On The Eve Of My Absolutely Final Sesquicentennial Event - USCT Grand Review Harrisburg.

So here I am at the Hilton in Harrisburg PA for my absolutely, positively final Civil War Sesquicentennial event - The 2015 USCT Grand Review.  I started late doing Antietam on my own.

My covivant came with me to Chancellorsville.  We did special hike with the Park Service simulating Stonewall's flank attack that was off from real time, but it was understandable since you wouldn't want people thrashing around in the woods in the dark.

You can see CV standing behind the speaker at the beginning of the video.

We did Gettysburg big time.  We were there the whole time and participated in several walks including Pickett's Charge. I did the walk and CV was waiting for me behind the wall.

After that the word from CV was like the WW II movie trope - "For you the war is over".

But I talked her into going to the Gettysburg address 150.  The best part was Antonin Scalia swearing in some new citizens.

Nothing really called to me in 1864 - I mean 2014, but I had to go to Appomattox and then there was the Grand Review in May.

I talked my son into going to that one.

I thought I was done but it turns out there is one more.  African American troops were excluded from the original Grand Review (although not the one in 2015), but the City of Harrisburg made up for it by having a Grand Review for the United States Colored Troops.  That is tomorrow's event.

The drive down was pretty uneventful. It is pretty blustery.  The only reminder that I noted on the drive down was that a stretch of Route 6 is called the Grand of The Republic Highway. I did a little tour of Harrisburg.  Front street along the Susquehanna is really nice.  Next to the Methodist church where the parade will start there was a building with American Red Cross carved in the stone above the door.  I chatted with somebody at the door asking if she had heard about the review and she told me she had seen a banner which I did not find.  I told her I was from North Oxford which made zero impression. I then told her it was the birthplace of Clara Barton and then realized that the building was no longer owned by the Red Cross.

There is an invitation only dinner tonight.  I'm not going to try to crash it, but I am hoping to do some interviews outside.  We'll see how it goes.