Rich Mountain - July 14-16, 2006 (Proposed)

[Eric Tipton]

Comrades:

I'm adding this to the potential calendar for 2006 in the spirit of deconfliction. I haven't seen anything else scheduled for July 2006, so here goes:

Discussion is very preliminary, but I should know more in the next week or so from the Rich Mountain Battlefield Foundation. The initial proposal is currently in their hands for discussion and we plan to meet in August to discuss potential logistics. They have a mainstream reenactment in odd-years, so the site is open as far as that goes.

Event Name: Rich Mountain 145th Anniversary
Location: Beverly, West Virginia
Date: July 14-16, 2006 (Proposed)
Host: Sixth Ohio - Mess #1. Seeking a co-host on the Confederate side if concept is approved.
Sponsor: Rich Mountain Battlefield Foundation and potentially the CWPT (Proposed)
Discussion Format: To Be Determined.
Contact: Federal: Eric Tipton, etinohio@msn.com
Contact: Confederate: To Be Determined.
Citizen: To Be Determined.
Website: Would most likely be an off-shoot of the <!--EZCODE LINK START-->Rich Mountain Web Site (http://www.richmountain.org/)<!--EZCODE LINK END-->.
Comments: General plan is for movement in the vicinity of Laurel Hill, the Staunton-Parkersburg Turnpike in and around the Rich Mountain Battlefield to follow in the steps of the original battle in July of 1861. If concept is approved, the scenario to be worked through with the Battlefield Foundation historians. A tour of the site is tentatively scheduled for August.
Event Point of Contact: Same as Federal POC, above
Event Type: Campaign, semi-immersion event
Impression(s): Federal - Sixth Ohio Volunteer Infantry. Confederate - To Be Determined. Early war impressions, obviously. Uniform standards would be in line with other EBUFU events.
Preservation: To Be Determined. Preliminary discussions have begun with the Rich Mountain Battlefield Foundation and the plan would be to donate all net proceeds to the preservation of the battlefield.
Registration: To Be Determined.

That's all for now. We have a very long way to go, but it's a start. If we can get past the concept stage, I'm going to need some help. John Cleaveland has agreed to "consult" a bit and I'll be calling him if we can get this meeting set up.

Does anyone have an idea about a good Confederate unit that could be portrayed? I'm just starting my homework on that part.

[markj]

How about the 25th Virginia for a Confederate impression? Good sources regarding the Rich Mountain fight are:

Haselberg, Fritz. "Yanks from the South!"

or

Lesser, W. Hunter. "Rebels at the Gate: Lee and McClellan on the Front Line of a Nation Divided." Sourcebooks, 2004, ISBN: 1570717478. (Hunter used some of my contributions in his book)

I'm not sure why the 6th Ohio was picked for an impression. Although I'm admittedly a Hoosier, better impressions would be the 8th, 10th, or 13th Indiana Volunteer Infantry regiments or, conversely, the 19th Ohio. The 10th IVI, raised in my part of Indiana, took the lion's share of the casualties and I've done tons of research on its uniforms, arms, and equipage. David Hart, the "Rich Mountain Guide," actually came back to Indiana with the 10th IVI and enlisted in the regiment as its Commissary Sergeant. He served in the 10th IVI until he died from typhoid in March 1862.

Inquiring minds want to know,

Mark Jaeger

[Eric Tipton]

Mark:

How about the 25th Virginia for a Confederate impression?Much appreciated. That's a good start and more than I know right now. There is a lot of homework ahead if we can get this off the ground. The unique thing about this particular battle, if we can get it together, is the presence of eastern and western troops. My preliminary idea would be to have the western boys on the Federal side and some of our friends out east on the Confederate side. The site is located pretty well for joint attendance.

I'm not sure why the 6th Ohio was picked for an impression. Although I'm admittedly a Hoosier, better impressions would be the 8th, 10th, or 13th Indiana Volunteer Infantry regiments or, conversely, the 19th Ohio. The 10th IVI, raised in my part of Indiana, took the lion's share of the casualties and I've done tons of research on its uniforms, arms, and equipage. David Hart, the "Rich Mountain Guide," actually came back to Indiana with the 10th IVI and enlisted in the regiment as its Commissary Sergeant. He served in the 10th IVI until he died from typhoid in March 1862.?The simple answer is that I'm with the Sixth Ohio :wink_smil, and a Buckeye. We have an excellent source right off the bat, because the Sixth Ohio Regimental, written by Hannaford has a fairly detailed account of what they did in this area - almost to the hour in most parts. We also have several members who can practically trace the path of the Sixth throughout the entire war. The impresion isn't set in stone, but it would be an excellent opportunity with the wealth of knowledge we have at our disposal and within the unit.

This is all a concept right now, but I wanted to get it out there to avoid any potential conflict with something else that might be in the planning stages and find out if there is any interest to do this.

I have exchanged several e-mails and provided a preliminary proposal to the Rich Mountain Battlefield Foundation and their board will discuss this at their meeting this week. If we can get a meeting set up, I want to assemble a team to meet with them to give them a more detailed proposal. I want to involve them in the planning if we can get that far, because they appear to have an excellent understanding of the private property owners around the site as well as on-staff historians.

