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vol9-8

135th Gettysburg
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Field Commander’s Comment


Well, it wasn’t Antietam, but it was big. We still don’t have a final count, but when it is announced we anticipate that the 135th Gettysburg will have been the biggest reenactment so far. Augmented by members of the 4th U.S. from Washington State, several men from California, two of Her Majesty’s subjects, and several more from beyond our borders, we did the Regulars proud. After a questionable start on Friday, the battalion gained momentum and finished the weekend in grand style. Saturday’s Wheatfield scenario was impressive and would have been better had the Johnny's not gotten so close. The Fourth’s new National Colors were baptized on the Wheatfield; appropriate. Culp’s Hill was well done, and I had the pleasure of witnessing the best group of Rebels that I have seen since I’ve been in the hobby. The Rebs who attacked the right flank of the NR were playing the game well, and died en mass. Moreover, those who got to the wall fought hard but not in the usual fashion. These troops were under control. I doff my blue hat to them, and to their commanders.
Pickett’s Charge was impressive and the numbers awesome. We were lined up behind the 1st Battalion of the NR and were supposed to come into position to their left after they performed a half right wheel. As close as we were to the 1st Battalion, and as far as we had to go to get to their left flank, I was extremely concerned that the 2d Battalion would be like the crowd at Macy’s on Christmas Eve when the time came to move out. After much discussion the 2d Battalion had a plan devised to get us into position, but Terry Daley axed it and, thank God, we moved out by the left flank before the wheel began. As we moved and attempted to link up with Ted Brennan's left flank company, General Hancock picked the wrong part of the field to take a “hit” thus, the small hole in our line was never truly closed. Nevertheless, we prevailed and won the day.
There are so many people to mention for work very well done, but space allows me to highlight only a few. A well done is due to Craig Mastapeter for his fine job as Adjutant of the 2d Battalion, to Frank Hall for his work as Sgt. Maj. of the 1st Battalion; to Hutch for leading us so well in the Wheatfield (and assisting me in the repulse of the enemy at Culp’s Hill); to Steve Hanson for his leadership everywhere on the battlefield and in camp; to brevet sergeant McConnell, the 2d Battalion’s right guide; to sergeants Pugh, Lawler, and VanderMate of Company C, 4th US; to Rosemary and Gale for their hard work; to Lt. John Strand for his invaluable assistance; and to the rest of our 50-man company. For awhile, we were really Regulars, all of us, from all over the country, and England too. It was good to be a Regular.

Capt.Don Rivera
Field Commander

Brigade Schedule:
August - September 1998
Date: 1 - 2 August, 1998
Place: Ft. Washington, Ft. Washington, MD
Event: The War is Over!
Info: Living History program for both military and civilian. Garrison life and torchlight tour.
Uniform: Late war uniforms, with clean weapons, and polished brass.
Directions: I-95 to the Washington Beltway, South on MD 210, Indian Head Highway, to Ft Washington Road. Follow the road to the park.

Date: 29 - 30 August, 1998
Place: Manassas Museum, Manassas, VA
Event: Recruiting Event
Info: This is a paid event and was a very laid-back event last year. We will camp on the museum lawn and drill several times each day for the public. Men in gray will also be present and entertain the visitors too. We found a very nice place to eat nearby, so come out and join in the fun.
Uniform: Late war uniforms, with clean weapons and polished brass.
Directions: The Museum is at 9101 Prince William Street, Manassas, VA. Take I-95, U.S. 15. U.S. 17, or I-66 to Manassas, exit at VA Rt 234 which becomes Grant Avenue, and drive to Prince William Street, turning East on Prince William. Please plan to be there and ready to participate by no later than 1000 hours on Saturday and/or Sunday. If you can make only one day, come for the day. We need at least 10 rifles EACH day, or no dinero.

