Brian Veirs poses as a colonial Soldier during family day events.

By Caitlin VanOverberghe
Staff writer

The year was 1775. Farmers, merchants and craftsmen joined together in anger with a common goal in mind – take back their rights from a persecuting government.

The bravest men from the 13 colonies took up arms and, despite numerous loses, they emerged from the smoke of their muskets victorious.

These heroic tales are what sparked Brian Veirs’s interest in the time period.

“It’s just really interesting to see how much of the stuff that happened in this time period was driven by the ordinary person,” he said. “It’s just a good example of what ordinary people can do to change their country and then the world.”

Veirs, who works as an IT specialist for U.S. Army Cadet Command’s 1st Brigade, which oversees the Leader’s Training Course, has spent years collecting and piecing together Soldiers’ uniforms from the Revolutionary War era.

He started with a traditional colonial outfit, which proved to be the most expensive and take the longest to assemble. He also completed a British Naval uniform and Prussian infantry/calvary uniform.

“I always loved living history because I thought it was such a better way to not just learn about history, but to really appreciate it and get a better feel for it than just sitting there reading a book,” he said.

Working for the Army gives him the opportunity to put the uniforms to use. Veirs has been portraying living history since 2005, when he was first discussed with Public Affairs Officer Steve Arel about dressing up for the Leader’s Training Course’s family days.

He dons the periodic attire — boots, hat and even a sabre — and greets families as they arrive. The response has been overwhelmingly positive, with a number of people wanting their photo with colonial look-a-like. Some families aren’t sure how to take it.

Arel, who thought it would be a fun, unique and patriotic, commends Veirs for his personal bravery.

“One thing I’ll give Brian is he’s got guts. I wouldn’t do what he does,” Arel said. “It’s something that he likes to do and it adds some flavor to the family day event.”

It took Veirs a full six years to complete the colonial uniform, which he recently wore at the Alpha Company family day. He’ll suit up again Friday for Bravo Company families. The costume consists of everything from medical scrubs he found at Goodwill to a $320 handmade jacket made in Valley Forge.

Even if the uniforms are fun to wear, they are not always the most comfortable.

“The cool thing back in the day to show that you were rich was to wear a wig and look like a moron,” Veirs said. “In the movies it looks like it stays flat, but that doesn’t do that in Kentucky. Humidity makes it frizz. So, I’ve stopped wearing it.”

Arel doesn’t worry about Veirs dealing with the heat of Kentucky afternoons.

“He knows where the water fountain is,” Arel said, laughing. “If I see George Washington on the ground, I’m sure there are enough Soldiers out there to come to his aid.”

For Veirs, it’s the interactions with people on family day that keep him coming back year after year. He has met a museum curator who shared his passion for history and even a commander of a Pennsylvania war re-enactment regiment who gave him information on how to join.

Some try to play along with him, but the average person just tries to guess who he is. And he’s heard it all – Abraham Lincoln, Richard Nixon, Julius Caesar, Winston Churchill and even Adolf Hitler, on two occasions.

While he has never portrayed a certain character, he is pleased when people guess George Washington because at least then they have the time period correct.

It’s the “way, way off” guesses, he said, that disturb him because it shows people may not know the country’s history.

“No one has said I looked like Barbara Bush yet, so it’s still OK,” he said. “That would be the final day I would do this. I would just quit.”

If the day came when the interaction and teaching moments stopped, Veirs would throw in the towel, but for now he’s having fun.

“If they just walked by and weren’t interested at all, then I would be wasting my time,” he said. “It’s fun for me to do, to share the history of it. But if that element isn’t there, then I’m just sweating for no reason.”