Drill for Shiloh

[Huck]

With Shiloh just around the corner and talking with a friend about drill, it got me thinking.

What is any ones general thoughts, opinion or research pointing to as for drill manual used for the 15th. We all or at least should know Casey’s. There is the US Infantry Tactic (1861), but the question then is, are we going to use the rifle manual (like Casey load in 9 times) or the Manual for the Musket (load in 10 times, either the Gilhams or Baxters).

So we have US Infantry Tactic 1861 with two different manual of arms for S.O.S

Casey S.O.S (Shoulder arms on the right side, with load in 9 times)
or
Manual for the Musket (shoulder arms on the left with eithe
Gilhams load in 10 times
Or
Baxters load in ten times.

[Matt Woodburn]

Re: Drill for Shiloh

Huck,

We'll use Casey, shoulder arms on the right and load in nine times. Now for some research...the men received their rifles on March 25th in St. Louis and boarded the Minnehaha on April 1st, so that means they had a chance to drill 7 days max with the rifles. In a couple first source documents we learn the men loaded their rifles for the first time just after they got off the Minnehaha, so unless they had some other rifles laying around in St. Louis to drill with, their first shot was at the Johnnies at Shiloh. Also it's noted that the men did not know firing commands at Shiloh, so their Colonel had them fire by file the entire time. We'll do the same unless I'm specifically told to fire otherwise. All this and other delicious tidbits are on the WIG webpage, and be sure to check all the links at the bottom of the page! WIG Website That concludes todays drill lesson.

[Huck]

Re: Drill for Shiloh

Ok works for me and pretty much everyone else out there. So we can all be on the same sheet of music. But I was personally wishing for the manual for the musket myself, something about a crisp cast about and ready......

[john duffer]

Re: Drill for Shiloh

CASEY'S wasn't adopted until August 1862. In truth it's more of a combination and clarification of previous manuals and there's generally not that much difference either way but us drillheads sometimes notice that folks will worry no end about which canteen corks but it's HARDEE GOETZEL CS or CASEY US.

[Huck]

Re: Drill for Shiloh

Part of the reason I asked the question, no granted I can use pretty much any manual out there (with a screw up or two), Hardee, both prewar, and war time, US Infantry Tactic, Gilhams , Baxter, or Caseys, it was more of a concern to ensure everyone was on the same sheet of music and had plenty of time to brush up.

[Silas]

Re: Drill for Shiloh

Seems to me there is a manual for the rifle included in the 1861 Tactics. Even though it's for the shorter rifle and not the rifle musket ; Casey pretty much cut and pasted that text into his manual. There are some differences, but they are minor. If you know Casey for manual of arms, you'll be fine. A gander into the 1861 Tactics for that text is still advised.

[john duffer]

Re: Drill for Shiloh

Most of the post Hardee manuals with musket drill tacked on use the load in ten times (which is pretty much just breaking "prime" into two movements) but I have a slightly prewar New York National Guard manual that interestingly (to me) has the same thing for loading/fix bayonet as the Goetzel Hardee.

[Alexander Vasquez]

Re: Drill for Shiloh

At Keokuk there were a few old muskets used for guard-mount but that was all. I don't even think they practiced firing them. One of the passages in the Daily gate talked about the boys running the guard mount and if I remember properly they were dodging bayoneted muskets.

This does bring up an interesting question--with limited experience with their Springfields but presumably much experience with civilian flintlocks, would the initial "urge" to feed and care for the percussion piece as a flinter have been overruled at Shiloh by the small amount of drill they had with the Springfields? Should the NCOs be loudly reminding the boys to load in nine times the first few shots?

Alexander Vasquez
Company C 15 IA

[KPavia]

Re: Drill for Shiloh

but presumably much experience with civilian flintlocks, would the initial "urge" to feed and care for the percussion piece as a flinter have been overruled at Shiloh by the small amount of drill they had with the Springfields? Should the NCOs be loudly reminding the boys to load in nine times the first few shots?

Alexander Vasquez
Company C 15 IA

How do you presume that they had a lot of experience with civilian flintlocks?

[Ike Gatlin]

Re: Drill for Shiloh

Sounds like a great opportunity to work some NCOs to death.

Ike Gatlin
The original rear rank 2

[J. Donaldson]

Re: Drill for Shiloh

I made a research trip to the Mahaska County Historical Society yesterday for Company C. I am in the process of transcribing the journal and letters of Captain Seevers, the recruiting officer and company commander of Company C, and I came across this entry. I am not sure the date this was written, but Seevers died in Oskaloosa in the autumn of 1865, and served as company commander well into 1863.

"All the officers in the Regiment were drilled in the Hall of the Estes House under the instructions of major W W Belknap who is a very superior drill master a man of great patience, and percerverance under his instruction the officers who attended regularly became well instructed in the military tacticks as composed by Hardee, and revised by the War department."

[Silas]

Re: Drill for Shiloh

Good quote. The booklet of drill for the manual of arms conforms to "the military tacticks as composed by Hardee, and revised by the War department." Link to the booklet : http://www.zipcon.net/~silas/Drill/RifleBooklet.htm

[Milliron]

Re: Drill for Shiloh

It occurred to me some time ago that this event will likely be the only instance I can remember where the living historians were better drilled than their actual historical counterparts.