Hello all-
These are all citations taken from a book called "Ersatz in the Confederacy, Shortages and Substitutions on the Confederate Home Front" by Mary E. Massey. She uses over 117 primary and secondary sources for her information in Chapter 3 alone!
There are some really interesting things that I think can really help us in keeping to an accurate portrayal at Westville. I hope you find them as interesting as I did. More soon. Thanks!
- Matt
Major Causes of Shortages-
A lack of self-sufficiency, the blockade, inadequate transportation facilities, speculation, hoarding, generosity, government impressment, insufficient labor force, destruction by fire and sword, and natural phenomenon all stand out as major reasons for home front shortages. However, all these factors are interrelated. Seldom did a community suffer from the presence of one of these things, but rather from a combination of many of them.
1. Blockade. Mostly ineffective in 1861, but starting to be a problem by mid 1862. As the months continued, the blockade became more and more effective. By mid to late 1864, only three ports in the South remained opened for business, Wilmington, Mobile, and Galveston. Items were brought over from French controlled Mexico into Texas, but not with enough regularity to be of much consequence on the Eastern side of the Mississippi.
2. Inadequate transportation system in the South. This is a case of shortages of reliable and effective transportation causing shortages. A shortage of engines, the lack of maintenance on the lines, and the pressing need for munitions, clothing, and food at the front took priority over supplying the people at home. Lack of a common rail gauge, poor facilities for transportation, and the cutting of railroads by both armies further contributed to this lack of available transportation. In addition to lack of rail, there was a shortage of horses and mules. Poorly fed, impressed for service in the Southern armies, killed or captured by enemy forces, there were not enough draft animals to pull farm wagons to market.
3. Speculation and hoarding were important contributions to shortages. No part of the South was immune from them. Lets look at speculation first.
Speculation, simply put, is the buying or acquisition of a large amount of a single type of good so that it becomes a rarity on the open market. Salt, bacon, and leather were of particular attraction but it is also known that half a dozen men sought and gained control over the only two nail factories in the Confederacy. People generally complained more about speculation than any other of the war evils. Newspapers called upon the national and state governments to do something about speculation. In late 1861, Governor Brown of Georgia ordered that all salt held in the depot in Savannah be confiscated and sold to the public at $5.00 per sack. The Southern Confederacy newspaper reminded Governor Brown that "Impartial Justice requires that the Governor deal with all alike and put down all unpatriotic speculation." The editor also noted that Georgia's Constitution says that private property can be seized for public use and he encouraged the Governor to use that power. State and local governments were the first to try and counter speculation through the use of proclamations and appeals to their citizens. Often times, it had little or no effect. Farmers were often criticized for hoarding their crops in an attempt to sell them for higher prices.
Hoarding was also a problem, though usually more of a personal choice then speculation which could be quite public. Large scale hoarding was unusual because there were not many in the South who could afford such a large outlay of money at a time. Grocers often would encourage their better customers to purchase items like cloth and coffee even as early as the summer of 1861. For those that hoarded, there were just as many who gave all they had to the Confederate cause, to the point where they had little or nothing left for themselves. The spirit of giving and supporting the soldiers was prevalent as long as there remained anything left to give. In the South women gathered together at regular intervals to sew, knit, and pack boxes for solders. These gifts were usually sent to hospitals. Food was the most popular thing that was sent to soldiers, but many times it went bad or spoiled before it arrived. Many ladies began to abandon the idea of getting anything to their particular soldier and instead banded together to feed and clothe troop trains as they passed through their towns.
4. Impressment- In the prosecution of the war, the people at home were forced into a secondary position. The first thought of the government was winning the war, so the problem of supply was the greatest one the government faced. So serious did it become that a program of impressment was begun. The government in Richmond believed that impressment would cut down on speculation. It helped to clothe and feed the army, but at a cost to the people at home. The impressment policy was one of the most unpopular actions in the Confederacy. There was widespread resentment against arbitrary seizures and many denied the right of the government to impress commodities. Interior Georgia was a favorite source of supply for the government impressment agents working for the War Department. These agents were never cordially welcomed by the locals. James Seddon, Secretary of War wrote, "people in both the Carolinas and Georgia have vehemently opposed impressment." Many towns were forced to do without needed farm products as many farmers refused to bring their crops to down for fear of it being taken at "market price" by a government agent. Some farmers even threatened to plant no more corn, wheat, peas, or anything liable to impressment. The longer the war went on, the more the policy of impressment was expanded. Not only food was taken, but other commodities as well such as horses, mules, railroad iron, and even firewood.
5. Substitutions and shortages of labor at home- With most of the able bodied men fighting, women and children now had to be depended on to grow food. "Many a woman who never held a plow" found her family dependent on her and therefore she learned how to plow, hoe, bind, and thresh grains, gather and shuck corn, and do many of the chores that were thought to be man's work. She cut wood, cleaned wells, and buried the dead as well as performing the normal women's tasks. With too little of this inexperienced labor on hand, production was necessarily decreased at a time where an increase was needed. The shortage of manpower on the home front was a paramount factor in the scarcity of food.
6. The majority of the war was being fought in the South- As a result, many of the crop producing areas became forage grounds and battle grounds for both armies.
7. Nature and accidents- Droughts occurred in the summer of 1862 in Alabama and Georgia and the Mississippi River had sever flooding in late Spring of 1861 and the summer of 1862. The Appomattox River flooded in 1864 destroying bridges, roads, and government warehouses in Petersburg full of supplies. Fires also destroyed manufacturing buildings and storehouses.