At first, they were a little wary about the concept, since they do the mainstream thing on alternating years. I hope we can get it going, because from what I've heard, the surrounding area is in pristine condition. We'll find out more when we get down there.

[markj]

Sounds good, Eric. If you want any first-hand accounts of the battle (the Indiana papers printed several of them), let me know. I also have a very lengthy account of the battle that I found in the diary of Valentine Thuma, a guy who served in the 8th Indiana

Of course some sticking points, when it comes to "authenticity," are the issues of uniforms and arms. From the pics I've seen of previous Rich Mountain events, the uniforms are generally incorrect for that period (e.g., sack coats, which apparently weren't issued to Indiana troops until the end of 1861 or beginning of 1862 at the earliest). The 10th IVI, to name one regiment, was issued "light blue jean" roundabouts with 9-button fronts and matching trousers in late May 1861. They also wore gray "rough and ready" (somewhat similar to "Hardee") hats. The 10th IVI (contrary to what is stated in Todd's Military Equipage) were issued .69 M1816 altered-to-Maynard's-system arms.

If you want to see a man wearing a typical early-war Indiana-issue uniform, go this URL and scroll down to "Philander Wisehart" (bottom row, far left). Wisehart served in the 8th IVI and was KIA at Rich Mountain so the image dates to early June 1861 (the 8th and 10th IVI's deployed to Western Virginia on 19 June).

Regards,

Mark Jaeger

[Mike Ventura]

Mark:

My g-g-grandfather, Archibald Scott, fought with the 10th IVI at Rich Mountain. He returned home and then enlisted as a Corporal in the 43rd IVI.

I didn't see the URL posted that you mentioned in your above post.

Please email me off line - I'd love to see some of your other resource material on the 10th IVI.

mikeventura@venturacompany.com

Once a Hoosier, always a Hoosier!

Regards,

[BerkeleyBorderGuard]

Eric-

First, as a resident of WV, let me say THANK YOU for putting this event together. Many parts of WV are well suited for better events as the Trents have shown. I hope this is the start of a trend to bring these better events to the Mountain State.

Here is a link to some good OR material. There was simply too much to cut and paste.

http://www.ehistory.com/uscw/library/or/002/0193.cfm

I also have a great little booklet published back in 1963 that contains wondeful information on Rich Mountain. I will look for it and will send it to you if need be.

All the best to you on this event!

[markj]

Hi Eric, et. al.

For those of you interested in a Rich Mountain event, here are some newspaper letters I transcribed many moons ago for my 10th IVI website (since taken down due to reasons I won't bore you with here!). These discuss life in the 10th IVI from the time of its organization, in April 1861, to the Rich Mountain fight. Enjoy.

Regards,

Mark

[Pritchett Ball]

Interesting discussion...

I happen to have a letter, (Copy) in the handwritting of a THG Beck, to a "Miss Ann" dated July 23, 1861

OK, this letter describes events around the battles of Rich Mountain, and Laural Hill. He also mentions Beverly.

The letter is hard to read, but one part states:
" The yankees came on us at Laurel Hill on the 7th of July. We went out to meet them, we had it round there for a while but we made the rascals run like turkeys. I tell you it was not fun at all for the bullets whized by my head too much to suit me. We killed twelve and they killed one of our men."

He latter desribes retreating to Rich Mountain Road,five miles from Beverly they found out there were ten thousand yankees there, and they decided to cut across to Stanton;
"but had not gone very far when the rascals overtaken us and there we had it. you could not hear the words the officers said, it was shooting here & there, men falling all around you. we killed twelve hundred of the (?) and they killed fifty to sixty of our men."

Now, I have no clue who this "Beck" fellow was, or even what unit/State he acually came from. This "Miss Ann" may have been the Mother to a Eunice Ann Loughridge, who was born in Eton, Murray Co. Georgia in 1882. Ivan Thornton of Fort Worth, TX. was the Son of this Eunice (Loughridge) Thornton, and he found this letter when his Mother Eunice died. Ivan and I are related, and he gave me a copy of the letter.

I will be more than happy to snailmail copies of this letter to anyone who emails me, and gives me their address, for I am having PC problems, and it would be too hard to email the document.

I just read this posting, and it reminded me of the letter. Sure would like help in figuring out who this Beck feller is!
Respectfully:

Kevin Dally Kdallyrm@aol.com

[6thLouisiana]

This sounds like it might make a great event. I remember going through Beverly WV on my way to the McDowell event and seeing signs for Rich Mountain. My father's family came from that area and I would like to do an event there.
Dirk Behana
6th Louisiana

[Eric Tipton]

Comrades:

Your encouragement means a lot to me. I think this would be a great opportunity for us. I just hope we can convince the Rich Mountain Battlefield Foundation. Their board meeting is tonight (Tuesday, July 13th) at 7:00 PM and for their consideration, I have requested a face-to-face visit sometime in August. If we can secure the meeting, we would tour the field and then sit down and meet with the Foundation folks to discuss the possibilities for the event. At some point, I'd like to involve the CWPT, but I'm probably putting the cart before the horse. First, we need to get this meeting set up.

