The Upshur County Patriots (Sons of Confederate Veterans) will participate in a major reenactment, “The Road to Secession,” which will be conducted Dec. 2 to Dec. 5, 2010, at Camp Gilmont, located off Hwy. 155 northeast of Gilmer. This will be a sesquicentennial event, marking the events leading up to the breakup of the Union in 1861.

The Road to Secession is one of the first national events of the American Civil War Sesquicentennial. It will be held in early December at Camp Gilmont, in northeast Upshur County.

The event will feature both an academic symposium and a Living History event and will address the question: “Why did the good and Christian people of the South chose Secession in 1860-1861?”

The Road to Secession is being organized by the Texas Division, Sons of Confederate Veterans and the Army of the Trans Mississippi, Sons of Confederate Veterans. It is their intention to invite school children from the Ark-La-Tex to attend the event on Dec. 2 and 3, and open the event to the general public on Dec. 4 and 5.

The Road to Secession Committee is working hard to attract qualified and proven reenactors to perform the roles of as many of the key personalities in the Antebellum period as possible.

Organizer Mark Vogl of Gilmer said that “We hope to have John Brown, Abraham Lincoln, Col. Robert E. Lee, Stephen Douglas, Dred Scott, Harriet Beecher Stowe, Horace Greeley, Rafael Semmes and many more.

“Our belief is that if people can see and hear the arguments and news of the day, they will be more informed as to why Secession was chosen by the people of the South.

“Our goal is to provide an open forum for all sides so that attendees can gain an appreciation for the views of all,” Vogl said.

He said they have already located a reenactor to play John Brown, a radical Abolitionist who led raids into Kansas before the war.

“We will portray acts of terrorism which led Southerners to vote out of the Union,” Vogl said.

The Road to SecessionAcademic Symposium will provide a venue for college professors, authors, historians and students to once again consider the history of this nation during this most crucial period. Those wishing to submit papers should contact Vogl.

“Crisis and conflict, violence and social forces combined to lead the U.S. down a road which eventually led to Secession,” Vogl said. “President Lincoln chose war as the northern response. To truly understand the period and the decisions of the people involved, one must explore the many sides of the times.”

He said The Road to Secession Committee seeks contributors.

“We need to raise funds, to attract qualified academicians, and qualified and practiced reenactors,” Vogl said. “We need to promote and advertise the event across the nation.

“If you feel you can be of any help make checks payable to the Upshur County Patriots RTS. All donations are tax deductible and we can provide a tax ID number,” Vogl said.

Send checks to Upshur County Patriots, 7082 FM 1795, Big Sandy, TX 75755 .

For more information, contact Mark Vogl at 903-725-3175.