Having emerged from their tents with the crack of down, the hoop-skirted women sat in a tight-knit circle, chatting quietly.

A lady with her hair in a tight bun behind her head cradles a baby boy barely 3 months old in her arms. Another fixes the hair of a woman whose fingers deftly work a loom, weaving as she talks with a visitor.

&uot;We’ve had classes in weaving, making rag quilts and making jewelry,&uot; said Kris Schmitz of Poplarville. &uot;We’ll have a church service later on. And last night, we played pinochle.&uot;

It wasn’t a domestic scene from the Civil War era &045; but it was just as close as the women could make it. In all, 29 women from Mississippi, Louisiana and Arkansas gathered this weekend at the Jefferson College historic site to take part in the eighth annual School of the Lady.

There the women &045; who participate in Civil War reenactments, down to sewing their own 1800s-style clothing &045; learned the finer points of jewelry making, weaving and the like by the light of oil lamps.

Some of the women have been participating in re-enactments, some with husbands and some on their own, for 10 years or more. Others are relatively new to a hobby that participants said can become quite involved.

But as they sat in the hall of the college site’s office building after Sunday’s breakfast, they reflected on the main thing the school, and re-enacting in general, has brought to their lives &045; true friendship.

Amie Clark of Raymond &045; who attended the school, held Friday night through Sunday morning &045; tells the curious that she’s not paid for re-enacting and that, yes, it’s an expensive hobby.

But she said it’s a pastime that more than pays for itself in friendship.

&uot;Friendships made here are so close and tight that even though we just meet maybe once a year, I can sit down with these people and have a more intense connection that I do with most people,&uot; Clark said.

She gestured to her 3-month-old son, Ashland, who was being fed a bottle by fellow re-enactor Annell Hiershe of Baton Rouge.

&uot;When I come here, I can put my baby in someone’s lap and know that he’ll be well taken care of,&uot; Clark said. &uot;That’s the kind of bond we have.&uot;

Hiershe can relate &045; her three daughters have grown up re-enacting as well. &uot;And we’re close,&uot; said Patricia Salassi of Jackson. &uot;Closer than family.&uot;

Clark said the women call each other throughout the year to chat or to help each other in times of crisis.

And yes, in their outside lives they do e-mail each other. (Perhaps that’s not surprising, considering one woman has her own Web site for the hobby, 19thcenturywoman.com. What creates that kind of bond. &uot;It’s sharing a common interest,&uot; Salassi said.

&uot;It’s a great equalizer,&uot; added Ellen DiMaggio of Lake Village, Ark. &uot;You don’t know the person next to you, how much money they have. We’re all alike here.&uot;