The information presented here has been drawn from years of reenacting experience,
  research and study by many of the members of the INDEPENDENT GUARD passed
 down to us and is meant as a supplement to the guidelines and requirements of the unit
  to which the reader belongs. This information is not meant to supersede any company
    requirements but to help improve each member’s impression in a general way.

More is known about the Civil War now than since the last remaining veterans passed
into history because of the research done by reenactors and it is incumbent upon us as
living historians to keep informed as much as possible on such research about the
equipment, lifestyles and general minutia of the era we portray.

The cartridge box was one of those items that all soldiers carried and was essential to
keeping cartridges in undamaged shape. Certainly, there were cases of cartridges thrown
into a pocket or a haversack and there are even some first hand reports of soldiers
throwing away their boxes but these were assuredly uncommon instances in the vast
experience of the war. Imagine how long an open arsenal pack would remain undamaged in
someone’s pocket resulting in said pocket filled with loose gun powder. And considering
that the army was under orders to charge a soldier for lost or ruined cartridges, one begins
to see how important the box really was to the soldier.

But what types of boxes were used? In fact there were as many styles of construction as
there were contract makers that produced them in both the Northern and the Southern
armies. This item can be quite specific to the unit portrayed for the C.S. Infantry but a
"captured" Federal box is always a good choice. The unadorned or brass box plate style
flap is the best as the embossed U.S. flap did not come into use until after 1864.

Boxes were worn on both the waist belt as well as the shoulder strap. The waist belt loops
were added as a result of field testing before the war, so either way is a proper way to wear
the box.
 
 

The canteen is another indispensable piece of equipment used by the soldier. The M1859
smooth sided and bulls eye canteens generally issued to the Federal armies are the most
common type of canteen used during the war. These can double for both U.S. and C. S.
Impressions easily. There were some State troops in the North issued tin and wooden drum
canteens, however, these canteens are general considered a C.S. item. Although some
photos of Federals can be found with either canteen in use.

Most surviving Federal canteens have a brown, coarse weave wool covering, although,
some are found with dark blue and gray wool coverings.

As with the haversack, the canteen was worn high up near the side in use. If the strap is too
long the canteen swings too much while the soldier is on the march. Upon the purchase of
new canteen the strap should be shortened so that the canteen sits just above the waist at
the soldier’s side.
 
 

It appears that both Federal and Confederate alike was issued mess tins from their state at
the beginning of the war and that it was then up to the soldier to replace them when needed
thereafter. No records have yet been found, even in Northern archives, of soldiers being
issued mess tins from the central Governments.

Mess tins consisted of a cup, plate, spoon and fork, were quite important to the soldier and
were fondly remembered by veterans throughout the years to come.

The three tined fork and silver spoon are proper as is good gauge tin plate. The cup or
boiler should be of a heavy gauge rolled tin with a flat bottom. The type of cup with an
indented or raised bottom is made by a process of metal working that did not come into use
until the turn of the century. The lip of the cup should be rolled lip often with a wire inside
to support the handle. Avoid the "muckets" with the lids on a little hinge, as these cannot
be 100% identified to the CW era by researchers.

Enamelware or speckle ware is not proper to the CW era as it did not become popular in
the U.S. until the 1870’s.

Finally, tin pans were quite popular to the soldiers. A proper tin pan should have a simple
iron stock handle riveted onto a deep tin pan with NO pouring spout. It was also very
common to use a tin canteen half for a frying pan. Sometimes a bailing wire was affixed for
a handle.

The erstwhile knapsack is a subject in continual flux in Civil War research as we see-saw
back and forth on just how much the knapsack was used by either side. Many now feel that
Confederates used the backpack, or knapsack, much more than previously thought.
Certainly they were easily picked up on any hard won battle field from the Federal army
and they were very useful for exactly what they were designed for; carting personal
baggage.

A search of contemporary resources reveals many notations of the use of knapsack by
Confederates. Many memoirs, diaries and letters also record what were done with them
during battle. It was a common practice to shed them near the battlefield and leave behind
a guard to watch over the battalion’s knapsack. The soldier would then have freedom of
movement during battle.

We must not forget the use of the old standby "horse collar" blanket roll, either. These
items were the soldier’s only way to carry their personal belongings and extra clothing.
 
 

Haversacks were also universally used by the soldier. The best and most sought after
version was the Federal tarred model. Once again, we have the common practice of the
soldier shortening the strap so the item sat higher than the original strap would lend itself
to sit. This practice was learned under arduous service as the best way to carry the
haversack.

