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FORT SILL – Schoolchildren in Lawton got a clear idea of the story on Friday when they visited the army post at Fort Sill.
That’s the intention behind the annual Frontier Days at Fort Sill, according to Museum FIRES Center of Excellence director Frank Siltman.
“We want people to see the story with their own eyes and get a greater appreciation for it,” he said, “and hopefully generate interest in the story.”
Launched in 2010, Frontier Days were called in 2020 due to COVID-19. Siltman said some of the usual events that would take place inside the Post Museum and historic buildings were not on the menu this year.
The Fort Sill parade ground was a prime location for a group of third-graders from Lawton schools to get a feel for the “rich history of Fort Sill,” according to Siltman. It has practical learning aids for the retention of these young learners.
“These are things some will remember in 25 years,” he said. “Most of them will at least remember the cannon fire.”
“It gives students the opportunity to see, feel and touch history,” he added.
It’s not just an artillery display. In addition to the learning modules to gain insight into the lives of soldiers at the founding of Fort Sill in the 1800s, the role of home care was equally important, Siltman said. United States Marshals and other roles, both military and civilian, were represented.
“And we have one for the Buffalo Soldiers,” he said. “Remember, they were the ones who built Fort Sill. “
Carrie Fox of the Oklahoma History Center guided a group of children on ways to wash before washing machines and dryers. But there was a correlation between now and then.
“My job today is to talk to you about technology,” she said. “Technology is fundamentally a tool that makes work easier. “
While demonstrating clothes washing techniques, she demonstrated what looked like a plunger but with a thin metal head instead of a rubber suction cup. Fox explained how the tool is an agitator and is the ancestor of the key component of a modern machine.
At another car wash, Xavier Hoover, a third-grader at Hugh Bish Elementary School, was rubbing a piece of white cloth inside a wooden bucket with a small washboard. He said it was a fun day of learning outside of the classroom.
Hoover said he was not used to washing clothes. When he removed his laundry from the water, his nose wrinkled and he screamed at his classmates.
“They smell of bleach,” he exclaimed.
The lives of the soldiers were on display. It is an army post. But the correlation between clothing and a successful army was represented through the other learning modules.
Luke Garrett is a volunteer history teacher at the Fort Sill Artillery Museum. Holding a station that represented the Spanish-American War statute of 1898, American soldiers trained and dispatched from Fort Sill. He shared what kind of outfit a soldier would wear and take with him during war.
After firing a shot from his then-specific rifle and startling the kids – even when told before he was ready for the “bang” – Garrett smiled and knew his message would make an impact. The first-hand learning in this setting allowed for expansive teaching.
“These are things you don’t teach them in school,” he said. “I hope they get something out of it.”
As Aiden Lincoln walked with his third-year classmates from Whittier Elementary to the station to learn more about the original soldiers stationed at Fort Sill, he said his first time in the post and his involvement with the Frontier Days was quite “awesome”.
When posted in its place, Lincoln’s sunglasses reflect the presentation. His smile reflected the pleasure of learning.
It was volunteer teacher John “Red” Tanner, in his late 1860s uniform, who gave the past a visual and tactile presence. Despite the weapons on display, he returned to clothing, discussing woolen uniforms and “cheap leather shoes” that needed to be replaced every two months. All of them also serve to keep a soldier fit for the role.
“Let’s talk about fashion now,” he said. “An army does not exist to be pretty but to fight.”
Tanner recalled that “only 1%” of a soldier’s life after the Civil War was in combat.
That said, when it was time for the cannon to make its quarter-hour shot, the big bang for the students would make the impact moment for many. Just as Siltman predicted.
A squad of volunteer guns prepared the 1841 six-pounder field gun for fire. Even prepared for the moment with hands on ears and faces squashed in anticipation, the countdown to “3, 2, 1” created tension among young audiences.
With a thunderous “boom” Trenton Coleman, Hugh Bish’s third grader, flew back from his seat on the ground. His fingers still in his ears, his face lit up with a huge smile.
When asked if he’s having fun and learning something, Coleman responded with an enthusiastic response: “Yeah.”
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