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I know there was the great thread on civilian saddles, but it went it several directions, so I hope no one minds me dragging it up in a slightly different way. What period written accounts do we have of this? Obviously it does not appear to have been anywhere near the norm, but seems to have been common in this one unit (1st Kentucky Cav, US), as my wife's ancestor's service records indicate he used his own horse equipment for his full enlistment (1861-64; thank you free ACW records on ancestory.com)
Re: Civillian saddles in the Union Army
My great, great grandfather, Adam Ellis, enlisted in the Federal 1st KY Cavalry July 27, 1861. His muster sheets state that he furnished his own horse and horse equipment. I would assume this included a saddle. This notation is included all the way to August of '64. Value of horse was $165. The notation also usually states he received no pay for the horse.
Hopefully this will be of interest: from Tarrant's Wild Riders of the First Kentucky Cavalry "On the 9th of August, the regiment moved to Marietta to make preparations to return to Kentucky. Although most of the boys owned their own horses at the time, yet as Gen. Sherman needed them for future operations, it was necessary for them to be turned over to the government. In ordinary civil transactions it generally takes two to make a contract, but in this case it only took the stronger party to decide the terms of the trade — that is the government. Though some few of the men objected, yet for the sake of peace and harmony with Uncle Sam, they submitted without many murmurs."
"The 12th and 13th of August was spent in inspecting, branding, and delivering them to their new owner, the government. The 14th was employed in boxing up our saddles and making other preparations. The 16th was occupied in investigating the title of each soldier to his horse."
Timothy H. Downey
My great, great grandfather, Adam Ellis, enlisted in the Federal 1st KY Cavalry July 27, 1861. His muster sheets state that he furnished his own horse and horse equipment. I would assume this included a saddle. This notation is included all the way to August of '64. Value of horse was $165. The notation also usually states he received no pay for the horse.
Hopefully this will be of interest: from Tarrant's Wild Riders of the First Kentucky Cavalry "On the 9th of August, the regiment moved to Marietta to make preparations to return to Kentucky. Although most of the boys owned their own horses at the time, yet as Gen. Sherman needed them for future operations, it was necessary for them to be turned over to the government. In ordinary civil transactions it generally takes two to make a contract, but in this case it only took the stronger party to decide the terms of the trade — that is the government. Though some few of the men objected, yet for the sake of peace and harmony with Uncle Sam, they submitted without many murmurs."
"The 12th and 13th of August was spent in inspecting, branding, and delivering them to their new owner, the government. The 14th was employed in boxing up our saddles and making other preparations. The 16th was occupied in investigating the title of each soldier to his horse."
Timothy H. Downey
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