Confederate Hard Tack

[PenPusher]

Most Federal manufacturers seem to have used a standard? box for packing hardtack in.

What did Confederate manufacturers use?

The only reference I've come across was for a company called Beals & Miller in New Orleans who signed for empty barrels for packing Hard Bread.

Are there any documented containers, images etc?

[Charles Heath]

Re: Confederate Hard Tack

Alan,

The federals also packed theirs in barrels, and some non-standard boxes. If you search a little bit, the Raleigh NC ads for barrels can be found in several threads, and if you find photographs of CS hardtack, ship's bread, or containers thereof, please post them. I've only seen one documented piece of CS hardtack, and it was a typical round piece of ship's bread. No word as to the original container. We provided ship's bread from a barrel for the 2008 Glendale-Malvern Hill event. There is a rectangular piece of CS hardtack out there, and somebody made a cutter by those dimensions for Pat Landrum's 2006 Fort Donelson NPS LH, as I recall. It was tasty hardtack.

The several threads on this subject typically repeat the same info.

Good luck.

[Cfarrell]

Re: Confederate Hard Tack

This was posted a long time ago in a thread far far away....

Here's a "hardbread" box according to Trans-Mississippi Confederate specs:

[LITTLE ROCK] ARKANSAS TRUE DEMOCRAT, October 1, 1862, p. 1, c. 7
To Carpenters.
Office Chief Commissary Trans-Mississippi Department, }
Little Rock, Sept. 27, 1862. }
Sealed proposals will be received at this office, until Monday, the 5th day of October, A. D. 1862, for making Two Thousand Boxes for packing Hard Bread.
The Boxes are to be two feet long, 1 foot 6 inches wide and 1 foot 5½ inches deep, in the clear, and to be made similar to a specimen which may be seen at the office of the Post Commissary.
I will furnish lumber and part of the nails, for which the contractor will pay cost prices.
The boxes must be delivered at the rate of 5 per cent per day, of the contract, and bids will be received for five hundred boxes. Bond with approved security will be required.
John C. Palmer, Maj.
and Chief Commissary.

The specs above (24 L x 18 W x 17 1/2 D) vary significantly from those mentioned in previous posts for Federal boxes. I'm not sure why this is so, but it likely had something to do with the actual size of the hard bread itself.

[Jimmayo]

Re: Confederate Hard Tack

Flour was somewhat hard to come by in the Confederacy. From what I have read hard bread was not as common in the field for CS as it was for US, especially as the war progressed. Corn and rice was the staple. Wilson's book (Confederate Industry) and "A Taste for War" talk some about the use of flour in the Confederacy. They are worth reading.

[OldKingCrow]

Re: Confederate Hard Tack

"I am seriously thinking of writing a cookbook when I get home"

Dayton E. Flint
15th New Jersey Infantry
February 1, 1863

from A Taste for War, Davis

[Charles Heath]

Re: Confederate Hard Tack

Flour was somewhat hard to come by in the Confederacy. From what I have read hard bread was not as common in the field for CS as it was for US, especially as the war progressed. Corn and rice was the staple. Wilson's book (Confederate Industry) and "A Taste for War" talk some about the use of flour in the Confederacy. They are worth reading.

Jim,

Yes, they are worth reading. Your assumptions are quite valid, as most of the references that I have seen for CS hardbread come in 1861 and 1862. That would be "most," and not "all" in this instance, plus issued captured federal stores are not always listed as such, so there is that vagary. The old tried and true Confederate War Clerk's Diary is another good read, as he kept a good eye on prices in Richmond. Wheat flour was one commodity he noted on a regular basis. Forgive me if I got the title wrong, as I haven't picked up that book in a while.

To get slightly off subject, one of the oddities I see now and then is in the form of references to confederates with desiccated vegetables. The federals had at least twelve factories, and three different types of mixed desiccated vegetables, but I have yet to find a confederate manufacturer. Obviously, they could be importing them from Chollet's in Paris, but the search is still on. This is fun stuff, but loads of dead ends.

