Not all the fireworks shot off in Natchitoches during the Christmas Festival were from the evening’s show. Cannons and flintlock muskets boomed as a group of about 15 colonial period re-enactors attended the Christmas on the Cane Winter Encampment at the Fort St. Jean Baptiste State Historical Site Dec. 1-3. Visitors to the fort got to see demonstrations of colonial life and crafts. Firing demonstrations were held throughout the day in which visitors learned the origin of expressions such as “lock, stock and barrel” and “flash in the pan.” The re-enactors also demonstrated firing a cannon, always a crowd favorite.
