Special Orders No. 3
from Colonel Glen Allison,
Second Brigade, Army of the Columbia
1. Special Orders No. 3 supersedes all other
orders for the Army of the Columbia.
2. Morning Parade and raising of the colors shall occur at 08:30
on each morning of an event. Units shall be formed in
their company street prior to that time and shall be prepared to
form at 08:30.
3. A unit shall be assigned to color detail on a day by day basis
and records kept for perusal by unit commanders. The
color detail will raise the flag at morning formation and will
lower the flag after the last battle of the day. The
designated unit shall also carry the national colors into
battle. That designated unit must be ready to
form at least ten minutes earlier than the rest of the brigade so
they do not hold up the formation.
4. Weapons inspection will be held as part of Morning
Parade. All commanders shall make sure that their
soldiers attend the Morning Parade with cartridges and musket
caps.
5. Company and Battalion level drill will be conducted
immediately after Morning Parade each day. Company
commanders will be informed in advance of an event if at all
possible regarding drill that will be covered. Cavalry and
artillery units will use this time to conduct their own drill and
prepare their mounts and equipment for battle.
6. All units are expected to participate in Morning and Evening
Parade each day of an event as well as other activities.
7. All units will maintain a company street within the confines
of the area set out for Federal forces.
8. Whenever there is room, the camp streets will be at least 6
paces across. Unit colors will be placed on the color
line during the day and muskets will be stacked there, also,
during the day.
9. All units shall be formed up in their camp at least one half
hour before each battle to allow time for 1st Sergeants to check
for ammunition and full canteens and to cap off muskets if
necessary. Companies shall be formed in a battalion
formation no later than 15 minutes before battles. They may need
to form sooner depending upon the battle scenario.
10. Inspections of camp by battalion staff will be done randomly
when possible throughout the day to encourage first person
interactions, skits in camp and to inspect weapons and
rounds. These inspections will also look for
anachronistic material visible to the public, i.e.
FARB. Company officers and NCO's are responsible for
making sure that modern items are hidden before the site opens to
the public each day. These inspections by brigade
staff will also be used for living history interactions with the
companies.
11. WCWA rules pertaining to vehicles in camp will be followed
and monitored by the Battalion Adjutant.
12. Guard Duty will be established by the Sgt. Major and assigned
to the units on a rotating basis. Records will be
kept by the Adjutant and be open for review by unit
commanders. Day Guards will be
assigned to Battalion Headquarters and to the Color Line between
battles. Those guards are
considered to meet part of the requirements for camp streets as
outlined in section 13. Night Guards will be
scheduled separately.
13. Each company shall keep at least 1/4 (25%) of their troops in
camp during the "spectator time" from opening each day
until the first battle and after the last battle of the day until
closing when not at battles, drill or parade to interact with the
public and be involved in "living history"
. In between battles, each company shall keep at
least 1/2 (50%) of their troops in camp for the same reason since
living history is part of the WCWA mission statement.
14. Each company shall participate in the living history skits
and activities scheduled during the time the camps are open to
the public. Sign-up sheets will be sent around and enlisted men,
NCO's and officers will be asked to participate at various times
throughout the day.
15. Each company shall maintain AT LEAST, IF NOT MORE THAN,
ENOUGH canvas and tentage to represent the actual numbers of
soldiers in the unit present at the event. This means
AT LEAST, IF NOT MORE THAN, 1 full dog tent per two
soldiers or 1 "A" or "Common" tent per four
soldiers.
16. Communication between company commanders and battalion is
necessary. Communication lines will always be open.
17. The order of command rank within the battalion will be
Battalion Commander 1st, most experienced Unit Commander 2nd if
the Battalion Commander does not appoint a temporary
replacement. Should the Battalion Commander not be at
an event or should temporarily fall in battle, the most
experienced officer (longest time in service as a commander)
would assume temporary command of the Battalion for that event or
the rest of the battle unless the Colonel revives.
18. Morning Reports will be furnished by Battalion.
Morning Reports shall be turned in each day before Morning Parade
at 8:30 A.M.
19. A list of all participants for the day must be included on
the back of the Morning Report including underage (14-15 year
olds) and their " battlefield sponsor" for the
day. If this is not done, the report will be handed
back and it will be redone to meet requirements.
20. Rank structure should reflect the number of combatants
belonging to a company at an event. No officer will
hold a rank higher than 1st Lieutenant unless appointed by the
Battalion Commander. Officers holding the rank of
Captain as of last year may retain that rank should they so
desire. The number of officers on the field in each
company should reflect the number of troops under their command.
