Hair color

[Kace]

I am going through a photo copy of the Descriptive Rolls for the 7th Missouri Vols . I am dealing with a photo copy reduced in size and learning how to read the penmanship. I spent a long time stumped trying to figure out some of the hair and eye colors. I thought at first I was up against period or regional terminology for hair and eye color. Turns out it was cramming words into a small space and starting them off with lower case letters rather than upper case.

This got me thinking did hair and eye colors have different names back in the day?

I know that I don't necessarily have a very balanced societal cross section looking at this unit as so many of the soldiers were from Ireland. But, so far I have found...

Hair - light, fair, sandy, dark, brown, black, red
Eye - grey, blue, hazel, brown

Kace

[JacobReichwein]

Re: Hair color

My ancestors records records say, fair haired with grey eyes.

I wish I had grey eyes :-/

[LindaTrent]

Re: Hair color

This got me thinking did hair and eye colors have different names back in the day?

Not from what I've seen. What you have below is what I've run across as well. I've looked primarily at Ohio troops from the south-east section and I've pretty much found the same light, fair, sandy, dark, brown, black and red hair and grey, blue, hazel and brown eyes.

Since Jacob brought up ancestors in the ranks my:

GG Grandpa Eachus had a dark complexion, black eyes and black hair and stood 6'1/2" high. Yes, black eyes!

GG Grandpa Hixon had blue eyes, light hair, and a fair complexion and stood 6' high.

G Grandpa Tope had blue eyes, dark hair and dark complexion and stood 5'8" high.

My other two GG Grandpas don't have descriptions at all on their service records.

Anyway, not sure if any of this helps, and yes from what I've read in official sources soldiers from the West Virginia area were taller than average. :D

Hope this helps somehow.

Linda.

[Hank Trent]

Re: Hair color

For comparison, from Fox's Regimental Losses, Chapter VII:

The descriptive lists show also the color of hair, from which it appears that 13 per cent. of the soldiers had black hair; 25 per cent had dark hair; 30 per cent, brown hair; 24 per cent, light; 4 per cent, sandy; 3 per cent, red; and 1 per cent, gray hair.

Also, that as to color of their eyes, 45 per cent were blue; 24 per cent were gray; 13 per cent were hazel; 10 per cent were dark; and 8 per cent were black.

Hank Trent
hanktrent@voyager.net

[Curt Schmidt]

Re: Hair color

Hallo!

"Also, that as to color of their eyes, 45 per cent were blue; 24 per cent were gray; 13 per cent were hazel; 10 per cent were dark; and 8 per cent were black"

So, green eyes are farby then? ;) :)

Curt
Out to buy some colored contacts Mess

[Kace]

Re: Hair color

I was working toward a theory that I was pretty sure 'grey' eyes and 'hazel' eyes may different names for the same color. This was based upon looking the first two companies I am working with. Company A had a large number of 'grey' eyes and no 'hazel' eyes. Company B had a large number of 'hazel' eyes and no 'gray' eyes.

Just when you have a good theory going hard evidence has to come along as mess it up. Low and behold Company C has a number of each.

Kace

[Curt Schmidt]

Re: Hair color

Hallo!

"Hazel" can be messy, as it has been used to described light brown eyes as well as dark green eyes. Some people believe "hazel" are eyes that change colors such as going from green to gray to blue as mine do.

For that matter, eye color itself is messy, as the appearance of color is influenced by light intensity as well as surrounding environmental hues.

In the modern world, while we have identified the three gene set with paired alleles so we think we know why the brown, green, blue- but we don't know what makes the other colors (proteins perhaps).

Genetically, as our modern population becomes more non-Northern European diverse, the blue eyes being a recessive trait, are becoming fewer.

Curt