Lake View Terrace : Sports Complex Hosts Mock Civil War

It looked mostly like a bunch of ball fields Friday afternoon, but when the sun rises over the Hansen Dam Sports Complex in Lake View Terrace this morning it will become a theater of living history.

Beginning at 10 a.m., the Civil War will be fought on the site as actors and history buffs recreate the conflict that nearly shattered the country more than 130 years ago.

Promoter Dick Wixon said he expects as many as 500 participants in the two-day event--believed to be the first of its kind held in Los Angeles. Two carefully scripted mock battles will be staged today, carefully scripted events using authentic tactics, maneuvers and equipment of the period.

“The men draw lots to see who gets shot,” Wixon said.

Mike Perkins, who’ll portray a member of the First North Carolina Cavalry in the skirmishes, said he hopes that visitors gain a better understanding of the men who fought for the South.

“They’ve got this myth that Confederates were bad guys,” he said. “Neither one were bad guys--at least not the soldiers.”

J. Dale Himebaugh, the event’s program director and a longtime Civil War aficionado, said that while slavery was a central reason for the war, many of the soldiers on both sides were simply fighting to defend their homes.

In addition to the simulated battles, visitors will be able to tour replicas of Confederate and Union camps and witness simulated amputations in a field hospital, Himebaugh said.

Fillmore resident Don Ancell will spend the weekend strolling the grounds as Abraham Lincoln, aided by a startling natural resemblance and a love of bringing history to life.

“It’s a kick,” he said. “I must admit, I like all the attention.”

And despite people’s perceptions, Ancell maintains that the 16th President was not the humorless fellow some might wrongly believe.

“He was a very witty person,” he said.