Picture Book of the Continental Soldier

104 Pages·1969·19.892 MB·English

by  C. Keith Wilbur

aSTACKPOLEBOOK
...abehindthedatesandbattles
robustclose-up ofhowine
Colonist-soldierlived, worked,
fought, dressed, played
-capturing an exciting era in vigorous, breathing
detail for the casual browser or the serious
student
-re-creating the intimate day-by-day life and
strife of the American Revolution for a full
understanding of it nearly two centuries later
-summoning that whole period through rugged,
authentic drawings of more than 500 of its
tools, weapons, personal gear to delight the
collector or inquirer about anything Colonial
Transfixed bytheskillful penof illustrator-author C. Keith
Wilbur, the American Revolution comes alive in this pan-
oramic view of the pleasures and privations enjoyed and
endured by its soldiers. A pithy, virile text and three-
dimensional drawings—both in the pen-and-ink fashion
of that day and matching the hardihood of the American
fighting man himself—picture the Continental soldier as
a living man...the clothes he wore, the gear he carried,
his personal effects, theodds he faced, what he made-do
with, the food that sustained him, the weapons he took
up, the medical suppliesthathelped him tosurvive.
Using 85 full-page plates of hand-lettered text and
meticulously detailed drawings, it offers a lode of
information:
• close-ups of the musket, how it works, step by step
• pictures showing how to load it
• ammunition tor firearms and cannon—bar, cannister,
chain, grape, incendiary, and cartridges
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Picture
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Continental
Soldier