Inside the haversack would be placed rations and mess tins but little else as the grease
from cooked or raw meats simply wrapped in muslin sheets or just as is issued to the
soldier would soon permeate the haversack making it too dirty for other items.
 
 

It appears the most common style buckle was the so-called "Georgia Frame" style buckle
for Confederates. This item can be determined by the unit portrayed, oft times, but the
Geo. Frame was very common for the South in all theaters.

The famous slouch hat is an image closely associated with the Confederate soldier. Many
soldiers found the bummer common to soldiers of the era quite useless, even though many
liked the look of them as quite military and wore them through out the war. More
commonly, though, was the use of the slouch hat or civilian hat.

Brims of hats during the era do not resemble the style made popular by wide brimmed
cowboy hats of the 1900’s and were rarely over 4" in width. Brass items rarely adorned
hats worn by the common soldier and, while a little more common, even hat cords were few
and far between.

Steer VERY clear of the floppy hillbilly hat, too. These hats are absolutely incorrect for the
Civil War era soldier to use. CW era hats had definite shape.
 
 

Sometimes called braces or gallusses, suspenders were not issue items to either side.
Made of ticking or even leather (but never elastic) suspenders were expected to b supplied
by the soldier. Consequently, it was quite common for the soldier to go without them. There
are some photos of what appears to be the practice of the soldier tucking his shell jacket or
sack coat into the tops of his trousers and using his waist belt to hold them up.
 
 

Unfortunately there are few properly reproduced greatcoats out there as of yet and of
these only the Federal version is correct. There is no documentary proof for a Confederate
greatcoat. Confederates usually used captured Federal coats or coats from home. It
appears that Confederates sometimes dyed a Federal greatcoat black.
 
 

Federals were issued an off white flannel shirt that Confederates used when they could get
them and civilian style shirts of woven pattern fabrics in stripes or checks were often used,
but one thing is certain, the often seen "white muslin" shirt worn by so many reenactors is
woefully incorrect. Shirts were mostly handsewn during the era. See the item about buttons
further on.
 
 

Buttons are an area of the hobby that is oft times a bit ignored. Shirt buttons for instance,
were never made of wood. Wooden buttons were quite out of favor by the time of the War
as they had become a symbol of a "Poor Person’s" item. Store bought clothing wasn’t even
sold with wooden buttons, save some instances of them on underclothing, and were even
used little on home made items as manufactured buttons had become quite affordable even
for those of limited means. (A few uniform jackets do have wooden buttons on them and are
usually considered late war items.) As can be seen from items excavated from the
steamboat Arabia, buttons came in a wide and colorful variety of sizes and materials.
Porcelain was a very popular material for buttons as well as glass, Mother of Pearl and
pewter. For most underclothing, the newly invented style of cardboard backed tin buttons
were prevalent. This type of button appeared on many Federal contract items, such as
haversacks, as well.

From existing period clothing it is apparent that the most favored way of sewing a four hole
button onto one’s clothes is in the "x" style.

The most prevalent coat button in the Confederate army was the block "I", Infantry coat
button. Coat buttons can be quite unit specific, however, and care should be taken to look
into what your unit was issued and when.
 
 

Handkerchiefs during the era were made of the same types of materials as some shirts,
such as cotton of woven patterns and calico (Be careful of calico material, not all patterns
we have today are appropriate to the Civil War). Handkerchiefs were not worn on the head
in the Civil War and those red or blue railroad style bandannas are of a later era than the
CW. Kerchiefs were called wipes or handkerchiefs and not bandannas then.

ll button holes during the Civil War were hand sewn in shirts, coats and underclothing.
Hand sewn button holes are even found on WWI uniforms as machine sewn button holes
did not come into general use until later in the 20th century.

It is very easy to restitch a button hole in a reproduced clothing item but, when ordering
sutler made clothes, ask if they offer a hand sewn button hole at the point of manufacture.
 
 

The most popular form of tobacco during the Civil War was chewing tobacco cut from a
twist or plug. Even many Women chewed in the South, though it was not done much by
women in the North.

Cigarettes were first introduced in France and were mostly considered for Women at the
time. The cigarette was not manufactured mechanically until the turn of the century in
America and, except for some areas of Louisiana, the cigarette was not a widely used form
of tobacco. Cigars were of the hand rolled, torpedo shaped variety and were quite
expensive making it less likely that a common soldier of few means could readily afford
one.

