Richmond Arsenal Saber Belts
By Thomas Mc(Neill) Rose III and Craig Schneider
The Richmond Arsenal pattern saber belt is a unique article which speaks to the Confederate Ordnance Department’s credible efforts to equip its armies in the field. While intended to be issued specifically to the Army of Northern Virginia’s cavalry, many of these belts were sold to the officer corps of Lee’s army though the Richmond Arsenal system. This particular type of belt, accentuated by its uniform characteristics, is one of the more valuable pieces in studying Confederate material culture as it relates to production, military contracting, and leather supply.
Background
In the summer of 1862, the Richmond Arsenal wrote to Shay, Williamson, and Co. of the North State Iron and Brass Works in Raleigh, North Carolina, inquiring as to what had happened to their contract for 10,000 sets of saber belt mountings. The firm replied that the contract had been completed in full months prior, and sent directly to the Richmond Arsenal’s new manufacturing facility, the Ordnance Harness Shops at Clarksville, Virginia, which had opened in June.
From the summer of 1862 though the spring of 1863, the Clarksville Ordnance Harness Shops produced saber belts alongside their usual production of artillery harness, cavalry saddles and tack, and various components utilized in the production of infantry equipment. From correspondence between Major W.S. Downer in Richmond and Captain Henry Pride in Clarksville, it is apparent that the Ordnance Harness Shops intended to produce two styles of saber belt—an enlisted version using the “common” mountings made by Shay, Williamson, and Co. and a smaller number of officer belts using gilded buckles and more finely finished hardware the North Carolina firm had provided. The enlisted belts would have been made with the leather Clarksville had in abundance—fair bridle leather, black bridle and harness leather, and russet harness leather. While Richmond had sent a supply of black enameled leather to Clarksville for the officer belts, Captain Pride found this leather needed more for making covered seats for officer saddles, and asked Richmond for permission to use it thusly and presumably substitute another available leather for officer belt production. Similarly, Pride noted that, while he had buckles appropriate for the purpose, he lacked an equal number of the more finely finished rings and hooks, indicating that he may have directed officer-quality belts be made with hardware intended for enlisted belts. By May of 1863, the Richmond Arsenal ordered the Ordnance Harness Shops to streamline production of harness and saddles, and began to hand off a number of their tasks, including saber belt production, to various small contractors in Virginia and North Carolina.
Throughout most of the remainder of the war, the Richmond Arsenal awarded contracts to Shay, Williamson, and Co. for an enormous number of saber belt mountings. While records are incomplete, contracts and contract proposals for over 50,000 sets of hardware survive, as do receipts for delivery of at least 36,000 sets of enlisted hardware and 1,200 sets of officer hardware. Put into perspective, this could have been turned into enough belts to provide every trooper in the Army of Northern Virginia a belt with regular replacement over the course of the war.
Receipts for deliveries of sets of belt mountings from Shay, Williamson, and Co. to Richmond from 1862, 1863, and 1864. These are several of many similar receipts that have survived.
The 1864 order directing contracts be made for canvas saber belts.
The North Carolina-made hardware was provided, often along with leather of whatever type the Richmond Arsenal was able to acquire, to its numerous contractors. As the war progressed and supplies of leather became stretched, modifications to the belt were made, likely first to omit the manufacture of the shoulder strap. The Richmond Arsenal had already been making infantry waist belts from painted cloth belting with scrap leather billets and chapes since February 1863, but continued to produce the saber belts, which needed to withstand greater abuse, exclusively from leather. By the spring of 1864, however, the Ordnance Department made its most significant change, ordering the Richmond Arsenal to discontinue production of leather saber belts and instead contract for belts made of plain, unpainted canvas (this same order also affecting canteen straps and gun slings). A large number of the canvas saber belts were contracted for in 1864—at least 10,000—and there is no indication that the Richmond Arsenal resumed production of leather saber belts before the end of the war.
The Belts
Luckily, there are numerous examples of this easily identifiable saber belt housed in museum institutions and available for viewing on the collectors’ market. By examining dozens of extant articles, the authors have identified a progression of patterns in several phases corresponding to the changes in production facilities and available materials noted above. This system of modifying patterns reflects the Confederate Ordnance Department’s changing needs regarding leather supply and hardware usage. While unique in certain features, the patterns generally conform to several basic similarities. Specifically, these are:
Uniform width at 1.5 inches.
Standard two-piece cast brass “CS” belt plates (referred to as “clasps” in wartime correspondence and receipts) in a variety of very similar styles.
Unique “bullet” or “English point” stitching affixing the laurel wreath portion of the buckle to the belt.
Similar hardware and method of attachment.
General non-use of the over the shoulder strap and associated hardware (“Type 2” and “Type 3”).
Uniform use of the “teardrop” stitch on the rear hanger strap (“Type 2”).
For all the belts’ similarities, there is a wide variation in leather type, weight, finish, etc. Richmond Arsenal saber belts are primarily seen in black waxed flesh leather, undyed flesh leather, fair bridle leather, black bridle leather, and russet harness leather. Since many of these belts were manufactured by private businesses via contract with the Richmond Arsenal, the variety of leather speaks more to available supply of both domestic and imported materials than anything else.
