Soldier account of packing a pack?

[Jeremy Bevard]

I have seen many items out there that talk about how to pack a knapsack for reenacting 101. These writings include where the blanket goes, where the shelter half can go and what goes in which bag. However, I am not finding actual primary sources discussing this topic nor can I recall reading one. In searching, I am hoping I just wasn’t using the right key words or missed it and it is out here.

There are images, which show what is going on outside the pack but not inside. I have found what was put in a pack but not how it was put in there. From experimental archeology great and probably accurate assumptions have and can be made.

But does anyone have any primary accounts of soldiers talking about how they packed their knapsacks?

I do have accounts on how blanket rolls were rolled, packed and used. However, I am always open to new sources to look into if you have one of those.

[AZReenactor]

Re: Soldier account of packing a pack?

Great question. Orders were issued in 1861 for California Volunteers to be instructed in the packing if knapsack according to the "army way" by officers promoted from amongst NCOs in the regular army suggesting that there was a norm but no details on what the army way is are given.

I did find this passage in Joseph Crowel's Youg Volunteer which, while it contains little detail, does give some insight into the philosophy.

AN INSPECTION.

An inspection is one of the bugbears of the soldier.
Not only is this so in an active campaign, but it is so with
troops in barracks and forts, and as much so in the reg-
ular army, where a man makes it the business of his life,
as it is in the volunteer service in time of war, when it
is only an exigency.

We were always notified of the coming of the inspec-
tion officer. Of course we had an inspection by our
regimental officers every Sunday morning while in
camp, but the visit of the official inspector was another
thing. It was a very useful thing, all must admit, but
at the same time it was a perfect nuisance to the aver-
age soldier.

Upon receiving notification that the inspecting officer
was coming every soldier proceeded to put himself in
presentable shape. The first thing of all was to clean
our rifles. They must be taken apart and cleaned to
the acme of perfection. Not a particle of dust must be
found anywhere upon them, and the polished parts must
shine like silverware.

This, with the limited facilities at our disposal, was
no easy task. There was a dearth of old rags and other
material with which to clean the guns. Sapolio, silverine
and other polishing materials were not furnished by the
government, but a fairly good substitute was found in
common dry clay, which gave a pretty good polish to
the metal work of our weapons.

On the cartridge box at our side and on the belt
around our waist there was a big brass plate, bearing
the letters "U. S. , " and on the cross over the breast there
was another brass plate bearing what was supposed to
represent the great American eagle, but which in reality
more resembled a turkey buzzard. I think it was John
Ick who originated the name of "buzzard" in our com-
pany, for he was always talking of the time when that
bird would pick the flesh off his bones. That of course
would be after he had passed through the ordeal of the
"slaughter house."

These brass plates had to be polished to the highest
notch of perfection. And then the belts and shoes had
to be blackened or polished, although at times it was
hard to get blackening, and the unfair part of it was
that we had to provide ourselves with this, purchasing
it out of our own pockets from the sutlers.

The clothes had to be neatly brushed and the entire
toilet of the soldier made as respectable as possible. Not
only that, but the knapsacks had to be packed in a cer-
tain manner, with each piece laid in a particular part of
the pack, and the blanket rolled so that the edges came
in just a certain position.

The whole object of this was to have everything in
perfect uniform. The word "uniform" expresses the
equipment of a body of troops exactly. Every man's
apparel and equipment must be exactly like his fellow's.
These things seem trivial, taken individually, but when
it comes to a vast number of men the importance of the
matter is obvious.

[Curt Schmidt]

Re: Soldier account of packing a pack?

Hallo!

Not great detail, but of mild interest....

is Captain Charles Stevens' 1892 memoir/history Berdan's United States sharpshooters in the Army of the Potomac, 1861-1865.

I thought it was stored away on boxes somewhere due to my never-ending house remodeling, but thanks to the wonders of the WWW I see that I posted it in 2010. :)

"An instance occurred during this march showing how easy it is to misjudge the carrying capacity of men by their size. One of the six-footer heavy weights of the company in the right files where the tallest men are paced, had been complaining considerably on account of his sore shoulders, although it was not in a cross manner, he being really one of the best natured of men, when he was jokingly scolded for his grumbling by the orderly, marching to the left- a light weight and much smaller sized man. The result was that another heavy member, known as ‘Buckshot,’ who marched in the center of the company, a tent mate of the orderly, made a wager that that the latter had the heaviest load in the company. This the orderly had no idea was the case, although he was carrying besides the usual articles of "extras," shoes, etc., extra ammunition and the company books. However, when they reached Cumberland they weighed up, and sure enough the sergeant's knapsack weighed 28 lbs. to 22 for his tent mate, the third heaviest being 17, and that was not the big fellow's either. This is mentioned as showing that it was not always the biggest looking man that stood the greatest "wear and tear." For while it is true that there were some heavy men, and the two above mentioned were among them, who seemed able to stand everything—good marchers, rough and ready campaigners—yet is it also true that the light weights, from 140 down, were unexcelled for all manner of hard service.
We sometimes hear, out of service, of men carrying 70 lbs. in their knapsack. But no such back-breaking, side-splitting weight was carried by the soldiers—unless some unfortunate was working out a sentence, walking a beat under guard thus loaded; in lieu of the ball and chain, or log substitutes for thumb-tying, the stocks and other hard inflictions. A knapsack must not be shoddy to hold 70 pounds. In light marching order the knapsack, if carried at all, which was hardly the case, had little more within or on top than a rolled blanket, sometimes extra rations, and the balance of 60 rounds of ammunition that couldn't go in a 40 round cartridge box. At other times the knapsack varied all the way from a new outfit—generally with new troops—to the smallest possible kit or supply of extras, principally underclothes, poncho or rubber blanket, and
woollen blanket—overcoats turned in. These all told, with 9 or 10 lb. gun, 40 rounds, canteen of water (pretty weighty), haversack packed with hard bread, coffee, sugar, and pork boiled or raw, added, 40 pounds would be more with all accouterments ; and frequently half that was all the boys carried, particularly when off on some hurried service requiring quick movements, wherein the weight of the knapsack itself cut no figure. The average weight of a knapsack with us on general service would not exceed, well packed, 15 pounds."

C. A. Stevens, Berdan’s United State Sharpshooters in the Army of the Potomac, 1892

Curt
pp. 79-80

[Pennvolunteer]

Re: Soldier account of packing a pack?

On the other hand, I thoroughly enjoyed the Civil War Digital Digest episode on packing a knapsack!!!