Thousands of people wandered the grounds of Graceland on Sunday. They took in a ball game, a wild west shootout, a World War Two battle, watched as Lewis and Clark boarded their boat or whatever suited their interests.

But by 5 p.m. it was all gone -- the tents, the ships, the biplanes. Walk Back In Time was over.

"There were a lot of people," said Lori Pratt of the Audrain County Historical Society, the organization responsible for the event, in a noticeably hoarse voice. "But after the weekend we are pretty much done for."

The grounds around Graceland will allow around 2,500 spectators. Over three days of Walk Back In Time there was a constant flow of people to and from the area.

Because it's an open event with no ticketing, Pratt said it is difficult to estimate the gathering. A survey of the crowd done a decade ago counted almost 15,000 for the weekend.

Like so many events, Walk Back In Time did not take place during the pandemic. It's return was clearly popular.

There were several new events, including a series of presentations titled Five Rugged Roads of History that culminated with Cowboys on the Open Range. Suffragettes rallied along the sidewalks. A keelboat, a pirogue and the crew of Lewis and Clark's expedition were a centerpiece.

"They were a hit," Pratt observed. "Everybody was talking about Lewis and Clark."

But a real treasure waited inside. Bud Clark, a descendant of William Clark, brought items that were part of the expedition, such as saddles, and pieces collected along the way, including native ceremonial headresses and hides.

"Those were museum quality items you can't see anywhere else," Pratt noted.

Walk Back in Time was an idea that Paul Baum brought to the society in 2002. It takes place every other year, with fundraising to cover costs taking place in between.

The event can be expensive. Reenactors come from several states. Just getting the 20 plus members of Lewis and Clark, along with their two craft, from St. Charles ran more than $5,000.

Baum helps select the reenactment groups, although many have been attending since the first Walk Back event.

"It's a juried show to a point," Pratt said. "But there's a lot of word of mouth."

After all the cannon fire and commotion over the weekend, serenity has returned to the grounds of Graceland. The last person to leave was Bud Clark.

"He had so much to pack up," Pratt said.