If you are interested in helping this along, here is the link for the board members. A short e-mail to them expressing your support for this potential event probably wouldn't hurt:

http://www.richmountain.org/staff.htm (http://www.richmountain.org/staff.htm)

If you write them, please remember that at this point, I have only sent an e-mail proposal to each of the board members (who have a listed e-mail) and I spoke with Ruth Brinker on three or four occasions. Everything is VERY preliminary at this point.

Our overall goal would be to benefit their hallowed ground and create an outstanding experience for all of us while aspiring for the highest possible standards. I want to do it as a partnership of the foundation and some of the best and the brightest our hobby has to offer.

We have a long, long way to go... from concept to reality.

[Charles Heath]

ET,

Great to see people putting out proposed event announcements early enough for prospective participants to make informed decisions well in advance. I do believe this type of open communication is what is meant by the phrase leading by example.

Charles Heath

[Canton Zouave]

Eric,

Since Mark was nice enought to plug one of my Stark County Regiments, 19th OVI, I might as well say....what about the 4th Ohio. (2 companies of Enfield, and 8 of Smoothbore .69 Calibre's, straight from Camp Chase)


Anyways, I will gladly send an email to all the members of the board that I can to encourage them to consider such an event.

Also, count me in to help in any way that I can. Feel free to drop me an email for whatever assistance you may need.

Rich Mountain would be a wondeful setting for a EBUFU type event.

[Canton Zouave]

Just some thoughts.


From the sources that I have been reviewing:

"A Banner in the Hills" by George E. Morre.
"Loyal West Virginia 1861-1865" by Thoedore F. Lang
"The Civil War in West Virginia" by Stan Cohen
For Starters

It seems that Roscrans' flanking move to the Hart Homestead led by David Hart, would be the most interesting and key scenario for the Rich Mountain Battle. To that, Col. Pergam & Major Nathaniel Tyler 20th Virginia would be the regiment faced by Rosercans' 1900 men. There are several good Confederate accounts of the route by Rosecrans men.

The 8th, 9th, & 13th IVI and 19th OVI, along with the 10th IVI deployed as Skirmishers, were the units compiled to form Rosecran's Reinforced Brigade that made the flanking movement to Pegram's Right. The remainder of the Indiana & Ohio Regimetns were part of McClellan's Main Force or attached to General Morris' Brigade, which was sent as a feint against General Garnett's forces at Laurel Hill. The sources that I have found list the 6th OVI attached to Morris' brigade.

If Rosey's march is recreated...it would be one heck of a hump, but it would be fun. On top of that these guys did it in the rain, on a densely wooded mountain side.

Refer to Stan Cohen's book on pages 28-30 for some reference images to what the Rich Mtn area looks like around the Hart Farm. Please keep in mind that this area had been heavily logged after the war, like most of the state.


Also, here is a list of some of the Confederates located on the CS Right Flank.

20th Virgina
Rockbridge Guards, Capt. Curry
Buckingham Institute Guards
Pryor Rifles, Lt. Williams
Upshur Grays, Capt. Higginbotham
Lynchburg Lee Battery
Churchville Cavalry, Capt.Sterrett

Note: This name and information comes from a Topographical Map originally scetched by jed. Hotchkiss, Top. Eng. and is in Stan Cohen's book.

[markj]

With all the above in mind, if anyone is interested in seeing additional letter transcriptions about Rich Mountain that I've uncovered, let me know. I just found two more in the 25 July 1861 Indianapolis "Daily Journal." One is from an unidentified member of the 10th Indiana (he was likely in Company K, which was formed in Marion County) as well as a very lengthy letter about the fight from Major R. S. Foster of the 13th IVI. Both are dated 14 July 1861 and were "bylined" from Beverly VA after the town was occupied by Federal troops. Both are quite interesting (although some of their "facts" can be debated) and, to my knowledge, have never seen the light of day since they originally appeared in the "Journal."

Anyway, if this tickles anyone's fancy, let me know and I'll get to typing....

Regards,

Mark Jaeger

[Eric Tipton]

Todd, Mark, All:

The Rich Mountain Battlefield Foundation has agreed to meet with us in September to tour the site and go over some potential logistics. I will try my best to update things as we move along. At the very least, for those who haven't attempted to do something like this, it can be a journal of sorts. For those who have, well, as I've said before, I'll need a lot of help to get this thing off the ground.

Based on the information you boys have posted and some work done by my mess mates, it looks as if an Indiana regiment might be the way to go. Upon further research, it looks as if the 6th OVI was in reserve for much of the action anyway. So much for sentimental attachments. On the Confederate side, I've seen you fellas mention the 45th and 20th Virginia. Either way, a Virginia unit would be most interesting, as we would have westerners on one side and easterners on the other. Is this starting to sound like a natural set up? More ideas on that later... First things first.