[Daniel]

Re: Confederate Hard Tack

Gen. Arthur Manigault of the Army of Tennessee in his book "A Carolinian Goes to War" on page 167 writes about the "The bread ration, consisting of flour baked into biscuits, or corn meal 'dodgers"... He also wrote, " I never could understand why it was that our Government did not supply our armies to a greater extent with what we know as sailor's biscuits, called by the Yankees 'Hard Tack', which I think they might have done, and is far better suited to an army in the field than anything else that I know of. Yet flour was sent us, which we had to cook ourselves, and many soldiers whose proper place was in the ranks wiith a musket in their hands, had to be detached as a cook.

Dan Stewart

[Silas]

Confederate Hard Bread

In a search for a quick quote from an order issued by Braxton Bragg about hard bread, I came across three other references about Confederate hard bread. Boolean searches did not uncover anything about hardtack or hardbread. It did uncover the terms as the two seperate words, hard bread. The first quote is okay, the second better, the third great and the fourth even better yet.

After performing the below search, I remembered that there exists a Confederate reference to cooks being assigned from each company to prepare hard bread for an impending march away from Lookout Mountain in October or November, 1863. The reference was from a diary account I read many years ago. Cannot recall the name of the soldier or the name of the book. Despite this, the order from Bragg at the bottom of my list makes a pretty good argument that hard bread still existed in CS service beyond 1862. I'm sure similar orders or references can be found in other theaters during the final two calendar years of the conflict.

Not sure how much flour was in that hard bread, but the references don't mention corn bread, johnny cakes, corn pone or other type of corn laden bread. Barring some more specific accounts, we'll never really know the percentage of wheat flour which composed the hard bread mentioned below and in other references.

CHATTANOOGA, October 9 — 11 a. m.

Deserters yesterday reported Bragg making hard bread and constructing pontoons at La Fayette. Last evening our pickets reported his troops to be felling trees in front as if to obstruct roads. Pickets this morning, however, seem to have noticed nothing of the sort during the night, nor is any special symptom reported. Bragg’s force is now said by some deserters to be 80,000, by others 125,000. [ ]

[C. A. DANA.]
[Hon. E. M. STANTON,
Secretary of War.]

See, Series 1 - Volume 30 (Part I), p. 212

Report of Col. Louis D. Watkins, Sixth Kentucky Cavalry (U.S.), commanding Third Brigade.

HDQRS. THIRD BRIGADE, FIRST DIVISION CAVALRY, NEAR KNOX’S HOUSE,

September 11, 1863.

CAPTAIN: I have the honor to report that when I returned from Summerville last night I was met on the road by an orderly from General Stanley, who directed me to put my brigade in camp near the headquarters of the commanding general.

We captured at Summerville 1 captain and 11 privates, most of them of the Third Georgia Cavalry. They stated to us yesterday that two regiments of rebel cavalry were encamped about 3 miles from Summerville on the La Fayette road. Major Cheek, Fifth Kentucky Cavalry, with about 80 men, went in the direction they said the camp was and got within a mile of the camp. He could plainly see their camp fire, and thought from the bustle they were expecting an attack from the force we had at Summerville. A large storehouse was discovered filled with baled cotton; also about 20 barrels of flour, some vinegar, a small quantity of bacon, and some hard bread were found, none of which was brought away, as we had no transportation. In the skirmish the Sixth Kentucky lost 1 man killed and 3 or 4 slightly wounded. One of the escort of Qeneral Stanley, who was with the Sixth, was shot in the shoulder. Two of the rebels are known to have been killed; their bodies were found lying in a field. We got from the prisoners about 5 or 6 pretty good horses and several Belgian rifles.

Respectfully submitted.

See, Series 1 - Volume 30 (Part I) p. 913

GRENADA, Miss.,
December 23, 1863.

Brigadier-General CHALMERS:

Put your command in motion at once for the Memphis and Charleston Railroad to move toward east. Ferguson will receive orders for the same direction.

See Major Dyer about hard bread. Use your discretion in absence of orders.

S. D. LEE,
Major- General.

See, Series 1 - Volume 31 (Part III), p. 858

[CIRCULAR.]
HEADQUARTERS ARMY OF TENNESSEE,
Chickamauga, Tenn., November 25, 1863.

I. Corps commanders will immediately put their commands in motion toward Ringgold, keeping their trains in front. They will move in two columns.

