Fort Fisher tour pics

I'm having so much fun with this upload feature that I'm pausing in working on my Sunday night message (we're still in Acts -- I expect practically ever person in the church with an opinion on the matter will disagree with me this week on at least one thing, but I kind of like it that way sometimes. It keeps me sharp. Or ground down. One or the other.)

These pics are from our youth group's visit to Fort Fisher after an outing handing out tracts. They were doing tours, exhibits, and gun firings that day -- not a true re-enactment, but close enough to produce fun pictures.

Did you know that "I Wish I Was in Dixie" started life as a Broadway song? I didn't, but this guy did. Somehow, I found that terribly ironic.

My daughter had a blast trying to figure out Revolutionary War and Civil War era toys. It turns out that a yo-yo requires considerably more coordination than her Blues Clues computer game.

This might be the most authentic shot of life at the fort for most of its active history.

After his demonstration on the development of firearms through the fort's history, this fellow gave me trouble for keeping my hair cut short. "A man with red hair," he says in a passable Irish brogue, "ought not keep it cut short in the Roman style. Ye ought wear it with pride. So long as ye have the beard, ye're no violatin' any religious law." I think I'll pass on trying to explain that to my congregation.

My favorite shot of the afternoon. I couldn't believe how hard it was to actually catch the muzzle blast of these guns (although it is easier than trying to catch it with a modern firearm -- it's practically non-existent on modern weapons.)

Okay, I liked this one too. Them things was loud, by the way.

And finally, appropriately, Taps over the fort after the guns have ceased their firing.