ROMNEY - During the Civil War, the town of Romney changed hands between the Union and the Confederacy more than 50 times. It seems that old habits die hard, because on Sept. 9-10, two more battles will rage between the North and the South on the outskirts of Romney.

These re-enacted battles are being staged as part of Hampshire County's annual Heritage Days celebration, which is a festival held in Romney on the same weekend.

If you are imagining a handful of rag-tag Civil War buffs shooting blanks at each other and calling it a re-enactment, think again. This event will involve as many as 36 Confederate and Union army units, numbering from 350 to 500 soldiers. They will have from four to eight cannons and 40 mounted cavalry.

The strategy and outcome of the battles will be determined by the generals commanding the troops just as they did during the actual war one and a half centuries ago.

The re-enacted battles will take place at 2 p.m. on Sept. 9 and at 12:30 p.m. on Sept. 10. The location will be a large field along the north side of U.S. Route 50, just west of the South Branch River Bridge on the western outskirts of Romney.

In addition to the actual battles, the public is welcome to tour the army encampments after 9 a.m. on both days. The encampment will close one hour before each battle and on Saturday will reopen until 5 p.m. once the battle is concluded.

There will also be guided candlelight tours of the encampment on Saturday evening. These will include various demonstrations, a number of staged dramatic scenarios and night firing of the cannons, giving the public an opportunity to witness the full visual impact of cannon fire.

The candlelight tours are scheduled for 8 and 8:30 p.m. and require tickets, which can be purchased at the Hampshire County Visitor Center at 91 S. High St. in Romney (for directions, call (304) 822-7221). Tickets for these tours cost $3 for adults, children are free, but tours are limited to 30 people so plan to get tickets in advance. The authenticity of these Civil War re-enactments is quite remarkable and Confederate and Union Army units operate year round across the entire United States. Some of the units participating in this re-enactment will travel 300 miles from neighboring states. Those, interested in gaining more information about Civil War re-enactments should inquire at the encampment during Heritage Days or locate your local chapter of The Sons of Confederate Veterans.

If you are planning to attend the re-enacted battle, allow some extra time to take in the Heritage Days Festival in Romney, which includes other historic re-enactments, including a speech by Abraham Lincoln. There will also be a car and motorcycle show, arts and crafts for sale, daylong live music concerts and an evening street dance to the music of the Chinese Bandits.

Additional Civil War encampments, not participating in the re-enacted battle, will be set up along Main Street in Downtown Romney, some performing vintage music from that period.