II. Hardee’s corps will move by the west or Graysville road. Breckinridge’s corps will move by the eastern or road.

III. All quartermaster’s; commissary, and ordnance stores will be sent to Dalton.

IV. Col. J. W. Grigsby will divide his cavalry and protect the rear of the two columns.

V. Corps commanders will call in their detachments and guards when they are ready to move. Cleburne will serve as a rear guard to Hardee, and Gist to Breckinridge.

VI. Three days’ rations of hard bread and salt meat will be carried.

By command of General Bragg:
GEORGE WM. BRENT,
Assistant Adjutant-General.

Series 1 - Volume 31 (Part II), p. 679

[Charles Heath]

Re: Confederate Hard Bread

Silas,

Good stuff! Note the intentional use of the word "most." To add to this, the accounts of confederates using portable ovens in the field to bake soft bread are even more fascinating.

[Mississippian]

Re: Confederate Hard Tack

Here is a reference to 25,000 thousand rations of "hard bread" being stored in Grenada MS, in a report about the supply situation in Mississippi on June 20th, 1863: http://cdl.library.cornell.edu/cgi-b...3DANU4519-0038

It's located at the very bottom of the page in the footnotes.

Will MacDonald

[Charles Heath]

Re: Confederate Hard Tack

On the other side of the Big Scary River, is this September 1864 mention as an example of another late war reference to CS tack manufacture, and this is easy to divide by 50:

OFFICE OF POST COMMISSARY,
Houston, September 11, 1864.

Capt. A. H. MAY,
Assistant Adjutant- General :

CAPTAIN: I beg leave to report a deficiency of subsistence stores at
this post. The duty of procuring supplies devolves upon the chief purchasing
commissary, Major Maclin, and his assistants. In obedience to
an order from Maj. E. B. Pendleton, chief commissary, headquarters at
Galveston, I shipped to the post commissary on the 15th ultimo 15,000
pounds of flour. Draining the post as it did completely, I have been
unable to issue other than full rations of corn meal to the sick in hos
pital, troops, and detailed employes at this post. The bakeries for the
manufacture of hard bread have been stopped also for the want of flour;
when the supply of flour on hand was adequate the bakery turned out
from 1,000 to 1,500 pounds hard bread per day. For the last three or
four months soap has ceased to be issued, but once in a while a small
amount of soft soap, could be purchased from country farmers, which
would not last, however, beyond a few days. Daily inquiry is being
made for candles, an article much required for the different departments
here. A supply was formerly procured from the post commissary
at Galveston, but have been unable to procure any during the last
three mouths. Captain Richardson, assistant commissary of subsistence
at Harrisburg, is the purchasing agent or assistant of Major Maclin
in this district, and from his agent I have been drawing supplies of
corn, which stock is now exhausted, and at present I am at a loss to
know where or whom to look to for a fresh supply.

Very respectfully, your obedient servant,
J. A. SETTLE,
Captain and Assistant Commissary of Subsistence.

...or at least it was easy until they ran out of flour.

[coffey]

Re: Confederate Hard Tack

From what I have read, When hard tack was made it was like a biscuit but some times it would take a month or two to get to the soldiers. They would call it "Tooth Dulers" and other odd names because it got hard over time.

Worms would also get in the crates and in the hard tack, And they would call it "Worm Castle Crackers"

[-Jesse-]

Re: Confederate Hard Tack

i would say you would be better off with cornmill and rice

[PetePaolillo]

Re: Confederate Hard Tack

Reviving an old thread. :) I don't belive these men were speaking of corn bread biscuits but this is based on a hunch, just thought to share it.

After the battle of South Mountain 1862.

"In the morning some made a breakfast upon the small round biscuit with which the haversacks of the dead Confederates about us were filled; others preferred to go hungry rather than do anything which seemed like robbing the dead."

http://books.google.com/books?pg=PA31&dq=confederacy+round+biscuits&ei=6YkaTISZI4j_nAfd9c27Cg&ct=result&id=Dt8KAQAAIAAJ#v=onepage&q&f=false

[cprljohnivey]

Re: Confederate Hard Tack

sounds like ships biscuits