Uniforms, Weapons and Equipment
Private Bartholomew O'Callahan, Company B
Uniforms
Both the State of Indiana and the Federal government issued
soldiers in the 27th Indiana a variety of uniforms during their
service from 1861-1864. Indiana outfitted the men for initial service
and the Federal government provided the next two regimental-wide
clothing issues. The Federal government also provided replacement
clothing after taking responsibility for the volunteers. Below is a
brief history of the uniforms worn by the 27th Indiana.
First Issue Uniforms
1861-1862
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Andrew R. Vansickle, Company G, Modeling the
1861 Shell Jacket with McDowell-Style Forage Cap
and a M1816 Percussion Converted Flintlock
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Two sets of brothers model the State Issue
Regulation Overcoat, Shell Jacket and Officer's
Frock Coat. From Left to Right - Brothers Isaac Van
Buskirk (no.1) and John van Buskirk; Brothers David
C. Van Buskirk and Isaac Van Buskirk (no.2) all in
Company F
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M1858 Forage Cap
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State Issue Havlock
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1861 Indiana Issue Shell Jacket
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Standard Infantry Button of the type used in
early State and Federal uniforms
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10 September 1861-March 1862. As a volunteer Infantry unit,
the state government had the initial responsibility to equip the 27th
Indiana in that first summer of 1861. The State of Indiana provided a
9-button short-coat. Most had cloth epaulets and lay-down collars but
not all. Pants for enlisted men were light blue. The officers wore
dark blue trousers with thin piping, believed to be light blue, down
the outside seams. Hats were patterned on the 'McDowell' model 1858
Forage Cap, some trimmed with light blue piping. Oil-cloth Havlocks
were also issued. Photographic evidence shows that some soldiers wore
civilian slouch hats during this early period. Later photos show them
as common, but the exception rather than the rule. The Forage Cap
remained the standard headgear for the 27th Indiana enlisted soldiers
throughout the war.
Issuing these uniforms was no small task for Governor Morton and
the Hoosier state, as the initial call for volunteers filled or
assembled an unequaled 55 regiments of Infantry and several batteries
of artillery by October 1861 alone--more than any other state in the
Union at the time. In addition to the difficulties in providing
clothing and equipment to so many regiments, the 27th Indiana was
even more difficult to clothe. When fully recruited, it became
apparent that the regiment contained the tallest men in the Union
Army. David Van Buskirk was nearly 7 feet tall and his Company F
contained 35 men that were 6 feet or taller and over 60 men that were
5 feet 10 inches. The regimental history attests that each company
had at least half their men of such height as well. This meant that
the regiment was well over one inch taller on average than all the
Union regiments during the Civil War. Quartermaster Crose now had to
outfit his men in hard-to-find sizes and with shoes that averaged 3
to 4 sizes larger than the average regiment.
Needless to say, when the first uniforms arrived, they did not fit
properly:
On September 10, our uniforms finally came. We had
been anxious to have them and almost ran over each other to be served
first. We thought them magnificent. All those who could possibly do
so obtained furloughs home at once that their friends, particularly
their sweethearts, might see them arrayed in their military clothes.
But our anxiety to have a uniform and our over-estimate of their
beauty in general, had led us astray. It did not take long to find
out that those were a bad fraud, and in them we cut a figure on the
verge of ridiculous. They consisted of a pea-jacket, cap and pants,
all dark blue [the pants were light blue]. Imagine the appearance of
a thousand men, mostly young, but quite a few ranging from
twenty-five to thirty-five, clothed in little coats the length of an
ordinary vest and wearing diminitive [sic] skull caps, barely large
enough to perch on top of their heads. And remember, that the jacket,
pants and caps are all not far from the same size and length, while
the men differ greatly in these respects. This gives one a coat
coming well down to the crotch, but at the same time gives him too
much waist measure, almost enough to go around him twice. The coat of
another comes but little below his arms and when he buttons it, it
squeezes him until he is red in the face. The same is true of the
pants. Misfits and disproportions hold high carnival, while the
quality of the clothes was coarse and the workmanship extremely
rough.
