Civil War Days coming to Elk Grove May 6-7

By Lance Armstrong vcneditor@gmail.com

The 3rd annual Civil War Days will be held at the Mahon Ranch in Elk Grove on Saturday and Sunday, May 6 and 7.

This event will be presented by the Elk Grove Historical Society, the Linda Mae Mahon

Lema Foundation, the Native Sons of the Golden West, and the Mahon Ranch, which is located at 10171 Grant Line Road.

The hours of this event are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sunday.

As an action-filled attraction, the event will include Civil War battle reenactments with muskets and cannon firings, horses and encampments.

More than 200 Union and Confederate army reenactors will participate in this event.

Jim Entrican of the Elk Grove Historical Society mentioned that a special feature for this year’s event will be performances by actor Robert Frank Broski as President Abraham Lincoln. He will give the Gettysburg address.

“Well, we think this guy is a pretty authentic Lincoln,” he said. “He’s 6-foot-something high, he’s got the beard, he’s got the demeanor. He’s going to be a great speaker.”

Also making an appearance will be Nancy Whittle as Harriet Tubman.

Tubman was an abolitionist and social activist who served as a Union scout during the Civil War. She was also active in the Underground Railroad, to help Southern slaves escape to the north into freedom.

While Broski will perform both Saturday and Sunday, Whittle will only make an appearance on Saturday.

Whittle will be joined by a reenactor portraying Sojourner Truth, who was very active in getting freed slaves to fight in the war with the Union.

Entrican mentioned that guests of this event should also be on the lookout for a reenactor portraying Ulysses S. Grant, the Union Army’s commanding general who led his troops to victory against the Confederate Army in the Civil War.

“It’s a rumor that Ulysses (S.) Grant is going to come in for a secret meeting with Lincoln, and he’s going to inspect his Union troops before the Deer Creek battle,” he said.

This year, there will be many more reenactors at this event, Entrican noted.

“The Union camp this year will be increased to almost 100 troops, and it will be maybe two or three times bigger than it was (at) the other two events,” he said. “The South, the Confederate, they also have an increase in the number of people coming. As this (event) gets bigger every year, more and more people travel