WENDELL — Minus the Black Plague and the Spanish Inquisition the Middle Ages might not have been so bad.

That is if the time would have been spent with the members of the Society for Creative Anachronism. Saturday, SCA members from Idaho, Utah and Montana gathered at Niagara Springs State Park south of Wendell. They engaged in armored combat, drank from pewter tankards and dressed as the characters they’ve created to learn about and celebrate the Middle Ages and the Renais-sance period of world history.

“We reenact the Middle Ages as they should have been,” said local SCA leader Tony Palmer of Kimberly. “Just the fun stuff.”

Palmer said group members share their research about life between 650 and 1650 A.D.

“From the fall of the Roman Empire to the death of Queen Elizabeth,” he said.

They try to keep their costumes, tools and toys as close to authentic as possible. While some members admit to buying the supplies for their regalia at local fabric stores, others go as far as raising the sheep to get the wool to weave the fabric for an item of clothing.

Most often, Palmer said, SCA members will find a costume they really like and then learn all they can about the costume and its place in history. From that they create a persona to go with it. They choose a name for the persona and once in their “garb” they stay in character. That character might have a hobby, like making clothing, jewelry or tools — done as close to the traditional way as possible.

Michele Wolf of Boise, known as Giliana Attewatyr, makes pewter pins and coins. Most often her creations are used as souvenirs for SCA gatherings or as prizes in group contests.

She uses a propane torch to melt lead-free pewter that she then pours into molds carved out of soap stone. While she’s on the road, like this, she allows herself to use the modern conveniences of propane and welding gloves. At home, she says, her methods are a little closer to authentic.

In her other life Wolf is an electrical engineer — a career that allows her the luxury of not having to depend on the sale of the pewter trinkets to make a living. She carefully researches the history of the pieces she might recreate — getting as close as possible, for example, to matching the badges that might have been worn after a pilgrimage of the time.

At other tents around the park, SCA members were making tools, hand sewing quilts or simply sharing food and drink with friends. While there were sightings of electric coffee pots and an occasional Coleman stove, it wouldn’t take much for a visitor to think they might have stepped back in time.

Unlike large Renaissance fairs or SCA gatherings, this occasion is quiet — a time to reconnect with old friends immersed in old ways.

Palmer, also known as Liam MacFarlane, was one of the founding members of the local SCA chapter back in 1986. He said the group has been coming to Niagara Springs for 17 years.

This event is called a “Hearthwarming.” While Palmer said it’s called that, “because that’s the name I decided to give it,” others say it’s a time when local chapter members keep the proverbial hearth warm for others who travel to the national gathering of the SCA always held the same weekend.

Regardless, it was clear on this sunny August day that friendships mattered more than motivations.

“These people devote their whole lives to medieval history,” said Malyenda Dilmore of St. Anthony who was offering henna tatoos to attendees. “I come here for the people.”

The event continues through noon today.

Karma Fitzgerald writes for the Times-News. She can be reached at 735-2238 or by e-mail at kfitzgerald@magicvalley.com.