A historic re-enactment depicting the Battle of the Thames during the War of 1812 is set for Chatham-Kent on Saturday.
History buffs from around North America will watch as a rare horse cavalry battle unfolds.The re-enactment takes place on the exact site where the bloody battle took place in 1813.
Tom Cole has a special connection to this memorable date and place in Canadian history. He is proof of living history.
“My fifth great-grandfather was in colonel trotter's cavalry regiment with the Kentucky militia and fought here at the battle of the Thames," says Cole.
The retired police officer from Anniston, Alabama has been re-tracing his ancestor’s footsteps since the 1980's and it all comes to a head on Saturday.
“I heard about the bicentennial event and I just made a pilgrimage up here and I retraced his route starting at his grave in Alabama," says Cole.
Cole set off on his own personal quest to mimic his grandfather’s war time actions as closely as possible.
“I'll be in the battle,” says Cole. “I'll be mounted cavalry. I'm a re-enacter. I have the Kentucky militia outfit and carry an original 1813 cavalry saber."
Chatham-Kent tourism officials have been planning the re-enactment for more than four years, and expect to have over 500 hundred participants.
The battle gets underway at exactly 2:30 p.m. on Saturday.
