Historicon is the largest

gaming convention A gaming convention is a gathering centered on role-playing games, collectible card games, miniatures wargames, board games, video games, or other types of games. These conventions are typically two or three days long, and often held at either a u ...

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

devoted to solely historical

miniature wargaming Miniature wargaming is a form of wargaming in which military units are represented by miniature physical models on a model battlefield. The use of physical models to represent military units is in contrast to other tabletop wargames that use ...

. It is sponsored by the

Historical Miniatures Gaming Society The Historical Miniatures Gaming Society (or HMGS) promotes the hobby of historical miniature wargaming in the United States, as a registered non-profit charitable and educational foundation. Chapters The organization consists of a loose-knit grou ...

, a nonprofit guiding organization. The ''Wall Street Journal'' has described Historicon as the "mother of all wargaming conventions." Typically, Historicon is a four-day convention held in July each year since 1994. Thousands of miniature gamers and military history enthusiasts gather to play in hundreds of tabletop games, tournaments, and demonstrations. The convention is accompanied by a

flea market A flea market (or swap meet) is a type of street market that provides space for vendors to sell previously-owned (second-hand) goods. This type of market is often seasonal. However, in recent years there has been the development of 'formal' ...

of used gaming items and accessories, a large dealer hall offering new merchandise, a series of seminars and training sessions, painting competitions, and similar events. The majority of events are history-related, with the remainder being fantasy, science fiction, steampunk, or horror miniature games. Each year, Historicon has a different theme and focal point (such as the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

), and many games and supporting events are geared around the theme. Awards are presented to the Best Theme Event, as well as best games in specific time slots and other honors for particularly popular or impressive games. Historicon-2015-photos-4

Historicon was held in

Lancaster, Pennsylvania Lancaster, ( ; pdc, Lengeschder) is a city in and the county seat of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. It is one of the oldest inland cities in the United States. With a population at the 2020 census of 58,039, it ranks 11th in population amon ...

, at the Lancaster Host Resort, a hotel located on

U.S. Route 30 U.S. Route 30 or U.S. Highway 30 (US 30) is an east–west main route in the system of the United States Numbered Highways, with the highway traveling across the northern tier of the country. With a length of , it is the third longest ...

in the heart of

Pennsylvania Dutch The Pennsylvania Dutch ( Pennsylvania Dutch: ), also known as Pennsylvania Germans, are a cultural group formed by German immigrants who settled in Pennsylvania during the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries. They emigrated primarily from German-spe ...

and

Amish country Amish country may refer to: * Ohio Amish Country, in Holmes County, Ohio, the highest concentration of Amish in the world; see Amish in Ohio * Pennsylvania Dutch Country, the largest population of Amish in the United States * Illinois Amish Country ...

for many years. For many years it was held in historic

Lancaster County, Pennsylvania Lancaster County (; Pennsylvania Dutch: Lengeschder Kaundi), sometimes nicknamed the Garden Spot of America or Pennsylvania Dutch Country, is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is located in the south central part of Pennsylvania. ...

. In 2012 it moved to

Fredericksburg, Virginia Fredericksburg is an independent city located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 27,982. The Bureau of Economic Analysis of the United States Department of Commerce combines the city of Fredericksburg wi ...

at the Fredericksburg Expo Center, a convention center a mile from

Interstate 95 Interstate 95 (I-95) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the East Coast of the United States, running from U.S. Route 1, US Route 1 (US 1) in Miami, Miami, Florida, to the Houlton–Woodstock Border Crossing between M ...

, the main highway on the East Coast of the United States. Fredericksburg is rich in history, with the battlefields of Chancellorsville, Fredericksburg, the Wilderness, and Spotsylvania Court House commemorated nearby at the

Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park is a unit of the National Park Service in Fredericksburg, Virginia, and elsewhere in Spotsylvania County, commemorating four major battles in the American Civil War: Fredericksburg, Chancel ...

. The

National Museum of the Marine Corps The National Museum of the Marine Corps is the historical museum of the United States Marine Corps. Located in Triangle, Virginia near MCB Quantico, the museum opened on November 10, 2006, and is now one of the top tourist attractions in the st ...

is also within easy driving distance. In 2018 Historicon moved back to

and was held at its old home the Lancaster Host Resort (now known as the Wyndham Lancaster Resort and Convention Center). In 2019 Historicon was held at its new home the Lancaster County Convention Center. In 2020, HMGS canceled all of its conventions, including Historicon, due to

Covid-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. In 2021, HMGS was again unable to hold Historicon during the usual mid-July timeframe; however, instead of canceling again, they held it in mid-November, replacing the Fall In! convention that usually occurs at that time. The 2022 edition of the event was held at the Lancaster County Convention Center.

Convention dates and themes

July 20–23, 2006 — "Africa's Independence – The Wars of Africa" 1905–2006
July 26–29, 2007 — "The Wars of South Asia: Afghanistan, Burma, India and Pakistan, 1800–2007"
July 24–27, 2008 — "The World on Fire – The first world war: The Seven Years and French & Indian Wars, 1754–63"
July 16–19, 2009 — "Ride to the Sound of the Guns… – Napoleon's 1809 Campaign and the Spanish Ulcer"
July 8–11, 2010 — "Pike and Shotte: Seventeenth Century Warfare" 1600–1699
July 8–10, 2011 — "Brother Against Brother: The American Civil War" 1861–1865
July 19–22, 2012 — "Colonial Warfare, Imperialism and Gunboat Diplomacy, 1836-1937"
July 18–21, 2013 — "American Civil War, 1863 – the Year of Decision"
July 17–20, 2014 — "Big Wars, Little Soldiers – World Wars throughout time"
July 16–19, 2015 — "End of Empires"
July 14–17, 2016 — "Cavalry, Mounted warfare through the ages"
July 13–16, 2017 — "100 Years of Tanks"
July 12–15, 2018 — "Wars of Conquest and Those That Lead Them"
July 11–14, 2019 — "Extreme Terrain Edition: Jungle Warfare"
July 8–12, 2020 — Cancelled due to Covid restrictions
November 10–14, 2021 — "Aircraft of War: Balloons, Bombers, Helicopters, and more..."
July 20–24, 2022 — "World in Conflict: Italy"

References

External links

*
A Tribute to John Hill: Historicon 2015
{{coord, 38.31576, -77.50779, type:landmark_globe:earth_region:US-VA, display=title Gaming conventions Trade shows in the United States Tourist attractions in Fredericksburg, Virginia