These are all citations taken from a book called "Ersatz in the Confederacy, Shortages and Substitutions on the Confederate Home Front" by Mary E. Massey. She uses over 117 primary and secondary sources for her information in Chapter 3 alone!
There are some really interesting things that I think can really help us in keeping to an accurate portrayal at Westville. I hope you find them as interesting as I did. More soon. Thanks!
- Matt
Major Causes of Shortages-
A lack of self-sufficiency, the blockade, inadequate transportation facilities, speculation, hoarding, generosity, government impressment, insufficient labor force, destruction by fire and sword, and natural phenomenon all stand out as major reasons for home front shortages. However, all these factors are interrelated. Seldom did a community suffer from the presence of one of these things, but rather from a combination of many of them.
1. Blockade. Mostly ineffective in 1861, but starting to be a problem by mid 1862. As the months continued, the blockade became more and more effective. By mid to late 1864, only three ports in the South remained opened for business, Wilmington, Mobile, and Galveston. Items were brought over from French controlled Mexico into Texas, but not with enough regularity to be of much consequence on the Eastern side of the Mississippi.
2. Inadequate transportation system in the South. This is a case of shortages of reliable and effective transportation causing shortages. A shortage of engines, the lack of maintenance on the lines, and the pressing need for munitions, clothing, and food at the front took priority over supplying the people at home. Lack of a common rail gauge, poor facilities for transportation, and the cutting of railroads by both armies further contributed to this lack of available transportation. In addition to lack of rail, there was a shortage of horses and mules. Poorly fed, impressed for service in the Southern armies, killed or captured by enemy forces, there were not enough draft animals to pull farm wagons to market.
3. Speculation and hoarding were important contributions to shortages. No part of the South was immune from them. Lets look at speculation first.
Speculation, simply put, is the buying or acquisition of a large amount of a single type of good so that it becomes a rarity on the open market. Salt, bacon, and leather were of particular attraction but it is also known that half a dozen men sought and gained control over the only two nail factories in the Confederacy. People generally complained more about speculation than any other of the war evils. Newspapers called upon the national and state governments to do something about speculation. In late 1861, Governor Brown of Georgia ordered that all salt held in the depot in Savannah be confiscated and sold to the public at $5.00 per sack. The Southern Confederacy newspaper reminded Governor Brown that "Impartial Justice requires that the Governor deal with all alike and put down all unpatriotic speculation." The editor also noted that Georgia's Constitution says that private property can be seized for public use and he encouraged the Governor to use that power. State and local governments were the first to try and counter speculation through the use of proclamations and appeals to their citizens. Often times, it had little or no effect. Farmers were often criticized for hoarding their crops in an attempt to sell them for higher prices.
Hoarding was also a problem, though usually more of a personal choice then speculation which could be quite public. Large scale hoarding was unusual because there were not many in the South who could afford such a large outlay of money at a time. Grocers often would encourage their better customers to purchase items like cloth and coffee even as early as the summer of 1861. For those that hoarded, there were just as many who gave all they had to the Confederate cause, to the point where they had little or nothing left for themselves. The spirit of giving and supporting the soldiers was prevalent as long as there remained anything left to give. In the South women gathered together at regular intervals to sew, knit, and pack boxes for solders. These gifts were usually sent to hospitals. Food was the most popular thing that was sent to soldiers, but many times it went bad or spoiled before it arrived. Many ladies began to abandon the idea of getting anything to their particular soldier and instead banded together to feed and clothe troop trains as they passed through their towns.
4. Impressment- In the prosecution of the war, the people at home were forced into a secondary position. The first thought of the government was winning the war, so the problem of supply was the greatest one the government faced. So serious did it become that a program of impressment was begun. The government in Richmond believed that impressment would cut down on speculation. It helped to clothe and feed the army, but at a cost to the people at home. The impressment policy was one of the most unpopular actions in the Confederacy. There was widespread resentment against arbitrary seizures and many denied the right of the government to impress commodities. Interior Georgia was a favorite source of supply for the government impressment agents working for the War Department. These agents were never cordially welcomed by the locals. James Seddon, Secretary of War wrote, "people in both the Carolinas and Georgia have vehemently opposed impressment." Many towns were forced to do without needed farm products as many farmers refused to bring their crops to down for fear of it being taken at "market price" by a government agent. Some farmers even threatened to plant no more corn, wheat, peas, or anything liable to impressment. The longer the war went on, the more the policy of impressment was expanded. Not only food was taken, but other commodities as well such as horses, mules, railroad iron, and even firewood.
5. Substitutions and shortages of labor at home- With most of the able bodied men fighting, women and children now had to be depended on to grow food. "Many a woman who never held a plow" found her family dependent on her and therefore she learned how to plow, hoe, bind, and thresh grains, gather and shuck corn, and do many of the chores that were thought to be man's work. She cut wood, cleaned wells, and buried the dead as well as performing the normal women's tasks. With too little of this inexperienced labor on hand, production was necessarily decreased at a time where an increase was needed. The shortage of manpower on the home front was a paramount factor in the scarcity of food.
6. The majority of the war was being fought in the South- As a result, many of the crop producing areas became forage grounds and battle grounds for both armies.
7. Nature and accidents- Droughts occurred in the summer of 1862 in Alabama and Georgia and the Mississippi River had sever flooding in late Spring of 1861 and the summer of 1862. The Appomattox River flooded in 1864 destroying bridges, roads, and government warehouses in Petersburg full of supplies. Fires also destroyed manufacturing buildings and storehouses.
Comment