Community Corner
Re-enactors Celebrate 150th Anniversary of Hotair Balloon Mission in Falls Church
Residents were captivated by the hot air balloon on display in Cherry Hill Park to commemorate Thaddeus Lowe's accomplishments with his hot air balloon during the Civil War.
Civil war re-enactors gave Falls Church residents a glimpse into the life of Thaddeus Lowe, whom was appointed chief aeronaut of the Union Army during the Civil War to spy on Confederate forces.
“Keep in mind, for lack of a better term I’m a civilian contractor,” said the Thaddeus Lowe actor. “I was paid at the rate of colonel, but I was treated like a civilian contractor.
On display was a 1941 Navy trainer balloon, that was filled with cold air and put on display in Cherry Hill Park. A Civil War re-enactor posing as Thaddeus Lowe answered questions about his life’s endeavors to the crowd of Civil War enthusiasts in attendance. The balloon was originally a hydrogen balloon but had been filled with cold air to be put on display Saturday morning.
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“We made several ascensions from an area called Piller’s Tavern, on a portion of what was then known as Arlington Heights,” said one of the re-enactors during the question and answer session with the crowd. “That’s where Koons Ford is now.”
Lowe famously inspired President Abraham Lincoln to form the Union Army Balloon Corps after hovering 500 feet above Washington DC and sending a telegram to Lincoln from above, proving the usefulness of hot air balloons in the surveillance of enemy forces.
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The re-enactors pointed out that the price for civilian hot air balloon flights on average has risen only 25 dollars since the late 1800s when Lowe was the country’s leading hot air balloonist.
The Lowe presentation was part of a weekend long Civil War Sequicentennial Thaddeus Lowe Commemoration in collaboration with The Smithsonian Institution Air and Space.
Over 50 adults and children came out to Cherry Hill Park to witness the re-enactment. Passionate civil war enthusiasts also made the trek to Falls Church Community Center Friday night to view “Ballooning In the Civil War, filmed at the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum Symposium on Ballooning in the Civil War held several weeks ago in the District of Columbia.
The Tinner Hill Heritage Foundation was also on hand with a booth displaying some of their own historic memorabilia, and children in attendance enjoyed plenty of Civil War era inspired games and activities throughout the day.
For more information on upcoming Sequscentennial Civil War re-enactments and celebrations, check the Virginia Civil War website.
