Civil War Reenactment Hardware and Dress
“This sword is razor sharp; if you are participating in a Civil War battle reenactment, you’d better know exactly what moves to make so no one gets hurt,” said Carl Keefer to the Cambridge Lions Club. “This sword is so sharp you could shave with it.”
“Of course in the Civil War the object of using the sword was to hurt someone or kill them,” Keefer said. Keefer’s wife Vicki accompanied him dressed in a Civil War period ball dress.
Keefer wore his captain’s uniform that included a chaplain’s stripe and chaplain’s patch on his brimmed hat. He wore an officer’s purple sash, a standard belt with sword attachment straps, and officer’s buckle. He wore brogans, a style of shoe that did not differentiate between left and right foot.
During the Civil War soldiers who were shot, but not killed, often had to have limbs amputated. “An Enfield rifle fired a fifty-eight caliber bullet,” Keefer said. “If it hit you in the arm, it would take your arm off, or it would cause such a bad wound that it would have to be amputated.”
“The Enfield came from England,” Keefer said. “In a demonstration of its accuracy a marksman fired six shots from a thousand yards and hit all six watermelon targets.”
“When they made rifles in England the gunsmiths would stay with the rifle until it was finished just right. The United States bought the rights to manufacture them in Springfield by the Singer Sewing Machine Company.”
“During the war they tried to make them as fast as they could. When they made them too fast, it left a ridge in the rifling that made the flight of the bullet unpredictable. They had to slow down the machining process to get accurate rifling.”
The cavalry used Henry lever action repeating rifles. The lever action was easier to use on horseback. “You couldn’t reload a muzzle loader when you were riding full tilt on a horse,” Keefer said.
Civil War soldiers also used small arms. A cap and ball Remington would be loaded with a round bullet. “You had to put a little vaseline on the ball so it would stay in the gun,” Keefer said. “If you didn’t the ball would roll out when the barrel was pointed down.”
“Many soldiers preferred the Colt over the Remington. It took about a minute or two to load the gun. If you had a Colt you could use it as a club without bending the barrel.”
“There was a code of honor among officers during the Civil War era,” Keefer said. “If someone threw down the gauntlet, you knew there was going to be a swordfight or a gunfight. A requirement of the code of honor was that you would never back down from a fight.”
People who participate in Civil War reenactments can expect to pay a good price for an authentic period uniform. “A hand-sewn coat may cost eight hundred dollars; brogans (shoes) may cost one hundred twenty five dollars,” Keefer said. “A hat may cost one hundred fifty dollars.”
“Of course in the Civil War the object of using the sword was to hurt someone or kill them,” Keefer said. Keefer’s wife Vicki accompanied him dressed in a Civil War period ball dress.
Keefer wore his captain’s uniform that included a chaplain’s stripe and chaplain’s patch on his brimmed hat. He wore an officer’s purple sash, a standard belt with sword attachment straps, and officer’s buckle. He wore brogans, a style of shoe that did not differentiate between left and right foot.
During the Civil War soldiers who were shot, but not killed, often had to have limbs amputated. “An Enfield rifle fired a fifty-eight caliber bullet,” Keefer said. “If it hit you in the arm, it would take your arm off, or it would cause such a bad wound that it would have to be amputated.”
“The Enfield came from England,” Keefer said. “In a demonstration of its accuracy a marksman fired six shots from a thousand yards and hit all six watermelon targets.”
“When they made rifles in England the gunsmiths would stay with the rifle until it was finished just right. The United States bought the rights to manufacture them in Springfield by the Singer Sewing Machine Company.”
“During the war they tried to make them as fast as they could. When they made them too fast, it left a ridge in the rifling that made the flight of the bullet unpredictable. They had to slow down the machining process to get accurate rifling.”
The cavalry used Henry lever action repeating rifles. The lever action was easier to use on horseback. “You couldn’t reload a muzzle loader when you were riding full tilt on a horse,” Keefer said.
Civil War soldiers also used small arms. A cap and ball Remington would be loaded with a round bullet. “You had to put a little vaseline on the ball so it would stay in the gun,” Keefer said. “If you didn’t the ball would roll out when the barrel was pointed down.”
“Many soldiers preferred the Colt over the Remington. It took about a minute or two to load the gun. If you had a Colt you could use it as a club without bending the barrel.”
“There was a code of honor among officers during the Civil War era,” Keefer said. “If someone threw down the gauntlet, you knew there was going to be a swordfight or a gunfight. A requirement of the code of honor was that you would never back down from a fight.”
People who participate in Civil War reenactments can expect to pay a good price for an authentic period uniform. “A hand-sewn coat may cost eight hundred dollars; brogans (shoes) may cost one hundred twenty five dollars,” Keefer said. “A hat may cost one hundred fifty dollars.”
posted by Mane Lion at
9:59 AM
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