Cartridge Boxes worn on the belt???

[Illinois Rebel]

Re: Cartridge Boxes worn on the belt???

[OldState]

Re: Cartridge Boxes worn on the belt???

Could be another example. The belt is visible under the cartridge box with no shoulder strap evident.

Also of interest- heavy wool pants & RDII coat with what looks like sturdy English shoes with eyelets.

[Illinois Rebel]

Re: Cartridge Boxes worn on the belt???

[Bill]

Re: Cartridge Boxes worn on the belt???

This is totally off topic, so fee free to delete. Am I the only one who feels weird about staring at the details of some poor dead guy's clothing and equipment? I love the photos, but still feel like a grave robber.

[rogue]

Re: Cartridge Boxes worn on the belt???

Bill,
You have a very valid point, but for decades, before the internet, the photography as shown here was the only way to pick out the details of daily life, and death, upon which the whole idea of Authentic Campaigner was based.
S.Sullivan

[J. Donaldson]

Re: Cartridge Boxes worn on the belt???

If I remember correctly, the reaction was the same during the period. A fascination with photographic exhibitions depicting the front lines and battles mixed with the repulsion of looking over the dead.

[Jimmayo]

Re: Cartridge Boxes worn on the belt???

These pictures have been discussed in detail in earlier threads. However when ever I post a blow up I try not to include the face, instead concentrating on the portion of the picture showing the item under study. Just seems like the right thing to do.
That being said, If you're close enough to eyeball the shoe eyelets, why not mention the canvas rifle sling? You don't see photographic evidence of these very often.

[OldState]

Re: Cartridge Boxes worn on the belt???

Didn't even notice the the sling was canvas. I had to include his face here to illustrate the epaulettes with the other details of interest.



I often think about the fact that we are pondering the image of a poor dead fellow. Thing is they are the only real evidence we have to show us what CS soldiers were dressed like in the field. I believe our intentions here are good though. We all are here to honor these men.

[Bill]

Re: Cartridge Boxes worn on the belt???

In regard to the closeup of the dead soldier. I was looking at his cartridge box. What is that strap going through the implement pouch? I'm sure no expert on cartridge boxes, but I've never seen one made that way.

[Bill]

Re: Cartridge Boxes worn on the belt???

In regard to the closeup of the dead soldier. I was looking at his cartridge box. What is that strap going through the implement pouch? I'm sure no expert on cartridge boxes, but I've never seen one made that way.

Any one, any one????

[August77]

Re: Cartridge Boxes worn on the belt???

In regard to the closeup of the dead soldier. I was looking at his cartridge box. What is that strap going through the implement pouch? I'm sure no expert on cartridge boxes, but I've never seen one made that way.

It's just the closing strap for the implement pouch. Just about every cartridge box I've seen that has an implement pouch is configured in the same way.

[Jim S]

Re: Cartridge Boxes worn on the belt???

I've finally registered for this forum because I've seen a few threads lately that could use the info I'm sitting on and will likely never get around to doing anything with, so hello to everyone here. A few people have mentioned the health aspects of wearing the box on the belt. Here's an excerpt from the Jan. 29, 1865 inspection report of Heth's Division, in the collection of the National Archives:

"That every man under arms be supplied with a shoulder belt and MADE to wear it. This I think would during an active campaign stop a certain amount of straggling, for no man can endure so much fatigue with the whole weight of his accoutrements, bayonet and 40 rounds of ammunition pulling on his stomach as he could if that weight were diverted. [A few lines which are too stained for me to safely make out follow, detailing how many men in the Division have and do not have shoulder belts.] The man in the ranks objects to the shoulder belt saying it makes him too warm, and the officers do not insist on it being worn. I think sufficient attention has not been paid to this matter."

In the margin the Corps Inspector General noted: "We might learn a valuable lesson from our enemies in this matter. Shoulder belts are undeniably better than waist belts and, I should think, can be turned out nearly as cheap."

Shortly later the final inspection report of Lane's NC Brigade, dated March 2, 1865 (also NARA collection), states: Ord. Sergts. report more accoutrements on hand than their commands could carry in the event of a move. Many of the cartridge boxes are made for waist belts only, and as many of the men prefer them without shoulder belts, they have not been required to take them."

The other inspection reports show that in this late-war period, the question of whether or not it's "correct" to wear the box on the belt depends, as with so many other things even this late in the war, on which unit you're trying to portray. The numbers show that some Brigades clearly required the strict use of the shoulder belt, while others, like Lane's Brigade above, didn't really care. We should always avoid asking "is this correct for a Confederate Soldier", we should ask "is this correct for a soldier in a certain unit at a certain time", because the biggest thing I learned from collecting and researching the CS inspection reports, is that to the very end there was marked variety in clothing and equipage from unit to unit.