Pipes were the second most common way to use tobacco for the common man and many
varieties of pipes were seen in camp. Red or white earthenware pipe bowls with reed stem,
the end wrapped in strip of leather to keep it in the bowl, were very common. Some men
carried the German imported pipes but these were expensive and prone to being destroyed
in the field.

Tobacco was a widely traded item between pickets of Confederates and their Federal
counterparts and the use of tobacco was considered quite the luxury by the soldier, even
necessary for the health. During the 1700"s one could even pay taxes with tobacco in the
United States.
 
 

This can be a touchy issue to some reenactors along the subject of comfort. While there
are some diaries and letters written by soldiers mentioning the use of straw for bedding it
can be generally assumed that the common soldier rarely got the luxury of such for use in
bivouac camps. Winter camps would see more use of straw for bedding than would camps
on the move.

The biggest reason that straw bails would not have been seen in camp during the war is
that a bail of straw during the CW era weighed about 200 pounds IF it was even bailed.
Usually only hay was bailed then. The bails we have now are about half the size or smaller
than that of a bail back then.

In any case, if you must use straw do not leave bails sitting around the camp to use as
tables or a chair as bails are not correct for the era and it is also a waste of straw. Use it
loose for your bedding.
 
 

Reading was an extremely popular pastime among the soldiers as the literacy rate was
quite high in America at the time. Newspapers, letters, manuals and even novels were
often seen in camp. Some units even had a unit library stored in the regimental wagons for
use by it’s members.

Reading around camp should be seen more often in the hobby.
 
 

Nothing can ruin a good impression faster than a modern pair of eyeglasses on a reenactor.
How many times have you seen a guy walking around with a big old pair of hornrimmed
things with tinted glass?

Eyeglasses during the era were of surprisingly few variations, really. The glass itself came
in the following shapes; Rectangular (more common in the late 1700’s and early 1800’s
than the CW era), oval (the most common shape), half oval (called the reading glass and
not real common) and the wide octagonal. An asymmetrical shape or a round shape are not
of the CW era and would be out of place on a CW reenactor.

Frame styles often came in a thin brass or silver sire, the temple piece ending in a flattened
beaver tail like flange. Less commonly, some frames did not have the flange at the end of
the ear piece. There were also interesting little contraptions on which the ear pieces slide
inward, fold up and are stored in a little tin case with felt lining. The glass on these were
usually octagonal in shape. Eyeglasses with temple pieces ending in a curl around the back
of the ear are usually of later vintage and not appropriate to the CW era.

Nose pieces came in a few styles as seen in the illustration above. The arch, crank and the
"X" nose pieces are of CW vintage. The "W", scroll and coil styles are of post war
manufacture. However, the scroll nose piece was just coming into use during the mid
1860’s but was not yet in general use.

Most reproduction eyeglasses are not appropriate and the best way to get a good pair is to
find an original pair in an antique store. Make sure that the glass is held into the frames by
screws and not soldered or pinned together as the glass cannot be replaced by your
Optician unless they have screws to remove to get the old glass out.

Original glasses often came in a cardboard slip case or a tin case, as mentioned above.
These glasses are fragile but are so light that one can hardly feel them on. Of course, it is
easiest to go without glasses at all, so if you can do so it is recommended.
 
 

That did the common soldier carry on the march? Below is a list of items that can be
carried comfortably and were felt essential to the common soldier.

1 extra pair of socks 1 tin plate

1 extra shirt 1 fork

1 blanket 1 spoon

1 rubber or oil cloth 1 piece of soap

1 housewife sewing kit 1 kerchief

1 belt and buckle 1 haversack

1 bayonet 1 pencil

1 cap pouch writing paper

1 knapsack 1 pocket knife

1 tin cup or boiler 1 canteen

pipe and tobacco

Add to that the rifle, ammunition and rations we get around 40 pounds of stuff. Some may
want to add a shelter half, but many soldiers did without them anyway.

Remember, a soldier had to carry all he owned on his person. The idea of having wagon
space was dispensed with almost immediately, even for the Officers.
 
 

Although pencils were not deemed the proper medium with which to write a letter in
Victorian times, many were used as an expedient, anyway. It was much preferable to use
pen and ink to write a letter home.

