Lecture Series "History of the New York Highlanders"

Tom Vaselopulos, of the 79th NY Highlander Reenactors, will present a brief history of the Highlanders and their role as part of the Union Port Royal Expedition from November 1861 to June 1862.  A brief look at some of the military operations and how the Highlanders spent their time in Beaufort will be the focus of his talk.  

Tom Vaselopulos is the only native New Yorker in a New York reenacting unit and has been reenacting for over 15 years as part of H Company, 79th NY Volunteer Infantry. Currently serving as a Captain, he is the Aide-de-Camp to the commander, and is also the recruiting officer and the Provost Marshal for the unit. Retired from a 20-year career as a US Air Force / Air National Guard Security Police Supervisor and served in the First Gulf War. He also worked as a security contractor to the US Dept. of Energy for Safeguards, Security and Emergency Services issues, working at several national security sites before retiring at the Y-12 National Security Complex in Oak Ridge, TN. The highlight of his career was teaching a security course for his Russian counterparts at the Karchatov Institute in Moscow.