BELCHERTOWN, Massachusetts – The sights and sounds of the Civil War era – complete with a game of base ball – will come alive on Saturday and Sunday, July 8 and 9, in Belchertown, Massachusetts.

The Newtown Sandy Hooks vintage base ball team is slated to take on the Essex Nine at 12 noon on the Belchertown Common and Civil War re-enactors are expected to be present in both lineups. But that is not the only activity going on that weekend.

Before the match on Saturday, there will Soldiers Dress Parade and Civil War Monument Re-Dedication ceremony on the Common from 9 to 10:15 am. At the performance tent from 10:45 to 11:15 am, there will be an original poetry reading by Charles Barnes featuring Warfields of Gettysburg and By Lee’s Lookout.

During and after the match, there will be a 9th Massachusetts Light Artillery Drill demonstration; a Field Hospital demonstration; Louisa May Alcott, a performance by Jan Turnquist; a performance by the Gallant Sons of Erin Massachusetts Irish Band; and Abraham Lincoln, a performance by George Cheeves.

Sunday will be more of the same with the added flavor of an 1860s fashion show.

Any event on the Common will be free, but events inside the Old Town Hall or Stone Museum will require an admission charge. There will be plenty of food and drink available at the Stone House. Living History Days serves as a major Belchertown Historical Association fundraiser for ongoing preservation needs of the Stone House Museum and to help preserve Belchertown’s history for future generations.

The base ball match will be played by the rules of 1864, which – among other things – stipulate underhand pitching and all fly balls caught on one bounce being outs.

For further information on the events taking place over the weekend visit www.stonehousemuseum.org/civilwar05.html or call 1-413-323-6573.