Knapsack Use In the AOT 1863-1864

[Honved]

Gents,

I'm looking for 1st person accounts of knapsacks being used in the Army of Tennessee during the time period of late 1863 thru the Atlanta campaign of 1864. If anyone would care to share their research, I would greatly appreciate your info.

I will post my findings (which to date is not alot) in a future post or research article if the data warrants.

Best regards,

Todd Guthrie

[Andrew Kasmar]

While not first person accounts, this link might help http://www.blueandgraymarching.com/a...ntal-ordn.html . Also if you have the book Entrepôt it list out supplies of both English Imports and domestically produced knapsacks being issued to the Army of Tennessee.

All the best,

Andrew

[csuniforms]

The late great Howie Madaus of Confederate Flag fame told me that when they captured Atlanta they found thousands of English imported knapsacks in storage there. I dont have an documents but always remebered that story as at the time he was showing an original knapsack for research purposes.

Tom Arliskas
CSuniforms.

[David Fox]

Have not read it in a while, but believe Sam Watkins's "Co. Aytch" has several references to knapsacks.

[Texas Pard]

If anyone is interested, here is the link to the free online audio book of Company Aytch.

http://librivox.org/co-aytch-by-sam-r-watkins/

Weldon Svoboda

[markj]

NARA RG 109, Ch. VIII, Vol. 340 "Miscellaneous Orders Received and Issued, Newman's [23rd] Battalion of Tennessee Volunteers. 1862-1864.

Hd Qrs Browns Brigade
March 6th 1863

General Order
No (13) 73(76) }

From and after this date every Regimental Commander Field Officer & Company Commander is requested to be able to State the exact Strength of his command for duty and account for all absentes [sic] to State the number of Guns Haversacks Knapsacks Cartdrige Boxes [sic] Cartridges &c belonging to their respective commands
They are required to be able to State promptly on the Drill field & else where any or all these facts as well as to answer any other questions relating to the condition and efficiency of their respective commands any failure will be regarded & treated as a mark of official incapacity and neglect of duty

By Order of Genl [J. C.] Brown
C. G. Rogers
Act Genl [sic]
**************

Regards,

Mark Jaeger

[markj]

Please see attached inventories pertaining to the 32nd TN.

Regards,

Mark Jaeger

[hireddutchcutthroat]

There is a great quote in Cozzen's Shipwreck of Their Hopes, of a Federal scouring the battlefield at Chattanooga for a CS knapsack to replace the one he lost at Chickamauga. He also describes in detail the contents.

[Mississippian]

I think knapsack use in the AoT from 1863 to the fall of Atlanta is very heavy. I've looked at a lot of ordnance papers over the past year and it surprises me to see that in many regiments 90% to 100% of men are using them. In the spring of 1864 knapsack issues slow to a trickle as the arsenals stop making them and thats when usage starts to decline.

Now Bayonets are another matter.....we have way too many in our ranks. In some regiments only 25% of the men have them.

Will MacDonald

[brown]

Will,
These are both great observations. I saw similar numbers in the 90s looking at a smaller sample of Tennesseans in the AoT. Also, haversack and canteen use was not universal in the units I researched, even when knapsacks were near universal.

I think knapsack use in the AoT from 1863 to the fall of Atlanta is very heavy. I've looked at a lot of ordnance papers over the past year and it surprises me to see that in many regiments 90% to 100% of men are using them. In the spring of 1864 knapsack issues slow to a trickle as the arsenals stop making them and thats when usage starts to decline.

Now Bayonets are another matter.....we have way too many in our ranks. In some regiments only 25% of the men have them.

Will MacDonald