Interesting Photo: Ambulance Corps + Insignia

[verg]

Dear Friends,

In looking over this familiar image from the Archives (Falmouth, April '63) at a higher resolution, I believe I can make out the green half chevrons of the Ambulance Corps. What material do think they are made of and do you think they have a border edging?

As an aside, I noticed a few things to share:

A - believe he may be a Medical Cadet by the narrow shoulder strap.

B - interesting shirt. I remember when there was a crusade to ban these at
"authentic" events in the early 80s.

C - what kind of cap is he wearing???

D - Would anyone like to take a stab a describing this outfit??? Again, what is
he wearing on his head? What kind of Jacket is that? Interesting Belt.
Good shot of the chevrons

E - I wonder if this soldier worked hard to look like that . . .

F - Another good shot of the chevrons

How many different kinds of caps/hats can you find in this one federal unit???

I can only image the reaction of some people if we showed up looking like this crew . . . would be fun . . .

Thanks for taking a look and for your opinions!

[Justin Runyon]

Re: Interesting Photo: Ambulance Corps + Insignia

Superb Image...But. Im at work with limited photo viewing capabilities, so maybe I'm missing something but, what is there in this image that indicates these are ambulance drivers. I cant make out any chevrons in any detail, no one has an ambulance corps cap (though that in and of itself dosnt mean alot) and the big kicker here is that all the vehicles they are posed with bear the Engineers ensignia. My father being a Col. in the U.S.A.C.E. and me growing up with little castles about the house, if I see a row of castles I think Engineers. Can you post a blown up image of something exclusively medical?

[hireddutchcutthroat]

Re: Interesting Photo: Ambulance Corps + Insignia

D - Would anyone like to take a stab a describing this outfit??? Again, what is he wearing on his head? What kind of Jacket is that? Interesting Belt.
Good shot of the chevrons

!

This gentleman is wearing a hat with its brim turned up, and has a sack coat tucked into his darkblue trousers. Classy!

[Jefferson Guards]

Re: Interesting Photo: Ambulance Corps + Insignia

"I cant make out any chevrons in any detail,"

I can see a half chevron on the sleeves of some of the men. They do not looked piped or edged to me. They are a little difficult to see since they should be green cloth on a dark blue jacket. I am at work right now, so when I get home I can provide a blow up of some of the men with the half chevron.

[FranklinGuardsNYSM]

Re: Interesting Photo: Ambulance Corps + Insignia

Unfortunately, that's the largest size that the LOC has scanned in, so we're stuck with what we've got.

The original caption that went with this image indicated that this was the ambulance train of the Engineer Corps in April, '63.

Love the bib-front shirt. I'm quite fond of them, particularly through studies of period images of firemen, but of course we know they're not limited to firemen -- or even limited to being red, for that matter. I wear mine in the field from time to time.

Good image, John. And good to hear from you again! Hope to see you out there soon.

[ephraim_zook]

Re: Interesting Photo: Ambulance Corps + Insignia

Hi

I'm not sure that man "D" is wearing a regular sack coat. Notice that the buttons are closer together than those on the other sack coats pictured, and that all four buttons are above his waist.

Ron Myzie

[Enfilade]

Re: Interesting Photo: Ambulance Corps + Insignia

Even more clean-shaven soldiers. Tsk,tsk,tsk,...where are all the Santa beards? Check out the big guy in the center. How tall do you suspect he is?

Great image.

Mark Berrier
North State Rifles
combinations@northstate.net

[Hoosier]

Re: Interesting Photo: Ambulance Corps + Insignia

It looks like the coatless soldier standing in front of the officer on the far left is engaged in a mock boxing match with another soldier who's arms are only just visable.

J. SnyderMr. Snyder, Please sign your full name to every post as per forum rules. This is your first warning. Justin Runyon- AC Forum Moderator

[Matthew.Rector]

Re: Interesting Photo: Ambulance Corps + Insignia

Nice variations in dress in this photo. I'm sure many of you have noticed that most of these soldiers are carrying contents in their sack coat pockets.

For those that aren't familiar with this image, it might be noted that the image above is just a detail of the full stereograph photo. Attached is the left side of the full stereograph.

