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Atlanta and Albany Uniforms

Written by William Beard

Monday, 30 April 2007

Why are the Albany and Atlanta uniforms postwar? By William A. Beard III © The Seventy-Ninth Thistle; Seventy-Ninth New York Highlanders National Newsletter, Vol. III No.2 Winter 2000 (pp. 36-38) There has been some discussion for years among 79th historians regarding which uniform is correct for the prewar years. Because this information was not known, many reenactors chose to base their impressions on one or the other known styles. Within the last few years information has surfaced which sheds light on which uniform is prewar and why it should be considered so. The most compelling argument is a simple study of known prewar photos. A second study would be to look at the artifacts themselves and study their construction and material and compare it to the many reference books available to researchers. The third study should be of the postwar regulations. These studies along would lead one to conclude that there is more than circumstantial evidence to prove the one uniform over the other. In the beginning of my research a number of years ago I did not know which uniform was earlier. The more I probed, the more evidence came to light. There is not doubt that the Atlanta and the Albany uniforms are of the same style, pattern, and make. The uniforms currently at Gettysburg and Manassas are also similar in construction and style to each other. The Atlanta uniform belonged to a 79th soldier named Robert Muldrum. The 28-page set of documents that accompany the uniform in the Atlanta Historical Society mentions the original owner’s name and history. The family admits that he did not fight in the Civil War but joined the 79th after the war. Robert Meldrum, whose Scottish-born father was James Meldrum, was born on July 4, 1822 in New Orleans and died in Brooklyn, New York on January 17, 1914. Meldrum does not show up in the roster of the wartime 79th, but does appear in the postwar records. The jackets at Atlanta and Albany also possess a secret as to what date they were made. The National Guard system, which the 79th New York joined after the war, adopted the U.S. Army’s regulations. In 1872, the regulations for coats and jackets were laid out and copied by state organizations across the country. The Atlanta and Albany jackets are of the 1872-pattern with one addition. These jackets have a cutout for the sporran. Oddly enough, the pattern chosen for the 79th was the light artillery, not the infantry. The light artillery pattern jacket was trimmed and piped in a scarlet and had slashes or slits at the waist to facilitate riding a horse. The collars are treated exactly like the Atlanta and Albany jackets. Plus, artillery jackets of the postwar period had red chevrons exactly like the Albany jacket. In addition, 1872 pattern jackets all have the cuff guards or “Brandenburg” cuffs. The artillery jackets as well as the 79th postwar jacket has red cuff guards without trim or piping. I examined 11 different artillery jackets for this article and can find no difference between the 1872 pattern jacket and the Atlanta and Albany jackets, except for the sporran cutout and some collar variations. In addition, I own an 1872 pattern jacket, and use it for comparison study. This style of jacket shows up as a prototype in 1867. There are many other reasons why the four uniforms differ in date. The other reasons have to do with the style and pattern of the accoutrements. The belt plates on the Atlanta and Albany uniforms date to after the war. The kilt hose for the Atlanta and Albany uniforms are greenish in color, which matches the 1875 uniform illustrations. The gaiters with the Atlanta uniform match illustrations made after the war. The red and white checker glengarries do not appear in any known wartime photograph, but accompany both the Atlanta and Albany uniforms. The red, blue, and white diced glengarries with the Gettysburg uniform appear in numerous wartime photographs. The early-identified photographs showing the whole uniform also show that the garters on the kilt hose are black flashings and the Atlanta and Albany uniforms have red rosettes. These are just the beginning of the differences showing why the uniforms currently (December 2000) at Gettysburg and Manassas are the prewar, and the uniforms currently (December 2000) at Albany and Atlanta are postwar.

Last Updated ( Wednesday, 10 October 2007 )

 

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