One of the people we will meet with is the author W. Hunter Lesser, who recently released the book "Rebels at the Gate: Lee and McClellan on the Front Line of a Nation Divided... (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1570717478/qid=1090184768/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/102-7748303-6326553?v=glance&s=books)". Here is his biography from the Rich Mountain web site:

Hunter Lesser works part time with the Foundation monitoring and watching for damage to historic features at the battlefield and helping with interpretation and artifact exhibits. Hunter has long been active with RMBF, was one of our original board members, and was site manager for the Rich Mountain archaeological survey in 1995. He is the author of Battle at Corricks Ford: Confederate Disaster and Loss of a Leader. Formerly an archaeologist with the Monongahela National Forest, Hunter is now writing a book on the 1861 Mountain Campaign.

I am in the process of assembling a group to meet with the Foundation in September. My comrades from Mess #1 will be there with me and I'd like to take a couple more people. Mark and Todd - please shoot me an e-mail at etinohio@msn.com and provide your phone number if you are potentially interested in going with us. If we can assemble an excellent presentation and form the skeleton of a scenario and organizational goals with the park staff, I think we will be well on our way.

Thanks again for the interest everyone. We have a long way to go...:wink_smil

[Eric Tipton]

If you want to see a man wearing a typical early-war Indiana-issue uniform, go this URL and scroll down to "Philander Wisehart" (bottom row, far left). Wisehart served in the 8th IVI and was KIA at Rich Mountain so the image dates to early June 1861 (the 8th and 10th IVI's deployed to Western Virginia on 19 June).

Mark:

The URL seems to be missing. I'd like to take a look at the soldier you are talking about. Being early war, the impression is going to be interesting to figure out.

[markj]

Try this link:

http://www.civilwarindiana.com/soldiers/reg008.html

Then just scroll down to "Philander Wisehart" (he's at the very bottom on the far left).

I also have extensive information about early-war uniform, equipment, and arms issues to the Indiana regiments that were deployed to Western Virginia (much of which does not appear in Todd's Military Equipage).

Regards,

Mark Jaeger

[Canton Zouave]

I decided to take a look at the 19th OVI. At this time in the war they were still a 3 month Regiment. Else where in the forum it does mention for armaments: 600(+) Pondir Muskets .69 Calibre, and 200 Enfields. See Ohio Arms Part 1, in the Forum Index.

I will look through our historical society images to see what is available. I do like the image that Mark mentioned. Mark do you have any details on the Jacket that is shown in the picture.

Just as a side note: We have in our Museum Collection one of the Enfields from Company A, 19th OVI.

[markj]

I decided to take a look at the 19th OVI. At this time in the war they were still a 3 month Regiment. Else where in the forum it does mention for armaments: 600(+) Pondir Muskets .69 Calibre, and 200 Enfields. See Ohio Arms Part 1, in the Forum Index.

I will look through our historical society images to see what is available. I do like the image that Mark mentioned. Mark do you have any details on the Jacket that is shown in the picture.

Just as a side note: We have in our Museum Collection one of the Enfields from Company A, 19th OVI.

Yep, I sure do. To wit:

Indianapolis Daily Sentinel, 26 April 1861:

QUARTER-MASTER GEN. DEPAR'T.,‎
INDIANAPOLIS, IND., April 25, 1861‎

PROPOSALS WILL BE RECEIVED AT THIS DEPARTMENT until Monday evening, the 29th ‎inst., at six o'clock P. M. for furnishing the following articles for the use of the six regiments ‎now mustered into the service of the United States., viz:‎

Coat and pants of strong, cheap woolen goods. Samples of materials to accompany ‎proposition.‎
Two (2) Flannel Shirts.‎
Two (2) Pairs Cotton Drawers.‎
Two (2) " Wool Socks.‎
Two (2) " High-quarter Shoes.‎

Samples to accompany propositions.‎
Also, one Felt Hat or Woolen Cap. Samples to accompany propositions.‎
Also, four thousand seven hundred (4,700) pairs of Grey Blankets, of about 6 lbs. in ‎weight, and the usual army size. Samples to accompany propositions.‎
Each bidder will specify the number of the above articles he can furnish, and the time ‎within which he can deliver them. The early delivery will be an inducement in awarding the ‎contract.‎
Specifications in detail will be embraced in each contract, and the articles will be subject ‎to inspection under the contract before being received.‎
The above propositions will be sealed and marked, "Proposals for Clothing," and be ‎directed to the Quarter-master General of Indiana Militia, City Quarters, Indianapolis.‎
T. A. Morris, Q. M. Gen.‎

Cin. Times, Daily Enquirer, Daily Commercial, and Daily Gazette copy one time and ‎send bill to this office.‎

apr. [26]‎

[same date and paper]

QUARTER-MASTER GEN. DEPAR'T.,‎
INDIANAPOLIS, IND., April 25, 1861‎

PROPOSALS WILL BE RECEIVED AT THIS DEPARTMENT until Monday evening, the 29th ‎inst., at six o'clock P. M. for furnishing the following accoutrements, according to patterns to be ‎exhibited at this office, viz:‎

