Old tricks for new dogs

[Hoosier49er]

I've started on a project that is turning out to be greater than anticipated. I'm puting together a book of field improvisations made/done by soldiers of our era. A couple of examples include: poking a hole in the ground with a sharpened stick, then pouring molten musket or minnie balls in the hole to make a pencil. Or using the J-hooks from a knap-sack to fasten a gum blanket at the neck for a poncho. :D Those guys were pretty sharp when it came to improvisation. Any other cool tricks you guys know of that were done back then, and really not represented by reenactors?

[HighPrvt]

Is your book going to be large print?

[Kevin O'Beirne]

The AC Forum had a long, long, long thread about this topic not that many months ago. (sigh) Reinventing the wheel again, and again, and again... it's the story of reenacting.

[bob 125th nysvi]

I look at both boards but I know there are reenactors who don't because of the us vs them thing.

There are mainstreamers who feel presecuted over on the AC and there are C/P/Hs who dismiss this board as a cartoon.

I know you're more open minded than that but many aren't.

So that is why we'll always see the same topics appearing on both boards.

And completely aside, everyone should get a copy of CRRC2 got mine last week and even if you don't use everything in it it is a great read. Especially for Eastern Feds. It is finely written and Kevin is one of the article authors.

[Charles Reynolds]

There are people here who are new to reenacting and would like to see these things. So you old timers need to be patient, and stop rolling your eyes back in your heads you were new once also.

[cblodg]

There are people here who are new to reenacting and would like to see these things. So you old timers need to be patient, and stop rolling your eyes back in your heads you were new once also.

actually, alot of us were assembled at the School of the Soldiers/NCO School from spare parts and dead privates ;). Not me though.

Chris

[TimKindred]

I've started on a project that is turning out to be greater than anticipated. I'm puting together a book of field improvisations made/done by soldiers of our era. A couple of examples include: poking a hole in the ground with a sharpened stick, then pouring molten musket or minnie balls in the hole to make a pencil. Or using the J-hooks from a knap-sack to fasten a gum blanket at the neck for a poncho. :D Those guys were pretty sharp when it came to improvisation. Any other cool tricks you guys know of that were done back then, and really not represented by reenactors?

Comrade,

Well, I'd start the list off by talking about fire building 101. Pretty much the only time you saw split fire wood was in winter quarters. You especially wouldn't see chain saw marks on them, and they were especially not kindled in the middle of the company street.

Soldiers made twig fires while on the march, just large enough to brew coffee, and used rails, when available, to make larger fires at night for cooking and warmth. However, the key with the rails was that they didn't CUT the rail, just got one end going from a smaller fire and then fed the rail in as it was consumed.

One book that talks alot about fieldcraft is "Soldiering" by Rice C. Bull. Rice was in the 123rd NY, and that regt served in the east through Gburg, then went west and served through all of the AotT campaigns and the Grand Review.

Right off the top: Soldiers slept 3 men to a dog tent. They made stakes from saplings and used the guy ropes supplied with the tent cloths. 2 halfs were buttoned together, and the third draped over the back guy rope . One rubber and one wool blanket went on the ground, the knapsacks went in the end for pillows, the soldiers got in and spread the other two wool and rubber blankets over themselves.

Also notes that these 3-somes messed together, with one man carrying a small coffee pot or boiler, one carrying a spider, and the other a hatchet. When they halted for the night, the fellow with the hatchet went for wood, the comrade with the pot took the canteens and went for water, and the third started preparing the rations and then cooked them. They's trade off duties from time to time to split the load.

Cool stuff like that all through the book.

Respects,

[7thMDYankee]

Tim and all,

I second Tim's comments - that book did more for my impression than any other single volume. I'd only like to add: Rice Bull also spoke extensively about his thoughts during those days, and that reveals much to the inquisitive and critical thinking eye. Understanding that perspective sheds new light on the why, how, and what they improvised. In other words, knowing simply that a certain item(s) was improvised only tells half the story. The rationale behind that decision is where the interesting part of history can really be found.

[Kevin O'Beirne]

There are people here who are new to reenacting and would like to see these things. So you old timers need to be patient, and stop rolling your eyes back in your heads you were new once also.

Yes, us "old timers" were once newbies, and back in the early 1990s when I got into reenacting I didn't ask elemental questions because the "old timers" back then jumped on my case about it.

The difference today is that, nowadays, it's very, very easy to find basic info for reenactors right on the Internet. In 1993 it wasn't.

Tne the quote above seems to imply that "old timers" don't have a right to want to further improve, learn, and progress. For that to happen, we need some discussions at a higher level. Admittedly that's what the AC Forum was for in the past, but it probably bears some repeating here too: There's nothing wong with "old timers" wanting to discuss something beyond the discussions they've seen over and over again, particularly when the basic info is extremely easy to find on the Internet, should folks wish to use Google.com and search engines on this and other forums.

I know very few experienced "campaigners" who feel they've "arrived"--at least not any that I respect. The day reenacting ceases to have something to teach me is the day I find a new hobby.

[bob 125th nysvi]

There are people here who are new to reenacting and would like to see these things. So you old timers need to be patient, and stop rolling your eyes back in your heads you were new once also.

of that reflects changes in the way people communicate nowadays.

Heck when I was in HS a computer took punch cards. Today's desktop has more computing power than most mainframes had back then.

Cell phones were represented by Star Trek com badges and **** Tracy's wrist watch. Now everybody has them and they don't talk they IM each other, even across the room.

Kids went out and organized their own baseball games, now you have to belong to league to get anytime on the local park's diamond.

And mom threw you out of the house and you didn't get TV time until your homework was done. Now kids have a computer in their bedroom and they are communicating with people half way across the world.

But as well as information there is a massive amount of MIS-information on the internet and I think it takes some experience to sort out which is which.

I think it is a good thing that we have sites that are recognized as an authority on a subject and newbies can come here to pose questions.

One suggestion however is that anybody who is interested in becoming a reenactor should FIRST join a local unit so you can ask questions of the guys who will be your pards and learn hands on. Then come out to these boards and ask questions.