knapsack contents

[7thNJcoA]

I have done alot of research on what the real soldier would have packed in his knapsack and was wondering what my fellow reenactors put in thiers? any info would help. also I do not use those wooden frames has anyone seen an actual pack with this in it???

[Kevin O'Beirne]

Sorry to seem snippy, but this has to be the most-asked question in reenacting after "who makes the best _____". Use the handy and useful SEARCH feature on this forum and on the AC Forum and you'll find scads of posts that will answer your question. Also, over in the AC Forum's "Camp of Instruction/Research Articles" folder I have an article on this very topic, titled, "Knapsack and Haversack Packing 101" (an earlier genreation fo which was published in the CRRC 1st Ed. and, in 1999, in "The Watchdog").

[tompritchett]

I would agree with Kevin on this. Just in the past few months there was a thread on just this very issue. I would suggest that you use the Advanced Search function, enter Knapsack as the Keyword selecting in Title rather than in Text, and then limit your search to the Military Clothing & Equipment conference. You should find much of what you are looking for in the listed threads.

[tenfed1861]

"Hardtack and Coffee" is really good to read when it comes to stuff like that.

[7thNJcoA]

I havent got around to reading that one yet it is hard to read the Civil war books I love so much when I have boring school books to read for Class! I keep hearing its a great book Ill have to read it after my summer class is over!

[reb64]

I have done alot of research on what the real soldier would have packed in his knapsack and was wondering what my fellow reenactors put in thiers? any info would help. also I do not use those wooden frames has anyone seen an actual pack with this in it???

See what you get someimes for asking a harmless question. takes more words to say find it yourself than just give a answer. as for items that reenactors put in, I put in extra socks, drawers, shirt, candles, maybe housewife items and smoking items, hatchet tied to outside, sometimes tent pins and rubber blanket. sometimes a shelter half if light marching. a lightwieght wooden frame seems to help squeeze more room out and i use one.

[Poor Private]

I agree, is it just me or are more and more posters becomming more rude? I wondered why there are not more people joining these forums, could this possibly be the answer? If you don't have anything constructive to say then just ignore the thread. I have been staying away lately because of this reason. How many others have been?

[3rd Alabama]

I agree, is it just me or are more and more posters becomming more rude? I wondered why there are not more people joining these forums, could this possibly be the answer? If you don't have anything constructive to say then just ignore the thread. I have been staying away lately because of this reason. How many others have been?

It's a basic question that doing a simple search on this forum or the AC would have yielded many threads as Kevin said. How many times must they be answered before it's enough. I was taught to do my own reasearch not have it spoon fed to me. If you actully take the time to look and still can't find your answer than by all means ask. I do not think this is being rude, not tollerant of laziness maybe.
As far as the wooden frames in original packs- yes I have seen them, quite a few and I own an original with one in it. I prefer having one in my pack

[cblodg]

I have done alot of research on what the real soldier would have packed in his knapsack and was wondering what my fellow reenactors put in thiers? any info would help. also I do not use those wooden frames has anyone seen an actual pack with this in it???

For me the following:

Extra shirt
Extra pair of socks
Hatchet
small roll of TP
Scarf
sleeping cap
tin folding lantern and candles
tin cup
extra rations
small first aid kit

And that is it. Every now and again I'll put my vest in if I choose not to wear it during a march. I know some guys who can pack almost an entire shopping center in their knapsacks.

You'll quickly learn from experince that which you will and will not need. Every indevidual is different. I learned from going on my first campaigner event, and when I got home I went through everything that was in my pack, and took out those items I didn't use at all (ala what they did).

My .02 though.

Chris

[bill watson]

"It's a basic question that doing a simple search on this forum or the AC would have yielded many threads as Kevin said. How many times must they be answered before it's enough."

John,

I'm not unloading on you, but your comment sums up very nicely one point of view on the asking and answering of basic questions. And I think it's a good point from which to expound or bloviate, depending on everyone's opinion of what I say next. :-)

A question only gets answered one time for each person who asks it, of course. It's answered more times by the person giving the answers.

That kind of gets down to what's going on here, or what has the potential to be going on here, besides just using this or any forum as a purely informational resource.

If you are new to this and just want the information, you probably do the search, because everyone can see the letters up top that say "search".

But if you're looking for some mentoring, some human contact, some back and forth, you probably ask the question.

Wanting to talk about the stuff you're interested in doing, the details of your hobby, isn't necessarily a sign of laziness or inefficiency. Sometimes people just want to talk.

So we have complete cross purposes: We've got people who come here looking for friendly mentoring, and we have people who tell them how to use the computer search function. That's because some of us think more of efficiency than friendliness? I doubt it, but that's how it's potentially perceived by the person more interested in friendliness than efficiency.

So we can turn it around: Why is it all about us, the people who answer the questions, rather than the asker of the question?

If we're not careful, what we're telling folks, especially young guys, is "you're in the wrong room." This adds to our ranks how?

What do we tell people who come to a living history and ask us questions about the war? "You can Google that, and I hear Wikipedia has some new information?" Nope, because they're there to hear from people who are making the history come alive and who presumably have some insight into what actually works best when you have to pack a knapsack for real, effective, practical use in the field. We are presumed to have a special vantage point that makes our contributions to a conversation on this set of subjects somewhat more valuable than reading it in a book. I mean, some of us answered the question about what's in a knapsack maybe 20 times this past weekend at a living history.