Salutations were used as a matter of course to begin a letter and few examples follow. "I
take pen in hand to write these few lines..." or "I am in hopes that this finds you all in good
health" are typical beginning lines for a letter to loved ones or acquaintances. For official
reports phrases such as, "I am honored to report..." or "having received yours of the 12th
instant..." are proper (Instant meant of the same mo., Proximo meant of the coming mo.
And Ultimo meant of the last mo.).

Envelopes and writing paper were much smaller than the standard of today. Paper was
generally about 4 1/2 x 7 and envelopes were about 4 3/4 x 3 1/4. Sizes sometimes varied a
little but this is a general size standard.

Stamps were usually place in the upper left hand corner as return addresses were not used
during the era. The Post Office did not require prepaid postage until 1855 so if a letter was
un-deliverable as it was addressed the letter would end up in the dead letter office, as
begun by the U.S. post office in 1825, so that the Post Office did not have to pay for a
return to sender delivery.

The proper way to address an envelope is as follows:

Mister Jonathan Wells

201 Broadway Avenue

New Lenox

          Illinois

If the letter is going to a small town, the county the town is in should follow a dash after the
town name.
 
 

Only ye brave of heart shall enter here!!! Hairstyles of the Civil War were quite different
from those of today in the way in which they were cut. Today, modern barbers and
hairstylists cut hair in a feathered style that is short from the sides of the head down to the
ears and below as well as on the back of the head. During the CW era, hair was simply cut
at the length. This why you can see large curls at the ear in a tin type or C.D.V. or a soldier
from the era. Hair was not "styled" for men, just CUT.

Parts were combed more commonly on the left side of the head, but both sides were used.
Also, a pomade was often employed to grease the hair to hold it in place as washing the
hair was not a daily ritual.

Hair of longer than should length was uncommon for young men. Men in their 60’s or older
did wear longer hair as style dictated in the late 1700’s but young men did not, by and
larger, have hair longer than the top of the collar.

So, if you can fly against the style of today with the very short hair and let it gown down to
your ears from the top, then cut it at the length, you will be closer to CW era hair styles for
men. On most men this will cause the hair to have a curl at the side of the head around the
ears as seen in original photos (Check out at picture of Gen. Early he has a MAJOR curl
at the ear).
 
 

The 1800’s as today, had it’s own vernacular and slang terms. This is one of the most
glaring areas of misrepresentation in the hobby today. We all must work very hard to
improve in this area of reenacting the Civil War era. For instance, did you know that the
word "hello" was invented in the 1870"s for use with the telephone? Salutations during the
CW era ranged from "good day", "good evening" and "how do you do" to "haloo!" (if
yelled loudly).

It is, indeed, difficult to rid your speech of modern slang terms but it is interesting to try
your hand at slang of the times and it improves your impression quite a bit. Following are
some examples.

Deguarian artists - photographer

Likeness - a photograph

The seat of war - The front or where the battles are

Salt horse - salt cured or pickled beef

Sow belly - salt cured pork

Worm castles - maggot infested hard tack

Johnny cakes - corn bread

Cush (or Slosh) - corn meal and salt pork dinner

Knapsack drill - uniform, eqpt. And tent inspection

Simmering down - Throw away excess belongings on the march. To have the size of the co.
Dwindled from battle or disease.

French leave - unauthorized furlough

The flux - to have diarrhea

The shakes - to have malaria

Seen the "elephant - to have been in battle

Sound on the goose - a rich man owning slaves

Mighty little - meaning very small

Right such - meaning very sure

Skeedadled - run from battle

Grab a root - hide behind a tree or close to the ground

Shebang - a lean to made of brush or other coverings

Bulge - to get the advantage over someone, i.e. "I have the bulge on you now!"

Gobbled up - to capture

Fornenst - means beyond

Fagged out - tired

Played out - also tired

Croaking - to complain constantly

Hospital rat - a fellow always at sick call

Rubbed out - see fagged out and played

A low deer - a cow or barnyard animal killed by a soldier while foraging for food

Root hog 0r die - to try very hard for something, i.e. "We went root hog or die to take that
hill." Or to drink heavily and party.

Show the white feather - be a coward

Sweat - the game of chuck-a-luck

Bluff - Poker (By the way, they employed a hand called a skip straight, back then. It was
every other card in the same suit, i.e. 2,4,6,8,10 of spades)

The hand of it - To become proficient at something
 
 

I will not get too far into this subject as it requires much more space than I have here to
cover it properly but I will pass on some of the basics.

A) A male was not to be seen in public out of his coat or vest. To be seen in shirtsleeves
were a no-no. I do not believe that this was widely observed in a camp situation, but any
time a man is out on duty or out of camp it was definitely not allowed.

