1815 REVISITED Living history actors depict Battle of N.O. By Julie Landry Laviolette St. Bernard/Plaquemines bureau The year was 1815, and a ragtag bunch of men and women came together to defend their country. The 189th anniversary commemoration of the Battle of New Orleans, which takes place today through Saturday, celebrates the Americans' defeat of the British in the historic clash on Jan. 8, 1815. The event, which draws about 200 living history interpreters from across the country to re-create scenes in American and British military and civilian camps, begins a day earlier this year at the Chalmette Battlefield, said Kristy Wallisch, a park ranger. "The backbone of this event is the living history volunteers, of course, and they were indicating it was easier to be here from Thursday to Saturday, rather than Friday to Sunday," Wallisch said. Today and Friday, about 2,000 students will tour the battlefield, which will be open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The public also is welcome. Living history events will continue at the battlefield Saturday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and again from 6 to 8:30 p.m., when lantern tours of activities "the night before the battle" will be conducted about every 15 minutes. The 45-minute lantern tours are the only activities that have a fee, Wallisch said. Tickets are $2 per person for those 6 and older. Tickets can be bought at the park the night of the program, but sell out early, Wallisch said. "It is really an amazing event all weekend," she said. "You smell those campfires, you hear those cannons and everywhere you go people are dressing and acting like it's 1815. They do an incredible job of giving you an idea of what the period was like." In addition to the activities at the battlefield, a re-enactment of one of the skirmishes leading up to the battle will take place Saturday at 10 a.m. at Torres Park in Chalmette. In the battle, the last of the War of 1812, American troops hastily assembled by Gen. Andrew Jackson defeated the well-trained and well-equipped British troops under Gen. Edward Pakenham. The Americans fought behind a reinforced mud rampart and shot down rushing British soldiers in a battle that lasted about two hours. The Americans lost 13 men to death and injury. British casualties totaled more than 2,000. "They had already signed the treaty that ended the War of 1812, but it hadn't been ratified," Wallisch said. "If the British had won, Pakenham had been authorized to set up a government here, and they would have controlled the port of New Orleans." Commemorative activities have been held at the battlefield since 1894 to mark the anniversary. In the 1950s, living history demonstrations were introduced. At the event, volunteers will demonstrate the medicine, crafts, food and military activities of the 1800s. Some portray British soldiers, American infantrymen or militiamen. Others play American Indian scouts and launderers, field surgeons or musicians. Junior ROTC members will portray free men of color and Tennessee militia in the American camp, Wallisch said. In the civilian area, volunteers will demonstrate what women were doing before the battle: cooking and preparing blankets, bedding and bandages. Others will demonstrate the medicine, folk arts and crafts of the period. Visitors also will be able to climb to the top of the Chalmette Monument, the 100-foot white marble obelisk that commemorates the battle. According to legend, Jackson himself laid the cornerstone in 1840, but the structure was not completed until 1908. Battlefield visitors are asked to park at the St. Bernard Parish Government Complex, 8201 W. Judge Perez Drive in Chalmette, and take a free shuttle bus to the battlefield. Buses will run at 15-minute intervals Thursday, Friday and Saturday during all events. Activities at the government complex and adjoining St. Bernard Council on Aging include folk art displays, tourist information and a refreshment stand. For a schedule, visit the National Park Service Web site at www.nps.gov/jela.   Lake area holds sites of historic interest Spanish Fort dates to the early 1700s article by Carole Grout Recently someone made the grave error of telling me that there was "nothing historic" in the neighborhood where I live. As politely as possible, I informed this person that in fact in this general area there are a number of important sites that are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. ruin of a fortification erected by the French in the early 18th century. Originally called Fort St. John, it was expanded and bricked by the Spanish During the British invasion in 1814-15, the fort was manned by American troops to protect the city from possible invasion from the lake. After Forts McComb and Pike were built, Spanish Fort lost its strategic importance and fell into disrepair. The lighthouse on Lakeshore Drive was built in 1890 on the site of a former lighthouse dating to 1838. Mrs. Fannie Norvell, who retired in 1932, was one of the last two women lighthouse keepers in the country. The lighthouse until recently served as a base for the Coast Guard. The City Park Pavilion in the Carousel Garden is a 10-sided building featuring stained glass that was built circa 1906. The carousel inside, built around 1910, contains 54 painted animals, including a giraffe, camel and lion, and a two-person chariot. Longue Vue on Bamboo Road is a neo-Georgian mansion constructed in 1939 for the Edgar Stern family. Surrounded by acres of elegant gardens, the magnificently furnished house and grounds are open to the public. Fourth Church of Christ, Scientist, at 134 Polk St. is a building in the Craftsman style. Metairie Cemetery was originally an important antebellum horse racing course but in 1873 became the property of the Metairie Cemetery Association. Today marble and granite tombs line the former race track oval. Nearby are two other National Register sites: Odd Fellow's Rest Cemetery, which opened in 1849 at the corner of Canal Street and City Park Avenue, and the Jean Marie Saux Building at 900 City Park Avenue, formerly Tavern on the Park restaurant and now Ralph's on the Park. The neo-Classical New Orleans Museum of Art was called the Isaac Delgado Museum when it was built in 1911. Today it's listed as a state historic site. Expansion over the years has increased the museum's size and its collections have increased accordingly. Also listed is the nearby Pitot House on Moss Street, home of James Pitot, the first mayor of incorporated New Orleans. Built circa 1800 and restored by the Louisiana Landmarks Society, the house is open to the public as a museum. Nothing historic, eh? I think I'm going to send a copy of this column to the person who made that unfortunate remark to me. . . . . . . . If you have information for Lake Scene, call Carole Grout at 282-4393, send a fax to 288-3426 or write her at P.O. Box 24566, New Orleans, LA 70184-4566.