By JOSEPH KELLARD
Listening to him talk about his possessions -- which range from rifles, uniforms, books on military tactics, and paintings to his medals, knapsacks, hand fans, and a match striker -- you quickly realize that Adler is no mere history "buff." He eats, drinks and sleeps the Civil War.
Adler's extensive knowledge and passion are understood once you discover he is a captain in the 119th New York Volunteers Historical Association, also known as Company H. This unit that reenacts Civil War battles is famous for its steadfast authenticity down to the smallest detail in virtually everything it does and dons.
When Adler, a middle-aged electrician sporting a handle-bar mustache, sat down with the Herald recently in his kitchen, he reflexively recounted in detail the history of Company H. Formed in 1862 by a Roslyn attorney who recruited a company of about 100 men from the Hempstead area--including Oceanside, Baldwin, and Rockville Centre--the company eventually joined a Manhattan-based regiment comprised of nearly 1,000 soldiers. That this infantry unit was the first regiment to enter Atlanta is one highlight from its campaign. Following the Federation's victory in the war, the unit's 300 survivors returned to their lives on Long Island.
"The Civil War is the first modern American war," Adler said, when asked why many people share his intense interest in that period. "I guess because photographs were taken of the soldiers, it is more real and more interesting to people than, say, the Revolutionary War or the War of 1812."
Adler attributes the popularity of collecting Civil War artifacts to their relatively low cost. "The average rifle is now about $2,000, so it's within range of the middle class person's pocket book," he said. "It's within the range of certain World War I and II artifacts."
On further thought, however, Adler said he believes the basic reason for America's fascination with the war is that it was domestic, one in which "our nation was literally tearing itself apart."
A field trip to an armory in Brooklyn with his fifth-grade class sparked the young Adler's interest in the most divisive period in US history. Having studied the war in school, the 10-year-old boy was enthralled by the actual original uniforms and equipment in glass cases there. When he moved to Oceanside with his wife, Angela, in 1972, Adler began collecting Civil War artifacts, starting with rifles and swords. When Company H was re-formed in 1980 by five Long Islanders affiliated with Old Bethpage Village Restoration, Adler became the first non-original member to join.
Part of the larger National Regiment organization, Company H's steadfast authenticity requires each member to adopt the persona of an original solider, whose history, personality and even vocabulary they researched. Adler plays the part of Private Alfred Noon, a Roslyn resident. As part of his research, he visited Noon's surviving granddaughter in Ronkonkoma, who characterized him as a jokester.
Company H's authenticity is so well known it attracts the attention of Hollywood. Adler and his unit were extras in the film "Glory," and the company was offered work in "Gettysburg" and the upcoming "Gods and Generals," which they declined for financial reasons.
During the 1980s, the Adlers and their two daughters, Suzanne and Joanna, traveled twice monthly to reenactment camps from New Hampshire to North Carolina. Angela spent large sums to dress her family in authentic replica clothing and provide her children with 19th century-styled toys. True to that period, the men and women sleep in separate tents, and the soldiers endure the cold, hunger and exhaustion that the original infantry faced during battle.
"It was something we all did together, and we liked the camaraderie we had with the other families," said Angela, a secretary at School 8. "And the kids loved it, because we got to play dress up every other weekend."
Today, while the Adlers now-adult children no longer attend the reenactments, Angela returned to the camps after a hiatus to portray a nun, Sister of St. Joseph, who cared for the wounded on both sides at various hospitals throughout the south.
"When I walk through the camp in my costume, habit and rosary beads, everyone stops," Angela said. "It commands respect."
For their 25th wedding anniversary in 1997, the Adlers had an authentic Civil War ceremony at the Manetto church at Old Bethpage Village Restoration. Among the reenactments they will partake in there this year are the Jamaica Draft Riots of 1863.
How much longer do they see themselves participating in the reenactments?
"This hobby really beats the hell out of your body," said Mark, who has suffered hearing loss from the booming gunshots in battles. "It's strenuous and you suffer a lot from the elements. But I will do it as long as I can."
