historical axe

[Charles Kaiser]

Hallo Kameraden,
I am looking for pictures or ilustrations of auhtentical axes.I know there was a thread about historical tools on the forum before the big crash, but i couldnt find him.

[Curt-Heinrich Schmidt]

Hallo!

IMHO, try referencing the "American Pattern" axe (sometimes called the "Yankee Pattern" in Europe.)
It should give you a start.

http://www.fs.fed.us/eng/pubs/pdfpubs/pdf99232823/pdf99232823Pdpi72pt03.pdf

Tschuess!

Curt

[roundshot]

Great link. I'm glad you axed that question.

[VA-Patriot'61]

Hallo Christof!

An excellent little book I bought a couple years ago has a great many illustrations in it of a wide variety of period tools from the 17th century to the middle of the 19th century.

Here is the title of the book:

"A Museum of Early American Tools" by Eric Sloane.

I find it somewhat amusing that the title says American when many of the tools have European origins. The little book is only $9.00 US or so (it may have gone up a little bit). I think anyone who has an interest in antique or period tools needs to buy this little book.

Hope this helps some!

auf Wiedersehen!

[Johan Steele]

I will second Mr Sloane's excellent work., thta along w/ his other works are at the very least educational.

[Charles Kaiser]

Hallo Kameraden,
thats what I am looking for, many thanks to you
Bis bald

[J.H.Berger]

Christof, in case you don't want to forge it yourself as you might have to do some forge welding;-)--body iron blade carbon steel. A collegue of mine Jens Eichler is making axes from all kind of steel. He has done American axes as well. I can give you his address.
A hatchet in the american style would be good as they werelisted in the QM manual as well.

[PanzerJager]

There is an I’d camp hatchet in the Gettysburg NPS visitor center downstairs with the under clothes and personal affects. I was just looking at it this weekend and remarking how the handle had been shortened for what I assume would be for the convenience of carrying it. Wish I had my camera to take a pic or two, maybe some one else can post one.

Another source if you want to study original axes is check out relic and digger websites as axes and hatchets are often recovered from camp and stationary areas.

Regards,

[Linkstrap]

If it's of any help, here's an example of a hatchet I saw at the Arabia Museum.

(There were several similar examples to this one on display when I was there earlier this year.)

http://i147.photobucket.com/albums/r307/Linkstrap/Hatchet.jpg

Jan, could your friend reproduce one of these, and if so, would he ship to the UK? :)

[Edwin Carl Erwin]

Charles,

Civil War Collector's Encyclopedia by Francis A. Lord, 1963, Stackpole Company, has a couple pages of axes & hatchets pictured.

Regards,

[Pvt Peck]

The hatchet from the Arabia sure looks a lot like a roofing hatchet! I think I have one almost identical in my garage. I'd check e-bay for old/antique hatchets or roofing hatchets.

[Curt-Heinrich Schmidt]

Hallo!

My local blackpowder shop has two lying around for sale...

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y104/Michael1787/Shinglinghatchet.jpg

Curt

[Hank Trent]

Curt,

Is that a pre-1865 catalog? Not that it matters--it's a great illustration of various period hatchet styles. I'm just curious because something about it says early 20th century to me. Don't know if it's the typography, the logo style, the engraving style or what. Just curious, more from a graphic-arts standpoint than a hatchet standpoint.

Hank Trent
hanktrent@voyager.net

[Curt-Heinrich Schmidt]

Hallo!

Yes, I put it up to illustrate a few of the common (albeit late) 19th century roofing hatchets.
I am rusty, as I saved the illustration without the date reference, but Peck, Stow & Wilcox formed in 1870. I believe that page is from their 1900 catalog.

Curt

[Hank Trent]

I am rusty, as I saved the illustration without the date reference, but Peck, Stow & Wilcox formed in 1870. I believe that page is from their 1900 catalog.

Thanks! Glad to know I'm not going nuts, or if I am, my graphic arts estimation skills are still in tact. It's an excellent illustration of typical 19th century types, though.

