Authentic Wedge Tent

[Taji04]

Pards,

I am looking to buy a wedge tent for the Ft Ridgely event in Minnesota this June (Sheep Farm Productions). I know nothing about them. What was the typical size? Canvas weight? Features to look for? 1 door or 2? There are quite a few vendors out there, who makes the best tent quality wise? Who has "the best bang for the buck"? Whose is the most authentic?

I would make my own, but I cannot find any prints or plans out there on the web.

Thanks for the help.

[Silas]

Re: Authentic Wedge Tent

The place to start is the regulations : https://books.google.com/books?id=6f...page&q&f=false These are to the 1868 regulations, but they're the same specifications as during the civil war.

About ten years ago, Iwent through the offerings by as many tent makers/sellers as I could find. This included Fall Creek, Panther, Blockade Runner and Yakima. Yakima had the tent closest to the original common tent, but it still had its flaws.

[CSchneider]

Re: Authentic Wedge Tent

There are no authentic reproductions of tents commercially made. Sizes are wrong, material is wrong, construction is wrong. Conveniently, a Common Tent is pretty simple to make and costs about $60 in material give or take. And no industrial sewing machines either--the originals were entirely hand sewn at 2.5 stitches per inch, just like stitching a sail together! Great project for a mess.

-Craig Schneider

[Taji04]

Re: Authentic Wedge Tent

Craig,
What material should be used? 10 oz canvas yes, but where would I get athentic canvas? I have a copy of CRRC, but where would I get plans? I read Meig's specs, but with out a drawing, the details are fuzzy.

[CSchneider]

Re: Authentic Wedge Tent

CRRC contains drawings and measurements of the tent which make it fairly easy to draw up some plans for it. Note that the drawing in CRRC includes an oddball unequal 4-panel roof that, while probably based on a photo of an original, was way out of the norm. Most all original Common Tents had a roof made of three equal width panels--in fact the length of the tent was almost certainly based upon the 28.5" width of typical sailcloth. Do a search online for 60" wide 10 ounce single fill duck. That should get you a piece of fabric you can cut in half to make two panels, each with one good selvedge edge, and the cut edge you'll need to turn under.

-Craig Schneider

[Taji04]

Re: Authentic Wedge Tent

Craig,

Yes! CRRC does have a very helpful drawing. Good to know about the 3 panel roof. I would not want to do extra work for nothing. Also, the State of Minnesota requires all canvas tenting to be fire retardant--not a bad thing. I noticed that Sunforger makes a 10.10 oz duck that is treated to be so at $13 a yard. That is probably what I will use. I'd better get cracking, though. There is a LOT of detail work to do on this tent.

Thanks for your input and the advice. This forum is a very useful tool for the reenactor with good help from its members. Not many place one can go to for answers on subjects such as this.

Doug

[LibertyHallVols]

Re: Authentic Wedge Tent

... the State of Minnesota requires all canvas tenting to be fire retardant--not a bad thing. ...

I would be curious about the details of this law. Does it pertain to tents manufactured commercially within the state? ...sold retail in the state?

For example:
If I move to MN and bring my dog tent with me, I am dubious that I'd be breaking a law.

[JEBminnesota]

Re: Authentic Wedge Tent

Craig,

Also, the State of Minnesota requires all canvas tenting to be fire retardant--not a bad thing.
Doug

The law statutes says that any Tents sold or made in Minnesota must be flame resistance.

https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/cite/325F.04

[Camp_Randall]

Re: Authentic Wedge Tent

I am in the same boat as Doug. I have a question about the poles. The CRRC2 mentions the poles were dark enough to be oiled or painted. Was there a common paint the quartermaster department liked to use or should I just apply a coat of boiled linseed oil?

[Palmyra Possum]

Re: Authentic Wedge Tent

That Minnesota law applies to those who "sell or offer for sale or manufacture for sale" tents. Sounds like if you're making it for yourself, that law doesn't apply.

[Silas]

Re: Authentic Wedge Tent

My CRRC1 has that same language about the poles, "...dark enough to have been painted or oiled." The beginnng of that sentence reads, "Uprights : Visible in period images, they are usually octagona in cross-section...." However, nothing in the regulations mentions anything about poles having an octagonal shape nor being treated with paint or oil.

https://books.google.com/books?id=6fYRAAAAYAAJ&lr&pg=PA288#v=onepage&q&f=false

Note : the linked page goes to regulations publishied in 1876 for common tents. The info is a reliable source. The CRRC1 quotes the Stephen Osman article, "Commonly Known as the Commont Tent," found in an issue of the Watch Dog. (Sounds like the CRRC2 has the same info.) The CRRC1 quotes Quartermaster General Office General Orders Number 60, dated 12 December 1864. My trusty copy of the Third Mississippi Regiment Camp of Instruction, January 1998, contains a reprint of the Osman article. The text in 1876 is identical to the text in 1864.

It is odd that the drawing in the CRRC shows the rectangular sides of the tent with a total of four pieces. The regulations don't say anything about the number of sections although the math indicates it ought to be sewn in three sections. The drawing is really a three section tent made from pieces 28-1/2" wide canvas.

There are two outside sections and one middle section. The middle section is composed of two pieces, sewn together, which equal the width of each outside section. Visually, it would look like this :

1/3** |** 1/6** |** 1/6** |** 1/3

Having a pair of pieces composing the middle section would make for a stronger tent, but it would also give the manufacturer a little wiggle room in case the width of the fabric bolts did not conform to the 28-1/2" wide specification.

Fabric shrinks. If the width of fabric shrinks an inch or more before being sewn, a manufacturer could expand the size of the middle to compensate for shrinkage. You don't want your batch of tents to be rejected by the inspector. Blindly sewing three pieces of shrunken fabric would create a nonconforming tent and a guaranteed rejection.

[CSchneider]

Re: Authentic Wedge Tent

No specification for painting the poles, period photos don't appear to show painted poles, and none of the surviving original Civil War poles I'm aware of are painted.

-Craig Schneider

[Taji04]

Re: Authentic Wedge Tent

This is a great conversation--and very helpful. The math says to make my own (cheaper), but the time it will take along with my busy schedule says to just buy one and correct it as much as possible. But I am also in contact with a vendor who does custom work to re create a wedge tent to specs. He is putting together a bid. I gave him a modified drawing out of CRRC that reflects the QM reg, and the reg it self. I will let you know what he says.

Doug

[Silas]

Re: Authentic Wedge Tent

Doing some online research and stumbled upon General Orders No. 60 about the "Specifications Concerning Tents". This was published in the 31 January 1865 edition of the Army and Navy Official Gazette. (Vol. 2, No. 31, pp. 494-95)

Link : https://books.google.com/books?id=eP...page&q&f=false

[1stMaine]

Re: Authentic Wedge Tent

As to the hexagonal cross-section of tent poles, I have a theory. It comes from the manufacturing of wooden pencils. While original wooden pencils were round, some sly manufacturer, probably doodling during lunch, discovered that he could get more pencils out of a blank of wood by using an hexagonal shape rather than around one. Pencils were made with two halves, in blocks like period wooden matches. The halves had strips cut down the middle for the graphite rods. After the rods were laid down, the top was glued over it and then the pencils were cut apart. It took less wood to make hexagonal pencils than round ones, and less time for finishing as well.

Considering how frugal the army was with funds, it'd make absolute sense to produce hexagonal cross-section tent poles. In addition, they would be much stronger than a round or square pole. Plus, the poles would stack together much more easily than round or square ones.