rules of thumb:
For people just starting out, items should follow the "Plain, Everyday, and Common" standard. This is a standard for clothing, gear, and equipment that ignores the outrageous, the rare, the one-of-a-kind, the exception and strives for what is correct for the culture, location, time frame, socio-economic class, history, etc. of the individual. Wait 'til you have a basic kit to add things that need a lot of explaining. "I got this justacorps (French military coat) from a dead soldier after the battle at such-and-such" may explain why you are wearing it (sort of), but doesn't address the commonality of the item. In my (sometimes) humble opinion, let the other person be "that guy" who is the exception. Portraying a middle of the road, "plain, everyday, common" person creates a more realistic picture of the time period and locale, so is a better idea, especially if you’re just starting out.
If at all possible, items should have three sources of documentation for your persona, time, and locale. That's not as hard as it sounds, if you stick to the first rule. A sutler's statement about something being documented doesn't count, by the way, unless they give you the citation-author, title, and page number.
There are arguments for and against the three sources and Plain, Everyday and Common rules, but remember, you have to start somewhere, and it’s much easier to continue to use or resell something later if it was a common item that everyone needed and used. Once you gain knowledge and experience, you can start working on the items that make your persona a unique one. The quilled shooting pouch you got during the two years you were a Courier du bois among the Huron, the Scotch dirk your father left you, the many different medicinal herbs you learned from German, Irish, and Native people in your trip south from the Pennsylvania settlements. Start simple, have fun.
As a member of the COHT, you have access to a lot of people who are very interested in helping you get started. Don’t let the lack of information, or even lack of some particular item, stop you from jumping right in and enjoying things. All you have to do is ask!
Some suggested sources:
Gilgun, Beth. Tidings from the 18th Century. Scurlock Publishing Co., Inc. , 1999
Baumgarten, Linda, John Watson, and Florine Carr. Costume Close Up : Clothing Construction and Pattern, 1750-1790. Costume and Fashion Pr; 2000. ISBN: 0896762262
Bradfield, Nancy. Costume in Detail: 1730-1930. Quite Specific Media Group Ltd; 2nd edition 1997 ISBN: 0896762173
O’Neil, James, Their Bearing is Noble and Proud (Volumes 1 and 2), published by Author. Available from Blue Heron Mercantile and Eholee-Opal Designs.
Other native resources available from my web site: http://bellsouthpwp.net/s/t/stickbow/