Civil War Weapons, Tales at Jefferson County Library's Arnold Branch

Heavy rains reduced the size of the Civil War Encampment reenactment and chased it into the Jefferson County Public Library, at 1701 Missouri State Road, on Saturday.

Listening Charles Brulle, a Civil War reenactor, people realize the stories about the war are more interesting than the era’s weapons. 

“Few people remember that Missouri was a Confederate State and that it’s one of the stars on the Confederate flag,” Brulle said.

Union troops probably took the area now known as Arnold because of its waterways access and railroads, Brulle said.

Saturday’s event was scheduled to occur on a grassy area west of the library’s parking but the heavy rains made the ground soft and muddy.

A 2,200-pound cannon pulled by an 800-pound horse would have ruined the area, Brulle said.

“The grounds manager would have hated us,” he said with a chuckle.

Instead, Brulle brought a 100-pound trench mortar into the library’s café area, replicas of rifles, pistols, canteens, and cooking pans.

Confederate troops carried the mortar into the trenches and fired anything—smooth lead balls, nails, forks—they could find at Union troops, he said.

The replica weapons work, Brulle said. He only fires black powder from the handguns and cream of wheat from the mortars and cannons. 

Brulle said he tested the mortar by firing a softball at a river. “We missed the river an saw the softball bounce after it hit about a mile away.”

Brulle owns authentic Civil War weapons and keeps them locked in a safe place.

“I have never wanted to fire those weapons,” he said. An authentic weapon costs about $3,000 and a replica is about $100, Brulle said.

People can find authentic weapons at antique stores or estate sales, he said.

During an estate sale of a Lacede Station home a few years ago, the auctioneers found a stockpile of Civil War rifles hidden in basement wall, Brulle said. “No one knows how or why the weapons got there.”

Brulle became a reenactor about 30 years ago after he returned from the Vietnam War.  His mother suggested he attend a Civil War event at Jefferson Barracks in St. Louis. 

“They recruited me before I entered the Barracks,” Brulle said about the group responsible for the event, the Missouri's Battery A 13th Light Artillery group. The group also sponsored the Saturday’s event.

Children aged 12 and older can join the group only if their parent also joins, Brulle said. Since all the members reenact battle scenes a parent is needed.

Children who join the group should read history books instead of going online to learn facts about the era, Brulle said. “There are some wonderful books out there.” 

The books tell stories about the people, their philosophies, and reasons for their actions during the Civil War, Brulle said.

Brulle wants more children to study and appreciate the lessons of history. He hopes that the next generation of leaders will make good decisions from their lessons.

“I’ve fought in a war and the last thing I want to see in this county is a civil war,” Brulle said.