Shiloh visitors witness sights, sounds of battlefield

SHILOH, Tenn. — Visitors at Shiloh National Military Park witnessed the sights and sounds of the battlefield Saturday with cannon demonstrations outside the visitors center.

Park ranger Charlie Spearman says it would have been much louder during the Civil War.

“This single cannon would be just one of hundreds firing out there. You could hear it all the way to Jackson it made so much noise,” he said.

Spearman hosted a live demonstration Saturday, showing the crowd how the cannons work and introduced the cannon operators to attendees.

Jerry Jett is a longtime volunteer.

“I’ve been doing this right here for about 12 years. It’s really fun. It gives me something to do, plus, I feel like I’m giving back to the community,”  he said.

He says everything they use during the reenactments is as real as it gets.

“We use real equipment. Everything here is about as authentic as you can get, and we try to make sure, even what I have on. These are reproductions, but they’re done perfectly the way they were done before. These are 100 percent wool uniforms, etcetera,” Jett said.

While they did not fire real cannon balls into the woods, the park rangers explained how they would have been used. They also talked about the smoke from the cannon.

“The smoke today was phenomenal because of the humidity they got a real dose of what it would have been like to be on the battlefield with the smoke of battle,” Spearman said.

It’s not only a hobby, but also an opportunity to teach the community. “If we don’t do this, it’ll be forgotten. It’s our heritage,” Jett said.