In ‘98 I participated in the 135th anniversary reenactment. At that time, with over 15,000 re-enactors, it was billed as the biggest meeting of the Blue and Gray since the war itself. I went with our local company of the 14th Brooklyn regiment. (In the movie Gettysburg you can see them passing behind Gen Reynolds as he lay dying.) They were able to stage Pickett’s charge full scale. That was a sight not soon forgotten. The sound of musketry was like storm waves on a beach. There were 135 artillery pieces, which I believe was also something of a record.
Actually considerably larger than 15,000. Picketts charge
on Sunday had right at 11,000 Rebs. Union opposition was
about 9,500. Added to that were 700 artillerymen to man
the guns and over 2000 mounted cavalry. Some estimates
place the number of participants at over 30,000. During Picketts charge my company was part of the 14th Conn.
just down the line from the “angle”. It was a magnificent sight to be sure.