Logwood vs. Indigo Dyed Thread

[WestTN_reb]

Gents,

I wonder how common was indigo dyed thread on Federal garments as opposed to logwood. I ask because I seem to remember regulations calling for fatigue blouses to be topstitched, etc. with indigo thread, however, most kits and/or finished garments out there today are supplied with logwood dyed thread.

Maybe one of you with access to better research than I can show the commonality of indigo vs. logwood. I think it would be interesting to know if either is over or under- represented in the hobby. Many thanks.

[Dan Wambaugh]

Re: Logwood vs. Indigo Dyed Thread

John,

An excellent question! A thesis paper could be written on a survey of various threads used in original garments, (and has been, check out "Invertigation of thread color change in American Civil War uniforms" by Ann E. Cordy, University of Maryland, 1983). As such, I will speak in generalities here. Two trends have surfaced in the original garments I have studied, but as with anything, remember that there is no such thing as "always" or "never".

Trend #1: Depot-produced garments tend to have a higher proportion of items made with indigo-dyed thread than contractor-produced garments.

Trend #2: Higher grade garments such as uniform (frock) coats tend to be made with indigo dyed thread over more utilitarian garments such as fatigue blouses.

Again, these are simply general trends based on observations I have made. Without an extensive survery of dozens if not hundreds of original garments any theory cannot be completely proven. Hopefully this can at least start you on the right track to finding some conclusions. Good luck!


Best,

[orngblsm]

Re: Logwood vs. Indigo Dyed Thread

John,

Looking at Patrick Brown's book about federal fatigue blouses, he notes that the US government had a set standard that all it's jackets (both fatigue and Dress) and all components that went into them were to be dyed in indigo. This is because indigo will not fade after long exposure to sunlight and oxygen, logwood will. Variation come in, because indigo was the most expensive blue dye on the market during the 1860s, it was also a much more labor intensive process to dye with indigo than with other cheaper dyes such as logwood. You can imagine when producing 50,000 or more coats cheaper dyed thread saves quite a bit on costs both in material and production time.
I have found the same as Dan has found that depot produced coats have thread more consistently dyed with indigo than those from contractors. This is most likely because contractors were not direct federal employees and did not have an Army employed Master Tailor constantly on site. The Master tailor would make visits from time to time to check on the patterns being used and on the productions being produced by contractors.
My research can't go as far as to say that a majority of coats contained thread dyed with logwood, though Contractor looking to turn a profit could use logwood or other cheaper dyes and claim to the government that indigo was used, hence turning more of a profit.

I would check out Patrick Brown's For Fatigue Purposes...: The Army Sack Coat of 1857-1872 I found it of great use when studying the process of making coats.

Hope this helps,

[ScottCross]

Re: Logwood vs. Indigo Dyed Thread

I agree completely with Dan's comments. My observation of original fatigue blouses shows that most of the thread used has faded to brown or tan, suggesting the use of logwood dye. Mounted Service Jackets and Uniform coats I have seen have thread that has retained its dark blue color, suggesting that indigo was used.

[Canton Zouave]

Re: Logwood vs. Indigo Dyed Thread

In addition, the two original contract overcoats that I have examined all had logwood dyed thread. The stitching is excellent on both samples and shows the qualities of an experiences tailor. However, they skimped on the thread and used Logwood dyed thread for their work. The Cincinnati Depot Marked mounted service jackets I have examined, 3 of them to date, have varied between Logwood and Indigo thread. Mere minute samples of what was produced.