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<p>FORTY FORT &#8212; Mark Kahn has loved history since he was about 8 years old. And on Sunday, he helped bring it to life by portraying a surgeon&#8217;s assistant at a Revolutionary War re-enactment at the Col. Nathan Denison House.</p><p>Decked out in period-appropriate garb, complete with a &#8220;blood-spattered&#8221; apron, Kahn detailed medications used by the military in the mid to late 1700s.</p><p>&#8220;For example, &#8216;blue mass&#8217; was a medication that could be used for both diarrhea and constipation,&#8221; he said. &#8220;It also contained mercury, which we now know to be a poison.&#8221;</p><p>Many medical &#8220;givens&#8221; during the Civil War, he said, were not understood during the Revolutionary War time frame, between 1775 and 1783.</p><p>&#8220;They didn&#8217;t have antibiotics, they didn&#8217;t know what germs were, they just went from surgery to surgery without any disinfecting of anything,&#8221; he said.</p><p>Kahn joined over a dozen other re-enactors with the 24th Connecticut Militia Regiment Inc., providing inspiration and information to attendees.</p><p>Some portrayed soldiers while others acted as &#8220;camp followers,&#8221; who provided support services to the soldiers.</p><p>Jeff Smith, portraying the regimen&#8217;s surgeon, cautioned attendees against retaining a 21st century mindset.</p><p>&#8220;You&#8217;re thinking pain management,&#8221; he said. &#8220;Pain management wasn&#8217;t a thing during the Revolutionary War.&#8221;</p><p>Smith said when a limb needed to be amputated, no anesthetic was yet available.</p><p>&#8220;Alcohol &#8212; whiskey &#8212; might be given after a surgery, but not during,&#8221; he said. &#8220;As a surgeon, I needed to know how the patient was responding.&#8221;</p><p>Smith also pointed out simple items, invaluable for the practice of medicine during the war.</p><p>&#8220;That&#8217;s bees wax. It was used to make the use of surgeon&#8217;s thread easier to use,&#8221; he said. &#8220;They used soap, but didn&#8217;t yet understand the importance of sterilizing things.&#8221;</p><p>Re-enactor Caron Nelson was on hand to provide a period-appropriate culinary backdrop for the event, complete with fresh bread baked at the camp site, freshly churned butter and fried peach fritters.</p><p>&#8220;Yesterday, we made pickles,&#8221; Nelson said. &#8220;And we have period-appropriate cheese and cold meats.&#8221;</p><p>Nelson detailed the difference between an encampment and a battle re-enactment.</p><p>&#8220;A battle has more to it,&#8221; she said. &#8220;This is simply an educational presentation of what a Revolutionary War camp would be like.&#8221;</p><p>Bob Mischak, a longtime volunteer at the Denison House, further provided a historical perspective of the war and the time period to attendees.</p><p>Leading tours throughout the day, Mischak made each room of Denison House come alive, with stories of how the former owner rose from simple beginnings to military service to service as a county judge.</p><p>Standing in the middle of the small home&#8217;s living room, Mischak said Nathan Denison would meet with other officials in that very space, which also served as an office.</p><p>Andy Yuhas and his son, Brian Yuhas, 7, who were out on a Sunday afternoon bicycle ride, happened on to the event and couldn&#8217;t have been happier.</p><p>&#8220;He especially likes the guns and watching them make a fire,&#8221; Andy Yuhas said of Brian. &#8220;He got really interested in history, in the presidents, during kindergarten.&#8221;</p><p>Brian was visibly excited as he made his way to a grassy area of the property to watch the firing of a period-appropriate gun a soldier re-enactor.</p><p>Although the gun made a loud noise and adults nearby were a bit startled, Brian smiled as he heard the loud &#8220;pop&#8221; and the smoke that followed it.</p><p>Kahn, who also taught history, said his favorite part of a re-enactment was the reaction of children.</p><p>&#8220;Children ask very simple, very relevant questions,&#8221; he said. &#8220;Like, what is that medicine used for?&#8221;</p><p>Re-enactments, Kahn said, were a hands-on way of teaching young people who might be bored with textbooks.</p><p>&#8220;Understanding history is very important,&#8221; he said. &#8220;If you don&#8217;t know where you&#8217;ve been, you don&#8217;t know where you&#8217;re going.&#8221;</p><p>The event was sponsored by the Luzerne County Historical Society, which oversees the Nathan Denison House.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Mary Jo Elliott, of Springville Township, sits by a campfire this past weekend at the Nathan Denison House in Forty Fort, where a Revolutionary War Encampment was set up. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/web1_TTL082717Camp1.jpg</photo0><caption0>Mary Jo Elliott, of Springville Township, sits by a campfire this past weekend at the Nathan Denison House in Forty Fort, where a Revolutionary War Encampment was set up. </caption0><photoCredit0>Sean McKeag | Times Leader </photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/web1_TTL082717Camp2.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Justin Swan holds a .54-caliber rifle, similar to one that was used in the Revolutionary War, during an encampment at the Nathan Denison House. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/web1_TTL082717Camp2.jpg</photo1><caption1>Justin Swan holds a .54-caliber rifle, similar to one that was used in the Revolutionary War, during an encampment at the Nathan Denison House. </caption1><photoCredit1>Sean McKeag | Times Leader </photoCredit1></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/web1_TTL082717Camp3.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">David Hopfer, of Noxen, constructs a small shaving box that a soldier would carry with him to hold all of his blades and shaving soap. Hopfer acts as a joiner of the Revolutionary War time period, similar to a finished carpenter of today. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo2>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/web1_TTL082717Camp3.jpg</photo2><caption2>David Hopfer, of Noxen, constructs a small shaving box that a soldier would carry with him to hold all of his blades and shaving soap. Hopfer acts as a joiner of the Revolutionary War time period, similar to a finished carpenter of today. </caption2><photoCredit2>Sean McKeag | Times Leader </photoCredit2></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/web1_TTL082717Camp4.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Jeff Smith acts a surgeon from the Revolutionary War time period during an emcampment set up at the Nathan Denison House. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo3>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/web1_TTL082717Camp4.jpg</photo3><caption3>Jeff Smith acts a surgeon from the Revolutionary War time period during an emcampment set up at the Nathan Denison House. </caption3><photoCredit3>Sean McKeag | Times Leader </photoCredit3></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><subheadMeta>Event held at Denison House in Forty Fort</subheadMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Geri Gibbons</p><p>For Times Leader</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach the Times Leader newsroom at 570-829-7242 or on Twitter @TLnews.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Revolutionary Encampment brings history to life at the Denison House