Vol 4.No 04 - Captain Bob Lee Camp #2198

Lee's Dispatch
Captain Bob Lee SCV Camp 2198
Volume 3, Issue 4
www.captboblee.org
February 15, 2015
Commander’s Report
By Doug Garnett
As our weather improves the camps throughout Texas will be
moving back outside for activities. Grave honors and clean
up. This is the time when the guardians can start getting
ahead of the duties they have registered for.
Spring is also a time for planning. We must look ahead to
this summer’s reunion in Temple. Before us is the task of
electing Division officers and Brigade officers. These
officers will be the leadership and the directional guide for
the Texas Division of the SCV for the next two years.
The decision on who we vote for is very important and so we
urge everyone to sit back and think about where you want
your Sons of Confederate Veterans Texas Division to be. As
you review the directions of the SCV, bear in mind the
charge given us by Lt. General Stephen Dill Lee, in 1906.
February 28th Cross of Honor Service Greenville, TX.
10:30 A.M. Please contact doug@dagarnett.com or
CharleySmithTX@gmail.com for directions and a map.
March 1st 4th Brigade meeting Frontier Village Denison,
TX 1 P.M. Everyone invited to attend.
March 28th Camp Ford Tyler, TX Living History 9 A.M.
till 4 P.M.
April 11th Medal of Honor Parade, Gainesville, TX 10
A.M.
END
"To you, Sons of Confederate Veterans, we will commit the
vindication of the cause for which we fought. To your
strength will be given the defense of the Confederate
soldier's good name, the guardianship of his history, the
emulation of his virtues, the perpetuation of those
principles which he loved and which you love also, and
those ideals which made him glorious and which you also
cherish."
Ask yourself am I vindicating the cause for which my
ancestor fought? Each person must decide for himself just
what the charge means to him.
Once you have decided voice your feelings to your camp
discuss the issues with your camp membership then guide the
members of your camp who will attend the reunion on how
your camp wants them to vote.
Lee’s Dispatch is the official newsletter for the Sons of Confederate
Veterans Captain Bob Lee Camp 2198 and is intended for the sole
purpose of keeping the camp members and friends of the camp
informed to the activities and news of Camp 2198. Statements in
this newsletter are those of the author and may not reflect the
opinions of the Captain Bob Lee Camp, editor or of the National
Sons of Confederate Veterans. Within articles or quotes written by
outside authors mistakes in spelling, grammar or sentence structure
are strictly those of the author and may be left as is.
.
Army Rank Insignia Used in the War
A Review in two parts
In the 1850s, American military leadership began to place
an increased emphasis on French army tactics and styles,
influenced, in part, by the rise of Napoleon III. The most
extreme examples showing the adoption of French military
fashion was in the use of Zouave uniforms by some U.S.
Army infantry regiments, and the purchase of 10,000
chasseurs à pied uniforms to outfit the Excelsior Brigade.
However, more subtle styling - including frock coats, kepi
hats, and collar ornaments - also made their way into U.S.
Army uniform design preferences.
Zouaves in uniform
Continued on page 2A
Lee's Dispatch 1
soldier in a chasseur uniform
Continued from page 1B
When the Southern states seceded and formed the
Confederacy they found themselves without an army. The
new government drew upon the different militias throughout
the south. These militias had drawn heavily on the surplus
arms and uniforms of the US Army after the Mexican –
American war. Some of these militias designed their own
uniforms many of which were based on the Austrian army.
The shoulder board field color designated what branch of
the army the wearer belonged to.
Dark blue: general officers
Dark blue: general staff
We start with what the US Army used just before the War
for Southern Independence to indicate their ranks and
insignia.
U. S. Army Officers Rank Insignia
Second Lieutenant: a plain shoulder
board without any emblem inside.
First Lieutenant: a shoulder board
with a single bar emblem inside.
Captain: a shoulder board with two
bars emblems inside.
Major: used a gold Oak Leaf
emblem
Sky blue: infantry
Yellow: cavalry
Orange: dragoons
Scarlet: artillery
Dark green: sharpshooters
White: judge advocate
Emerald green: medical corps
Crimson: ordnance
Olive green: pay corps
Buff: aides-de-camp
Buff with white trim: adjutants
Buff with black trim: engineers
Buff with scarlet trim: inspector
Buff with sky blue trim: quartermaster
Confederate Officers Rank Insignia
The states based their militia uniforms on some form of the
US Military. When the Confederate Army first gathered, it
was a mixture of colors, and patterns.
Lt. Colonel: used a silver Oak Leaf
emblem
Colonel: used an Eagle emblem in
sliver
Brigadier General: a single silver
star
As the Confederates took over the
Union military warehouses, such as
the stores surrendered by General
David Twiggs in San Antonio,
Texas, many soldiers were outfitted
identical to the army of the Union.
Lieutenant General two silver stars
Major General: three silver stars
Continued on page 3A
Lee's Dispatch 2
Continued from page 2B
After the first few months and engagements such as
Manassas, the Confederate government moved to create
“uniform” regulation. They began to develop their, uniform
regulations, as with many other aspects of their government
they drew upon what they knew; the Union regulations.
There were changes to these regulations such as the basic
color of the fabric to be used of course Grey instead of blue
and the rank insignia of their officers were also changed.
General
Second Lieutenant
First Lieutenant
Captain
Major
Note the insignia on General Thomas J. Jackson’s collar
Where the Union used their shoulder boards or epaulettes as
their primary form of rank insignia the Confederates used
the collar tabs and sleeve braid.
Lieutenant Colonel
Colonel
As with the Union shoulder boards the color of the cuff, the
collar tabs, facing and piping (trim) of the Confederate
officer uniforms designated the branch or function of the
officer. The colors of these branches or functions were the
same as used by the Union army.
