History was alive and well Saturday at the Vicksburg National Military Park.

The park’s monthly Living History Program was held at the Shirley House from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday. Seven volunteers dressed in Civil War era attire and answered the public’s questions about the park, the Siege and the Shirley House.

“We’ve been trying to do a program a month during the off season,” ranger Jake Koch said.

He said each month the program has been held at a different location in the park and offers a few different activities.

“Sometimes we do historic weapon demonstrations,” Koch said.

The program was last held at the Shirley House in February.

“We had some reenactors come down from Missouri that helped us,” Koch said. “We did a program for Black History Month.”

He explained that the Shirley family owned the house, but they moved out after the Siege began. The house then served as headquarters for some Illinois troops and after the Siege the house became a smallpox hospital.

“The scene right in front of it here along Jackson Road is some of the nastiness that occurs during the Vicksburg Riots during Reconstruction,” Koch said.

“There is actually an account that some men were dragged from the house and lynched in the front yard.”

Hilary Ellis and her husband Andrew and two children were at the Shirley House Saturday afternoon wrapping up their spring break. The Atlanta family spent the week in New Orleans and drove up through Natchez and Vicksburg on their way back home.

“We’re going to do the drive through the whole park and call it a day,” Ellis said.

They chose to stop at the park for the experience. She said she grew up in Los Angeles and had never visited a battlefield before and neither had her children.

“This is all new to us,” Ellis said. “It’s a fun experience.”

The topography of the land was something the family found interesting from what they learned during their time in the park.

“That’s an interesting thing just to realize how much fire power must have gone into the destruction of the land to cause it to look like this,” Ellis said.

Tenth grader Katie Gordon volunteered at the Shirley House Saturday and dressed as a volunteer teacher.

“Over the summer usually I dress as one of the soldiers and we do cannon demonstrations,” Gordon said.

A friend encouraged her to start volunteering last summer and she has been amazed at the people she has met at the park from around the world. She said she has lived in Vicksburg since she was 5 years old and didn’t realize the magnitude of the park until she started volunteering.

Koch said the park would soon be recruiting more volunteers.

“Our volunteers range from adults to high school kids,” Koch said.

Anybody 15 and up is encouraged to contact the park at 601-636-0583.