Some Uniform Guidelines

PURPOSE: This document is not a list of approved sutlers although CFLHS does have one, (it is a separate document); this is a list of items to look for when you are checking a uniform part to ensure that it is as authentic as possible. Since the quality of individual sutlers may vary with time, using these guidelines will help ensure reliable quality more then any list of "recommended" sutlers could. One general rule, although quality items may cost a lot more, its cheaper to get the best quality to start with, rather than buy cheap stuff at first and then have to replace it later due to authenticity problems. That way, quality is also good from the start. If you can't afford quality at first, one of the older "vets" can generally loan you items until you can.

EACH UNIFORM PART WILL BE DEALT WITH SEPARETLY BELOW,

BUT FIRST, A FEW GENERAL GUIDELINES.

MACHINE vs HAND STITCHING: Although it is true that sewing machines existed and were in side distribution prior to the Civil War, these machines were very simple and basically sewed a straight stitch only; therefore, they were used only to sew a straight line, but not turns or curved stitches. They were not capable of sewing buttonholes; therefore a major requirement for your uniform parts is that buttonholes be hand-sewn. Turn the material over and look on the inner side, irregularities in the stitches can be seen to confirm this. Some buttonholes have a gimp (a piece of thread inside the stitching around the opening of the buttonhole) and this is period appropriate. Machine stitching was used on straight stitching, particularly on sack coats and overcoats but on frock coatis or on hats or caps. Flat-felled seams were generally used on uniform clothing. This involved folding on over the hems (material left at the very edge of a sewn area) and whipstitching (a continuous non-interrupted stitch) the loose ends down to the fabric. Threads in general is a dark blue or black on the sky-blue trousers and on any dark blue clothing, such as sack coats, frock coats, etc. The idea of brown thread arises from the fact that black or dark blue thread used during the Civil War oxidized to a brown color; however thread purchases by the Schuylkill Aresenal were overwhelmingly dark blue rather then brown.

TYPES OF MATERIAL: The wool used to make uniform parts was of 3 types. (1) Kersey this was a very thick wool with diagonal weave ("herringbone" pattern can be seen on this type of cloth) used on federal pants. (2) FLANNEL This was a box-weave, very loose and was used on federal sack coats. Proper thickness of wool for a federal sack coat is very thin but the surface is smooth without a herringbone pattern. (3) BROADCLOTH This is a very tight box weave, giving a very smooth surface and looks "rough" than the flannel does; it is also a little bit thicker. This was the appropriate cloth for forage caps and kepis and also for frock coats.

BUTTONS: The Federal Eagle button came in 3 sizes; small, which was used on hats, medium, which was used in every other application for enlisted men's clothing and large; which were used only on officers uniforms. The proper buttons should be pure brass, not a gold-wash and have a brass back with a horizontal shank (the loop on the back used to sew the button on) Please refer to pictures that show the proper shank loop, which is round not diamond-shaped. Good sources for buttons include Waterbury and Audy Fuchs of Fall Creek Sutlery. Confederate buttons, of course, were much more variable and frequently would include a federal eagle button on state militia clothing. A North Carolina sunburst button would also be appropriate for North Carolina troops. For enlisted men, these would be brass (not brass-plated which are generally shinier), either two piece or a single cast piece. Again, Andy Fuchs is a good source for these buttons. Buttons with "CSA" on them would be seen occasionally but were not very common. Most buttons on Confederate equipment would be state seal buttons, plain brass or several other types. Ask an experienced member of CFLHS if you have any questions in this issue.

The general "look" of Civil War clothing emphasized a large chest and small waist, almost an hourglass look.

CLOTHING ITEMS - HATS

US FORAGE CAPS: The standard forage cap used by Federal troops was a Government Issue model 1858. This had a painted leather visor which is 3 to 4 oz. Leather and was lined generally with brown or black polished cloth (brown more commonly) and had a leather sweat-band, usually just one piece. It had the small brass eagle buttons and should have a welt (see picture). This was a regulation requirement. Non-regulation forage caps were generally acquired from sutlers. They frequently had a brown visor of double-thick leather (NOTE: if you have a less authentic forage cap with a thin leather visor that bends, one way to make this appear more appropriate is to use black latex gloss exterior paint in 4-5 coats to stiffen visor).

US KEPI: This was a non-issue item that was purchased privately and used frequently by officers and by some enlisted men. Generally, the same guidelines hold as far as appropriate appearance, etc.

SLOUCH HATS: These were also used frequently by enlisted men and officers, both in the Army of the Potomac and Western Armies. Remember that with this item, as with the forage cap or kepi, a good hat is essential to a good impression and was an item the Civil War soldiers took great pride in, so it is worth spending a little extra money to get one that is really authentic. A rolled brim was not found on slouch hats until 1872. Prior to that, the edge of the brim was either double-stitched or bound with tape made of either silk or cotton. The band of material around the crown of the had should not be wider that an inch and a half and should be made of grosgrain (a material in which vertical lines can be seen in the band while it is on the hat, rather than a smooth surface). There should be no fold down the middle of the crown since this was a post-war fad and the front of the crown should not be pinched, nor should the brim be folded down or creased in front. If any alterations were made by the soldier to his had, the most common would be folding the front of the firm up slightly (although not to the extent of Cpl. Agarn from F-Troop).