That's still us in here, right? Questions just coming online rather than in person?

There's even other ways to answer, which I have seen done a few times. It's more like "You can search for that, and if you don't find what you need or still have questions, we'll be here."

And the other nice thing is that for every person who is momentarily or permanently tired of answering questions, there are others who are not and will pitch in.

Yeah, too much time on my hands tonight. But it won't last. :-)

[toptimlrd]

Give a man a fish and he will eat today, teach a man to fish and he will eat always.

You learn nothing by being given everything, you learn by doing. When my son has a difficult problem in school, I don't give him the answer, I lead him to where he can find the answer. We are not trying to be rude but trying to lead. This is akin to the "Who makes the best ............" to which there is no one answer. There is absolutely nothing wrong with guiding someone to the search function and maybe even leading him to a thread such as Tom did and Kevin led him to one of the best researched articles on knapsack packing I have ever seen (and it is a quick read). Personally I don't care if we do something because so and so sai it was right because he heard from so and so before, what I care about is what does the historic record tell us.

For one thing, are we trying to replicate history or do what the guy next to us is doing? There is a wealth of information and an ounce of information is worth about 20 tons of opinions. It should not matter what so and so carries in his knapsack, what does matter is what is historically correct for the portrayal, what are your personal needs (for example I don't carry a shelter half because I don't need the extra weight and I can use my groundcloth and one from a mess mate to build a decent enough shelter), I do however carry a small Bible and a couple of other "personal" type items that are period correct and actually useful to me on the field. Research leads to answers, opinions lead to dead animal parts on shapeless hats. If being historically correct is not our purpose then what is the difference between what we do and playing cowboys and indians?

Bill, you know me well enough that I agree wholeheartedly with your mentoring comment but I think a couple took the posts that not only told him there was stuff available but directed him directly to it (Tom and Kevin) as being rude which I thought were rather well done. I have seen much worse blow offs than this one.

Now to the question at hand, there is no one answer for you and I wouldn't rely on what someone else carries. I saw on the lists provided some items that made my jaw drop as being uneccesary for every man to carry. You will want to carry the minimum you need while maintaining some level of personal comfort. I concuur with the extra shirt, socks, a blanket, and groundcloth, but beond that it really depends on the person and the impression and the weather (trust me the last thing you want is to have that 5 pounds of greatcoat strapped to the top in July but in January you'll be awful glad it's there at night). Many do with even less and only carry a blanket roll and some have even done with less than that as those who went to last year's Rich Mountain event can attest.

[TimKindred]

Comrade,

It all depends on the scenario, and whether I will, in fact, carry a pack. Sometimes I prefer a blanket roll. Time of year, historical background of the unit/campaign/scenario, etc.

However, IF I am taking the pack, it goes like this.

Blanket. Spare Shirt. 3 Pair Socks. Sleeping Cap. Plate & Flatware. Personal Meds. Housewife. Extra rations. Length of Twine. Spare Shoelaces.

And that's pretty much it. I put the painted ground cloth between the two halfs of the knapsack, so I can pull it out if needs be. Notebook & Pencil & matchsafe go in the coat or shirt pocket(s). Rations, cup, candle & tissue goes into the haversack.

If I am tasked to carry the sheet-iron skillet, it goes onto the outside of the knapsack. Any cooking tools, tent pegs, etc, I make when I reach camp with the jack knife in my pocket.

Respects,

[tompritchett]

See what you get someimes for asking a harmless question.

Actually, the answer I gave was quite a detailed set of instructions for doing a search on this forum that would have highlighted three separate threads that dealt specifically with his question (I know because I followed the exact same procedures to doublecheck that the threads were indeed there). I could have also just given him the links themselves but I believe in the philosphy that if you give a man a fish he will be hungry tomorrow but, if you teach him to fish, he will be able to feed himself from then on. And BTW, it would do no good to tell him what my practices are because I use a blanket roll instead of a knapsack.

[Jas. Cox]

1. I've read enough of these threads to know that if I ever have a question I do a search first. But I learned to do that. It's not something everyone new might know to do at first.

2. Even if I have a new question, I often get "you don't want to do that and here is a paragraph explaining 'you don't want to do that' instead of answering your question." And yes, I want to do that.

3. If it's been asked a zillion times before, how about just writing, "here's a link(s) to that question from before." No need to say anything else. Or as someone else wrote, just ignore the question. :idea:

4. Sometimes, the answer changes. Sometimes there is new perspective. A previously asked question buried deep in a category might need new light.

Just my opinion.

[WestTN_reb]

I've been doing this for going on 7 years now, and I have never owned a knapsack. I would recommend that you pack a light bedroll and go on. For the bedroll, put an extra shirt and socks, maybe a candle on your blanket. Roll it lengthwise and give it a good tight twist (keeps stuff from falling out), tie the end together, and you're done. As for the smoking stuff and hygeine products, that's what your pockets are for. The important thing to remember is, "less is more." This is something I feel is under-represented throughout the hobby as a whole. The original boys took pride in how light they could march, yet many reenactors still insist on packing far too much crap.