Date: September 5-6 1998
Place: Emmitsburg Community Park, Emmitsburg, MD
Event: Emmitsburg Civil War Bazaar
Info: A Civil War Bazaar, based on the MD State Fair and other Sanitary Fairs of the period. Eighteen different booths will be portrayed set up in tents and flies with the overall theme of a military encampment. Military impressions can be used for review, sentries, entertainment, and demonstration of camp life. Civilian impression is encouraged as this best fits in with the idea of Civil War civilian effort.
Directions: Rt. 15 traveling south take exit Rt. 140 east towards the center of town. Rt. 15 traveling north turn left on South Seton Ave. (At yellow set of blinking lights) follow signs. Note: 270 N will turn into 15 north at Frederick, MD.
In addition: A Civil War period dance is to be held Sat. evening in conjunction with the Bazaar. The dance will be held at the Community Center. (Within walking distance.) The cost is $5.00 per person and is open to the public. The Victorian Dance Ensemble will provide instruction from 7:30 to 8:30 PM and the dance will continue through till 10:00 PM. Light refreshment is included. Music by Gilmore’s Light Ensemble. For more info. call 301-447-3746.

Date: 18 - 20 September, 1998
Place: Antietam National Historic Battlefield Park, Sharpsburg, MD
Event: Military Demonstration
Info: This is the demonstration weekend in which we join with members of the cavalry and artillery to educate the public. We will depict a grand guard with cavalry outposts and artillery cover. This is similar to what we have done in the past, and it is on the original battlefield.
Uniform: Late war, with clean weapons. Tenting will be set up, and we will sleep on the battlefield.
Directions: The park is one mile North of Sharpsburg off of MD Rte 65 in Washington County. Take I-70 to MD 65 west of Hagerstown, exit onto MD 65 and drive South toward Sharpsburg. (Same event as above but in the evening)

Date: 19 September, 1998
Place: Antietam National Historic Battlefield Park, Sharpsburg, MD
Event: Antietam Torchlight Tour
Info: This is the annual evening Torchlight Tour of the battlefield. For those not involved in specific scenarios, you are invited to take the tour which leaves from the Visitor Center.
Uniform: For those in a scenario the uniforms are as in the past.
Directions: If you are in the camp, walk over to the Visitors Center. Otherwise, take I-70 to MD 65 west of Hagerstown, exit onto MD 65 and drive South toward Sharpsburg.



Reports From the Field


To see report and photos click. 135th Gettysburg

Heritage Day
Easton, Pennsylvania
 A small group of stalwart lads and a lovely lady gathered together on the 12 of July to recruit new members and earn money for the coffers of the Regulars. Having endured the rigors of the Gettysburg campaign just the week before, these faithful few did demonstrations and talked with folks thirsty for the history.
Participating in the opening ceremonies of Easton’s Heritage Day, the Regulars were present at a reading of the Declaration of Independence. Easton was one of the three places it was read publicly when it was adopted in 1776. The other cities were Philadelphia and Trenton.
Accompanied by reenactors of the Revolutionary War and WWII the Regulars fell in with the 69th PA volunteers and fired volleys in recognition of our forefathers courage in severing ties with the King George III.
The rest of the day was an easy day of chatting with public with Janice displaying her collection of 19th century toys. It was amazing how many children came to her table and were fascinated with these simple toys compared to their own sophisticated TV games. The Regulars earned $175.00 and handed out brochures and will hopefully gain some new recruits for their endeavor. Janice earned $35.00 for Sykes’ Civilians and a pleasant day was had by all.
Special thanks go out to Janice, Jim (Tank) Nickle, Allen Thompson, Ray Rush and Mike Wassel for coming out and supporting their unit and putting in that extra effort for the good of the Regiment.

