Prince William County, Va. –– The two sides of the American Civil War came to fight outside Manassas on Saturday, just as they did 150 years ago.
More than 8,000 reenactors from across the U.S. and in Canada descended on Pageland Farm in Prince William County to relive the Battle of First Manassas, or Bull Run. It was the cornerstone event of what a weekend full of Civil War remembrances and activities to commemorate the war’s sesquicentennial.
Thousands packed the viewing stands, stood along the sides of the field, and packed cooling tents during the event. With temperatures soaring into the 90s during the event and later into the 100s, keeping cool was the order of the day.
“They’re little fans and they can sprits water on your face. We bought the last ones they had on the shelves at Bed Bath and Beyond,” said Collen Amico, holding a battery-powered handheld fan to her face. A popular item, she was one of three in her group that used one.
The heat, however, was too much for some to take as 143 patients were evaluated by EMS staff and 11 hospitalized.
“We planned for this incident and maintained sufficient staff and resources to manage the patient volume. We had resources from Prince William, Arlington, Loudoun, Fairfax, Stafford and Montgomery County, Md.,” said Prince William County Fire and Rescue Department Battalion Chief Joseph Robertson.
Dressed in wool uniforms just as soldiers did in 1861, true to history, the battle raged on until the Union Army retreated leaving the Confederates bruised and battered, unable to chase them back to Washington.
“My dad has been doing Civil War reenactments for the past 16 years, as a confederate, and this is really one of the largest events we’ve ever seen,” said Peter Amico, of Stafford.