This has worked for me through many campaigns, and is my $.02 worth.

[TimKindred]

John,

The only thing I disagree with you on is the use of the pockets. We aren't marching 10 or more miles a day in heat and humidity. Those small items in the pockets eventually begin to wear and cause sores and ulcers, and will bedevil you to no end, especially when the sweat rolls onto them.

There's nothing at all wrong with a knapsack. Good heavens, even the confederates made good use of them. Seriously. It all depends upon how it's packed and how it's worn.

I often use a bedroll, but to be honest, if I had to go back into the field for a living, there's no way I'd leave the knapsack behind unless it was too damaged to repair. :D

Respects,

[flattop32355]

As you can see, the answers are all over the board, from folk carrying things that others wouldn't to those that prefer a blanket roll.

The trick is finding out, through experience, what works for you.

Here's what works for me:
Flap side: Blanket. I have to fold it into thirds to make it fit, and have no room left to place anything else except a thinner, more correct shelter half.

Envelope side: Spare pair of socks, usually stuffed with any extra arsenal packs I'll need for the event. Meds. Match safe, candle, piece of paper and short pencil, length of twine and/or thin rope, small tin of talcum powder to prevent abrasion at marching events. Sometimes a spare shirt, tent pegs.

Between: Gum blanket and sometimes a skillet.

On top: Shelter half, sometimes rolled in a second gum blanket. Sometimes, just the second gum blanket.

Since we only do weekends, one can actually take less than "they" did, to save weight. They carried their world in their knapsacks or blanket rolls. We just have to get through the weekend.

[Pvt Schnapps]

I think it was William Ray who said, "tis amazing what a soldier will carry", and those who have already answered have given you some idea of the variety of items that can encompass, from Bibles to matchsafes to, in my case, writing kits and carte-de-visites of my wife and three pugs.

But here, for what it's worth, is the Army of the Potomac's answer, from experiments carried out in early 1863 (you can find the full correspondence in Series I, volume 25, part II, pp. 486-489 of the Official Records -- "War of the Rebellion" -- at: http://cdl.library.cornell.edu/moa/moa_browse.html)


SPECIAL ORDERS, HEAD QUARTERS ARMY OF THE POTOMAC,
No. 65. Camp near Falmouth, Va., March 7, 1863.
* * * * * * *
II. A board, to consist of the following-named officers, is hereby appointed to meet at the headquarters of Brigadier-General Pratt, at 10 a. m. on Monday the 9th day of March, 1863, or as soon thereafter as practicable, for the purpose of taking into consideration the practicability and means of carrying an increased amount of rations by the troops over the three days’ usually carried.
The board will consider and experiment upon the best method, and report in detail their proceedings and views. They will have in view the marching of troops without incumbrance of extra clothing or shelter-tents, the use of desiccated vegetables or flour, and the carrying of fresh beef on the hoot; and the omission, in consequence, of beef or pork from the ration.
Detail for the board.—Brig. Gen. C. E. Pratt, volunteer service; Col. T. S. Allen, Fifth Wisconsin Volunteers; Capt. O. O. Potter, Thirty-first New York Volunteers; Capt. Horace Walker, Fifth Wisconsin Volunteers; First Lieut. Joseph G. Roberts, Sixth Maine Volunteers.
By command of Major-General Hooker:
S. WILLIAMS,
Assistant Adjutant- General.


In pursuance of Special Orders, No. 65, from headquarters Army of
the Potomac, the board therein detailed assembled, and proceeded to make the experiment required, and arrived at the conclusion hereinafter stated.
In order to ascertain the amount of weight usually carried by soldiers
in this army, average knapsacks were weighed, with the contents therein and blanket rolled on top, and the mean weight was found to be 15 pounds.
We then took out the contents of the knapsack, and packed inside ten days’ rations of hard bread, to wit:
Pounds.
100 biscuits and ten days’ sugar and coffee, and it then weighed, with blanket. 17
Without blanket 11¾
With a change of clothing—shirt, drawers, and socks. 18½
With coffee, sugar, and desiccated vegetables 20½
Three days’ rations of biscuit, bacon, and small-stores were put into a haversack, and it weighed – 5¾
The average weight of blanket 5¼
The average weight of overcoat 5¼
The average weight of half shelter-tent 1¾
The average weight of change of clothing 2