Written by the Editor



Carroll Community College & Frederick Medical Museum
What a busy month. The Regulars once more hit the recruiting trail. A contingent was found at Carroll Comm. College in the company of Sykes’ Civilians for a one day event and a small groupwas found at the Frederick Medical Museum where the town was celebrating it’s 250th anniversary.
At Carroll Community College there were Civil War programs and seminars scheduled throughout the day and the Regulars and Civilians were camped outside the college to field questions and do demonstrations. The recruiting booth was well stocked with information to recruit the hungry minions and Nancy Schoppert and Lori Amodeo had a fine civilian display. We were ready. The public unfortunately were not and they were few and far between. As is the case with many first time events, enormous amounts of publicity are necessary and sometimes even then the public must hear first hand scuttlebutt to build interest in an event. The Regulars and Civilians can take pride in the fact that they were there and fulfilled their obligation. We did have a fine meal afterwards together and this is always a reward in itself. Thanks go out to all that came and showed their company spirit. Extra special thanks goes to Nancy Schoppert for organizing and setting up the event. Hopefully it will grow and become a major event someday.
Over at the Frederick Medical Museum three of the Regulars were found helping the Frederick Ladies man the museum and participated in bringing the medical displays to life. Larry and Julie McGrane and family were found outside with the Christian Comm. tent while Rosemary Hutchison and Mary Mastapeter occupied the parlor scene.
Many visitors passed through the museum and the Regulars brochures went with them. Hopefully we will get some contacts for recruits. A pleasant time was had and another recruiting weekend was as they say.......HISTORY.

Written by the Editor

Recruiting Update
Sykes’ Regulars are continuing in their aggressive recruiting campaign and have made strides. As of now we have fielded 12 new members since the beginning of the year and inquiries keep coming in. This is quite a record from previous years. Most of the contacts have been through the website and one on one recruiting has been somewhat effective. The recruiting events are good for passing out brochures and the more information we have floating out there the more chance we are likely to get a phone call. If anyone has a good place to put some of our brochures please let the Editor or Don Rivera know and we’ll send brochures to you. The key to good recruiting is followup. Email is very effective and the phone is always a good tool. Thanks everyone who has made efforts in this area and lets keep it up. The ranks are starting to build.

The Recruiting Staff




bugle call

Bugle Call!


A Bugler
The Regulars would like to welcome into our ranks Musician Adam Leonard of Easton, PA. Adam is 14 years old and has been playing trumpet since he was yea high. He will now serve his country as a Bugler for Sykes’ Regulars so that we may learn to execute orders by bugle call. More drill lads. I knew you’d be thrilled.

Welcome Recruits:
The Regular would also like to bid welcome to new members: Steve Brizek, 2nd US, Stephen Cammauf, 4th US, Ryan Whitaker, 2nd US and an old friend Don Lane back into the ranks.

Jonah Jonah Jonah

The Jonahs are in for the month of July. 135th Gettysburg was a fine breeding ground for the race known as Jonah and without further ado:
Our first winner was a guest of ours from Costa Mesa CA. Mr. Ted Albert Esquire was on detail in the company mess and in the classic tradition unceremoniously dumped an entire plate of bacon into the dust rendering it inedible. Fine work sir. Someone must maintain the classics. Mr. Albert was also guilty of showing up in ranks with all of his gear save his sack coat which he had forgotten at the grandstand. He stuck out like a sore thumb. Thank you sir for your antics and we hope you had a good time serving with the Regulars.
The next Jonah is the offspring of a breed of Jonah that holds a near and dear place in the hearts of the Regulars. This special breed has entertained the Regulars for many years and his antics are the material of legend. It really is no wonder that the son of such a celebrated personage should not follow in the exact same footsteps of his illustrious father. We are speaking of none other than our very own Bruce Spahr alias, Private Putz and his son Ryan - Son of Putz. Ryan had several instances of Jonahism, one being the use of our cooking water for his own personal washing basin. We wondered why the stew had a dirty hand taste to it. He did this not once but twice. Another instance was the defilement of our chopping area (the top of a box we were using to chop up food). He defiled it with a bodily function that shall be left to your imagination. Ryan’s one man conspiracy against our dinner lit a few tempers that day. Realizing that the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree we recovered our good humor and accepted the lad as he is and formed an easement around the cooking area that will forever be known as the ‘Son of Putz Free Zone’.
It was good see Bruce and Ryan and we hope you boys can make it out often. We will look forward to more antics from the father & son team in the future.


The Grateful
In as much as most of the articles have thanked all the various folks who put time and effort into making the Gettysburg event great, this Bugle Call doesn’t thank anyone. So there.

Thank you for your attention.




