“The British are coming!” screamed a borough child.
Haddonfield held its 12th annual skirmish on June 6, when about 100 reenactors came to fire Colonial-era muskets at one another with a crowd estimated at about 6,000 on either side of Kings Highway and a Revolutionary-era marching band at its backs.
Before it began, Mayor Dave Siedell read a proclamation that emphasized the significance of this year’s event coinciding with the nation’s semiquincentennial.
“This will be short and the only one, because of the heat,” Siedell said. “Here ye, here ye. Let it be known throughout this borough and the neighboring provinces that upon this day, we, your humble commissioners, so gather with you in fellowship, gratitude and patriotic remembrance to celebrate the skirmish, and more importantly, the 250th year since the signing of the Declaration of Independence.”
This’s year skirmish included additional regiments of reenactors from other states to bolster troop numbers on both sides. While the event isn’t a reenactment of a specific battle that happened in Haddonfield, it loosely follows the retreat of 20,000 enemy troops down Kings Highway after the British abandoned Philadelphia in 1778.
Resident Steve Kopp has been coming to the skirmish with his children for the past 10 years.
“It’s an enjoyable thing to watch and love history and Haddonfield,” he noted. ” … It’s a good family thing to do. And we see lots of people we know in Haddonfield.”
One of the British reenactors, JP Morello, has been taking part in the skirmish for the last six years and likes the camaraderie with fellow performers. He acknowledged joining the redcoats because of the uniform and because he’s Canadian. He’s joined reenactments in other historical places, such as George Washington’s home in Mount Vernon, Virginia.
“All of us reenactors love history,” Morello explained. “Even though we all have day jobs, we all sort of have a passion for history. And then reenacting itself, it’s a brotherhood. Belonging to a group that likes to do all of this.
“These events are fun.”
Borough resident JP Morello in his reenactor’s garb after the skirmish. He has participated in the event for the last six years.
Since its inception, the borough skirmish has been run by the Friends of the Indian King Tavern, a nonprofit that’s existed for 12 years and is centered around a historic site that has functioned as a museum since the 1980s.
Cara Horner, volunteer coordinator of the skirmish for the Friends, noted that this year’s event was an especially immersive experience.
“We were really able to partner with the borough of Haddonfield in a very meaningful way,” she explained, “so the additional support through not only the borough, but the county, through their Rev250 programming, really bolstered this year to a cacophony.
“It was just really lovely.”
This year’s skirmish planners were able to save money with the borough’s help and pay for historical amenities that will resonate because of the country’s anniversary: an armorer, a Colonial-era cricket, a chocolatier, a brewmeister and a Benjamin Franklin reenactor.
The borough helped contact additional reenactors and also marketed the event. The skirmish this year cost an additional $12,000 to $15,000, paid for with the help of $30,000 raised through fundraisers.
Horner enjoys being part of the planning.
“I have the luxury of really putting together the Avengers every year and letting the professionals do what they do best,” she observed. “It’s a joy … They’re an exceptional group of people.”
Greencoats fire against the British army along Kings Highway during the skirmish.