It was found that knapsacks would easily contain one hundred crackers, and that it was better to place at least as much as one shirt in the part of the knapsack next to the soldier’s back, in order that the biscuit might not chafe the skin, and that so long as a knapsack is carried neither the weight of the extra clothing nor the space occupied by it
was sufficient to justify dispensing with the same; in fact, it can be carried better than not.
It is also to be observed that ten biscuits, although called a day’s ration, are not sufficient upon the march, when no other articles, such as beans, rice, and desiccated vegetables, are issued.
The board further placed five days’ rations of bacon in a haversack, with ten days’ coffee and sugar, and that amount was tried upon a soldier and worn without difficulty. But it should be here stated that the haversack is found, when loaded to its capacity, to fatigue the men in moderate or cold weather more than a knapsack with 15 pounds inside.
The board, after numerous experiments, and from their previous experience with troops in the field, agreed upon the following conclusions:
At a maximum, the men, by dispensing with extra clothing, except one extra shirt, drawers, and socks, can carry in their knapsacks one hundred biscuits and eight days’ small-stores, and, in the haversacks, two days’ cooked rations, which, with eight days’ fresh beef upon the hoof will make ten days’ full rations. Two days’ only are put in the haversack, for the reason that the weight is more easily carried upon the back.
The board also thought that if two pack-mules with pack-saddles were furnished to each regiment, a sufficient number of camp-kettles might be carried, with rations of rice, beans, and desiccated vegetables sufficient to cook the fresh beef properly, and furnish the necessary quantity of soup upon all occasions, and make the one hundred biscuits last ten days instead of eight, as before stated.
The question creating most embarrassment in the minds of the board was how to provide for line officers who have no knapsacks, but it is considered that all difficulties can be obviated upon ordinary marches if each line officer is required to employ the servant for which he is paid. The officer himself can carry his blanket and two days’ rations, and the servant the balance; it being understood that his necessary baggage and mess-chest should be carried in a reserve column of transportation.
The foregoing is stated to show what can be carried under the most favorable circumstances, but considering the marching rate, the state of the roads, and the fact that three days’ rations has heretofore been the maximum amount, the board recommend as follows:
1. That all extra clothing, except a change of underclothing, be stored.
2. That five days’ rations of bread and small-stores be placed in the knapsack.
3. Three days’ cooked rations in the haversack, and five days’ fresh beef upon the hoof
4. Two mules per regiment to carry camp-kettles, rice, beans, &c.

Each soldier will carry — Pounds.
Haversack.....................5¾
Knapsack.......................6
Blanket.........................5¼
Clothing........................2
Total...........................19

Making 13¼ pounds in the knapsacks, being 24 pounds less than the weight usually carried by soldiers in this army in their knapsacks.

RECAPITULATION.................................... ....Days.
Maximum, with 2 mules’ transportation.............12
Maximum without transportation.....................10
Mean.............................................. ...........8

All of which is respectfully submitted.
C. E. PRATT,
Brigadier- General, U. S. Volunteers.
T. S. ALLEN,
Colonel Fifth Wisconsin.
O. O. POTTER,
Captain Thirty-first New York.
HORACE WALKER,
Captain Fifth Wisconsin.
J. G. ROBERTS
First Lieutenant Sixth Maine, Recorder of Board.

[Micah Trent]

This site might help you out:

http://www.sykesregulars.org/

Once there, click on School of Instruction. There is a lot of helpful tips, especially for someone just starting out, including tips for knapsack stuffers and how to pack a knapsack.

You can also access it through www.usregulars.com

Good luck!

[Kevin O'Beirne]

See what you get someimes for asking a harmless question. takes more words to say find it yourself than just give a answer.

Someone's always an apologist when someone else asks the most basic of questions and is told to TRY for a minute before asking the question.

No, it does not take more time to say "find it yourself with a simple net-search" than it does to truly answer the question. My own essay on the topic is just a very basic intro to this, and is a few thousand words long and includes numerous illustrations. The article includes suggestions for what to carry, and then compares the "reenactor's load" and its weight versus documentation on what soldiers really carried on campaign and its corresponding weight.

Sometimes the answers aren't quite as simple as some folks would prefer them to be.

[Kevin O'Beirne]

What do we tell people who come to a living history and ask us questions about the war? "You can Google that, and I hear Wikipedia has some new information?" Nope, because they're there to hear from people who are making the history come alive

Bill,

I don't buy that at all. When folks are visiting and reading reenactor forums FILLED with multiple answers to basic questions, and they ask the same stuff over and over ("who makes the best ___?", "what type of food should I eat at a reenactment?" "how can I be 'authentic' for no money?" "what do I pack in a knspack and haversack?"), is like someone entering a library and then asking the librarian, "So, where's all the books at?"

That's how it is in most human endeavors. I often wonder how folks who ask the most basic of questions without bothering to look for an answer first managed to get and hold a job.

"Are all the non-comms and officers in that guy's unit dead?" - often asked about threads like this.

[bob 125th nysvi]

It's a basic question that doing a simple search on this forum or the AC would have yielded many threads as Kevin said. How many times must they be answered before it's enough.

do schools across this country teach 2+2=4 every year? You could look it up on the internet and get the answer you know.

That is not the POINT, in real life experienced soldiers TEACH inexperienced ones. They don't say go read the manual, they say we do it this way.

We are and have been for millenia an "oral" culture.

Besides the "answer" is highly individualistic and changes over time and with experience.

If you as a person are bored with these threads then DON'T LOOK AT THEM!

If you want to be help (and be not rude) you can always say there are theads here that answer the question (without the snide comments) or actually answer the question.

When we all started out people answered questions for us, either be polite enough to answer or stay out of the conversation.

And by the way I do consider: see this thread or read this book a perfectly adequate answer as long as its done without the psuedo-superior comments.

[Kevin O'Beirne]

Mike,

And just as interesting as the Army of the Potomac's GO of March 7, '63 (for the Chancellorsville campaign) is the corps quartermasters' reports following the Chancellorsville campaign about how well the Board of Officers' recommendations on what to pack fared in the campaign.