From the Library of Congress...
TITLE: [Falmouth, Va. Men and wagons of the Engineer Corps ambulance train]
CALL NUMBER: LC-B815- 516 [P&P]
REPRODUCTION NUMBER: LC-DIG-cwpb-00216 (b&w copy scan)
LC-B8171-0516 (b&w film neg.)
SUMMARY: Photograph from the main eastern theater of war, Burnside and Hooker, November 1862-April 1863.
MEDIUM: 1 negative : glass, stereograph, wet collodion.
CREATED/PUBLISHED: 1863 April.
CREATOR: O'Sullivan, Timothy H., 1840-1882, photographer.

[MSuha]

Re: Interesting Photo: Ambulance Corps + Insignia

The cap C is wearing looks alot like some of the period naval caps but I'm not quite sure where the photo was taken

Dear Friends,

In looking over this familiar image from the Archives (Falmouth, April '63) at a higher resolution, I believe I can make out the green half chevrons of the Ambulance Corps. What material do think they are made of and do you think they have a border edging?

As an aside, I noticed a few things to share:

A - believe he may be a Medical Cadet by the narrow shoulder strap.

B - interesting shirt. I remember when there was a crusade to ban these at
"authentic" events in the early 80s.

C - what kind of cap is he wearing???

D - Would anyone like to take a stab a describing this outfit??? Again, what is
he wearing on his head? What kind of Jacket is that? Interesting Belt.
Good shot of the chevrons

E - I wonder if this soldier worked hard to look like that . . .

F - Another good shot of the chevrons

How many different kinds of caps/hats can you find in this one federal unit???

I can only image the reaction of some people if we showed up looking like this crew . . . would be fun . . .

Thanks for taking a look and for your opinions!

[Milliron]

Re: Interesting Photo: Ambulance Corps + Insignia

If you look closely at a couple of the men's hats, they have Engineer badges on them. No question they're Engineers, to me.

[verg]

Re: Interesting Photo: Ambulance Corps + Insignia

In response to the observations about Engineer Insignia.

First, on the ambulances:

In '62, Ambulances were withdrawn from Federal Regiments in the AoP and reorganized by Corps. Applying corp insignia to wagon canvas is nothing new.

They are definitely ambulances. They even have the prescribed stretchers in the external racks.

Engineer Brass:

Some of the individuals with half chevrons also have engineering brass. An interesting point that I had not connected before. The regulations do not specify what brass that members of the ambulance corps are to wear. Only the green band on the cap is mentioned. Perhaps the men were allowed/encouraged/ordered to wear corps specific insignia on their caps.

I have attached another picture which has been washed and faded through a negative filter. The edges of the chervons show a little clearer. When I first started looking critically at this image, I thought that my mind was trying to see something that was not there. Then I noticed that the "creases" were too regular on too many people at the same place on their sleeves.

BTW, I just noticed that "Lurch" (with the farby hat) has them as well.

Back to my original question: What material do you think they are made of?

Thanks!

[1stMaine]

Re: Interesting Photo: Ambulance Corps + Insignia

Comrade John,


I would have to guess that the material for the half-chevron was either wool (my first inclination) or serge. I suspect that it WAS wool, just from the way the material blends with the coat. It has the same shade and look as the sack coat material.
I examined "Todd's Military Equipage 1851-1872" on pp 396 he describes the insignia and formation of the Ambulance Corps, and quotes from both SO 147 A of P, dated August of 1862, and GO 85 A of P, dated August 1863. Both prescribe the green half-chevron for the enlisted man, as well as the green cap band for both enlisted and NCO, and specify green chevrons for NCO's, points toward the shoulder. Neither order, however, specifies what material the chevron is to be made from.
Again, I would suspect plain green wool was the primary material used for thiese devices.
respects,

[hireddutchcutthroat]

Re: Interesting Photo: Ambulance Corps + Insignia

Is the guy behind the fellow in the 49er/Firemans shirt boxing?

[verg]

Re: Interesting Photo: Ambulance Corps + Insignia

Here is the left part of the image which I have been cropping out due to size and lack of focus. Yes, there are boxing.