On Saturdays and Sundays, a volley of flintlock rifles and the banging of a blacksmith’s anvil greet visitors at the Compass Inn Museum.
Westmoreland County Proctor’s Independent Battalion reenactors and blacksmithing demonstrations take place at the historic Laughlintown location during the summer’s last Living History Weekend, set daily from 10am to 4pm.
Members of the reenactment group bring to life the eponymous unit that operated locally during the Revolutionary War and the decade that followed. Named after John Proctor, who was Sheriff of Westmoreland County in the mid-1700s, the force protected the eastern border of Westmoreland County and the western border of the Laurel Highlands from attacks by Native American and British forces. I was tasked with protecting it.
Reenactors will camp on the grounds of Compass Inn on both days and conduct military demonstrations in the morning and afternoon.
“By interacting with the reenactors, visitors will understand the importance of what Proctor Battalion was doing at Westmoreland and the many roles that this group played in making it work,” said Ligonier.・ Teresa Gay Rohall, executive director of the Valley Historical Society, said. Compass Inn Museum. “Without a group like the historic Battalion, settling a community west of the Alleghenies like Laughlintown would have been a much more difficult and dangerous undertaking.”
Reenactors are equipped with working replicas of rifles and smoothbore muskets of the period.
“For us, it was primarily rifles that went into the Revolutionary War, and rifles weren’t as common in the area,” said group captain Scott Henry of Greensburg.
Henry’s roots go back to Joahan Jacob Garitin, an early immigrant to part of Westmoreland County (now the village of Normalville, Fayette County). Garitin had two sons, both of whom served in the Proctor Battalion.
Other reenactors of Proctor, whose ancestors were active in the region in the 18th century, include Tom Clingensmith of New Kensington, now second-in-command, and Michael de Ligonnier, director of the Historical Society and playing Private First Class. includes a set.
As part of the camp, battalion men and the women who accompany them demonstrate various essential skills of the time. Henry’s wife Louise makes candles out of tallow, and another woman at the camp explains to visitors how herbs were used medicinally.
“Some people will talk about leatherwork, and I’m going to make some pistols at the gun shop,” Henry said. “It’s a great snapshot of everyday life and what it took to survive and thrive in the area at the time.”
In addition to blacksmithing, Compass Inn volunteers demonstrate period cooking techniques.
Hands-on activities for kids include dipping in candles, sealing envelopes with wax, and writing with ink and a quill.
A tour of the historic Compass Inn and its annex, which dates back to 1799, is included in your admission price. Adults $14, 62+ $12, 6-17 $10. Younger children, members of the Historical Society, and active military personnel are free. Tickets can be purchased on site.
To coincide with the county’s 250th anniversary, the museum is hosting an exhibition titled “250 Years of History” through October. On display are some of his more than 1,600 artifacts uncovered during an archaeological survey in 2019.
“One of the most exciting discoveries was woolen fabric from the late 1700s,” Rohall said. “You can tell there were people here at the time.”
Other fragments such as clay pipes, pottery, glassware, and pins from women’s clothing were also excavated.
The Compass Inn served as a stopover for stagecoach travelers and drivers during its heyday in the 1830s. Most recently, in late 2021, it provided the backdrop for the filming of his 2022 historical Netflix drama The Pale Blue Eye starring actor Christian Bale, boosting his fame.
visit www.compassinn.org for more information.
Jeff Himler is a staff writer for Tribune-Review. Email Jeff he can be reached at jhimler@triblive.com or on Twitter. .