Also somewhat misleading from the GO is that the GO does not name all the stuff the average Yank took on the Chancellorsville campaign; for example, shelter halves and gum blankets, not to mention the weight of the knapsack itself.

This type of stuff is covered in "Knapsack and Haversack Packing 101" on the AC Forum.

[bob 125th nysvi]

I keep:

My wooden tent pegs (since i don't want to cut live wood at an event site).
String and some rope (for the shelter half)
one extra shirt
one extra pair of drawers
two extra pairs of socks
night cap
wash cloth
blanket
shelter half
Bottle of mineral oil (for gun cleaning)
A complete set of gun tools (not just a private's which I carry in my cartridge box) in a small tin
One oil cloth between the haves and one on top
One tin of tooth powder
One extra tin of caps
as many arsenal packs as I can
dominos to pass the time with

And remember less is more with your knapsack.

I carry a bunch of stuff in my haversack (after room for rations is allocated) and my pockets.

[bill watson]

"Bill, you know me well enough that I agree wholeheartedly with your mentoring comment but I think a couple took the posts that not only told him there was stuff available but directed him directly to it (Tom and Kevin) as being rude which I thought were rather well done. "

I swear I posted an answer to this earlier today, but it's not there. It is probably on the Pocono Record website somewhere, baffling folks.

In any event: I didn't think Tom and Kevin were at all rude, but a couple of folks did. So my thoughts were based on perceptions and how that differs between those asking a question and those answering it. My apologies for not being clearer last night.

[bob 125th nysvi]

This type of stuff is covered in "Knapsack and Haversack Packing 101" on the AC Forum.

condensed writeup I've ever read on the subject for an AoP impression.

Thank you Kevin for producing it.

[bob 125th nysvi]

"In any event: I didn't think Tom and Kevin were at all rude, but a couple of folks did. So my thoughts were based on perceptions and how that differs between those asking a question and those answering it. My apologies for not being clearer last night.

were well within acceptable bounds in answering the question because they don't do the add on comments.

[tompritchett]

I swear I posted an answer to this earlier today, but it's not there. It is probably on the Pocono Record website somewhere, baffling folks.

Sometimes, I have hit the back button before I have hit the "Post Quick Reply" and lost everything that I was typing. This usually happens when I have been scrolling up to reference material from earlier posts. Infurating when I realize that my post was never made. Maybe the same happened to you Bill.

[Altecfive]

The 2nd Regulars also have an article on this on their website.

[Rob]

Sometimes, I have hit the back button before I have hit the "Post Quick Reply" and lost everything that I was typing.

Oh, yes... I did that any number of times before realizing that by hitting the Preview button, the text would be saved.

[Micah Trent]

The 2nd Regulars also have an article on this on their website.

If I recall, I remember seeing something similar to that back at post #19 on this thread....;)...plus with a link to get you there!

[toptimlrd]

"Bill, you know me well enough that I agree wholeheartedly with your mentoring comment but I think a couple took the posts that not only told him there was stuff available but directed him directly to it (Tom and Kevin) as being rude which I thought were rather well done. "

I swear I posted an answer to this earlier today, but it's not there. It is probably on the Pocono Record website somewhere, baffling folks.


LOL! At least you didn't post somethig over here meant for there.

[reb64]

I took the question to be what do we as reenactors pack, not what did they (period soldiers) pack. this required a personal list from field experience, not a stoic "look it up yourself answer". While in the modern army i always got over and over again "sgt what do i take to the field". I could have said go find the packing list, but i peronally tookthe time to help each one, plus showed them a packing list for times when I wasn't around.

[tompritchett]

I took the question to be what do we as reenactors pack, not what did they (period soldiers) pack. this required a personal list from field experience, not a stoic "look it up yourself answer". While in the modern army i always got over and over again "sgt what do i take to the field". I could have said go find the packing list, but i peronally tookthe time to help each one, plus showed them a packing list for times when I wasn't around.

As I said in the post that you are responding to, I personally do not carry a knapsack so I could not give him me personal list because I don't have one. However, I did the next best thing. I gave him detailed instructions how he could use the search function to find three threads where multiple reenactors had provided their personal lists. I teach college students for a living and I found that most students do not want me to spoon feed them information but rather would have me either teach them how they can figure out the problem themselves or find the information that they were looking for. I even used the verb "suggest" rather than bluntly tell him to search. This is not the Army and if it was, he would be asking his unit NCOs. Rather this is a hobby where all of us ultimately have to learn to do independent research to develop our impressions. I was assisting him in learning how to use just one of many research tools.

[Frenchie]

Tom, come on, stop wasting your time.http://i106.photobucket.com/albums/m274/Darkfold_2006/banghead.gif

[toptimlrd]

Tom, come on, stop wasting your time.http://i106.photobucket.com/albums/m274/Darkfold_2006/banghead.gif

Frenchie,

Could you send me that emoticon of the guy slamming his head on the computer, it would come in handy from time to time.

Thanks.

[WestTN_reb]

John,

The only thing I disagree with you on is the use of the pockets. We aren't marching 10 or more miles a day in heat and humidity. Those small items in the pockets eventually begin to wear and cause sores and ulcers, and will bedevil you to no end, especially when the sweat rolls onto them.