But those uniforms did gloriously at Camp Morton compared with the
behavior afterwards, when we got our accoutrements. There was no
strap or nib on the jacket anywhere to prevent the belt from slipping
down, when weighed by the bayonet and cartridge box. And, slipping
below the jacket, the belt rested its weight on the pants, which in
turn sagged them down until a goodly portion of the nether garment
appeared between pants and jacket. The neat and soldier-like (?)
aspect of the regiment on battalion drill and review, as well as the
personal comfort of those concerned, can be easily inferred.
Edmund R. Brown, Company C
Below is a sampling of soldier photos from different companies
taken between September 1861 to March 1862.
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- John Bresnahan
- Company A
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- Jerome Sims
- Company C
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- Benjamin Gregory
- Company E
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- Reuben Hendrickson
- Company F
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- Conrad Eckert
- Company K
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Second Issue 1862
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John Smith, Company K, modeling the 1858
Federal Enlisted Frock Coat and civilian hat
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James Nosler showing the proper wear of the
Model 1858 Federal Issue Enlisted Frock Coat with
forage cap
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Nelson Purcell with contract pattern
forage cap styled for personal taste
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Contract forage cap
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Model 1858 Federal Enlisted Frock
Coat
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Federal Infantry button, standard for
Infantry frock coats
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March 1862-September 1862. The 27th Indiana's first uniform
issue was enough to get the men through their first winter as
soldiers of the United States in volunteer service. Sent to the
Eastern Theater and brigaded with mostly Eastern soldiers, the 27th
men soon took on the appearance of the soldiers from that region. In
March 1862, the Federal government fitted the entire brigade with
regulation enlisted frock coats. These had a stand-up collars,
9-button fronts, and cuffs and collars piped in light blue. The men
wore a variety of vests with photos showing what appears to be blue,
gray and even white--all according to the regulation of the day.
Soldiers continued to wear the forage cap with some exceptions, like
the civilian hat worn by John Smith above and Ed Hart below. The
forage caps gradually were swapped the more familiar 'contract
pattern' as the Federal supply system turned to numerous
manufacturers for its needs. Photos seem to indicate the men wore no
insignia on their caps during this period to include the Infantry
bugle or company letters. Some men would continue to wear their frock
coats well into 1863, at least for photos, as it was a smarter
looking uniform. While it may have been smarter looking, it wasn't
necessarily preferred for fighting:
On the morning of March 10, we had orders to
move...The next day we marched up within about four miles of
Winchester and encamped, in a grove east of the pike...When it was
found that no enemy was to be encountered at Winchester the troops
dispersed to different camping places...We established our camp at
the railroad cut, in the northern limits of the city, and settled
down to regular camp life again. Within a day or two we were
furnished new, dress uniforms, including tight-bodied, long-tailed
coats, with high stiff collars. This was much like a farmer putting
on a fine beaver overcoat when spring work begins. The warm weather
was at hand, and if the army ever hoped to do anything, it must be
now. But we accepted the dress coat like little men. The presumption
is that we did not see the glaring folly of the thing, at the time,
any better than others. As a matter of fact, we wore those heavy
coats through the entire summer, in all its heat and dust, on all our
long marches; then, in the Fall, exchanged them for the light-weight,
lose fitting blouses, which constituted the regulation coat for
soldiers in the field, until the end of the war.
Edmund R. Brown, Company C
Below is a sample of some of the men in frock coats. Note the
different colored vests.
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- Ed Hart
- Company C
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- Lewis Payne
- Company C
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- David Everhart
- Company E
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- John Campbell
- Company F
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Third Issue 1862-1864
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Andrew Jones, Company H, modeling the 1858
Federal Enlisted Sack Coat and Forage Cap with XII
/ XX Corps Badge and Unit Insignia
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Federal Sack Coat button with generic
National Emblem
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Forage Cap with 1st Division XII /
XX Corps Badge and '27'
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Model 1858 Federal Enlisted Frock
Coat
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September 1862 - September 1864. The 27th Indiana suffered
tremendous casualties between May 1862 and September 1862. Their
frock coats, if not ripped and worn from hard campaigning, were torn
by bullet holes and shrapnel. The regiment suffered over 500 killed,
wounded or missing during this period! Although many of the wounded
and nearly all of the missing would return to the regiment, the
uniforms they wore at the end of September 1862 were simply worn out.
