WASHINGTON — The National Mall on Saturday was the place to be for Civil War balloon enthusiasts John DePerro, 68, and David DePerro, 39, of Warrenton, Va.
The father and son came out Saturday to see a partially inflated military balloon right outside the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum. The balloon was placed steps away from a refreshment stand, where famous Civil War balloonist Thaddeus Lowe originally showed President Abraham Lincoln how to use balloons for reconnaissance on June 18, 1861.
He went up in a balloon and telegraphed reports to the White House. Lincoln gave the go-ahead to form the Union Balloon Corps.
Actors in Civil War garb mingled with visitors and talked about the history of ballooning. A small balloon hooked up to a camera took aerial pictures above the Mall.
Tom Crouch, a senior curator at the National Air and Space Museum, said the site was where American airpower began, and Civil War balloons are the direct ancestors of today’s Air Force.
“It’s kind of neat that there’s a historic aerospace event right where the museum is,” Crouch said.