Tim,
The point I was trying to make was that you don't need to carry alot of other little things. When I talk about putting things in my pockets, I should probably clarify. I put a cloth bag of cleaning patches, and a housewife in my coat pocket. A jacknife goes into my pants pocket, maybe a wallet in a pants pocket. As for other stuff: toothbrush stuck into a buttonhole, pipe in the band of my hat (when not in my mouth), and tobacco pouch tied to a button. Rations in my haversack, and an extra shirt and socks in my bedroll.

I travel light, hopefully the same way they did, and have never had a problem other than those posed by being fat and out of shape.

[toptimlrd]

I travel light, hopefully the same way they did, and have never had a problem other than those posed by being fat and out of shape.


You too huh?

[WestTN_reb]

Yeah, me too. I made that long haul with the TMB at Franklin '04. I was in halfway decent shape then, but been getting rounder ever since. Office jobs suck for that reason.

[Hardtimes]

Havng been a corporal for nearly 10 years and having helped many new guys with drill and their questions I've never minded helping someone when one cares enough to do things right. I've been a campaigner for eight of those years and prefer events where there's a march.

What i carry in the knapsack depends on the event and the time of year.
If its a static living history I tend to bring more, if it's a march i bring the bare min. and leave the trash at home.

If it's cold weather I leave the shelter half home and bring an extra gum blanket to have another layer on top of the issue blanket to stay warm.
I always bring an extra shirt and soxs to wear at night so as not to sleep in damp sweaty stuff.
More ofter than not the shelter half ends either up being a pillow or a light blanket in hot weather to keep the skeeters off my face.

In most cases it's best to bring less even at living histories as it's always possible the company won't drop packs before the public skirmish or drill. Most of the junk one brings never get used anyway.

I carry nothing but food and the eating utensils in the haversack.

I look for hints on the way things were done in journals & diaries
Books like;
Gone for a Soldier by Alfred Bellard
No More a Gallant deed by Sgt James Wright
Four Years in the Iron Brigade by William Ray
Four Brothers in Blue by Robert Goldthwaite Carter
Soldiering by Rice C. Bull
and Hardtack & Coffee by Wilber Hinman

Bill O'Dea
Salt-Boilers mess (http://rugglesrag.com/salt_boiler_mess.htm)

[Rob Weaver]

I'm a big believer in using your pockets, too. Paper and pencil, tobacco goods, cards pocket testaments belong in your pockets! There's a greater likelihood that you'll use them and do something period with them. Oh, and a good jacknife because you never know when somebody is going to want to play mumblypeg! Don't put them in your haversack to get messy with your food. Regardless of the fact that sutlers have called items like that "haversack stuffers" ever since Hector was a pup, they're useless in your haversack. Food and cookware go in there. (On the rare occasions that I carry an inkbottle, I put it in my haversack, too, because I'd rather it spill there than in my pack.) My pack contains a ditty bag with my sewing kit, Bible and prayerbook, my drill manual (when it's not in my pocket or hat), checkerboard, my extra socks and shirt, twoel with toothbrush/powder/comb and mirror. My greatcoat is frequently folded in the bottom section with cleaning gear for my musket and a couple newspapers. Blanket is rolled on top. Shelter half slid in the middle (although if I know I'm going to put up a tent once and leave it, I'll just pack it sepatately.) I look at reenacting sort of like primitive backpacking. How can I carry things that are period and light in order to make myself as comfortable as possible.

[Frenchie]

Frenchie,

Could you send me that emoticon of the guy slamming his head on the computer, it would come in handy from time to time.

Thanks.

Bob, you already have it! Right-click on it, left-click on "Save Picture As...", and stow it somewhere safe on your drive. If you don't have one yet, get an account at Photobucket and stow it there too. When you want to display it in a post, go to Photobucket and click on "IMG Code", copy and paste it into the post. Here's a couple more:

http://i106.photobucket.com/albums/m274/Darkfold_2006/surrender.gif http://i106.photobucket.com/albums/m274/Darkfold_2006/bow.gif

[bob 125th nysvi]

for the little things.

Pocket Knife
Match Safe
small tin carrying a few odds and ends (cotton for the ears, oil cloth hooks, etc)
sometimes a small poke bag with treats
housewife would go nice

I like the extra rag for gun patches idea, may have to rry that one.

I meant pockets not pickets!

But pickets are great too!

[Dunn Browne]

I couldn't agree with Bill Watson's Post #10 more. Isn't the forum to communicate not just a research library? Maybe he is new to the forum and didn't know the knapsack question was laid to rest and he should just use the search button. Maybe, just maybe he wanted to chat with some folks about a subject he is interested in and tired of reading about????

If you are tired of talking about or reading about a certain subject and don't have anything constructive to add, move on to another thread. There seems to be plenty of people that have no problem at all responding to his question. Unless of course your whole point is to start an argument and then write three or four large paragraphs stating how your opinion is the correct one. No need to name names, if the shoe fits, wear it.