‎4,000 Cartridge Boxes.‎
‎4,000 Cap Boxes.‎
‎4,000 Belts and Plates.‎
‎4,000 Bayonet Scabbards.‎

Each proposition must state the number of the above articles that he can furnish, and the ‎time within which he can deliver them. The early delivery will be an inducement in awarding ‎the contract.‎
The above propositions will be sealed and marked "Proposals for Accoutrements," and be ‎directed to the Quarter-master General of Indiana Militia, City Quarters, Indianapolis.‎
T. A. MORRIS, Q. M. Gen.‎

Cin. Times, Daily Enquirer, Daily Commercial, and Daily Gazette copy one time and send bill to ‎this office.‎

apr. 26‎

Indianapolis Daily Sentinel, 3 May 1861:

‎3 May 1861:‎

UNIFORMING TROOPS.--The Quartermaster General yesterday [Thursday, 2 May] awarded ‎contracts for uniforms their six regiments as follows:‎

Two regiments to Glaser & Brothers. Suits to consist of jacket and pants, of cadet ‎satinett, at $7 90 per suit.‎

J. W. Geisendorff & Co., one regiment. Jeans jackets and pants at $6 50 per suit.‎

Merritt & Coughlin and E. A. Hall, one regiment. Jeans jackets and pants at $7 00 per ‎suit.‎

S. J. Smith, Arthur Orr and B. N. Lanham, of Madison [Indiana], one regiment. Grey ‎satinett, at $6 75 per suit.‎

‎(Suits for the 11th regiment have been contracted for by Col. Wallace some days since.)‎

Contracts for flannel shirts and cotton drawers for five regiments were awarded to Glaser ‎& Brothers. Shirts at $1 40 each; drill drawers at 40 cents each.‎

Nearly the entire contract for shoes was awarded to Benedict & Hall, of New York, at $1 ‎‎15 per pair.‎

The entire contract for blankets was awarded to D. W. Parish, of Philadelphia. All to be ‎delivered within twenty-five days, under a penalty of $3,000 on each contract.‎

Light-colored taper crown felt wool hat--to be looped under each side, at $1 25 each--for ‎five regiments, was awarded to Dodd & Co., of Cincinnati.‎

‎[NOTE: The above hats were furnished to the 6th-10th IVI's; the 11th IVI wore gray ‎‎"kepi-style" caps with red crowns).‎


The hat adopted for the five regiments and contracted for yesterday [Thursday, 2 May], will be ‎found to be a very comfortable covering for the head, and with its loop on the side will look neat. ‎It will be far better for the men than caps, and will afford protection from the sun without adding ‎much more weight than the cap.‎

Indianapolis Daily Sentinel, ‎9 May 1861:‎

Capt. Blake's company [C] of the 10th Regiment got their arms yesterday [Wednesday, 8 May]. ‎They are the rifle muskets with the Maynard primer [i.e., .69 M1816 Remington conversions]. The company in their march to the armory ‎was accompanied by the celebrated Pickard Lafayette Band, and marched soldierly and well. It ‎is one of the best companies in the regiment and are to carry the colors and no one could look at ‎them without feeling assured that the regimental flag would be safe in their hands. Fifty of the ‎men are over six feet high and they all look like they had fight in them--enough to satisfy Jeff ‎Davis that Indianians are the men to resent an insult to their State and to the flag of the Union.‎

[same paper and date]

ARMY CONTRACTS.‎

OFFICE OF THE QUARTERMASTER GENERAL
INDIANAPOLIS, May 8, 1861.‎

SEALED PROPOSALS WILL BE RECEIVED AT THIS office until Monday, May 20, at six ‎o'clock P. M., for supplying four regiments of Indiana volunteers with the following articles: ‎UNIFORMS--Consisting of jackets and pants of woolen goods--jackets to be wadded in the ‎breast, to be lined throughout with a dark colored jeans or blue denim, with inside pocket, and ‎trimmed with nine regulation buttons in front and two on each sleeve.‎
PANTS to be lined throughout with medium sheeting or drilling. FLANNEL SHIRTS of a gray ‎mixture, with pocket, cuffs and collar. Brown Drill Drawers, Woolen Socks, high cut Brogans, ‎with pegs cut out, and each shoe strung with leather strings. Felt Wool Hat, Camping Blankets.‎
Goods to be delivered, free of expense, at this office, on or before the 10th day of June next, ‎under penalty of a forfeiture of thirty per cent, of the amount of each contract, to be paid for, in ‎cash, by the State of Indiana, on delivery and acceptance by the Quartermaster General.‎
Each article of clothing to have sewed on it a ticket, on which shall be marked the size of the ‎garment.‎
All bids must be accompanied by samples, on each of which should be a ticket with the ‎bidder's name and price marked on it.‎
Parties making bids must state the security they can give for the performance of the ‎contract., if one be awarded to him.‎
No bid will be considered for less than one regiment of 740 men.‎
J. H. VAJEN.‎
Quartermaster General

Indianapolis Daily Sentinel, 10 May 1861:

