Northwest Department

The Northwest Department

In the late 60s, if you listened carefully, you could already hear Revolutionary War rumblings in and around Ohio; by 1970 there were four Brigade units in the heartland. An informal network naturally arose among the Brigade units and others in the region and in June, 1973 they first performed together at Point Pleasant, W.Va.

Now, a trip to a Brigade show in New England entails some serious time and expense, but Point Pleasant is only six hours away from people in Michigan and Fort Laurens is only five hours away from people in Cincinnati. In 1973, therefore, we were eager to develop a Revolutionary War program in the Midwest. The Brigade was receptive. The solution was the Northwest Department (NWD). With the Brigade’s blessing, we began what has been a 27-year success story. We have grown from a handful of member units in 1973 to 25 today. There are over 500 soldier and civilian members on our roster.

The Northwest Departments Charter gives us considerable autonomy in promoting and performing shows in its own territory. Northwest Department members are Brigade members; its performances are Brigade performances and its events are open to all Brigade members. The Northwest Department is a family within a family.

We treasure our personal relationships within the Brigade at large, but we also feel pride in our Northwest family. We charter buses to distant events. We have our own particular style of mock battle (officially named Tactical Weapons Demonstration) that stresses speed and flexibility. We are very adaptable: one of our regular Northwest Department shows requires that we all - Crown and Colonial soldiers alike - portray militiamen of exactly 200 years ago. Once a small mob of Northwest Department soldiers went en masse to an event as woodland Indians.

Interested in Joining? Email David Miller, Northwest Department Deputy Commander for more information!

~ Schedule 2020 ~

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