Book Review
by Frank ‘Books’ Hall




One more time for God and Division:

Sykes' Regular Infantry Division, 1861-1864
A History of Regular United States Infantry Operations in the Civil War's Eastern Theatre

Timothy J. Reese

I'd like to present this book again, because no other book available today is closer to the heart of what we all honor and portray, the Regular Infantry commanded by General George Sykes. This book is still available in some places, but if you cannot buy a copy, you are welcome to borrow mine. I think it's important that as many of us as possible read Sykes' Regular Division.


Message to Company H,
4th US Infantry


CONGRATULATIONS! Company H, 4th US put 17 men in the field for the 135th Anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg. That's our best turnout in almost 4 years. In addition, although we didn't expect it, we "bloodied" our colors in "The Wheatfield" when we represented the 2nd US, the right of Burbank's Brigade, on Saturday. I know it was a great honor for Color Sergeant Jim "Tank" Nickle and I'm also quite sure, each and every member of the 4th felt just a little more energized when "Tank" unfurled the colors.
I'd also like to pass on my thanks to Corporal Jason McConnell. Jason, a newly minted corporal, volunteered to serve as right general guide for the 2nd battalion...a job normally assigned to a sergeant. Since I was the adjutant, I had the opportunity to observe Jason throughout the weekend. He did a fine job and should be commended. KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK!!!
Captain Rivera... my thanks and congratulations. Don was the senior company officer at Gettysburg. Had certain things come to pass, Don would have had to assume command of the battalion's right wing. This demonstrates the trust and confidence the NR has in our company commander and the depth Don has created in our NCO cadre if and when he's called, however temporary, to a higher command. Don, great job.
In closing, please mark your calendars with the upcoming events through December.
As always, with all good wishes and warmest regards, I remain your most humble and obedient servant,

Craig W. Mastapeter,
President and First Sergeant




Mayoral Address
"...TO THE REGIMENT..." The 135th Anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg will long be remembered in the ranks of SYKES' REGULARS. Each and every Regular is to be congratulated on a job well done and a memory well honored. Perhaps the most emotional point of the weekend for our SYKES' REGULARS was when we went into the "Wheatfield" representing the Second Regiment of Infantry under the national colors of the Fourth Regiment of Infantry. I believe that it was there that we became one unit now and one with those whose duties and obligations have already passed, but with whom we share an indescribable kinship and brotherhood. It was proud moment for me and I hope it was for each and every one present.
This past Friday, 17 July 1998, was the Army War College's Class of 1998 staff ride to the Gettysburg battlefield. At the end, while all of my classmates were hurriedly searching the bookstore for "relevant" materials, I walked over to the quiet and serene National Soldiers' Cemetery and walked amongst the common, undistinguished headstones marking the ranks of the Regulars who fell at Gettysburg July 2, 1863 in that maelstrom called "The Wheatfield." Some were named, others simply marked "Unknown." I stopped in front of those graves containing a member of the 2nd and 4th regiments...there were more than a few...and thought about their sacrifice and whether or not we have done their memories justice. In the end, I paused and felt completely at home amongst men I did not know and came to the conclusion that we, individually and as a group, have indeed done them justice.
The turnout was superb. I think we had 30-to-32 members present at the event...I believe our best turnout in a couple of years. Thanks to the officers and men of Company C, 4th US, Captain Rivera commanded the largest single company in the 2nd battalion that weekend...nothing like having the numbers to support the "right of the line." And, thanks to the officers and men of Company G, 96th PVI, we went into the Wheatfield" as a contemporary strength company...that's something we don't often get the opportunity to do. Congratulations to one and all. Fortunately, it was a very safe and uneventful weekend with respect the health and safety of our members. Hot, humid, and hazy it was...at least for Friday and Saturday...yet we experienced no real and present heat sickness let alone any real harrowing medical problems. GOOD JOB, KEEP IT UP...remember, it's only July.
I hope everyone had a safe drive home (and flight for the boys from the Department of the Pacific!) from Gettysburg and that those members who attended the Easton, PA and Carroll County Community College events had a good time. Likewise, although July was a very busy month, the support to these events and the Meade's HQ scenario demonstrated the interest members have in living history and in keeping up the camaraderie of the Regulars...on and off the field. Please keep in mind the schedule for August...Fort Washington and the Manasass Museum...solid participation would be appreciated, especially at the Manassass event. Likewise, remember the Sanitary Fair in Emmitsburg, MD (Stephanie Brennan is the organizer and coordinator) and the Antietam event. Both are new and original scenarios that need our support and that I'm sure will be well worth the effort to attend, I know I've rambled on more than I should have, but July was an exciting month (plus, the illustrious and inscrutable EDITOR of this august publication moved faster than me last month...precluding the publication of my entries for your reading pleasure!). Please stay in touch and stay safe.
With all good wishes and warmest regards, I remain, as always, your most humble and obedient servant,

