(Peterboro, NY – June 12, 2015) The 23rd Annual Peterboro Civil War Weekend opens at 10 a.m. Saturday June 13 quietly with eight draft horse feet thudding softly on the turf with large wooden wagon wheels rolling behind carrying the coffin of Abraham Lincoln to the Civil War Statue to honor the President and the veterans of the war. Only a single drum cadence will accompany the military units (reenacting) and visitors in the Processional Honoring Veterans of the Civil War. The ceremony at the statue will include pieces from Lincoln’s burial May 4, 1865. Interested persons are invited to join the processional in a Sesquicentennial commemoration of 1865.
At the same time historians from the New York State Museum will begin signing The Irrepressible Conflict: The Empire State in the Civil War, a book companion to the eighteen month exhibit at the NYS Museum. The state historians will be at the Land Office until 2 p.m. on Saturday providing a special Sesquicentennial observance of the Civil War and New York State’s important role in that conflict.
After the quiet beginning, the weekend event will come alive with the bustling sounds of military and civilian activities at the encampmentand a variety of Civil War music will be heard throughout the weekend – thanks to the return of the Fiddle De Divas and Dudes.
In 2010 Danielle Caringi invited her friends Adeline Houser and Lydia Houser to fiddle with her and they have been playing together ever since. The teenaged fiddling Divas are students at Camden Central School and are joined by the “Dudes,” who are father Mike Caringi on guitar and adopted grandpa David Secor on piano, guitar, and accordion.
Mike Caringi started out as a rock player in the 70s, and changed his genre to suit the group. David Secor has been playing for decades. The group plays for area community programs, showcases, and fund raisers. The Fiddle de Divas and Dudes are members of the New York State Old Tyme Fiddlers Association and Mohawk Valley Bluegrass Assoc. The Fiddle De Divas and Dudes play at 1 and 3 p.m. on Saturday the 13th and at 1 p.m. on Sunday the 14th. During each concert the selections vary and each piece is briefly explained.
Emphasis on the Sesquicentennial of the Civil War will continue with Lincoln: The Great Emancipator October 23 -25. The Peterboro Civil War Weekend is an educational and fund-raising event of the Smithfield Community Association (501c3) based on the Gerrit Smith-John Brown relationship which helped ignite the Civil War.
Admission ($8: Adults, $3: 6-12 years, Free: Under 6) covers weekend activities (except food). Check updates at www.civilwarweekend.sca-peterboro.org or contact 315-280-9928.