In the spirit of Halloween I wanted to find a haunted house to visit, like the downtown jail. I am not a big believer in ghosts but growing up everyone knew a friend who had a haunted room in their home. It was fun to visit a "haunted house" and let my imagination take over.
The problem with ghosts, they are camera shy so that would have been a short blog. As luck would have it I found the next best thing... living ghosts. The Confederate Ghost Walk at Magnolia Cemetery in Charleston is an annual fund raising event hosted by the Confederate Heritage Trust, Inc. for maintenance and repair of monuments at the cemetery. Volunteer actors perform historically accurate skits that relate to Confederate Soldiers buried in the cemetery.
Magnolia Cemetery is the resting place for about 4,000 Confederate soldiers including crews from the H. L. Hunley. Audiences visit the cemetery every year for the Ghost Walk and the story of the dead soldiers are retold by the reenactors.
The Ghost Walk takes place at night under the glow of candles and lanterns. It was going to be hard to photograph the reenactments without a flash so I visited the cemetery before dusk while everyone was preparing for the production.
The actors are members of various heritage or historical organizations who come from around the state to participate in the event. I ran into a group from Summerville as they dressed themselves in period specific uniforms. Even as they got ready they were so worried I was going to photograph them next to something not period specific like a plastic bottle. They really like for everything to be perfect. I am not sure though if the fake blood was period specific.
I wandered the cemetery watching everyone rehearse. Skits ranged from famous battles to prison camps and hospital scenes. I will be the first to admit I am no expert on the Civil War, or the war for Southern independence as some call it, but I was drawn in by the skits.
It was as if the buried soldiers had risen to tell me their story or I had stepped back in time and witnessed the events for myself. Imagine how many more stories are buried at Magnolia Cemetery.
As I continued my trip through the scenes of the war, I came across a group of Union soldiers with a cannon. They were preparing for the Battle for Atlanta. Soon they would be overrun by Confederate soldiers but not before firing off a very loud shot. The actors explained they owned both Confederate and Union uniforms. The reenactments are not a political statement but a chance to relive history for the actors.
Wayne Dukes suggested I would enjoy dressing up and taking part in a reenactment. They said I could borrow a uniform and gun and join them on the battlefield.
Let's see, a chance to relive not only history but my childhood because what boy didn't play war games growing up. Instead of being GI Joe, I was going to be a soldier in the middle of a Civil War. I may have to take him up on that someday.
Soon the sun set and the actors were done rehearsing. Crowds gathered and shots were fired as those buried were honored once again.
I did not need a haunted house to see ghosts, just a cemetery.
Those interested don't have to wait until next year to see reenactments. This November the Confederate and Union soldiers will meet again on the grounds of Boone Hall Plantation for the battle of Secessionville.
Paul Zoeller is a freelance photographer new to the area. Do you have an idea for a new blog or a question about a current blog? If you do contact Zoeller at paul.zoeller@mac.com.
