Improving my impression

[Lone_Rebel87]

Hello all,

I've been reenacting for almost two years now and have been with a group of mainstreamers who have only bad things to say about the progressives. I was the same at first but have come to realize that you all are just trying further yours and everyone elses knowledge of the war and a soldier's life and be as authentic as possible.
Now with that said I was wonderin if any of you could help me further my impression of a soldier in the AoT. Any help regarding uniforms and I would be much obliged.

Thanks,
Jordan Davis

Jordan, welcome to the forums. I would make two suggestions to you. First, check the search function of the forums as the topic has been discussed before and you may find your answers there. Second, check the "Links" section of the website (above). Several articles covering many subjects have been archived here that may help you out. Good luck - Mike Chapman

[kemper_rifles]

Re: Improving my impression

Hit the books son. There is a wealth of info out there on the AOT. Take your pick and get started. If you are doing a specific impression, you should look for info on that specific regiment. Then if you can't find anything, come here and ask. You might want to have a gander at the Research Articles in the Camp of Instruction Folder.

A good book to read would be "Company Aytch". Another book(s) you might want to pick up is the Time Life series "Echoes of Glory". Its full of pics of equipment, clothing, and weapons including that of your beloved AOT. Its an invaluable resource you'll be glad to have.

Another suggestion would be to post all of your "basic" questions in the Camp of Instruction folder. Hang out there until you get used to how things are here at the AC.

[Lone_Rebel87]

Re: Improving my impression

Thank you for your help.
I'll look around and read those books

Jordan Davis

[tenfed1861]

Re: Improving my impression

Welcome,
As said before,read.Read till your eyes bleed or you go insane,which ever comes first.Find a good unit in your area.I take it you are still in high school,so buy equipment that is used.And look at original photos.
Just my 2 cents :D
Cullen Smith

[K Bartsch]

Re: Improving my impression

Jordan,
I second the advice to read in order to learn how to improve your impression. Another significant way to advance your knowledge and thereby improve your AoT impression is by visiting important collections of artifacts whenever possible. A few to consider:
The Museum of the Confederacy in Richmond
The Atlanta History Center
The SC State Museum in Columbia
The SC Confederate Relic Room and Museum, also in Columbia
The UDC Museum in Charleston SC
The Charleston (SC) Museum (oldest municipal museum in the US)
The NC State Historical Museum in Raleigh
The Alabama State Archives Museum in Montgomery
and there are others...

additionally, the NPS administered battlefield sites have items on display, as do many state administered battlefield sites.

Good luck!

[Lone_Rebel87]

Re: Improving my impression

Thank you all....and I will prolly be spending the next few days with my nose in the books to try to find out more.

Much obliged to all,
Jordan Davis

[Chad Teasley]

Re: Improving my impression

Jordan,

I know you likely feel like you're being bombarded with reading material :) , but I respectfully suggest that you acquire a copy of "Soldiering in the Army of Tennessee: A Portrait of Life in a Confederate Army" by Larry J. Daniel. I believe it's well-nigh indispensable to someone interested in the development of a quality AoT impression.

Good luck, Comrade!

[Lone_Rebel87]

Re: Improving my impression

Thanks Chad,

That one and Company aytch are high on my lists to get right now. I'm going to a couple of bookstores tonight to try and find some of them.


Much obliged,

Jordan Davis

[ElizabethClark]

Re: Improving my impression

And, in addition to all the military stuff, remember that for the vast majority of your life, you've been a normal person... so you'll be spending the forseeable future studying just about everything related to the mid-19th century, not just the military. If you have spot-on soldiering, but have no clue what you did for the first 18 years of your life, it's still a blank impression.

:) Not to be overwhelming, or anything!

Welcome to the forums!

[Curt Schmidt]

Re: Improving my impression

Hallo Herr Jordan!

Welcome to the Ac Forum!

I am reminded of "fan mail" requests I used to receive, that went something (well alot) like this...

"Dear Sir:

Please tell me everything you know about ..... Enclosed is an SASE for your reply."

