News : Civil War marching drills bring history to life for VSMS 8th graders

Mr. Vasquez demonstrates the firing of a Civil War muzzleloader.

Marching orders: VSMS 8th graders learn Civil War drills each May with Mr. Alex Vasquez.

'OK:' Mr. Vasquez explains how to hold a rifle using the 'OK' hand gesture as a guide.

Every May, Alex Vasquez teaches young people how to march.

The 8th grade history teacher at Vinton-Shellsburg Middle School has been a Civil War re-enactor, and is the descendant of a man who survived being shot in the face during The War Between the States.

This week, the annual tradition continued. Vasquez has been teaching the war over the past few weeks. On Tuesday, he wore his uniform to class, and explained how and why Union soldiers dressed as they did, and the equipment each man would carry in his backpack.

"This is not a costume," he explained. "It's an actual uniform."

The teacher explained that his boots were made by a man who learned from a man, who had learned from another man who actually made them during the Civil War. The footware includes a horseshoe-shaped metal bar in the heel -- placed their to make the soles more durable.

Vasquez pulled items out of his bacpack, and explained their purposes.

A tin cup. "I like me my coffee," he said.

A lice comb. "Every one in the war, from General Grant to the privates, had lice," Vasquez explains, to a chorus of groans. He also told the students that the soldiers accepted lice as a way of life and would even hold lice races. Also, he said, the military tradition of shaving the heads of new soldiers was in part an attempt to prevent lice.

Along with his uniform and backpack -- much of it a century and a half old -- Vasquez owns two Civil War era guns (a repeating rifle and a single-shot muzzle loader) and a replica muzzle-loader.

Two students in each class -- the girl and boy with the highest test score average -- earns the privilege of carrying the weapons as the students learned to march.

Vasquez explains and demonstrates the difference between "Right face!" and "Right Dress" as he leads the students in drills on the school lawn. The students learn how important it was for soldiers to march in tight formation, with no space between them.

The final lesson of the march is a demonstration of the muzzle loader. The teacher shows the students how to load and fire a weapon, how front and back ranks used difference stances, and also gives them an idea of how it sounds and smells.

See more photos HERE.