WWII Days 2024 Reenactment Rules

Any violations of rules may result in the participant(s) expulsion from the event.

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School Day – Friday, September 27th 9:30am-2pm *8:30am call time for participants*

Public Event – Saturday, September 28th 10am-5pm; Sunday, September 29th 9am-3pm

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General Information
•    Please engage the public. They are here to see and learn. Midway Village Museum (hereby referred to as MVM) is Rockford Park District's historical interpretative village and museum center.
•    No smoking of tobacco is allowed on the MVM campus, except in designated roped areas per Rockford Park District ordinance. They made an exception for tobacco smoking areas only for this re-enactor event. No recreational marijuana or alcohol is allowed on MVM campus. Those disobeying these policies will be fined and/or ejected from event. 
•    Consistent with the Concealed Carry Act, the Rockford Park District does not allow any loaded firearms with Live Ammunition on or into any park, trail, or pathway totally contained within a park, athletic area, or any athletic facility, building, portion of a building, or real property under the control of the Rockford Park District.
•    Throughout the year, MVM provides mission-related programs and special events along with wedding and corporate rentals. The site must revert back to pre-event conditions at the end of the weekend. Please be courteous to the grounds and village buildings. Please do not leave your trash on the village grounds or woods area.
•    Damage to grounds comes out of the event’s budget. Don't do it. No excessive spinning out or making ruts in grass or dirt road areas. Violators will be fined based on damage; this includes damage to village buildings and grounds. 
•    Do not disturb artifacts, benches/fixtures, or tools on MVM campus without museum staff permission.
•    No animals are allowed at the event except for service animals. This is a Rockford Park District rule.
•    The selling of merchandise is permitted only to sales vendors in vendor area and during Friday evening’s re-enactor sale. Re-enactors participating in the blanket sale must be registered to attend the event; outside participants will be asked to pack up items. 

Registration Information
•    PRE-REGISTER. It helps us capture all your information in case of an emergency and to have accountability for the more than 1,000 re-enactors on site. Those who do not pre-register will be charged a convenience fee for registering on site.
•    You must present a valid photo ID upon registering. Reenactors are required to sign a waiver while registering. You will receive a wristband that must be worn at all times. Wristbands are required for entry and participation.  Reenactors will be required to show wristband at admission gate and upon entering battlefields to the military police unit assigned by event staff. 
•    Registration will take place at hospital building inside the village gates. 
•    Anyone under the age of 18 should have a parent/guardian on site to sign them in and accompany them while on-site.  Unaccompanied minors require a permission form to be filled out by a guardian/parent and to be notarized by a notary public prior to the event. There will not be a notary on site. This form is a legal document that grants an adult temporary guardianship, including authorization of photo release form and medical treatment in case of an accident.
•    Late Registration Policy: If you arrive to register after 9 am on Saturday, YOU WILL BE CHARGED admission at the gate and instructed to leave all gear and weapons in your vehicle. Proceed to registration where you will receive a wristband and refund ticket. Return to the admission gate to redeem your refunded admission and collect your gear. This is a safety precaution as there are nearly 10,000 in attendance making it difficult to know who is and who is not a re-enactor. 

Safety Information
•    Participants in battle reenactments must be 18 years old. No one under the age of 18 shall be permitted on any active battlefield. No one under 18 years old shall possess or handle an operational firearm, act as a member of an artillery crew, or participate in any battle reenactments. Non-operation weapons are okay for minors to handle in camp displays only.
•    No brass can be given out during the WWII School Day event on Friday, September 27th. Many schools will expel a student if they come back to school with brass!
•    No firing weapons outside of battle times except for testing. Testing must be done on a limited basis, as far away from the public as possible, and a warning like “fire in the hole,” or “test firing” must be yelled out. Please refrain from testing before 0800 (8 a.m.) and after 1900 (7 p.m.). Violators will be ejected from event. 
•    All re-enactors will go through HRS Safety and Authenticity inspections (main inspection is Saturday morning at 8 am). After S&A, a designated official will mark off your wristband. Marked wristbands are required for event participation. Those who cannot attend the main S&A inspection will need to be inspected by an S&A officer or assigned military police unit at a designated area to have their wristbands marked to show they passed inspection. 
•    Representatives from all units participating in main battle must attend the pre-briefing Saturday morning, following S&A. In addition, all participants in main battle must be in place on battlefield 15 minutes prior to battle start time. Any participants arriving late will be turned away.
•    Woods Skirmish participants will need to attend a pre-briefing 15 minutes prior to the scenario start time. This helps battles run smoothly and increases safety. Any participants arriving late will be turned away. 
•    Real life medical emergencies and injuries must be reported to MVM event staff immediately. Absolutely no exceptions. In the event of an injury during public event hours, report to EMT at the hospital building. After hour injuries must be reported to MVM overnight staff and 7th ID Military Police Platoon located behind Ralston house. This includes minor incidents such as dehydration.
•    NO Live Ammunition allowed, only blanks should be carried or in your possession. Consistent with the Concealed Carry Act, no licensee shall carry a firearm loaded with Live Ammunition on Rockford Park District property.
•    All NFA laws and rules will be enforced. 
•    If you live in the state of Illinois, you will have on you a FOID card!  
•    All class 3/NFA weapons should have proper papers, ATF Form 3 and 4, and approved ATF Form 5320.20
•    No blind shooting around corners of buildings. 
•    No firing beyond mid-point of road facing towards crowd.
•    No weapon may be loaded unless you are actively in a battle or on the battlefield. Clear your weapon after the scenarios are over. This will be checked after battle scenario is over. There are no loaded weapons allowed in camp at any time. You may only have empty, unloaded magazines in a weapon for display purposes!
•    Assigned military police units will be conducting spot checks throughout event to ensure the safety of all. 
 