Our Quartermaster sergeant notes in his diary that the
regiment was in the worst plight at this time for clothing and shoes
of any in its history...Ours was but a fair sample of others. The
Confederates were commonly a hard looking lot with respect to
clothing, but we would have driven great bargains by even exchanges
with them at this period. After a few days fresh supplies began to
arrive and, though they came very slowly and in small quantities, we
were eventually put in good condition again.
Edmund R. Brown, Company C
The government gave the regiment the 4-button sack coat to replace
their tattered frock coats. The wounded returning to the regiment, as
well as any new recruits, came fully equipped with the latest issue
clothing. As stated above in the quote from Edmund Brown regarding
frock coats, the sack coats were worn by the men from this date until
the end of the war. The contract pattern forage cap remained the
standard issue until the close of service as well.
Here is another example of a 27th Indiana soldier wearing the
4-button sack coat and contract pattern forage cap:
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- John Files
- Company H
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Private Issue Variations
1863-1864
September 1863 - September 1864. Photos from the period
show several non-standard variations of uniforms worn by the men of
the 27th Indiana. These were all of private manufacture and were
purchased by the men themselves. Although not fully known where they
were manufactured, evidence suggests that many of these privately
purchased uniforms could have been from New York City when the
regiment garrisoned there for several weeks during the New York City
draft riots. Or they could have been from individual tailors in
Nashville or even from Indiana--either sent to the soldiers or
obtained while they were on leave. Many photographs show New York
City photographer's marks on the backs. Others show Nashville back
marks, presumably taken during the winter of 1863-1864.
Here are some examples of 27th Indiana soldiers wearing
non-standard uniform coats:
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- Thomas Bragg
- Company A
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- David Hansell
- HQ & Company A
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- Peter Ragle
- Company B
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- Unidentified
- 27th soldier
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Wears a velvet-collared 4-button sack coat
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Wears a lapelled 4-button sack coat. Photo taken in
fall of 1863
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Wears very unusual 4-button frock coat
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Wears a 9-button short coat. Photo taken after April
1863. Note hat badge and numbers
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Price of Union Army Clothing-1864. Company E soldier James
H. Dougherty's diary shows a list of clothing prices written on a
couple of January 1864 pages. It is an important reference not only
for the prices listed but also to show what was available to the men
in the Winter of 1863-64 as they readied themselves for the Atlanta
Campaign. Keep in mind that a private soldier's wage was $13.00 a
month:
Sunday, January 31, 1864
The Price of Clothing
uniform Hat
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$1.80
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- foriage Cap
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$ .65
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(Forage Cap)
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" Covers
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$ .12
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Ov Coats
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$8.75
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(Overcoats)
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Mt pants
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$4.15
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(Mounted Pants)
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Inft pants
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$3.10
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(Infantry Pants)
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Blouses unlined
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$2.65
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" Lined
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$3.25
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Flanel Shirts
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$1.57
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(Flannel Shirts)
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Stockings
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$ .35
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(Socks)
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Shoes Soad
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$2.20
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(Stitched soul shoes)
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" pegged
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$1.68
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(Pegged soul shoes)
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Boots "
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$3.25
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ov Coats Mt
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$10.50
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(Mounted Overcoats)
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Frock
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$8.75
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(Frock Coat)
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W Blankets
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$3.65
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(Wool Blanket)
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painted "
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$1.70
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(Oil cloth blanket)
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Ruber "
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$2.55
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(Rubber blanket)
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Poucheses
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$2.10
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(Poncho? Oil cloth Haversack?)
