Civil War battle rages on in Louisiana

It’s pretty quiet most of the time in the Village of Pleasant Hill, a hamlet with less than 800 residents tucked away in the rural northwestern quadrant of Louisiana. The sounds you might hear are crickets, neighbors shouting a greeting or cars driving on state Highway 175 en route to the nearest towns of Zwolle or Many.

But the second weekend of April is welcomed with a bang every year as hundreds of Civil War re-enactors and thousands of spectators remember the Battle of Pleasant Hill, and they bring in the big guns for this one.

“We usually have 20 or more cannons,” said Scott Solice of Shreveport, La., a member of Company “G,” Third Louisiana Infantry. “A lot of battles don’t have that many. These are 2,000-pound guns.”

That’s a lot of smoke.

“And a good bit of noise,” said Solice, who’s coordinated the battle for the last 10 years.

The event this year will be April 8–10. School children will visit the camp for a living history event on April 8, with the camp opening to the public from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on April 9 and 10. The battle, which lasts about an hour, will be presented at 2 p.m. on both days.

While the battle provides the bang, the living history encampment gives spectators a glimpse at what the life of a soldier or civilian would have been like in 1864, a time when the Civil War was drawing to an end.

Solice said the camp would be segmented by branch: there’s an area for infantry, one for artillery and one for cavalry. Battlefield visitors can walk among the tents and stations and talk to military or civilian re-enactors as they demonstrate shooting, cooking, blacksmithing–even embalming.

Admission to the event is free, how- ever, parking is $5. Visit www.battleofpleasanthill.com for more information.

For more information about the battle re-enactment or visiting Sabine Parish, contact the Sabine Parish Tourist Commission at (800) 358-7802 or www.toledobendlakecountry.com.

––Deborah Reinhardt

Hawaii: top dream vacation

Hawaii was named the top “dream destination” in a recent survey of active Americans, according to the Hawaii Visitors and Convention Bureau.

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