21. The daily schedule for each event will be as follows:
Morning Parade and Weapons Inspection at 08:30, followed by
Company and/or Battalion drill. This is to allow time
for church services on Sundays and preparing for battle on all
days. Following drill, companies will be dismissed to
the charge of their company commanders. They will then
prepare their companies for battle. After the 2nd or
last battle of the day, companies will go directly to Evening
Parade for the lowering of the colors.
22. The consequences for a company arriving late or failing to
show up and participate in drill, parade, battle or any
other required functions or activities will be left up to
the discretion of the Battalion Commander. If an individual
soldier arrives late for a formation, he will not take part in
the formation without receiving permission from the Battalion
Commander because this disrupts the entire battalion
formation. The consequences of an individual soldier
arriving late or failing to show up will be left up to the
discretion of that soldier's Company Commander.
23. WCWA safety rules will be enforced. Any person
found in violation of safety rules will be dealt with at that
event by the battalion. Anyone pressing charges or
making accusations will need to present witnesses and give
specific names of the person or persons involved in the safety
violation.
24. The interpretation of Casey's/Hardee's drill is defined by
battalion. Any challenges to the battalion's interpretation will
be restricted to a time after the troops have been dismissed.
25. Military courtesy will be followed as set forth in the "Revised Regulations for the United States 1861" at pages 40, 41, 42, and 43 (with excellent details in
Joslyn's "Notes on Military Etiquette").
Copies of these will be available upon request. Also, camp
etiquette will be followed, i.e. troops will not cut through
another camp without permission, etc. This is part of
the ambiance or atmosphere of an event and should be visible to
the paying spectators.
26. When possible, written orders will be used to communicate
with unit commanders off the battlefield and verbal orders used
during battle. Orders may come from the Colonel or from the
Adjutant or Sergeant Major as ordered by the Colonel.
27. All unit commanders including Cavalry, Navy, Coast Guard and
Medical will be expected to attend an officers call for planning
of battles and/or instructions. These meetings will
be held 45 minutes before a battle is scheduled to
begin. For example, if a battle is scheduled for 11
AM, Officer's Call will begin promptly at 10:15 AM (and
will probably end by 10:30). First sergeants are not
required to attend officer's call but they are encouraged to
attend so as long as they do not neglect their other duties.
28. The Union Battalion Commander will be the highest authority
over Federal military and civilian impressionists in the Federal
camp at field events.
29. Enlisted men with complaints, suggestions or other comments
shall first consult their Company Commander. If the
matter cannot be handled by the unit commander, said commander
shall route the complaint, suggestion or other comment through
the Battalion Adjutant.
30. No artillery pieces will be moved during battles unless given
specific orders to do so from the battalion commander by way of
written order, verbal command or courier from Brigade
Headquarters. If moved, artillery will only move to
predetermined positions already marked on the field unless
ordered by Brigade Headquarters.
31. Whenever possible, there will be a minimum distance of at
least 100 feet separating the military camp from their civilian
members camp.
32. Unit commanders are expected to keep and bring copies of unit
member's WCWA safety tests to events and have them available for
inspection. Only the WCWA safety test will be acceptable (either
version). Safety tests may be randomly inspected during camp
inspections.
33. Any units found using underage members, non-members, or
non-safety tested members in any capacity on the battlefield will
suffer consequences determined by the Battalion Commander.
34. Quiet hours in camp are from 11:00 p.m. to 06:00
a.m. There will be no removing items from the CSA
camps. This is contrary to the WCWA Bylaws which
forbids such actions. There will be no
unscheduled (by both brigade headquarters)
skirmishes. There will be no skirmishing or other
combat after dark.
35. Although each unit commander is the authority regarding
authenticity in their particular unit, things like tennis shoes
and modern work boots, sun glasses, and wrist watches, etc. shall
not be visible to guests or other reenactors.
If a reenactor lacks the proper foot gear, that soldier could go
barefoot and set a positive example for his pards.
36. Women in period civilian clothing are allowed to visit
in camp during the day but should have a male escort (military or
civilian). Any soldier in camp shall automatically
assist as an escort for any unescorted woman entering the
camp. Involving visiting women in camp theater scenes
or vignettes is encouraged.
By order of:
Colonel Glen Allison
Colonel
Glen Allison, commanding:
Second Brigade, Army of the
Columbia
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