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Ruber
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$3.10
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(Rubber Poncho? Rubber Haversack?)
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Drawers
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$ .89
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(Cotton Underwear)
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Officer Uniforms 1861-1864
September 1861 - September 1864. All photographic evidence
shows officers of the 27th Indiana wearing the regulation M1858
officer frock coat. No photographic variations have been found with
the coats. Headgear was almost exclusively the officer kepi. A few
photos of men wearing the Hardee-style hat appear with men in dress
uniform. The officers wore a woolen red star XII/XX corps badge on
the front of their kepi's, presumably to allow the embroidered
Infantry insignia to be placed on the top.
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Silas Colgrove wears a
double-breasted frock for a brevet brigadier
general. Photo taken in 1865.
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George Reed, Company I, modeling the
1858 Federal Officer Frock Coat with regulation
sash and M1850 Foot Sword
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Josiah Williams, Company C, models
1858 Federal Issue Officer Frock Coat and a Kepi
with Corps Badge
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Sam Porter, Company A, with
officer's kepi and wool XII/XX corps
badge
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Officer's Kepi
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Model 1858 Federal Officer Frock
Coat
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Federal Infantry button, standard for
Infantry frock coats
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Here are some more examples of 27th Indiana officers:
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Thomas Colgrove
Field Staff
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Roger Loughery
Company C
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James Jamison
Regimental Quartermaster
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Wears the regulation field-grade double-breasted
officer's frock coat. Photo taken in fall of 1863
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Wears regulation frock coat. Photo taken in fall of
1862 or spring of 1863.
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Wears regulation frock coat with authorized gray vest.
Photo taken in fall of 1863. Note metal corps badge on vest
and watch chain.
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Weapons
The 27th Indiana soldiers used a variety of weapons during the
war, from converted flintlocks, imported rifles and modern domestic
standard arms. The State of Indiana issued the first weapons and
later, the Federal Government issued the regiment usable arms upon
arrival to Washington, D.C and throughout its service.
First Issue-Converted M1816
Flintlocks
August-September 1861. The State issued the 27th converted
flintlocks for drill upon its arrival at Camp Morton in Indianapolis.
Edmund Brown tells us, "the guns were old flintlocks, rudely changed
to use caps, and it was questionable which which was there most
dangerous end." These were likely US Model 1816 Flintlocks modified
with new locks and percussion cones bored into the barrel. Thousands
of these weapons were turned over to state militias in the 1850s in
addition to Remington converted M1816s as well. Below is an example:
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Converted M1816 Flintlock
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Below right is Andrew Vansickle, Company G, armed with
the M1816 Converted Flintlock. Photo was taken in September
1861. Note the interesting bird perched on the muzzle.
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Detail of the lock of the M1816
Converted Flintlock.
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The State also issued 74 of the M1853 Enfield Rifle, commonly
known as the 2-banded Enfield and 22 'Long Range Rifles.' Just what
the 'Long range Rifles' were is hard to determine although it is
possible they may have been some kind of individually crafted
'American Rifle' or even 3-banded Enfields. Company B drew both of
these types of rifles to fill their company but photos also show men
in Companies A & K posing with them. This is possibly due to
skirmishers having the short and long weapons but more likely the
weapons were loaned out to peers for early photographs brandishing
the menacing-looking sword bayonet. All of these weapons and their
accoutrements were returned to the Indiana State Arsenal on 15
September 1861--the same day the regiment boarded the train that took
them to the war in the East. Below is an example an Enfield short
rifle, a picture of Conrad Eckert holding one with sword bayonet and
a picture of John Bresnahan with just the Enfield bayonet.
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The M1853 Enfield Rifle commonly known as the
2-Banded or Short Enfield
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Conrad Eckert of Company K holding the M1853
2-banded Enfield Rifle with sword bayonet. Photo
was taken in September 1861.
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Detail of M1853 Enfield. This example is
dated 1861 and marked with 'TOWER' and the royal
crown.
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John Bresnahan of Company A holding the
Enfield sword bayonet. Photo was taken in September
1861.
