War of 1812 demonstration in Sackets Harbor brings history to life

SACKETS HARBOR, New York (WWNY) – Demonstrators continue to bring history to life in Sackets Harbor.

It was the 2nd opportunity of the summer for visitors to get up close and personal with volunteer re-enactors showing military and civilian life of 200 years ago on the Sackets Harbor Battlefield.

One of the day’s presentations was the making of char cloth, used during the War of 1812 to help start fires.

Soldiers would place a piece of cloth inside a small tin with a hole in it, throwing it on the coals to heat them up.

“And after the oxygen leaves the little tin right here, we have something that can hold a single spark, so they would use flint and steel and that means just one spark on that char cloth is enough to start a fire,” said James Gray, a seasonal interpreter.

Gray says this is just one of the many things volunteers can teach visitors. You can see them back in action September 4th and 25TH.

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