2,000 TO TAKE PART IN BATTLE OF BELMONT REENACTMENT

EAST PRAIRIE -- Nearly 132 years ago the men of the North and South faced each other in one of the first battles of the Civil War.

On Saturday and Sunday almost 2,000 reenactors will recreate that Nov. 7, 1861, battle. The event will be held along the shore of the Mississippi River near the obscure Mississippi County town of Belmont.

The reenactment is sponsored by the Mississippi County Industrial Development Authority.

The event will recall one of the Civil War's earliest battles. It involved Federal troops under the command of a newly-promoted Brig. Gen. Ulysses Simpson Grant, 39, and a Confederate force under the command of Gen. Leonidas Polk.

Grant and his troops had come down the Mississippi River by steamboat from Cairo, Ill., to "demonstrate" against Polk's forces, who had established a camp at Belmont. But instead of demonstrating, as ordered by Gen. John C. Freemont, commanding officer of the Western Department at St. Louis, Grant launched a surprise attack on the Confederate camp, forcing them to flee. The next morning, while the Union troops were not on alert, the Confederate force counter-attacked and forced the Yankees to retreat to their steamboat.

The battle at Belmont almost ended the life and military career of Grant, who had one horse shot out from under him. He narrowly escaped being struck by a miniball that crashed into the sofa where he had been sitting in his cabin aboard the steamboat.

The reenactment of the Battle of Belmont will take place about 3 miles north of the original battle site. The battle will begin at 1 p.m., Saturday with a Federal assault on Fort Johnston, the Confederate camp. At 1 p.m. Sunday the battle resumes, depicting the regrouping of the Confederate troops who successfully charged the Union forces, forcing them to flee from the fort they had seized the day before.

The first reenactment of the battle was held in 1991, and despite heavy rain that turned the battlefield into a quagmire, the event was described a success.

Reenactment groups from Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Oklahoma, Alabama, Texas, Indiana, Virginia, Mississippi and Nebraska, along with individual reenactors from Utah, California, Florida, Ohio, Wisconsin and Minnesota have already registered for the event. More are expected to register upon arrival.

The reenactment is under the direction of Fred DeField of Charleston. "The success of our first effort has resulted in the turnout of reenactors this time," said DeField. "Everywhere I've been, I've heard good reports about Belmont, and they all want to come back."

DeField said a minimum of 46 pieces of artillery will be at Belmont, along with a large group of artillery, cavalry and infantry units.

Also registered are 22 sutlers - those who owned traveling stores and sold wares and supplies to the troops during the Civil War.

Union and Confederate camps will open at 9 a.m. each day. On Saturday at 10 a.m., there will be a cavalry obstacle course with both Union and Confederates participating. Members of the Mississippi County Historical Society will host a women's tea at 10 a.m. at the battlefield, and a fashion show of mid-1800s attire will be directed by the women of Semme's Battery and the 7th Kentucky Infantry, CSA.

Following the battle on Saturday, spectators can watch a horse race and tug-of-war around 4 p.m. The camps will close to the public at 5 p.m.

On Sunday, reveille will be sounded at 8 a.m. followed by a Civil War-era church service and official opening of the camps at 9 a.m. At 10 a.m., there will be a parade and review of the troops, drills, demonstrations and music by a brass ensemble of Charleston High School students. Sunday's battle will begin at 2 p.m.

Angels of the Battlefield, made up of approximately 20 nurses from throughout the United States, will set up a field hospital open to the public. A staff of medical officers will reenact medical battlefield procedures that were common during the war.

There will also be a mess tent, tents displaying cavalry equipment, and a "camp follower" will also put in an appearance. All are open to the public.

Concession stands will serve food and drinks, and souvenir booths will sell Union and Confederate items, T-shirts, sweatshirts, and other items, including copies of a local Battle of Belmont booklet.

Signs will be posted directing spectators from all major highways to the battlefield. Ample parking is available. Parking is $2 and admission is $3 per person, with children under 6 admitted free.

DeField said the battleground is on the river side of the levee and spectators will view the battle from atop the levee. Folding chairs or blankets are suggested.