C.S. sack coats at Shiloh

[LWhite64]

Re: C.S. sack coats at Shiloh

Its going to have to go down to the unit you are portraying, some of the units at Shiloh were new, having just been formed, and others were veterans already from other parts of the south, Bragg's corps from the Gulf Coast for instance. You can then look for pictures, descriptions, or check the records.

[Citman05]

Re: C.S. sack coats at Shiloh

He asked if there's evidence some C.S. participants of the battle wore issue sack coats.

I would have to agree with others, we need to ask what unit are you trying to portray, etc. This is the biggest blanket question there can be. There also is only one right answer to your particular questions, YES. If all you want to know is, "Was ANYONE, I mean ANYONE at Shiloh with an issued "sack coat"? then no one could say no. You could say no if you were asking about a particular unit, and what they were issued/purchased by this time, etc. You might even be able to say no, or give an informed opinion if the question was, "How prevalent were issue "sack coats", whatever those particular items may be. I think we can use terms like sack coats when discussing federal or civilian items, but now for CS uniforms you almost have to talk about the specific construction of the jacket. What qualifies as an issue CS sack coat? This would be very important to your friend making his own clothes.

[David Fox]

Re: C.S. sack coats at Shiloh

Well, I confess, this inquiry has gotten me objectively interested in the bare-bones of the question originally posited. Let's forget the guy who wants to sew a coat. Sack coats were, from time-to-time and place-to-place, items of Confederate state and perhaps central government issue, North Carolina's early-war regulation garment being perhaps the chief example. A post in this thread indicated that at sometime, obviously prior to Union occupation, Little Rock depot issued them out. This was news to me. A working definition of sack coat would seem to be: a loose-fitting coat (not tailored at the waist), usually single breasted which reaches in length to or just below the wearer's fingertips. Is there any known evidence ANYBODY on the Southron side in April of '62 in southwestern Tennessee paraded for morning reveille in such a garment as an item of issue?

[scarty]

Re: C.S. sack coats at Shiloh

I’m the “friend” Dave Fox mentioned in the opening communiqué. Here’s a little more background to the question. We belong to an artillery unit is South Carolina. And, like most artillery units, don’t own enough guns to form a complete battery. Therefore, as was our participation in the 125th Shiloh event, we anticipate being “combined” with other units to form a battery. We want to look as authentic as possible and easily “blend in” with other units. Sack coats are one of the easiest to make I thought that they might have been worn by CS troops at Shiloh. I made the assumption that some of the CS soldiers in the Western Theater who had military service just prior to secession would take their Federal fatigue jacket apart and use it as a pattern to make a CS version. Since Dave’s initial inquiry I did some research on Commutation jackets and discovered the following on the internet:

https://www.nsalliance.org/uniforms/commutationjackets.pdf

Jim Cevasco

[csuniforms]

Re: C.S. sack coats at Shiloh

Good Morning, I will have to find it, but I remember the Confederate Troops-- Arkansawyers', in the now "lost" Shiloh Cyclorama painting of the 1880's, the Confederate troops coming out of the trees some were in sack coats or "civilian clothes" if you will. It's the Hornets Nest segment of the Battle. I know Military Images did a spread on this, and I believe the German artist did do some uniform research.
CSuniforms
Tom Arliskas

[LibertyHallVols]

Re: C.S. sack coats at Shiloh

Jim,

A sack coat is not a bad choice for an early war CS impression. However, I don't think your logic about a US issue fatigue blouse being used for a pattern is workable. Sack coats were common civilian garments. I think it would have been more common to see a civilian coat pressed in to military service. Perhaps it could have been "militarized" by adding brass buttons and some trim, or used "as is".

As the article in your link suggests, a simple jean roundabout (jacket) or a single breasted frock coat are great options for simulating coats procured under the commutation system. They are about as "Heinz-57" as CS coats can get and would be my first recommendation.

[Conley]

Re: C.S. sack coats at Shiloh

I for one would love to see the "worksheets" on the coats as possible used at Shiloh . For personal use only or post if you have permission to do so. Thank You, Conley Sluss