SEPARATING FACTS FROM FANTASY ON LIVING HISTORY ATTIRE

This article is a reaction to a social media post from another Sons of Confederate Veterans camp in Texas that called our general membership “historical cosplayers”. We want to you, our readers, to know the difference.

The bare definitions, rules and guidelines of Cosplay, Steampunk and Living History Attire have established clear separations of what is what when it comes to costuming and attire. Even the late Mrs. Eileen Lehmberg of the Texas Society Order of Confederate Rose™, Inc. has described her attire as “They're not costumes! They're period correct attire.”. Despite the facts that several SCV & TSOCR camps & chapters have won awards in many Texas festival parades for best costumes, they are still classified as living history attire by the heritage organizations they represent. Even professional living history educators at historical sights, such as the Alamo do not call their period correct attire “costumes”. The question being, is there a difference between Cosplay & Living History Attire? HECK YES THERE IS!!!

COSPLAY & STEAMPUNK: Cosplay is as Webster's 21st Century Dictionary describes, “the activity or practice of dressing up as a character from a work of fiction such as a comic book, video game, or television show.”. (Star Trek, Star Wars, Halo, World of WarCraft, X-Files, etc.) In cosplay, a good costume is as much about creativity with materials and construction as it is about the outcome.

Even Steampunk, a style of costuming based on the English-Victorian/ American Antebellum era is misinterpreted as historical. Steampunk is as Webster's 21st Century Dictionary describes “ A sub genre of science fiction that incorporates retro-futuristic technology and aesthetics inspired by, but not limited to, 19th-century industrial steam-powered machinery. Where steam power remains in mainstream use, or in a fantasy world that similarly employs steam power.”. So while some people spend hundreds or thousands of dollars on custom outfits for sci-fi/fantasy conventions, many more invest in time, using cheap materials and household items to transform themselves into characters of superhuman, mythical, fantasy, and alien proportions.

PERIOD CORRECT ATTIRE: The common description of a Living History Educator or Period Correct Attire from various heritage organizations is an activity that incorporates historical tools, activities and dress into an interactive presentation that seeks to give observers and participants a sense of stepping back in time. Living history incorporates historical reenactments and period correct attire. Living history is an educational medium used by living history museums, historic sites, heritage interpreters, schools and historical reenactment groups to educate the public or their own members in particular areas of history, such as clothing styles, pastimes and handicrafts, or to simply convey a sense of the everyday life of a certain period in history. Living History Educators spend hundreds or thousands of dollars on period correct attire, as well as countless hours of time into historical research about a specific historical figure from reality and or a era.

Certain heritage organizations like the Texas Society Order of Confederate Rose™, Inc., Sons of Republic of Texas and the Sons of the American Revolution have strict rules and guidelines into what is accepted into their period correct attire and their conduct into portraying a specific historical figure for a ceremony or living history event. In the SCV, members have even gone as far to replicate the CSA uniforms of the exact unit they are repsenting or of their ancestors with all the proper ranks. TSOCR Black Roses have also gone the extra length to include period correct under guarments (such as hoop shirts, pantaloons, corsets, knee hose and graters) in ther mourning gowns.

IN CONCLUSION: To categorize the general membership of any heritage organization as “historical cosplayers” shows a glimmer into the mind set of certain individuals that can not fathom the full weight of the reasoning of a heritage organizations ' function as living history educators. Or they simply wish to ignore the rules in there entirety when it comes proper attire. It is a psychological valid point that an individuals attire is a reflection of their conduct as a member of any heritage organization.

REMEMBER,

Cosplay and Steampunk are a FANTASY!

Period Correct Attire is REALITY!!!