Wondering what the fifers and drummer of the Civil War wore? Here are the common underclothes and uniforms that were worn by the musicians.

Underclothes

Shirt
Most common among the Confederate troops was a civilian pattern cotton shirt like the one on the left. A civilian style shirt could have any type of pattern on it, and have glass, bone, or wood buttons. A Union soldier, while he could also have a civilian shirt, had the availability of issue shirts like the one on the right. The U.S. issue shirts varied from gray, white, and even blue flannel.

Drawers
Like the shirt, drawers could be of U.S. issue, like the pair shown, or of a civilian pattern, as a more common on the Confederate side. U.S. issue drawers were made of an off-white canton flannel, which has a durable exterior with a soft interior. Draw strings at the ankles prevented them from riding up the legs. Civilian patterns were made usually of cotton and commonly also an off-white color.

Shoes and Socks
The shoes shown are known as Jefferson Brogans, and were common among the Union soldiers. Notice the horseshoe-like heel plates to prevent the heels from wearing down. Numerous styles of booties were found on the feet of Confederates, if they were lucky enough to even have shoes. The socks shown are cotton U.S. issue, however civilian socks, in wool or cotton of any color, were essential since U.S. socks were complete garbage.

Union Musicians' Uniform

Forage Cap
Probably the most recognizable piece of the Civil War uniform is the forage cap. It was called a forage cap because when turned upside-down, the floppy crown fell down and the cap turned into a bucket - perfect for berries and nuts. Often soldiers would place company and regimental insignia on the disk.

Vest
To the campaigning soldier, a vest was unnecessary weight, so few enlisted men wore them. However, with etiquette of the 1860's, the vest was an important part of a man's clothing. This vest is a civilian pattern rather than a military vest, since the military vests had to be bought at high prices (they were not issued).

Musicians' Frock Coat
This was the standard U.S. nine button wool frock coat with a piping pattern, or "bird cage," across the front. From studying period photographs of fifers and drummers, it is seen that many of them wore a plain frock coat or a sack coat, as opposed to a musicians' frock coat. The musicians' frock coat is appropriate for early to mid war impressions, garrison duty, parades, and honor guard. If you are planning to eventually pick up a musket, you may want to purchase a normal frock coat or a sack coat, which is acceptable for a musician to have at any point during the war. Then you can use it when you get a musket.

Trowsers
Did you notice the spelling? The 19th century spelling of trowsers includes the "W," while modern spelling replaces the "W" with a "U" in trousers. Either way, these light blue woolen pants were the standard issue to most Union soldiers. Note that the suspenders attached to them are of a civilian pattern. Suspenders, or braces, were not issued by the U.S. government at this time, therefore a soldier needed to supply his own.

Confederate Musicians' Uniform

Since I only have a Union impression, I do not have Confederate uniform pieces to show you. However, please take a look at these photos of other Confederate musician reenactors to examine their uniforms.

Notice that the uniforms of these Confederate drummers varies little from the other troops' uniforms. Their caps, jackets, and pants are all grayish in color on these particular men.

These musicians have darker gray and brown uniforms, and the bass drummer wears a light slouch hat while the snare dummers have black ones.

Other variations in uniforms.

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