[Dunn Browne]

Drew,

Now to answer your question. When I pack heavy I carry a shirt, two pair of socks, drawers, housewife, a can with oil patches (the rest of my cleaning kit is in the cartridge box), gum blanket, shelter half, and blanket. When it is cold the overcoat goes on the top. I never used a wooden frame.

Now depending on the event, I lighten the load from there and sometimes add a couple comfort items like soap and a small towel or perhaps some extra food.

Now what do you put in yours? And if no one else has mentioned it, thank you for your service to our country. Now go write a book with a detailed discription of your equipment and how you wore it along with an account of the every day life of the average soldier. So 100+ years from now guys like us reenacting Iraqi Freedom will have some research material.

[Kevin O'Beirne]

If you are tired of talking about or reading about a certain subject and don't have anything constructive to add, move on to another thread. There seems to be plenty of people that have no problem at all responding to his question. Unless of course your whole point is to start an argument and then write three or four large paragraphs stating how your opinion is the correct one. No need to name names, if the shoe fits, wear it.


Something similar could be said about those who complain about folks who advise "those asking the really basic and common questions" to attempt to find the answer themselves first, using something pretty easy-to-use like Google.com, for example. Like,

If you are tired of talking about or reading about those who ask folks to do a modicum of effort for themselves before demanding utterly basic info from those who have answered the question scores of times on the very same forum, and don't have anything constructive to add to the posts of such folks, then move on to another thread. The person who originally asked "Basic and Common Question No. 3" will not die of embarassment and will almost certainly continue reenacting instead of being so put off by the apparent rudness of others; few of us died or curled up into a helpless ball when our parents told us to "Work for what you want!" when we were kids. There seems to be plenty of people that have no problem with being rude to those who ask folks to try to find it themselves once before asking others to do their reseach for them. Unless of course your whole point is to start an argument and then write three or four large paragraphs stating how your opinion about what constitutes "manners" is the correct one. No need to name names, if the shoe fits, wear it.

I fail to understand how folks who ask others to do thirty seconds of work are rude, when the wording of counter posts decrying the "rudeness" is much more pointed and blunt.

In our day and age of blaming others for seemingly every of our own failures, asking someone to be accountable for TRYING first is apparently anathema to some people.

[Dunn Browne]

I fail to understand how folks who ask others to do thirty seconds of work are rude, when the wording of counter posts decrying the "rudeness" is much more pointed and blunt.

Because, Drew said that he already did the research, he just wanted to know what WE put in our packs.

[Memphis]

One can imagine the expression on the Momma bird's face when the baby birds look up from the nest and cry, "Momma, aren't you going to chew the worm for us today? We can't be expected to chew our own food!"

So this post isn't an absolute waste:

Cups and other mess furniture dangling from your knapsack annoys your filemates and wears you down by providing a lot of counterproductive monkey motion high in your own center of gravity. Stow it inside or strap it down tight. Tight is good. Stowed is better.

[Rob Weaver]

Isn't it interesting that we can generate so many posts trying to say "We've answered that question before!" :D
I also carry a dandy little folding tin candleholder which when closed accomodates a extra bit of candle, a small pack of matches and 2 short cigars in a relatively waterproof and crushproof container. (I felt obliged to contribute after the potato thing.)

[7thNJcoA]

thank you first of all! second to answer what I put in mine is .... typeII shelter half, extra twine, gum blanket, blanket, some wooden pegs a carved up from a tree, my rations extra ammo usually 40 extra, more caps in a period tin container, my cleaning gear, a wash rag and thats it if i know there is no marching like a living history I bring a patchwork quilt. I actually started writing a book so its funny you mentioned it. Its hard for me I am not a good speller AT ALL!!! so my fiance always has to proof read my pages when I am done maybe one day it will be published Its called "Vanished from Battle"
about Marines like myself getting killed and wounded in fallujah and leaving thier buddys behind.
Drew,

Now to answer your question. When I pack heavy I carry a shirt, two pair of socks, drawers, housewife, a can with oil patches (the rest of my cleaning kit is in the cartridge box), gum blanket, shelter half, and blanket. When it is cold the overcoat goes on the top. I never used a wooden frame.

Now depending on the event, I lighten the load from there and sometimes add a couple comfort items like soap and a small towel or perhaps some extra food.

Now what do you put in yours? And if no one else has mentioned it, thank you for your service to our country. Now go write a book with a detailed discription of your equipment and how you wore it along with an account of the every day life of the average soldier. So 100+ years from now guys like us reenacting Iraqi Freedom will have some research material.

[Memphis]

I also carry a dandy little folding tin candleholder which when closed accomodates a extra bit of candle, a small pack of matches and 2 short cigars in a relatively waterproof and crushproof container. (I felt obliged to contribute after the potato thing.)

