Primarily our unit is made up of close friends who have come together to enjoy each other’s company, camaraderie and areas of expertise, be they 18th C. warfare & tactics, 18th C. life, Fashion, Firearms or woods skills. Specifically:
- Wherever possible and appropriate we will portray New England frontiersmen in the field for an extended period – in other words, when out for a three week scout instead of an afternoon frolic on the village green. That means outer clothes and full equipment.
- We strive to be the best we can be at woods tactics, or la petite guerre.
- We are progressive, in that we will constantly attempt to improve our appearance, improve our gear, search for the right material for our clothing, use the tools and equipment, and techniques of the period we are portraying. We will not force, cajole or belittle members in this, but rather encourage and urge them along this path.
- We do not do first person interpretation as a rule.
- We do allow facial hair. While we recognize that the 18th century was a particularly beardless time in the history of western culture and civilization, such hairlessness was not absolute. Many of us also reenact other time periods in which facial is most appropriate. But more significantly, we have our feet firmly planted in the 21st century, and do not believe our hobby should totally rule our lives. We will change everything that we can change for a weekend event, but those things that cannot be changed easily for a weekend we will not change.
While we do not actively recruit members, we have met individuals who have shown an interest in becoming a part of our unit. Some may and have fit well within our group dynamic, some have not, the bottom line is we have to be comfortable with who you are, and vise versa. We encourage you to meet us at an event, see who we are, and let us meet you. We may not like you and you may not like us. Our unit does not strive to be all things to all reenactors. We all love history and recreating that history. If you have the same spirit, the same goals, and we all feel we can get along, then we will welcome you with open arms as a true comrade.
We will respect others in their approach to this hobby, and we hope they will respect ours. If you have a problem with how we conduct ourselves, and with our rules and criteria, the problem is yours, not ours. All members have enough worries/conflict/politics in their real lives and we don’t want this in our free recreational time or in this unit. Folks looking to find another approach to this hobby, or believing they can influence this unit to change, or seeking the imagined rewards of rank and control, best find another garrison house for shelter.