Back to
the Meeting of the
Meeting of the Great
Rivers Scenic Byway

The Jersey County Victorian Festival
Civil War Era Reenactments
Jerseyville, Illinois

Labor Day Weekend
September 5 - September 7, 2009

Visit a Civil War Encampment

Civil War Battle
The Civil War battle reenactment begins daily at 2:30 pm

Perhaps the most popular attraction at the Festival is the daily afternoon battle. Although over a quarter of a million men from Illinois were involved in the Civil War, no military battles were fought in the state and the battle at the Festival will actually be a tactical demonstration between groups representing Union and Confederate forces. Spectators will be able to witness infantry and cavalry charges, authentic cannons booming, and the medical corps attending the wounded during the demonstration.

Civil War Undertaker

Embalming surgeons Dr. Benjamin F. Lyford and Dr. C. B. Chamberlain portrayed by the staff of the Museum of Funeral Customs in Springfield, IL, re-create the application of embalming during the Civil War period.  They will demonstrate field embalming each day and discuss nineteenth century funeral practices.  Even though embalming had been introduced twenty years earlier, the War offered a need to apply the technique to preserve the remains of soldiers so that their bodies could be shipped home for burial.  More information on the Museum may be found at www.funeralmuseum.org.

An educational  and historical artillery demonstration is conducted daily at 10:30 am demonstrating how a typical Civil War era artillery battery performed its duties. Twelve artillery pieces participate in the daily battle.