HARDEE HATS: The shape of the crown should be oval, the brim should be about a quarter inch longer in the front and in the back. If you Hardee had needs to be stiffened, hair spray will do this quite nicely although white shellac was used during the Civil War (the same holds for a floppy slouch hat to get it stiffened).

CONFEDERATE HATS: Slouch hats were most common and the same guidelines held for these as for the Federal variety. The most common billed hat would be a kepi although some dark McDowell hats were used by North Carolina troops early in the war.

SHIRTS

One of the most common errors in clothing is the use of white "military issue" cotton shirt. In fact, military issue shirts were only gray wool, or white wool, or flannel, no cotton was used. These shirts are very uncomfortable in any situation other than winter use and so a cotton civilian issue shirt would be much more appropriate. The buttons on shirts are stamped in with a cardboard back (dark blue in color with 4 holes) on the military issue shirts, not wood. The placket (the strip of material running down the center of the shirt in which the buttonholes are placed) should be 3/4 to 1 inch wide with vertical buttonholes, and runs only about halfway down the shirt; full shirt plackets were rare and only on civilian shirts.

CIVILIAN SHIRTS: Homemade civilian shirts generally did not have a placket. Appropriate buttons would be bone, glass, metal or mother-of-pearl, but generally not wood. If you use wood buttons, make sure they are four holed. Turned wood buttons are appropriate. Generally the seams on the shirts were flat-felled. The collar should be 2 7/8 inches high, no higher. The top collar buttonhole should be very close to the fold the fabric and should be horizontal. The typical civilian shirt was made almost entirely of rectangular pieces with a gusset (the patch under the arm) being square. The shirts were generally made in only one size 28 inches wide and 72 inches long. The size of the cuff should be the same as on the collar. The buttons should be near the seam so that the cuff can be folded back. Again, the shirt seams should be flat felled. The material can be cotton and should be either striped or plaid, generally not flowered (although scattered examples exist of this). "Earth colors" brown, green etc. were the most common. Printed fabrics are OK, but avoid calico (small flowers) these were more for women and children's clothes. Generally, enlisted men's shirts were not pleated although this is appropriate for officers. The "firemen's shirt" was generally just and early war item. Frequently, breast pockets were included.

COATS

FEDERAL SACK COATS: These were generally made out of this wool flannel. The collars were generally small so that they could be worn folded up if desired. Early war collar edge tips (see picture), were generally rounded although square edge tips showed some use in the late war. The slits in the cuffs of the sleeves and the button front of the coat should be rounded corners (see picture). The inside pocket on a Federal sack coat is (in 99% of cases) made of a different material than the coat itself, usually jeans or striped wool. The shape of the pocket is either teardrop or circular. The button bottom of the sack coat hits the seam at the bottom of the pocket (see photograph of this). The cuffs are split and again rounded and re generally faced. A lined federal sack coat is appropriate but generally too hot to be practical. The lining material would be olive drab and have an almost double-knit appearance; the sleeves would be lined in muslin. Seams on sack coats, as on most of the other material, are flat-felled. (See definition above). The back can be a two-piece or one-piece. Straight stitches on these coats can be machine done (see above) with a tack on each end.

FEDERAL FROCK COATS: Frock coats are made of broadcloth. Infantry has light blue piping. The piping on the sleeves come to a point and is not curved (see photo). Frock coats stitching would be done almost exclusively by hand. There is a colored welt up the side of the cuff and the cuffs on these coats are functional.. There is also a welt on the top of the collar which was hand-stitched. The lining is black polished cloth and is usually padded horizontal stitching through the padding. The skirts are generally not lined. A left breast pocket on a frock coat is occasionally seen, but usually not; instead, these coats were issued with a pocket on each skirt. There is generally a triangular piece on the back of the skirt. The most common error in federal frock coats is making the buttons on the tail too far apart. Generally, they were no further apart then 4 1/2 inches and any adjustments in these coats were made on the side pi8eces, not between the buttons. The bottom edge of the coat is raw, as on the overcoats.

FEDERAL OVERCOATS: One common error in federal overcoats is making a straight skirt. These skirts generally belled at the bottom. The lining would be dark brown or olive drab or gray jeans cloth or even canvas. Again, the bottom edge is raw.

PANTS

FEDERAL PANTS: These are made of sky-blue kersey material. Dark blue was used but much less frequently. These pants have a reinforced cuff with an extra piece, often of different color light blue wool, on the facing. The vent in the cuff is 1/2 inch and overlaps; it is not open. The pockets are slash, not mule-ear. The waist band wool piece is folded around on the inside of the buttonhole and this is the same procedure; used on the cuffs (see photograph). The inside of the fly is wool. There is a tack at the bottom of the fly and the fly piece is about 1 1/2 inches wide. Watch-pockets are generally standard although trousers without watch pockets are appropriate. There is wool on the inside of the back vent and again, this is reinforced as noted above. The yoke in the back has a flat bottom (see photograph) which forces the back of the pants up. Waistband is narrow, 1& 1/2 inches wide at the front button, down to 1/2 inch in back.

SUSPENDERS: Plain ticking suspenders are appropriate although again, the buttonholes would be hand sown, not machine.

Leather pieces with buttonholes are generally stitched and are not attached by pop rivets, which are not period appropriate. The

buckles on suspenders should have teeth.

DRAWERS: Period drawers are made of flannel.

This list was complied by Bob Tolar and Edd little, with deep appreciation to Lynn Bull without whose time and expertise it would have been

impossible.