B) Men were not to be seen out of doors without their head cover on. First of all, army
regulations required a hat of some type to be worn at all times and hats were quite a
distinctive statement of the individual soldier and the search for a good hat occupied the
mind of many a man during the war. Hats were automatically removed upon entering a
building, except for a barn or out building, as a matter of respect for the occupants.

C) Cursing in front of women or children was seen as a make of an uncivilized person.

D) Men did not approach single women on their own. They must first be introduced by a
mutual acquaintance before a man could converse with a single woman.

E) When a woman’s eyes meet yours on the street a gentleman raises his hat completely
off of his head to say good day.

F) Officers often carried calling cards with their names on them to present at Official
gatherings or at social occasions. Some of these cards were actually printed others were
written out in hand script.

The social skills of "accomplished" people were very complete and complicated during the
1800’s and, certainly, many a rough customer were ignorant as to their pronouncements,
but most people tried to adhere to basic etiquette as best as they could. So, always keep
some of these maxims in mind while reproducing the life of the 19th century American.
 
 

Politics, quite a heated topic to those of the 1800’s, is largely ignored by reenactors.
Almost everyone in those days had deeply held and entrenched convictions upon the
subject and we, as reenactors, should try to recreate such in our hobby. Certainly, as
Confederates, we would profess to be Democrats but there were several different types of
Democrats at the time of the war. Some considered themselves Peace Democrats or
Jacksonian Democrats, though one would rarely see a man professing such sentiments in
the Confederate army. Some called themselves Calhounites or Fire-eaters after john C.
Calhoun, beloved firebrand and ardent slave advocate/secessionists of the years before the
war. And still more considered themselves moderates, somewhere between the two
previously mentioned.

Calhounites strongly opposed a strong central government and all aspects of it’s control
over the states. Taxes, internal improvements and tariffs should be handled by the state
governments according to these folks on strictly representative grounds. Jacksonian
Democrats, while agreeing with the Calhounites to a great degree, felt that the old
fashioned ways of class separation was the proper way to go about such things. Only the
"Landed Gentry" should be allowed to control the state’s business. Jacksonians also
believed strongly in Westward expansion and supported "filibustering" expeditions to
Cuba and other South American localities to expand slavery.

Some research into the area that your company hails from would turn up clues as to the
political leanings that the members of your unit would have. The State representatives
from your area would exhibit the characteristics from their home area and those he
represented.

The Candidates for the presidential election in 1860 were as follows: Republican, Abraham
Lincoln, Democrat; Stephen Douglas, Democrat; John C. Breakinridge, Constitutional
Union Party; John Bell. The candidates for 1864 were: Republican; Abraham Lincoln,
Democrat; George B. Mac Clellan. Of course, the Confederacy supported Jefferson Davis
for a single six year term and had no election proper.

President Davis was a lightening rod of controversy and people of the era either hated him
or loved, there were few who expressed ambivalence.

Look for political interests in letters, reminiscences and unit histories as you research your
unit and try to start up some political debates in camp. These discussions would oft times
end in fistfights, so be careful.
 
 

One would think that every Civil War soldier had facial hair, such is the popular image.
However, several studies have been done in several categories comparing the number of
men who sported facial hair with the following general observances.

Privates had just over 45% of existing photos with men clean shaven. Beards (45% were
next in popularity and Mustaches (10% last. So, about half and half.

Of existing Officer images, over half (63%) sported beards or mustaches (23%) with much
fewer, compared to the privates, being clean shaven (13%). It seemed that a beard or
mustache was as much a bagde of office as the saber and sash.

Aside from getting the proper uniform and, of course, brogans, here are a few things that
you can do with relatively little financial strain to improve the authenticity of your
impression. (In no particular order)

1. Make a proper handkerchief out of period cloth and do away with those red and blue
"biker" bandannas.

2. Get a civilian style shirt of woven patterns like checks and stripes.

3. Get rid of the hillbilly floppy hats and cowboy hats.

4. Replace modern glasses with period frames or, better yet, go without if you can

5. Cut and resew trap straps to a shorter length

6. Get a blanket roll together for the march

7. Replace elastic suspenders with cloth

8. Get period tin wear and get rid of enameled cups

9. Remove brass items from hats

10. Do not smoke cigarettes, use pipes or chew

The above hints will improve the looks of your impression right away with relatively little
expense and will make you a much more representative example of the common soldier.