‎10 May 1861:‎


ARMY CONTRACTS.‎

QUARTER-MASTER GEN. DEPAR'T.,‎
INDIANAPOLIS, IND., May 9, 1861.‎

PROPOSALS WILL BE RECEIVED AT THIS DEPARTMENT until Friday evening next [May ‎‎17th, 1861.], for furnishing--‎

‎4,600 leather strap knapsacks.‎
‎4,600 canteens.‎
‎4,600 canvas or duck haversacks.‎

All bids must be accompanied by samples. Goods to be delivered within fifteen days from the ‎time of signing the contract. Goods to be paid for in cash on delivery and inspection.‎

J. H. VAJEN,‎
may10tf Quartermaster General.‎

Here are some additional notes from the unpublished diary of Private Valentine Thuma, 8th Indiana Volunteer Infantry (maintained at the Indiana Historical Society):

2 May 61 - Thuma reports the 8th IVI received "U. S. muskets" rather than the hoped-for "minnie rifles."

18 May 61 - Thuma indicates "the suit of uniform we are to have...is of dark gray color."

19 May 61 - "The suit consists of pants and roundabout."

24 May 61 - "We received our hats to day. They are gray, rough and ready with the left side buttoned up."

There's plenty more, but this will keep you occupied for a while! :wink_smil

I have long mulled over how to obtain similar uniforms for an event and, frankly, the jackets, trousers, and hats seem to be very similar to "commutation style" uniforms offered by various vendors. Some folks could almost wear their "Rebel" stuff and get away with it. Furthermore, the Dirty Billy "Confederate Hardee" hat is a reasonably close match to what Wm. Dodd & Co. provided to the State of Indiana.

The real problem lies in rifles. Almost nobody would have access to "Remington conversion" M1816's or even M1842's. Therefore, unless organizers were willing to bend the rules, the most obvious unit selections would be either the 19th Ohio, which was partially armed with Enfields (although I don't know if these were 2 or 3-banders) or the 13th IVI, which had two companies armed with them just before it departed for Western Virginia in early July 1861.

Before I forget, you might also be interested in this item taken from the 10 May 1861 Columbus OH "Weekly Gazette" (p. ‎‎3, col. 3) describing A. M. Denig's knapsack- making operation for the State of Ohio. It's clear ‎he extensively used prison labor:‎

KNAPSACKS.--Strolling through the workshops in the [Ohio State] Penitentiary the other day, we tarried ‎awhile with A. M. Denig & Co., to witness the process of manufacturing knapsacks, this firm having ‎recently taken a contract for supplying the government with two thousand of these indispensable articles ‎‎[making "500 a week, at the rate of two dollars for each...."] for the convenience of the soldier. About forty ‎hands were employed in cutting, stitching, strapping, buckling, boxing, covering and lettering, and so ‎rapidly was the work executed that no difficulty was found in providing daily for a Company of a hundred ‎men. The material of which these knapsacks are made of is called enamelled duck having a bright ‎morocco finish, warranted water proof. ‎
The pattern was selected with great, good judgement, from the most tasty of those worn by the New York ‎troops. There are three sets of straps to each; breast straps, shoulder straps and blanket straps, so ‎fastened as to make the knapsack self adjusting, thus preserving at all times, when worn, a graceful ‎appearance. The inside boxes are made by machinery, strong but light, the knapsack complete weighing ‎less than three pounds.‎
‎ The firm of A. M. Denig & Co., has long been extensively engaged in the manufacture of children's ‎cabs, buggies, light wagons, hobby horses and the like, and the nature of such a business of course, ‎gives them peculiar advantages over all others in the manufacture of knapsacks.‎
‎ We trust the officers of State awarding contracts, will make it a point to encourage home enterprise, ‎and that they will endeavor to avoid the too common practice of passing by our own mechanics to swell ‎the pockets of the millionaires of the East, even though they may not save a few dollars by the operation. ‎Let the taxes raised in Ohio, be expended in Ohio, to the advantage of the people of Ohio.‎

‎[END QUOTE]‎

‎"A. M. Denig & Co." definitely provided several thousand knapsacks to the states of Ohio and Indiana in ‎the first year of the war--the 1863 Indiana QMG Report as well as 1861 Indiana newspaper notices ‎specifically mention this firm.‎

Regards,

Mark Jaeger

[Eric Tipton]

Comrades:

We are assembling a group to visit with the Rich Mountain Battlefield Foundation September 10th-12th. So far, we are considering either an Indiana or Ohio unit on the Federal side and a Virginia unit on the Confederate side. Todd Morris is already working on info for the Federals and Mark Jaeger has been providing some excellent information as well.

Now, we are looking for someone who can help on the Confederate side. If you have an excellent working knowledge of Virginia units - including uniforms and campaigns and would be interested in helping to establish the Confederate impression, please shoot me an e-mail at etinohio@msn.com (etinohio@msn.com). We would need you to attend the meeting with us in September.

Thanks.

[markj]

Greetings,

Some of you will enjoy the attached letter (in Adobe pdf). However, "caveat lector" since some of the writer's "facts" are contradicted by other accounts. I will transcribe another letter dealing with the actions of the 13th IVI and will post it in due course.

