Introduction

Every year when you visit Experience the Battle of Princeton (EBOP), you get to see hundreds of men dressed as British and American soldiers re-enact the Battle.

But as Butch Cassidy once said to the Sundance Kid, “Who are those guys?”

Here’s a chance to meet one of them. Ken Gavin is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Princeton Battlefield Society, but more important, he is the commanding officer of Spencer’s Additional Regiment of the Continental Line and is in charge of the American forces at EBOP and someone who has been participating in re-enactments for two decades.

Meet Ken Gavin and learn more about why re-enactors don the old uniforms, shoulder the old guns, and refight the old battles.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ken Gavin

When he isn’t reenacting, Ken Gavin serves as the Chief Communications Officer for one of the largest non-profit organizations in the Philadelphia region and that keeps him hopping, as does his family.

Ken is frequently found visiting a broad array of museums and historic sites and never stop reading and researching his favorite historical time periods -- the French and Indian War, American Revolution, and Civil War. In Ken’s spare time, he is a tour guide working at Valley Forge National Historical Park and has been doing that for 17 years now. He describes it as a “a great joy.”

Why did you decide to become a re-enactor?

Ken: That goes way back to when I was about 8 or 9 years old. I have always loved history and some of my fondest childhood memories involve many weekend family day trips to Valley Forge. I was fascinated by the park rangers wearing Revolutionary War uniforms because it felt like I was looking back in time. One year, we went to Valley Forge for the celebration of George Washington’s birthday and a few of the rangers took the time to talk to me after noticing my interest. That was the moment I decided that I was going to be involved in living history someday.

How long have you been taking part as a re-enactor?

Ken: I’ve been reenacting for over two decades at this point in time and have done both Civil War (Federal Army) and the American Revolution (Continental Army). I’ve been participating in EBOP for the past 6 years and it is one of the events I look forward to the most on my calendar.

Do you have a battle you prefer to participate in, given that you have done the American Revolution and the American Civil War?

Ken: I don’t know that I have a favorite battle to reenact. It’s a privilege to provide tactical interpretation at any site where a battle took place, but every other story that needs to be told is critical, as well.

Living history folks do a lot more than just reenact battles and provide tactical demonstrations.

We try to interpret the American Revolution comprehensively, so we not only tell the soldiers’ stories, but the stories of civilians, men, women, children, indentured servants, indigenous peoples, and enslaved populations.

It means demonstrating 18th century trades and professions, interpreting scenarios involving political debates of the day, demonstrating the often overlooked aspects of military life such as the justice system, and much more.

Doing this type of work well means edutainment in the most positive sense of that word. The revolutionary period is full of nuances, complexities, and people of all sorts. Educating the public about the time means doing justice to as many of those people, complexities, and nuances as possible.

What unit are you in and how did you decide to pick it?

Ken: I serve as the commanding officer of Spencer’s Additional Regiment of the Continental Line. It wasn’t so much picking the unit to participate with as it was picking the unit to recreate.

I’m one of the founding members of Spencer’s and the idea to recreate this unit came along about four years ago or so in conjunction with a handful of dear friends who are veteran reenactors. Many of us came with life experience in non-profit management, C-suite executive duties, and professional experience in the museum and history interpretation fields. We wanted to tell the story of a unit that made a major impact on the war, but that had not seen much light.

What are the coolest and toughest things about reenacting a battle?

Ken: I don’t think there is any one single thing that is the “coolest.” There are a lot of things reenactors experience that are cool: working at historic sites where major events took place, engaging with the public, providing a window to the past, experiential learning, and forming friendships are all pretty cool. Each event is differett and I take different positives away from each one.

And there aren’t any “toughest” things, really. We get to engage the public and any time you get to interpret really important stories from the American Revolution it is a great day. If there are hardships or physical discomforts along the way in the living history field, I always keep in mind that those are nothing compared to the experience of the people who lived and struggled through the actual historical events.

Where do you find the gear and uniforms you need?

Ken: That requires time, patience, research, and being open to learning from veteran reenactors who are devoted to the material culture of the 18th century.

Putting forward the best and most accurate portrayal possible is important. We provide the public with a tangible window to the past and we represent those we portray. It’s incumbent upon us to do the legwork and always work toward the best portrayal possible.

The shoes, hats, uniforms, and weaponry will all come from different sources that specialize in making them. While there was some uniformity within the Continental Army (my realm), that uniformity changes from state to state and throughout the war.

Getting it accurate often depends on the unit being portrayed. The New England regiments had different uniform facings than the Pennsylvania regiments in many instances, for example.
Every unit has veterans who work with new recruits and help them obtain the pieces they need over time. It can take time to pull together all of the basics. Most units even have loaner uniforms and gear to help people get started. Learning how to sew and work with patterns can be a big plus, because then you can begin to make some of your own clothing.

Why should a younger person get involved now in this age of video games?

Ken: That is a good question, so let me answer it with a better question: Why immerse yourself in something virtual, when you can immerse yourself in something tangible? There is absolutely no substitute for a hands on experience and there never will be. Living history, when done correctly, provides a lot of enjoyable experiential learning for those who participate. Being out in the field and learning by doing is an incredible experience and people end up building lifelong friendships in the process.

You help run EBOP, particularly the American side. What does being Supreme Allied Commander of EBOP entail?

Ken: First of all, it’s an honor to be appointed as overall commander and the event itself is the pinnacle of that role. The men out there make EBOP look easy, but there’s a lot more to EBOP than what the public sees on the field during the event each year.

The few hours I spend in uniform leading the troops and meeting the spectators is less than 1% of the time commitment. I work on EBOP for about 10 months every year attending countless committee meetings, promoting the event to reenacting units, creating registration forms, tabulating spreadsheets, advising on budgets, working with partners like the Princeton Battlefield Society, the State of New Jersey, the Sons of the American Revolution and a lot of other good people.

Why should people turnout for EBOP?

Ken: The Princeton Battlefield State Park is a gorgeous site that people should visit as much as possible. EBOP is the one day of the year where it brings the 18th century to life on a grand scale. It’s a spectacle not to be missed.

That leads me to the last question: what did the Battle of Princeton mean to history?

Ken: As the culminating event of what has come to be known as the "Ten Crucial Days" of the American Revolution, it is a critical turning point in the history of our nation--one of those seminal moments that helped define who we are.

If we lost at Princeton, we probably lose the war and today we’re singing God Save the King instead of theStar-Spangled Banner. That’s a pretty big difference.