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Second Issue-M1842 Belgian
Musket
September 1861-June 1862. After arriving at Washington DC
on the 17th of September, the 27th Indiana immediately received
weapons and equipment from Federal arsenals. The regiment drew
'Belgium Rifles.' From the research available, these appear to have
been the Belgian M1842 .69 Caliber Rifled Musket. Another possibility
is the M1859 French Rifles (Liege variant), commonly called Belgian
rifles. The Liege manufactured weapons had bores of .61 caliber.
Federal Arms inspectors considered these weapons to be equal to the
latest US manufactured rifles. The view of the soldiers was varied.
Ulysses S. Grant, when speaking of the Belgian rifles before
Vicksburg stated,
The small-arms of the enemy were far superior to the
bulk of ours. Up to this time our troops at the West had been limited
to the old United States flint-lock muskets changed into percussion,
or the Belgian musket imported early in the war&emdash;almost as
dangerous to the person firing it as to the one aimed at&emdash;and a
few new and improved arms. These were of many different calibers, a
fact that caused much trouble in distributing ammunition during an
engagement. The enemy had generally new arms which had run the
blockade and were of uniform caliber. After the surrender I
authorized all colonels whose regiments were armed with inferior
muskets, to place them in the stack of captured arms and replace them
with the latter. A large number of arms turned in to the Ordnance
Department as captured, were thus arms that had really been used by
the Union army in the capture of Vicksburg.
Grant's Memoirs, Vol I, Chapter 29, p. 571
To the new soldiers of the 27th however, these weapons seemed a
marked improvement over the converted flintlocks. Edmund Brown offers
a description of the weapons when they were issued.
We called the guns we drew here 'Belgium Rifles.' They
were evidently of some foreign manufacture. They were really young
cannon, weighing fourteen pounds each. They had spikes at the breech
projecting upward on the inside. These, fitting into the hollow end
of the ball, wedged it into the rifles. This improved their shooting
qualities, but made them unhandy to keep clean, as the ball could not
be drawn. They were all deadly at the muzzle end, and some of them
were next to deadly at both ends. Their kick was like the recoil of a
cannon.
Edmund R. Brown, Company C
The 27th used its Belgian muskets in the battles of Newtown,
Buckton and Winchester. Below are examples of both rifles:
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Belgian M1842 Rifled Musket in .69 Caliber
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Belgian or Liege Variant of French M1859 Rifle
in .61 Caliber
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Third Issue-M1853 Enfield Musket &
Rifle
June-September 1862. After the Battle of Winchester, the
27th Indiana replaced its Belgian Rifles. This was partly due to new
arms becoming available and partly due to the 27th having rifles that
had incompatible ammunition with the rest of its brigade.
Consequently, Federal authorities delivered six companies worth of
3-banded M1853 Enfield Rifled Muskets and four companies worth of
what were likely 2-banded M1853 Enfield Rifles with sword bayonets.
The Enfield muskets were well-liked and initially so were the short
rifles. Gradually however the men came to regard the shorter weapons
with disdain for both Infantry battle and drill due to their weight
and size.
Our old Belgian Rifles were, as a general rule,
accurate and wicked shooters, but they carried such large balls that
it was necessary to provide ammunition especially for the 27th. This
not only involved extra labor, but there was danger that we might run
short at some critical time and not be able to borrow. Aside from
this, the muskets we received were inferior to those we turned in.
Four of the companies, the two center [C&H] and the two flanking
companies [A&B], were supplied with 'Minnie' rifles. These were
short, light guns, with swords about two feet long for bayonets. The
other six companies received the English Enfields.
