Bulloch Hall Brings the Past to Life

It isn’t very often locals get to meet famous people from the 19th century, but those who ventured to Bulloch Hall Wednesday night got to do just that.

For the past 22 years, Bulloch Hall – the childhood home of President Theodore Roosevelt’s mother, Mittie – has been hosting an annual wedding reenactment of the 1853 marriage of Mittie and Thee Roosevelt. Site Coordinator Pam Billingsley has been a part of the event since its beginning back in 1989. As a matter of fact, she helped get the whole thing started.

“I had worked in Colonial Williamsburg for a while, so I wanted to do something like that here,” Billingsley says. “I thought this would be a fun thing to do so that people could meet the Roosevelts and Bullochs.”

Billingsley plays Ms. Bulloch in the one evening event, which sold over 100 tickets. Visitors were treated as guests to the wedding and were given the chance to listen in on the conversations of the 24 volunteer actors portraying several historical figures. The tour covered the upstairs and downstairs of the home and even included a wedding dance with the newlyweds. Childen's author Josie S. Bailey, who tells a classic children’s story during the evening, is in her fifth year helping with the event.

“I did this one year and they just kept inviting me back,” Bailey says with a smile. “I guess I sort of became their storyteller!”

Visitors to the wedding reenactment not only leave with a fresh view of a pivotal 1853 December night in Roswell, but also a few ginger snaps and hot apple cider in their stomach. The hour long tour concluds with refreshments served by the same characters in the tour, allowing visitors to ask questions and get a better perspective.

“We look forward to it all year. Most of the folks involved do it year after year,” Billingsley says. “People want to go back in time; they want to meet Mittie and Thee Roosevelt. After all, it’s fun to make believe.”

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