Continental
Soldier
by C. Keith Wilbur
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Copyright c 1969 by
THE STACKPOLE COMPANY
Published by STACKPOLE BOOKS
Cameron and Kelker Streets
Harrisburg, Pa. 17105
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All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this
book or portions thereof in any form or by any means, electronic
or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any
information storage and retrieval system, without permission
in writing from the publisher. All inquiries should be
addressed to Stackpole Books, Cameron and Kelker Streets,
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania 17105.
Standard Book Number 8117-1 257-5
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 69-161 51
USA
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Contents
Page
Foreword 7
SOLDIERS IN THE RANKS
Three militiamen in typical dress 8
Raggedlyclad soldiersaround acookfire. with kettleand drinking cups 9
THE HUNTING SHIRT
Asworn by riflemen 10
Pattern 11
UNIFORMS
Threesoldierswearing tricornered hats, uniform coats, breechesand spatterdashers 12
Continental light infantryman of 1780wearing hard leather, bearfurcrested helmet, uniform coat
and overalls 13
Closeupviewsof uniform components, including upperfacing uniform coatbuttons, cuffs, coat
pocket, coattail flaps, breechesbuckle, rearviewof breeches, spatterdashers orgaiters, overall
buttons, blackstock, woolen waistcoatand cockade 14
BUTTONS
Manufactureofbonebuttons 15
Casting of pewterbuttons 16
Continental button designs 17
FOOTWEAR
Shoe, shoe buckledetails, icecreepers and cavalry boot 19
FIREARMS, AMMUNITION AND MILITARY DRILL
Continental muskets: militiaman's fowler, Brown Bessand French 20
Closeupviewofmusketlock, including frizzen, pan, touch hole, cock, flintand cleaning implements 21
Molding bulletsand cartridge-rolling 22
Cartridge box 23
Waistcartridge box and tin cannister 24
How bulletswere used to makefragmentation charges, anesthetic substitutes, weights, lead pencils.
dice, fish line and fish netsinkers, buttons, flintsheaths and children'stoys 25
The exciting taleofthesilverbullet 26
British and French bayonets, with closeupviewsofslotted sockets 27
Baron von Steuben drilling the troops 28
Steps in loading and firing the musket 29
Rifleman with his weapon and his target 30
Pennsylvania or Kentucky rifle with powder horn 31
Steps in loading the rifle 32
Powder horns 33
TOMAHAWKS
Steps in making the tomahawk, belt ax or iron trade ax 34
Types: round or oval eye, spike pole, pipe, and spontoon-shaped 35
Worn in belt loop and in a double frog together with bayonet, and being thrown in contest 36
KNIVES
Sheath or belt knives, including three types of rifle knife, two types of dagger, and three types of
hunting, fighting or scalping knife 37
Steps in making a rifleman's hunting knife 38
Jack knives, pen knife and fork pocket knives 39
CAVALRY
Mounted cavalryman with helmet, uniform, boots, sword, pistol holster and saddle bags 40
Helmets: forage cap. Virginia Light Dragoons, jockey cap with fox tail, bear fur-horse hair-ribbon.
leather cap with brass trim and French brass helmet 41
Equipment: saddle bags, stirrups and caltrops 42
ARTILLERY
Artilleryman in uniform 43
Cannon, together with gunners implements—sponge, wormer, rammer, linstock, slow match.
cannon priming horn and ammunition locker, and ammunition—case or cannister. grape shot.
powder bag, fixed ammunition, cannon balls, chain shot and bar shot 44
Steps in loading and firing the cannon 45
Trajectories of field and garrison cannon, howitzers and mortars 46
Cross section of fuse and bomb 46
FIFE AND DRUMS
Drummer in uniform with his instrument 47
Iron fife 48
MARKS OF RANK
Officer with gorget, epaulette, sash, sword and spontoon 49
Epaulettes 50
SWORDS
Types of sword: hunting sword, small sword and saber 51
Sword carriers: shoulder belt with frog, waist belt with hook or hanger, waist belt with frog and
waist belt with leather straps 51
POLE ARMS
Trench pike, halberd and spontoons 52
SALUTES Page
For soldiers under arms 53
For soldiers not under arms 53
PISTOLS
British cavalry. French cavalry and American 54
PACKS
Knapsack and haversack 55
CANTEENS
Tin; wooden with interlocking wooden straps, wooden with iron straps and wire belt holders, and
wooden with bent wood strip 56
Lathe-turned hard wood water bottles, earthen monkey jug, and canteen with wooden staves.
wrought iron straps and iron handle 57
FIRE-STARTING AND LIGHTING IMPLEMENTS
Tinder, charred cloth, flint, and jack knife and wrought steel striker for striking flint 58
Lighting fire from a flash in the pan 58
Tinderboxes 58
Candlewood and candle holders 59
Paul Reveres lantern 59
COOKING AND EATING UTENSILS
Improvised cooking arrangements on the march 60
Iron camp stove, brass tent cooking pot and copper camp kettle 61
Pot hook, pick-up tongs and broiler improvised from iron barrel hoops 62
Soldier's knife, spoon and fork; trencher, and officer's fork and knife 62
LIQUOR CONTAINERS
Bottles and officers carrying case 63
LOG SHELTERS
Battalion log house city 64
Notching, hauling and pegging logs 65
Splitting shingles, shingling roof and chocking between logs 66
Officers and soldiers huts 67
TENTS
Common tent, sutlers tent, common wall tent, officers wall tent and markee for colonels 68
CAMP SLAUGHTER HOUSE BY-PRODUCTS
Soap-making operations 69
Cannister sack and drumhead made from hides 69
Oxen powder horn 69
FORTIFICATIONS
Bill hook for cutting brush 70
Fascines and gabions 70
Completed breastwork 71
WAGONS
Conestoga wagon with hanging grease or tar bucket 72
Wooden horse-drawn ammunition wagon 72
MEDICINE, SURGERY AND HYGIENE
Doctor treating soldier 73
Plan and drawing of camp hospital 74
Body louse (enlarged) 75
Bloodletting with fleam and basin 76
Vaccinating for smallpox, with closeup view of folding lancet used in vaccination 77
Medical instruments: blistering iron, scales for weighing medicines, ivory medicine dropper.
leather medicine wallet and surgical scissors 78
Surgical instruments: cylindrical saw used in trephining and cupped forceps for extracting musket
balls 79
PERSONAL GROOMING
Shaving razor 80
Hairdos: short and tied, long and plaited, short with side locks 81
Scissors, clay hair curler and soldiers comb 81
RELIGION IN CAMP
Camp preacher 82
SPARE TIME ACTIVITIES AND THEIR GEAR
Reading spectacles with case 83
Wax for sealing letters 83
Pipes and pipe tobacco 84
Scissors, needle and thimble 84
Whittling: cup whittled from ox horn; pocket bullet carrier, officers likeness and
powder measure whittled from wood 85
Carving camp wooden ware: rifleman s noggin and drinking mug 86
Multipurpose screwdrivers 87
Children's playthings made from lead and bullets: marbles, thimble, cast goose, broom, fish
hooks, coffee pot. doll s plates, doll s cup and saucer, and buzzer 88
Child's rag doll 88
HOLIDAY CELEBRATIONS
The Fourth of July 89
New Year's Day. St Patrick's Day, May Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas and battle celebrations 90
AWARDS OF HONOR
Service stripes, the purple heart and the medal of the Society of the Cincinnati 91
Where to Find Examples of Relics Illustrated in This Book 92
References 93
Index 94