Clarksville, TN – Each February, Fort Defiance hosts re-enactors and Civil War enthusiasts who share information on the Surrender of Fort Defiance, a look at local history complete with the firing of muskets and a cannon.
Re-enactor Nora Blake said, “We’re portraying members of the 9th Kentucky, a Union Volunteer Infantry unit that was actually based in Murfreesboro, TN. Originally formed in Tompkinsville, KY, a lot of people left Tennessee to join the Union Army.”
Blake says many in her group like to do living history at least once a month at locations around the state, especially Stones River National Battlefield in Murfreesboro.
John Blake laid out maps and pictures that told an interesting story. “The maps show where the campaign took place,” Blake said. “The iron furnace was one of the things that made this region important. Until 1862, this was a major iron-producing region, and once the war began, that production was for the Confederacy, which made this area attractive for federal troops to take.”
Blake had great information on Kentucky’s actions during the war and the importance of the Union Army moving into Tennessee. He talked about ironclad gunboats in great detail.
William Parker, Historical Interpreter at Fort Defiance said, “We’re having our annual surrender event, commemorating the surrender of Clarksville, which happened on February 19, 1862. We have a portrayal of Clarksville Mayor George Smith, and the firing of artillery. We do that twice a year. We also do musket firings, and there are static displays set up outside to show tents and the way soldier life would have been.”
Photo Gallery
