Missing Civil War reenactor is found days later still in his Confederate Army uniform

A Civil War reenactor has been found still in uniform days after he went missing from a Labor Day weekend event.

Washington State Patrol issued an Endangered Missing Person Alert earlier this month after Thomas Goodwin, 54, vanished on the night of September 5 in Yelm, about a 40-minute drive southwest of Tacoma.

Goodwin was wearing a gray jacket and blue pants, the uniform often worn by Confederate soldiers, with a sling holding a Civil War-era rifle when he disappeared. He was last seen walking on foot on the rural George Road.

The Yelm Police Department announced Saturday that Goodwin was found and was being evaluated.

Yelm Fire Public Information Officer Brian Richardson told local outlet KOIN that a bystander on a motorcycle heard Goodwin asking for help and called 911. When first responders arrived, they found Goodwin still wearing his Civil War reenactment uniform, Richardson said.

Evenson Farm in Yelm hosted an event Labor Day weekend on George Road that was described as the “largest Civil War reenactment event in the Pacific Northwest,” by the Washington Civil War Association.

Goodwin was attending and camping at a Civil War reenactment that seemed to match the Evenson Farm event with a family member before he vanished, the Thurston Co. Scanner, News, & Weather Blog, which shares local scanner traffic, wrote in a Facebook post. He reportedly left behind his wallet and keys.

“He was last seen in the area feeling unwell and never returned to the tent. He does have some medical conditions,” the post read.

Washington State Patrol warned that Goodwin was at a “credible threat” regarding his health and safety.

He was later found Friday night about half a mile from where he was last seen in an area of thick brush, Yelm Police Department Sergeant Chris Davis told the Tacoma News Tribune.

“He seemed in very high spirits,” Davis said. “We’re happy he was doing well despite being out in everything for six days.”

Davis said Goodwin was dehydrated but had no signs of any major injuries. It’s still unclear how he got lost or what he did in the days he was missing.

“He was kind of out of it, so didn’t talk too much about how he got back to where he was,” Davis said. “My assumption is he was just walking.”