Group of Young Union Soldiers

While researching overcoats/greatcoats, I stumbled upon several photographs on the Library of Congress web site in the Liljenquist Family Collection of Civil War Photographs section. One photograph in particular caught my eye. It is a group of four men posing in a camp scene. The caption of the photograph “Sergeant Cornelius V. Moore of Company B, 100th New York Volunteers, a sergeant of 39th Illinois Regiment, a corporal of 106th New York Volunteers, and a private of the 11th Vermont Regiment in camp scene poses in front of painted backdrop showing military camp.”

If you look closely, you’ll see a whole mess of things. The first one is the young man on the left smoking his pipe. The man next to him is fully accoutered up holding the spout of his canteen. The soldier holding the musket is also wearing a slouch hat and is fully accoutered up. The gentleman lying down is lying upon a rubber gum blanket with a blanket wrapped around him. He is also holding a spoon as if he was preparing food in his boiler next to a glass bottle. If you notice, you’ll see the boil lid located near him. You can also see knitted gloves. This is a great insight as to what these men did during bivouacs or encampments.