Regards,

Mark Jaeger

[Agate]

Very interesting discussion.

There very well may be a way to keep all happy as far as National forces go.

Ohio, in late April 1861, called up ten additional regiments of infantry for "State" service. These regiments were organized for the most part at Camp Jackson/Chase in Columbus. The regiments were somewhat different in one sense than the initial Ohio regiments (per the call of 75,000) eleven of which, were organized at Camp Dennison as they were under State authority. They should not be confused with the three-year regiments organized later in 1861, almost all of which went into Kentucky. For example, the Twentieth OVM that organized in Columbus, which served in Western Virginia, was a separate organization than the Twentieth OVI, organized for three-years, regardless of what was recorded later in the Official Rosters. BTW, when trying to figure all this out, it doesn't help that they all referred to themselves all as "OVM."

Uniforms and equipment's for the three-year regiments at Dennison were paid for by Ohio, but purchases were made under direction of McClellan's (Federal) Quartermaster Capt. John H. Dickerson, beginning in early May 1861.

The fellow who procured clothing for the State regiments in Columbus was named A. D. Bullock and was a member of the Ohio Military Board. We are fortunate to have testimony from Bullock regarding these purchases from the Van Wycke Committee investigation of army contracts in late 1861 and contained in the Serial Set.

Both procurement officers initially advertised and purchased clothing per the United States Regulations, including blouses. Bullock however noted in his testimony that the market for army goods was so advanced, that he was forced to purchase non-regulation goods in order to provide enough uniforms to the State troops organizing in Columbus.

These non-regulation goods were gray cloth jackets/suits. One image of an unknown soldier of the Fifteenth OVM can be found on the "Ohio in the War" site under "15th OVI" and resides in the Strayer collection, several Id'd images are known, including the 19th Ohio. We have been aware of these jackets for some time, being listed in both Todd's, as well as an article by Kochan in M. C. & H. The Ohio Executive Documents (same document the list of arms comes from) has a list of all clothing purchased by Ohio in 1861, and includes 5700 gray cloth jackets. Just for the sake of clarity, only 1,100 jackets "other type" besides MSJ's are noted, lest we confuse these with the "Ohio" jacket as it is understood/perceived in reenacting.

A June 1861 article in one of the Cincinnati papers has a list of clothing furnished both regiments at Camp Jackson/Chase, and to the three-year regiments at Camp Dennison.

On the list, these gray jackets are noted as being of the "Indiana" pattern. The clothing purchased from several of the very same contractors supplying Indiana as Mark noted, including Glaser & Bros of Cincinnati.

The AG records at OHS contains a list of what early Ohio regiments received, and who made it, therefore, we can match up contractors with regiments. There is a chance* that we might* find that the Nineteenth Ohio received clothing from the same house as for example, the Eighth Indiana, maybe of the same pattern.

As for the Sixth Ohio. In Ebb Hannafords "Story of a Regiment" he mentions that at the outset of the history of the regiment, uniforms of gray cloth of the same pattern as that of the Guthrie Grays fatigue jackets were purchased with private contributions and given to several companies at their initial camp of instruction, Camp Harrison, near Cincinnati.

There is more to the story. What happened was that the members of the Guthrie Grays, when they were knocking about the idea of expanding to a full strength regiment, voted to represent the City of Cincinnati as the Seventh New York did the City of New York. The officers of the organization placed private contracts for a thousand plus uniforms of gray material, of which we have a very good description, and maybe, one surviving example in a private collection.

Unfortunately the public didn't respond as was expected, and the Regiment was only able to raise enough cash to purchase four hundred, leaving the balance in limbo. The officers went to the Cincinnati City Council and were rejected, and complained a lot about it in the city papers. So much so, including a threat by the several companies who didn't receive the uniforms to leave camp, that at least one of the papers started to refer to the Guthries as "spoiled" and as "pets."

Eventually the State bailed these officers out by purchasing the balance, and the Sixth received them.

One thing to keep in mind is that at Dennison, Dickerson was allowing regiments to draw clothing per the Regulations. Most of the regiments once reorganized for three years, received both uniforms (uniform coat, blue satinet trousers) and fatigue uniforms (blouse, gray satinet trousers, some with black stripes). Private soldiers, once they mustered in, were allowed to draw clothing from their allowance as opposed to it being "issued" to them. This amounts to "credit" and as today, some of these boys were more responsible than others.

We have the clothing account book of the First Kentucky for this period. When the First left the Cincinnati public landing in July 1861, for the mouth of the Kanawha, it seems none embarked with quite the same amount of clothing. Some soldiers purchased three shirts, some two pairs of shoes, some overcoats, some left with three pairs of trousers, some decided to not draw anything extra.

Meigs complained about this of volunteers later in the year in his official report to the War Department and the House, and it probably has at least something to do with limitations of what soldiers were to take when on campaign, and noted in the General Orders of several departments found in the OR's.

