Canteen Articles and Other Research

[CJDaley]

I wanted to offer up some background on an article I wrote in another lifetime as it's recently come up in conversation:

In 1992 I wrote an article and submitted it to the Watchddog entitled "We Drank From the Same Canteen". I wrote this very short article because at the time I was 'on probation' from my unit because I decided to use a jean cloth cover and a leather sling on my canteen instead of a sky blue cover and cloth strap.

I spent less than a week putting this article together and it wasn't very deeply researched. I basically opened a few books, visited a few museums, talked to collectors/historians and published a very pedestrian survey which surmised that not all surviving canteens had jean cloth covers. Hugh shock right? Of course not, but it was to the bozo in my unit who was giving me a hard time.

Since then, this article has been used by vendors, reenacting groups and others. That's cool with me and anyone who wants to use that information is free to, but please understand, there are better articles on canteens currently available.

If anyone is looking for a scholarly article on canteens, may I suggest:

Coates, Earl, J. Military Collector and Historian, The Civil War Canteen: Patterns of 1858 and 1862. Page 98, Vol. XLVII, No.3 Fall, 1995, Washington, D.C.

Also, if any of my notes, photos or observations on uniforms/equipment can be of some use to your museum, your unit or your personal research, please take what you need and leave the rest. I enjoy sharing this and don't make money off of it. (If I did, this research center would be password protected or something.)

Anyway, here is what I have published and check back often as I'm always publishing new articles: http://www.cjdaley.com/research.htm

Got questions? Just ask.

[Prodical Reb]

Re: Canteen articles and other research.

Mr Daley,
I'd like to ask you about a survey you did on canteens in the mid 90's. This survey was published in the Watchdog and is listed on Dell's leather Works as a "Historical Citation" for his canteen slings and recovering kits. I asked Mr. Barry and he referred me to you. In the survey of canteens, you list one of the straps as a red cloth strap. Could you elaborate on the material and construction? Do you know where this canteen and strap currently resides, and any history of that particular canteen? I can't recall ever seeing a red strap on a canteen in reenacting. Thanks!

[CJDaley]

Re: Canteen articles and other research.

Mr Daley,
I'd like to ask you about a survey you did on canteens in the mid 90's. This survey was published in the Watchdog and is listed on Dell's leather Works as a "Historical Citation" for his canteen slings and recovering kits. I asked Mr. Barry and he referred me to you. In the survey of canteens, you list one of the straps as a red cloth strap. Could you elaborate on the material and construction? Do you know where this canteen and strap currently resides, and any history of that particular canteen? I can't recall ever seeing a red strap on a canteen in reenacting. Thanks!

Good questions. I haven't seen that article in over a decade and the research for that article was packed up years ago. I don't think I ever had an electronic copy as I'm pretty sure I used a typewriter. If you could point me to a copy of the article it may refresh my memory, but I can't promise.

[Craig L Barry]

Re: Canteen articles and other research.

Yes, We Drank From The Same Canteen appeared in The Watchdog Vol 5 # 3, and I can find a copy of all the back issues...except that one. I probably have it but can't put my hands on it. Vol 1, # 1 was Winter 1993, so that issue would have been the Summer 1998. Fred Gaede wrote a good article in MC & H on the Cincinnatti Depot canteen, too. MC&H is a very good source of information on a wide variety of subjects besides canteens.

No disrespect intended toward Chris Daley's recollections of his old Watchdog article. IIRC, while not scientific it is better than he is letting on. Also it bears mentioning that some of the Dell Leatherworks "Historical Citations" do not reflect particularly current research. For example, the loose leather thong tied sliding keeper Enfield sling. A recently published book on British Accoutrements dates that particular sling design to November 1871. If you read the wording on the Dell Leatherworks "Historical Citation" for that Enfield sling closely from start to finish, it pretty much suggests post war provenance, too.