Note: the rank shown on Robert E. Lee’s collar.
General Lee never wore the rank of General. He preferred
to retain the insignia of the highest rank he held while still in
the Union army before the war.
Continued on page 4A
Lee's Dispatch 3
Continued from page 3B
As a general rule the Confederate Kepis used gold braid and
the Union kepis used black. Prewar kepis had used gold and
many Union officers continued to use prewar kepis.
These views of Confederate Officer Kepis show how prewar colors of the dark blue and gold braid continued into
service while the grey and gold began showing up soon after
the new Confederate regulations were adopted.
The Union also used braid on their kepis to designate rank
but the Union went to using black braid.
Shown above are two examples of Union officer kepis. The
green on the left would have been a Berdan Sharpshooter.
The photo above shows how “piping” was used as both a
trim and accent to the uniform as well as an indicator of
function or branch of the service.
Another sign of both rank and function was the officer’s
sash worn under their sword belt
A chart comparing the two armies in uniforms
Green would have been
medical, Orange Dragoon
while the buff color would
have been a staff officer and
yellow cavalry. Right is how
the buff sash would have been
worn before the sword belt
would be placed over it.
Other devices were also used to designate the rank of an
officer such as the braid on top of the kepis and badges sewn
to the front of the kepi
Next month Buttons, kepi and hat emblems and enlisted men
Lee's Dispatch 4
End part one
Cavalry and Dragoon Sabers by the N. P. Ames Co.
By James Neel
The newer version came with a narrower and therefore
lighter, overall blade with a rounded rather than a flat back.
Improvements in metallurgy allowed for a slightly thinner
rolled steel scabbard without sacrificing strength; it too is
noticeably lighter. The wooden grip, an evenly tapering cone
on the 1840, was made larger and swells in the middle; both
styles were wrapped with thin leather and two twisted
strands of brass wire.
The following is a description of some of the differences in
these two principal weapons of U. S. (and most Confederate
as well) mounted troopers.
The Massachusetts firm of Nathan P. Ames was one of the
earliest U. S. Government contractors, beginning in 1832
with a contract to provide artillery short swords based, as
most U. S. swords were, on a French pattern. At that time, it
appears that Ames was capable of producing the steel
blades, but not the brass hilts and mountings on the leather
scabbards; these were subcontracted to another firm. The
artillery swords proved satisfactory, and Ames next received
the 1833 contract for sabers with which to arm the U. S.
Army's two brand new regiments of Dragoons. These were
based on an English style, however, and Ames adaptation
was basically unsatisfactory, resulting in a clumsy and
poorly-balanced blade and relatively fragile brass
knucklebow that was too easily bent or broken in service;
the thin rolled iron scabbards were also easily dented, bent,
cracked, and broken.
In 1840, it was decided to replace the original Dragoon
sabers with a more robust design, once again borrowed from
the French in their popular Modele 1822, which was also
copied by many other countries as well. In the photo above,
the U. S. M.1840 is at the left, with its eventual replacement
at right. The 1840 was disliked by troopers who wielded it
because of its weight, being dubbed by them the old wristbreaker.
Markings on the M.1840 are above and below; when Ames
went into business, he located his factory near Springfield,
Mass., home of the U. S. Arsenal, with which he had no
connection. The address appearing on his original artillery
and dragoon swords was Springfield, but by the time of the
Mexican War and production of this piece, he decided to use
the actual name where he was located. Also by this time,
Ames had expanded his operation to include a brass foundry,
and by the Mexican War had also contracted to cast "brass"
(actually bronze) cannon for the government, meaning these
swords were entirely the products of his business. In the
photo above, WD are the initials of the U. S. Government
inspector assigned to the factory to test each blade as it came
from the assembly line; only if it passed was it moved next
to be hilted. The letters US were applied only once the saber
was finished. Note especially that each line on this and the
other side is stamped separately - on most modern fakes,
they are all applied at the same time using a single, larger
stamp.
Continued on page 6A
Lee's Dispatch 5
Continued from page 5B
By the time the war began, the term dragoons for mounted
men was on the way out; the three new mounted regiments
were called either mounted rifles or cavalry, and in 1861, all
five U. S. Regular regiments were designated cavalry, so the
new sabers were likewise now cavalry sabers.
Other parts of U. S. regulation swords usually bear
inspectors' acceptance stamps as well; in this case the top of
the pommel cap has two sets of initials, W.D. and J.W.R.
Each component was inspected and passed individually just
as the blades were prior to assembly of the whole.
Next month a comparison of Confederate Dragoon saber to the Union
version.
End
This photo, from the Mexican-American war, is of one of
the Confederacy’s most cherished heroes. Years, after this
photo was taken, as a Colonel this man would earn his
famous nickname.
The later replacement is variously known to collectors as the
M.1860 or an even earlier date as some were made in the
late 1850's as test samples and have been found dated 1858
and 1859. The one above was obviously made in 1863, and
inspected by DR. By the time of the Civil War, the address
had changed to Chicopee, Mass., though the factory
remained in the same location as always! Often this address
will be seen on a "scroll" instead of these block letters. By
this time, Ames was dead, but the AMES MFg Co. remained
the primary source of U. S. edged weapons throughout the
Civil War, though there were many other firms producing
the "new" model saber due to the huge demand occasioned
by the war; of course, it was mainly these two designs that
were also copied by Confederate sword cutlers.
In this photo, as a young Lieutenant, his steely eyes shine
through. This photo is identified as Lt. Thomas J. Jackson.
We know him and remember him as “Stonewall” Jackson.
“STONEWALL”
General Thomas Jonathan Jackson born January 21, 1824,
died May 10, 1863 (aged 39).
Lee's Dispatch 6