Members of the Sixth were no different from others in the Army, and it is probable that some of their members left with knapsacks literally packed with clothing. Later on in the Regimental, Hannaford mentions that members tossed clothing, and specifically mentions the hard fought for gray jackets, when they arrived in Western Virginia at the first sound of the guns, during a pushed advance to meet them.

We don't know what exactly the Sixth was wearing at Rich Mountain, but they left Ohio with blouses/trousers, uniform coats/trousers, and gray "Guthrie Gray" satinet jackets/trousers, besides anything individually drawn . These volunteers were not Regulars by God!

At least one regiment, the Ninth, voted to leave without drawing uniform clothing, preferring to crush the Rebellion in their fatigue clothing. Thereby saving the balance for a later period of the campaign. Their officers were all German veterans, and obviously knew what they were about.

It should also be noted too that the Sixth complained bitterly in the fall for want of clothing. Some may have simply used up their allowance earlier.

Anyway, gray jackets. Would be something to see Federals in gray jackets/suits!

Rich Mountain was pivotal in the first campaign of the Civil War on the sacred soil of old Virginia, Bull Run be Danged. Would be fitting to do this right.

Will outline all of this with sources when I'm feeling a bit better, having just returned from surgery. Neat idea Eric, keep it up.

Regards,

John

John Sarver
Cincinnati

[Canton Zouave]

John,

Excellent post in reference to the uniforms of the (OVM= Old Volunteer Mules).

The information will be valuable in the formation of the Federal Portrayal for this event.

I am plannign a trip to Columbus to go through what AG records that I can in reference to a 19th OVI portrayal. Me and Mark can then compare notes.

The hinge pin for all of this will be the meeting that Eric is setting up with the board at Rich Mountain. After the meeting and tour (especially the tour) there should be a good idea on which direction the impression is going to go. The talk with W. Hunter Lesser should be of emmense help in the formation of this plan.

[markj]

You'll like this (see Adobe pdf attachment). I whipped it together during some free time this afternoon.

Regards,

Mark Jaeger

[Ken Cornett]

Comrades:

I'm adding this to the potential calendar for 2006 in the spirit of deconfliction. I haven't seen anything else scheduled for July 2006, so here goes:

Discussion is very preliminary, but I should know more in the next week or so from the Rich Mountain Battlefield Foundation. The initial proposal is currently in their hands for discussion and we plan to meet in August to discuss potential logistics. They have a mainstream reenactment in odd-years, so the site is open as far as that goes.

Event Name: Rich Mountain 145th Anniversary
Location: Beverly, West Virginia
Date: July 14-16, 2006 (Proposed)
Host: Sixth Ohio - Mess #1. Seeking a co-host on the Confederate side if concept is approved.
Sponsor: Rich Mountain Battlefield Foundation and potentially the CWPT (Proposed)
Discussion Format: To Be Determined.
Contact: Federal: Eric Tipton, etinohio@msn.com
Contact: Confederate: To Be Determined.
Citizen: To Be Determined.
Website: Would most likely be an off-shoot of the <!--EZCODE LINK START-->Rich Mountain Web Site (http://www.richmountain.org/)<!--EZCODE LINK END-->.
Comments: General plan is for movement in the vicinity of Laurel Hill, the Staunton-Parkersburg Turnpike in and around the Rich Mountain Battlefield to follow in the steps of the original battle in July of 1861. If concept is approved, the scenario to be worked through with the Battlefield Foundation historians. A tour of the site is tentatively scheduled for August.
Event Point of Contact: Same as Federal POC, above
Event Type: Campaign, semi-immersion event
Impression(s): Federal - Sixth Ohio Volunteer Infantry. Confederate - To Be Determined. Early war impressions, obviously. Uniform standards would be in line with other EBUFU events.
Preservation: To Be Determined. Preliminary discussions have begun with the Rich Mountain Battlefield Foundation and the plan would be to donate all net proceeds to the preservation of the battlefield.
Registration: To Be Determined.

That's all for now. We have a very long way to go, but it's a start. If we can get past the concept stage, I'm going to need some help. John Cleaveland has agreed to "consult" a bit and I'll be calling him if we can get this meeting set up.

Does anyone have an idea about a good Confederate unit that could be portrayed? I'm just starting my homework on that part.

Did this event happen already :eek: ?!?

[trippcor]

I am not sure. But if it did they better not make me drop my knapsack. I could not pass a night without my blankie.....

[Shotgun Messiah]

Mr. Messiah, when you registered for forum membership, you agreed to sign your real first and last name to every post and reply. Please remember to do so in the future.

Regards, Elizabeth Clark, Forum Moderating Team Member.

[markj]

For those of you still basking in the warm glow of the successful Rich Mountain event, y'all might be interested in this image I just discovered on eBay showing a true "Face of Rich Mountain":

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=260070531831&ssPageName=ADME:B:WNA:US:12

Regards,

Mark Jaeger

[Kevin O'Beirne]

For what it's worth, a Rich Mountain 2006 event report will be in the March/April 2007 issue of Civil War Historian magazine.

[Strawfoot]

This report would've been out long ago, if someone hadn't dropped the ball. Sorry Eric...


Mike Phineas
Arlington, TX