Hank Trent
hanktren@voyager.ent

[Charles Kaiser]

Hallo Kameraden,
I bid on an axe on Ebay Germany, take a look:

[Charles Kaiser]

Hallo Kameraden,
another Question. If the soldiers are on march, I think the had to carry some axes for firewood, building shebangs, or so on. I dont think , they carried it in the waistbelt like thomahawks. Has someone seen a photo of a soldier, carrying an axe? I think this question is only relevant, if the soldiers have no carriagewagons, or mule or horses for transport with them.

[Curt-Heinrich Schmidt]

Hallo!

While I struggle to remember any Period images, I would add that under the greatcoat straps (greatcoat or blaket roll) on a knapsack is a convenient and safe place...
Another is internally between the two "bags" of a double-bag knpasack.
For me personally, I prefer the first for a hatchet or short-handled camp axe.

Curt

[J.H.Berger]

Yes Christof, I think you are referring to a hatchet= Beil not an Axe= Axt:)

P.S. Da fehlt ein "r" in deinem Untertitel;-))))

[Charles Kaiser]

Hallo Kameraden,
yes I mean hatchet, not axe, thank you Jan, I am not an Canadian Lumberjack:wink_smil
Curt, I thought about the same place to store, but I want to know, what the other say in the community, maybe it wasn`t common or farby, that soldiers carried an hatchet on the march, but I think a hatchet is as necesarry to survive as matches, or food or water.
I got the Hatchet on Ebay for 10,60€, and on next event I will carry it. Has someone a picture of a protection of the blade. I dont want that the hatchet will" kill" my knappsack on march. If there is no Information, or an existing Pattern, I will made it from Leather.(Homemade Style)


P.s: Danke für den Hinweis mit dem fehlenden R , wie peinlich:embaresse

[KevinInDel]

Stupid question, but would any one given soldier have been likely to carry an axe or hatchet, as opposed to their use being mostly limited to the engineers and sappers?

Kevin Mulrooney
Newark, Delaware

[Spewy]

My memory isn't what it use to be but I remember reading about a Lt. Gillespe(?) from one of the Infantry Regts' of the Missouri Brigade mounting the Breast Works at Corinth armed with an Axe. No mention is made of if he picked it up off the field or if he brought it with him.

[Curt-Heinrich Schmidt]

Hallo!

Without "r," I could not breathe. ;-) A German pronounciation pun, "lost in the translation." :)

I do not recall any images of soliders with hatchets. There area number of hatchets attributed to ACW soldiers, but they are "loose artifacts" and just the hatchet (often rehelved). And excavated ones are often just heads with the helves having been lost to Time.
While I prefer images to illustrations... there are two 1861 artists' illustrations I can think of. One is an 1861 parade of Tennessee troops marching to join the "Army of North Virginia." They have "tomahawks' stuck in the front their belts.
The other is a ilustration of a grouping of men to show their uniforms and the man labelled as a Tennessee sharpshooter has one in his belt.

In the absence of artifacts, I know of no ACW associated or documented hatchet/axe covers. There was one in the old Lord's "The Civil War Collector's Encyclopedia" but the hatchet that was with it, although identified as a naval "boarding hatchet" is a roofing/shingling hatchet.

There are a few known hatchet slings or pouches from the 19th century, but these tend to be "frontier" shoulder belts and envelope-type pouches for securing small belt axes/hatchets/tomahawks.

Speaking of "experimental archeology," a hatchet slid under the greatcoat straps, against the greatcoat or blanket, rides safe and secure from doing injury to self or gear. A hatchet inside of the double bags of a double bag is an "exposed blade" that can nick one self or other gear from the blade or more particularly the corners of the blade if one is not "careful." (As is one carried under one's waist belt...)
In the absence of a cover, a cloth rag can be wrapped around the blade.

Tschuess!

Curt
Still looking for images Mess

[J.H.Berger]

The QM Manual 1865 states a cover for the hatchet and describes the hatchets being issued as camp equipage but that was 1865. It has a describtion of how it looks like incl. carying strap but that's it.
Well having a hatchet in the mess group makes sense but the question is was it done back then, we need to research more about that!
Anyway, if you need a blade protection for it Christof call me. I have made some before;-)