Vehicle Inspection Information
Please visit the HRS web site for additional information. All vehicles will be checked at the event and will undergo a checklist. 

Vehicle Safety Information
•    All motor vehicles must be driven by a licensed driver, regardless of off or on road use. The driver must be knowledgeable of the type of vehicle he is driving. PROPER LIABILITY INSURANCE IS MANDATORY. Any vehicle driven off road MUST HAVE A GROUND GUIDE, to avoid personnel hiding in foliage.
•    The site-wide speed limit is 5 mph. Entrance 2 is a public recreation path, which connects to neighborhoods and shopping centers. There will be no racing in the village, woods, or on the bike path (even at night); violators will be ejected from the event.
•    If driving at night, you are required to have headlights. 
•    No vehicle traffic is allowed into the village through gates A, B, and C; you must use gates F (Perryville) and D (Water tower).
•    Service brakes shall function on all wheeled vehicles.
•    Brakes should be functional, if a vehicle was originally equipped with such brakes.
•    Tracks shall be properly adjusted.
•    Steering system shall be functional.
•    An onboard fire extinguisher is required for all historic vehicles.

Authenticity Information
•    Haircuts and hair styles will be period appropriate to 1939-1945. Facial hair will be period appropriate based on impression. 
•    Your equipment, uniform, weapon, and vehicle must be period appropriate to 1939-1945.
•    All tents should be WWII, reproduction or converted to very close resemblance of WWII tents. No 10-man arctic or post-war hexagonal tents allowed. WWII style GP small, mediums and larges are allowed, but space may limit where they can be placed.
•    No Nazi Party/Political items will be worn, this also includes any other countries’ political items. No flying, handing out, or prominent display of German or Nazi Party/Political flags or insignia. 
•    Civilian reenactors at this event are held to the same level of authenticity as the military impressions. 
•    Absolutely no impressions of concentration camp prisoners or guards. Civilian impressions of ghetto residents is permitted but should be accompanied by a meaningful historical display and presentation. Yellow stars, pink triangles or other badges or armbands used by the Nazis to identify their victims may NOT be worn as part of a reenactor impression.
•    Period appropriate impressions required for all battle scenarios. 
•    There will be spot checks in campsites by 7th ID MP’s and 353rd FG’s. Any discrepancies will be addressed and corrected immediately. Any Unit who cannot correct their FARB will camp in the Modern Camping Area in the re-enactor parking lot.
•    Event and MVM staff have the authority to deem any reenactor impression inappropriate and remove the impression from the event if necessary.

Village Building and Campsite Information
•    All camps are assigned prior to event due to space constraints. All units need to register to request a campsite. Priority placement must check-in by established deadlines. New units will be placed on a waiting list and assigned a camp as space is available. 
•    You must commit to the whole weekend; you will setup before the gates open to the public on Saturday. Tear down cannot happen until after the public leaves on Sunday. Units that leave early risk losing their campsite! 
•    For visitor safety, entrances will be periodically blocked to allow foot traffic only. 
•    You will be responsible for your items/equipment. If they are broken or stolen, neither the MVM nor the HRS are responsible.
•    The sod (top-layer of grass) must be removed before you start a fire! All campfires and stoves must be monitored at all times. All fire pits on village grounds must be completely filled in before you leave the event. No fire pits allowed near Gazebo, Red Barn, or garden areas.
•    At 2200 (10 p.m.), Quiet Time will be in effect in accordance with Rockford City Noise Ordinance. QUIET socializing will be permitted around campfires. There are residential areas on 2 sides of the museum campus.
Parking Information
•    Reenactors must park in the Perryville lot which is the designated reenactor parking area.
•    You must register to receive a parking pass! Your vehicle may be ticketed and/or towed if not! Please provide your campsite and phone number in case staff needs to contact you!
•    Vehicles with trailers should park at the south end of the lot IN ORDERLY FASHION. This helps with space and the flow of traffic during tear down.
•    Please register first to find your units camp area in case of last-minute changes! DO NOT drive around looking for them!
•    NO POV's allowed in camp area during Friday School Day Hours (0930-1400) or Public Hours Saturday and Sunday PERIOD! All POV’s will be asked to leave 30-minutes before the event start. For child safety, no POV’s will be allowed in the village until an “all-clear” is given after school day programming. (POV = Your personal car/truck).
•    No POV’s permitted overnight in campsite or village areas.
•    Please unload and load quickly and then move POVs out of the camp and village areas, otherwise the roads quickly jam up with parked cars.
•    Anyone driving a POV in the woods area does so at their own risk. The terrain is uneven and difficult to keep clear of tree limbs. Neither MVM nor the HRS are responsible for damage to POVs.
•    All visitors must be out of village prior to Sunday’s tear down to preserve visitor safety. No POV’s allowed in village until all visitors are out of the village. NO EXCEPTIONS.

Load-Out Information: ONE-WAY EXIT
•    When the all-clear is given, vehicles will enter through Gate F (at Perryville lot) and turn right; vehicles stationed in the West end of the village will be able to go straight and turn left to get to “Main St.”
•    DO NOT BLOCK THE ROAD WITH YOUR VEHICLE! This will cause a traffic backup; everyone is trying to get in and load-out. 
•    Follow the road counterclockwise and pass the Law Office to advance down Main St. Turn left at the Hotel and right at the Water Tower to exit out of Gate D. 
•    Oversized vehicles that cannot make the immediate right turn will be permitted to enter through Gate D, as long as communication is given to MVM Staff to halt exit traffic briefly. 
•    No vehicle traffic is allowed into the village through gates A, B, and C; you must use gates F (Perryville) and D (Water tower).
•    We will lock the village Sunday at 6pm.