I never knew whether to be flattered or insulted... ;-)

I might would suggest starting out by sittingn down and determining for yourself, what your "Mental Picture" might be and then going from there (what you see yourself doing and where you see yourself fitting in).
And then using the SEARCH feature to investigate the F/M/C/P/H/A Model of the CW Community.

Like the Parable of the Blind Men and Elephant, one can get MANY different answers and advice to a question like the one you posed. ;-)
And this forum represents a certain segment of the "model."

Curt-Heinrich Schmidt

[Lone_Rebel87]

Re: Improving my impression

You are absolutely right Ms. Clark and you as well Mr. Schmidt....I do need to know how ordinary life was in the 1800's and I should ahve been more specific in my question but I have gotten alot of good responses and help so thank ou all.

Sincerely,
Jordan Davis

[kemper_rifles]

Re: Improving my impression

Welcome,
As said before,read.Read till your eyes bleed or you go insane,which ever comes first.Find a good unit in your area.I take it you are still in high school,so buy equipment that is used.And look at original photos.
Just my 2 cents :D
Cullen Smith

Good call on the finding a good unit to join. Find some fellers that have the same progressive mindset as you do. It can make all the difference in the world. Leave the farbs to do as they wish and learn how to campaign it with the stuff on your back.

I notice you are in Tennessee. You might check out these guys: http://www.wacomess.com/ They're really good guys.

[privstull]

Re: Improving my impression

Also keep in mind that after you have read and done plenty of research, dont just go out and buy the first thing you see. Research that specific item and try and find out which vendor is the best to purchase that item.

[KarinTimour]

FANTASTIC period reference books for free

Dear Jordan:

You mentioned that you were heading out to several bookstores to buy (or try to buy) the books referenced so far. As Mr. Cullen mentioned before, reading until your eyes bleed (love this expression) is one of the great joys of this hobby. There are such treasures waiting for you in the pages of books written by those who were living in the 1860's -- reading an eyewitness account that gives a different slant on a battle you know well, details of camp life, even an explanation of how or why a particular person wears common clothing in his or her particular way can be, well, just an awful lot of fun.

You certainly can build up a personal library over time, and the books you've already had referenced you'll go back to time and again. But you will soon find that there are many, many new tools/gear/clothing/equipment that you want to buy as well.

Think seriously of getting a library card, and asking your local reference librarian to show you how to use interlibrary loan to get all those terrific out of print memoirs, etc. Also consider buying books used -- a gently-used hardback will last much longer than a new paperback will. So often now people just immediately go out and buy books, when they are available free from the public libraries. Mind you, this is coming from someone whose primary motivation for paying rent is to keep a roof over the books. But the world of Civil War books is beyond immense, and great new CW books are published every week.

I try to get it out of the library first, and see how likely I'll be to go back to it again and again. Company Aytch I've read 4 times all the way through and big chunks more often, my copy of EOG has been an invaluable reference, though if you are short on bucks, I'd buy only the Confederate and Union volumes and skip the atlas -- I thought there were better maps in a number of other books.

My local branch library is heavy on paperback science fiction and has a vast 9/11 section. But the Civil war holdings are tiny. I cultivated the reference librarians, and they order me out of print books from libraries far and wide. For free. You can too.

Best of luck, and welcome to the AC,
Karin Timour
Period Knitting -- Socks, Camp Hats, Balaclavas
Atlantic Guard Soldiers' Aid Society
Email: Ktimour@aol.com

[ohiofed]

Re: Improving my impression

Jordan, Definetly try to get ahold of the Time Life Series The Civil War. I dont know if they are still in print or not? They are an excellant starting point. They are silver and you can probably find a few if not the whole series at your local library. Photos...study photos of as many soldiers in the AoT as you can, hell study any photos of soldiers. When I say study I mean really study the photos, that has helped me tremendously. Another thing is you can't go wrong with visiting National Battlefields. Its kind of a weird thing I do but when I visit a battlefield I try to visualize what happend, how the men would have reacted to the situation, sit there and think, and WALK deep into the fields and woods at the battlefield I'm visiting. Not just go around looking at monuments and markers...which is in no way any less fun :wink_smil. A little different I know but it helps me alot. Hope some of this info helps


PS READ READ READ!!