Craig W. Mastapeter, President


Tank's Grumble Corner





1. Hills, hills, hills, especially when your company is camped at the top of a big one.
The Editor’s Comments are denoted by-TE (I’m just glad no one rolled down the big hill, hill, hill.)
2. Dust, dust, dust, especially when the battalion marches by the left flank and you are in the first company. TE (The dust came in a single flavor - dirt)
3. Holes, holes, holes, especially ones that you don't see until you take an entire company down with you in a face first fall. TE (As I marched by I caught out of the corner of my eye Tank’s face completely in the grass. I laughed despite myself.)
4. Briars, briars, briars, especially for our Rebel friends who tried to take the breastworks atop Culp's Hill. TE ( We warned them but they insisted on bleeding all over us.)
5. Deadlines, deadlines, deadlines, I'll leave any further comments to the editor. TE (Live with it. I’ve never heard such whining)



From the Desk of the First Sergeant

 At the risk of repeating what everyone else has already said, may I say that Gettysburg was definitely one of the great events of my 25 years in Living History. We had a full-size company with a full complement (per the Regular Table of Organization) of NCOs and Officers (minus one officer on detached duty). We were able to supply Battalion,Regiment, Brigade, and Division with five of the best men from our ranks, and over half our number were new recruits, men who never served with us before, and men who, for one reason or another, attend only a few events a year. With the quiet professionalism of the our newfound friends from the West Coast (and with everyone's patience, understanding, and willingness to pitch in for the good of the company) the company continued to operate smoothly and efficiently.
Our second Officer, Lt. Strand, kept the men firing while our Captain was busy keeping track of orders from the Battalion. Our Sergeants, all from the West Coast 4th, kept the battle line intact and in order, kept the men quiet and paying attention to their duty, and kept a watchful eye out for safety. Their help was very much appreciated. The Corporals did excellent work bringing the new recruits up to speed, trying to keep the longest company battle line any of us have ever seen straight, and keeping the camp activities running smoothly. Special recognition must be given to Lance Corporal Brooks for his excellent meals and efficiently run "kitchen." Too often we forget the amount of preparation that goes into providing for several days of food and the great amount of maintenance required for the upkeep of our cooking gear. No item was so small or so insignificant as to not warrant his attention and comment. "Grumbles" found many new and wonderful things to which he added his Nickle's worth. After a long absence, Spahr seemed to be everywhere and into everything. Was it just me, or did anyone else notice that sometimes he seemed very young and other times, much older? Right Guide Jason was the rock on which the battalion formed (at least our end of it). Camp Guard, Mr. Hooper, is most appreciated for his patience and diligence in watching the camp, keeping the fire, putting on coffee and stew while we were away, and helping wherever he was able. I feel sorry that he didn't get to see any of the action. Of course, we must not forget the Sykes' Regul-airs for filling the glade with their melodious tones.
Special thanks to the stalwart pioneers who showed up as early as Wednesday to find, secure, and prepare our campsite, clear brush, cut firewood, and worry the weeds into submission before the rest of the company arrived. Last, but not least, the Christian Commission, the Black’s Tavern, and the Pie Peddlers of our many civilian contingents are to be congratulated for their efforts to keep us as comfortable as possible under trying conditions.

1st Sergeant Steve Hanson
2nd US Infantry
Sykes’ Regulars