[I] was in one of the companies receiving the guns with the sword
bayonets. We were greatly elated over them at first. They had been
highly eulogized in the papers. A command armed with them seemed
ready for very bloody work in the estimation of the average newspaper
man, But experience proved that the short swords had no other higher
use than to cut tent stakes and kindling wood. Besides, they were
cumbersome and annoying to carry on the march. Without bayonets the
guns were too light for effective shooting and too short for
drilling. With the bayonets they were too unbalanced and unwieldly
[sic] for either. Those receiving the Enfields, while a little
chagrined at the start, soon discovered that they had by far the most
desirable arms of the two. The Enfields possessed one other advantage
over any other gun used in the Union side in the war. The troops were
not slow to see it and avail themselves of its benefits. It was that
the rebels were largely armed with them and in any battle it was easy
to get another gun if yours was lost or disabled. Then they were also
light, well proportioned and shot to kill.
Edmund R. Brown, Company C
The 27th used the M1853 Enfield in the battles of Cedar Mountain
and Antietam, where it did such destructive killing in Miller's
Cornfield. Below is an example of the 3-Banded Enfield Rifled Musket:
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English Enfield M1853 Rifled Musket in .577
Caliber
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Detail of M1853 Enfield Rifle Lock Plate
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Fourth Issue-M1861
Springfield
September 1862-September 1864. After the Battle of
Antietam, the 27th traded in their weapons for the last time. While
the soldiers generally admired the sturdy M1861 Springfields, they
regretted losing the accuracy of the English Enfields. The regiment
licked its wounds and replaced tattered uniforms, equipment and
rifles while encamped at Maryland Heights.
The Twenty seventh again exchanged arms while in this
camp. All the companies received the same kind, namely, Springfield
rifles. These were the first and only guns we ever had of American
make. We carried them, many of us the identical ones received here,
to the end of our service. They had the merit of being light, shapely
and well balanced for handling; a good gun--for a time of peace.
Uniformly hard, close shooters, they were not.
Edmund R. Brown, Company C
The Hoosiers fought with the M1861 Springfield Rifled Muskets at
the battles of Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, Resaca, New hope Church,
Kolb's Farm, Peach Tree Creek and Atlanta. An example is below:
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US Springfield M1861 Rifled Musket in .58
Caliber
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Springfield belonging to Private Reuben
Newman, Company I
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Detail of M1861 Springfield Rifle
Lock Plate
Detail of Newman's Lock Plate dated
1862
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Bartholomew O'Callahan, Company
B, holding a Springfield M1861 Rifled Musket
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Officer Issue-Pistols and Foot
Swords
September 1861-September 1864. The officers of the 27th
Indiana carried standard regulation weapons and equipment. All of the
field grade officers, as well as the adjutant, received Colt .36
Caliber M1851 Navy Revolvers and regulation M1850 Field and Staff
Swords. The line officers carried the same but with M1850 Foot
Swords. This initial equipment had a profound impact on both the new
officers and men.
To say that such a person, when turned loose in a camp
of soldiers, armed with a commission, a cheap, new uniform,
glittering shoulder straps, sword and sash, with a navy revolver
tugging at his belt, cuts a broad swath, is putting it mildly. He not
only has a seven-foot cut, with a self-binder and bundle-carrying
attachment, but is also a stacker and thrasher as well. There is no
room for anybody else in the field.
Edmund R. Brown, Company C
The 27th in time grew to love its officers and were wholly devoted
to them. Although they would make no visible significant change in
clothing and weaponry, their inner change would endear them to a
generation of Hoosiers. The later officers acquired different
revolvers, likely due to the availability of arms where they found
themselves commissioned. It is a known fact that Remington M1858
Revolvers were used by the officers and one suspects M1860 Colts as
well. Below are examples of the arms with which the 27th's officers
led them into battle:
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Left - The M1858 Remington New Army Revolver in .44
caliber. Right - The M1851 Colt Navy Revolver in .36
Caliber
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US M1850 Field & Staff Officers
Sword with details of Hilt and Engraved Blade
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Colonel Colgrove's Field and Staff
presentation sword as it looked after being hit by
a cannon ball when the Colonel was wounded at the
Battle of Peach Tree Creek. Though severely
wounded, his sword saved his leg and possibly his
life.
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US M1850 Infantry Officer Foot Sword. Top is
standard with leather scabbard. Bottom is imported
with German silver scabbard.
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