Okay, now let's see you boil it and eat it. :D

Naturally, the touche to this is what does my carved potato look like (and taste like) the next month or next year. Ick. :(

[SmellyFed]

A google search of "civil war knapsack contents" returned the following in 0.34 seconds:


The Sunday morning inspection in camp will bear a brief mention. It takes place after guard mount, on the parade ground. Each man must appear to the best advantage he can. His brasses must be cleaned and his musket in good order; knapsacks packed tidy, and everything about him must be as neat as possible. The band form on the parade ground, the companies march to the music and form as if on parade. The Adjutant turns and salutes the Colonel, telling him the battalion is formed. The Colonel then gives the order for the companies to right wheel, the right of the companies standing still, thus leaving a space between each company. Then the front ranks come to an about face, so as to face the rear rank, which has stepped to the rear about four paces, before the front rank has got the order to face about, thus leaving a space between both ranks for the inspecting officer to pass through. "Unsling knapsacks," is the order after "ground arms," and each man puts his knapsack at his feet, unpacked and the contents laid bare to open inspection. It is funny sometimes to see the contents, especially after a campaign. A soldier has perhaps a shirt, a pair of socks, and a prayer book or testament. Some have more, and some less, more generally the latter, but in winter-quarters, where there is a chance to have plenty of clothing, the knapsack of a tidy soldier is worth looking at. The overcoat is folded in a nice roll and strapped on top; the blankets, shirts, drawers and socks, with a soldier's album, which almost every soldier carries with the pictures of dear and loving friends at home. All have their proper places in the knapsack.... (pp. 166-167)

Source:
Crotty, Daniel G., Four Years Campaigning in the Army of the Potomac, Dygert Bros. & Co., Grand Rapids, MI, 1874, (Reprinted: New Jersey: Belle Grove Publishing Company, 1995).

http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Aegean/6732/files/soldier_crotty.html

[Memphis]

Useful information. How rude. :o

[Rob Weaver]

Okay, now let's see you boil it and eat it. :D

Naturally, the touche to this is what does my carved potato look like (and taste like) the next month or next year. Ick. :(
If you boil em first they melt - oh, you meant the candle holder! I think I'll pass. Tin would probably not be good for my teeth. (Actually, when one of my children was studying Lewis and Clark, she and I ate a tallow candle just for the experience. It wasn't good.)

[SmellyFed]

Here's another, courtesy of Matt Rector. An AC search for "knapsack contents" returned the following in 0.17 seconds.


Just here let me name over the contents of my knapsack, as its contents were a fair sample of what all the volunteers started with. There were in it a pair of trowsers, two pairs of drawers, a pair of thick boots, four pairs of stockings, four flannel shirts, a blouse, a looking-glass, a can of peaches, a bottle of cough-mixture, a button-stick, chalk, razor and strop, the “tailor’s shop” spoken of above, a Bible, a small volume of Shakspere, and writing utensils. To its top was strapped a double woolen blanket and a rubber one. It was boiling over, like a ripe cotton-pod. I remember, too, many other things left behind because of lack of room in or about the knapsack. We would have packed in a portable cooking-stove each had there been room.

On our arrival in Boston we were marched through the streets — the first march of any consequence we had taken with our knapsacks and equipments on. Our dress consisted of a belt about the body, which held a cartridge-box and bayonet, a cross-belt, also a haversack and tin drinking-cup, a canteen, and, last but not least, the knapsack strapped to the back. The straps ran over, around, and about one, in confusion most perplexing to our unsophisticated shoulders; the knapsack giving one constantly the feeling that he was being pulled over backward.

We marched along the streets, my canteen banging against my bayonet, both the tin cup and bayonet badly interfering with the butt of my musket, while my cartridge-box and haversack were constantly flopping up and down — the whole jangling like loose harness and chains on a runaway horse. I felt like old Atlas, with the world on his shoulders and the planetary system suspended around him.

Sources:
Recollections of a Private [Part I], by Warren Lee Goss: pp. 107-113
The Century; a popular quarterly. / Volume 29, Issue 1, Nov 1884, p. 107



http://www.authentic-campaigner.com/forum/showpost.php?p=48529&postcount=1

[GrumpyDave]

Bill,
What are the 8 inch sticks for?

;) ;) ;) ;)

[old reb46]

How many primer wires can be fitted into a knapsack? Or, could I carry more primer wires in a blanket roll?
Tom
Rusty Cup Mess

[bulletsponge]

In my knapsack:

2 ea. shirt
2 pr. socks
1 pr. drawers
1 ea. housewife
1 ea. blanket (rolled on top)
1 ea. candle & matches
1 ea. booklet containing bugle calls
1 ea. pencil
1 cake lye soap
1 ea. toothbrush
1 ea. gum blanket
1 ea. shelter half
4 ft. manila hemp string
Several small sheets of paper.

If it's colder, the blanket is folded up between the bags of the knapsack and the over coat is rolled up on top.

If carrying a rifle vs. bugle the sheet music stays at home, add:

1 ea. small cleaning kit for rifle.
1 ea. rifle tool

[Rob Weaver]

"Boiling over, like a ripe cotton pod" Now there's an expression I bet none of us have ever used! I've seen that description several times. I think someplace else he mentions white crossbelts on his militia gear, too.

[SmellyFed]

I'm getting the picture now - actual veteran accounts are irrelevant. We're talking about what should be in a reenactors knapsack.

[Sgt_Pepper]

I'm closing this thread rather than trying to clean it up. Let's see if we can't dispense with the rancor next time.

If you don't want to deal with questions like this, perhaps it would be best to simply forget it and move on to the next thread rather than clutter it up with unhelpful sarcasms. It would certainly make the moderator's jobs easier and things in general a bit more pleasant.