• By MARK H. HUNTER
• Special to The Advocate
• Published: Apr 27, 2008 - UPDATED: 12:05 a.m.

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JACKSON — Booming cannons and infantry small arms spat pungent clouds of spent gunpowder over the battlefield Saturday as the Blue and Gray clashed once again in a reenacted Battle of Jackson Crossroads.

The 17th annual re-enactment of the June 20, 1863, fight between Union troops guarding a supply wagon train against attacking Confederate cavalry will be held again today in a large field along La. 68 just south of La. 10. 

Hosted by the 6th Louisiana Infantry Company F and the Living History Association of Jackson, Saturday’s event drew two dozen re-enactor units from across Louisiana, Mississippi, Arkansas, Texas and even one from Tennessee, said organizer Rafe Stewart.

“This is a very family oriented event,” Stewart said. “We have kids running all over the place. Some families go into Jackson, ride the train and then come back out for the afternoon battle. We encourage folks to visit with the soldiers, too.”

While a row of cannons dominated a ridge above a meadow where the battle is re-enacted, the rest of the large grassy area is dotted with more than 100 wall and A-frame tents used by hundreds of re-enactors. Campfire smoke wafted across the grounds and blended with the aroma of a split pig roasting over hot coals.

Several Jackson-area nonprofit organizations host food and beverage stands, while  four large tents filled with Civil War-era goods line “Sutlers Row.” Visitor can even get their photograph taken with a vintage tintype plate.

Chuck Uren and a half-dozen members of the 1st Mississippi Partisan Rangers skipped Confederate Memorial Day ceremonies celebrated Saturday at Biloxi to be here. “This is a way to honor our ancestors while at the same time have some fun,” Uren said.

“It’s not like sitting in a classroom and learning about our history,” added John Rose, who brought along his son, Garret, 3, who was dressed in home-made pants and shirt. “This is a way to get out and actually do it.”

“It’s just something we can do together with family and friends,” said Bobby Robinson of Pearl, Miss.

While the men and boys were  off marching in drills or shooting blanks from their Civil War-era ordnance, the wives and daughters also were re-enacting their Civil War roles  — cooking and sewing. 

Dressed in period clothing, they stitched clothing or played board games in the shade of canopies attached to the tents. Their meals simmered in iron pots hung over nearby campfires.

A group of Baton Rouge women and girls from Sherwood Middle Magnet School clustered around Debbie Authement, of Houma, as she explained the layers of her dress, petticoat and hoops. 

“I really enjoy the living history part of this and I try to be as period-correct as I can,” Authement, a communications consultant, said while cooling her face with a delicate fan.