While the leather utilized in Richmond Arsenal saber belts varies, the hardware is very consistent, falling into two different types. While numerous molds exhibiting very minor differences were used, the spoon and wreath buckles have a Roman “CS” design, or occasionally an English-style “CS.” Generally, the loops (referred to as “rings” in wartime correspondence and receipts) are either thin brass wire brazed to form a narrow oval, or solid, rough cast brass. The hooks vary from a flattened English style with a relatively nice finish to crudely cast copies. The saber hanger studs (referred to as either “studs” or “buttons”) are typically lead filled brass or crudely cast brass. Waist adjustment is accomplished via a simple tension adjustment using leather loops. There are several examples that utilize a narrow leather thong similar to a shoelace to tie the adjustable end of the belt into place, and others that similarly use a saber hanger strap stud along with holes and slits on the belt body to allow the belt to be buttoned at the proper waist measurement. These features may be common field modifications to more permanently secure belts that were only issued with leather tension loops for waist adjustment or variations between manufacturers.
The first style of belt exhibits the use of brass rings for an over the shoulder strap assembly. While several of these belts do exist and are very similar, none actually retain the strap itself. The second style exhibits the same overall construction but affixes the rear hanger strap to the body of the belt itself utilizing a teardrop pattern of stitching. Likewise, many of these examples show the absence of a top forward ring above the hook since there is no provision for a shoulder strap assembly (though, oddly, several examples retain the ring that would serve no apparent purpose). The third style reflects the Confederate Ordnance Department’s thrift in the latter period of the war, circa 1864 and 1865. This all-cotton type (except for the two leather saber hanger straps), was even designed for a tension adjustment using cloth loops, or simply left for the soldier to stitch in place at his waist size.
The authors have had the privilege of to examine many of these belts thanks to institutions such as the Museum of the Confederacy and Virginia Historical Society. Likewise, many private collectors and dealers have been gracious enough to allow these unique saber belts to be photographed and documented for posterity. By studying a piece of material culture as unassuming as a belt, students of the Civil War gain insight into the wartime manufacturing process and the need to simplify patterns and make use of different materials as the war progressed—a statement to the Ordnance Department’s resourcefulness and focus on simple yet serviceable equipment.
Surviving Examples
Hardware:
Several of the numerous examples of buckles produced under contract by Shay, Williamson, and Co. for the Richmond Arsenal, including a gilded officer type with English style letters.
Crudely cast Shay, Williamson, and Co. “common” hooks and rings.
Richmond-style hook and rings made of thin brass wire, possibly intended for finer officer belts.
Lead filled brass saber hanger strap button.
“Type 1” Saber Belts:
A rare and nearly complete early example of the Richmond saber belt, possibly manufactured at the Clarksville Ordnance Harness Shops in 1862, exhibits hardware to attach a shoulder strap. A saber hanger strap button is used to adjust the belt, but it is unclear if the belt was issued this way or if it was a field modification.
This early belt possibly manufactured at the Clarksville Ordnance Harness Shops is made of black dyed bridle leather.
“Type 2” Saber Belts:
A nearly complete example of an early “Type 2” belt, to include the tiny saber hanger strap loops which rarely survive. This belt is made of undyed waxed flesh leather and features a forward ring for a shoulder strap despite having no rear provision for a shoulder strap, and incorporates a rear saber hanger strap sewn to the belt with teardrop shaped stitching. Adjustment is via tension using leather loops. Despite being an enlistedman’s belt, this example was worn by Captain Maxwell T. Clarke of the C.S. Navy. His service record possibly places the manufacture of this belt in late 1862 or early 1863, as he remained on the rolls of a Virginia infantry regiment as a private until December 31, 1862, after which time he accepted a Lieutenant’s commission in the Navy. -Courtesy of the American Civil War Museum, Richmond, VA.
Virtually identical to Clarke’s belt, this surviving example of an early “Type 2” belt also includes a variant octagonal forward ring despite having no rear provision for a shoulder strap. It is made from black waxed flesh leather.
This “Type 2” belt made of russet leather similarly features as vestigial forward ring for a shoulder strap and adjusted only with leather loops. Private John Speck of the 39th Battalion Virginia Cavalry served from late 1863 until his hospitalization and death in June 1864. -Courtesy of the American Civil War Museum, Richmond, VA.
This “Type 2” belt was made from waxed flesh leather that was dyed black on both the flesh and the grain side. Of note is the leather thong used to the secure the adjustable end of the belt.
This undyed bridle leather belt features a slight variation of the style—while there are no rings for a shoulder strap, the rear saber hanger strap is still attached to the belt with a ring as per “Type 1” belts. While holes were crudely punched in the belt at some point to secure the adjustable end of the belt, it was originally issued only with leather loops for adjustment.
An unidentified “Type 2” belt made of black waxed flesh leather that, while missing the saber hangers, still shows the teardrop shaped stitching that once held the rear hanger in place. This belt adjusted only via leather loops.
This undyed bridle leather “Type 2” belt originally included leather loops for adjustment.
This “Type 2” belt incudes its leather adjustment loops, which are of a different tannage than the leather used to make the body of the belt.
“Type 3” Saber Belts:
This “Type 3” belt corresponds to the 1864 instructions to utilize canvas in the construction of saber belts. Made of cotton duck, the belt used leather only for the saber hanger straps, both of which are attached to the belt with rings sewn to cloth. Typical Shay, Williamson, and Co. hardware is used throughout. The adjustable end of the belt is loose and has no method to secure it in place, which could indicate either the former presence of tension loops or the intention to have the soldier stitch the belt to his waist measurement.
This “Type 3” belt has been stitched to fit the wearer, though a cloth tension loop still remains on the belt.
This “Type 3” belt has the rear saber hanger strap stitched directly to the belt. The adjustable end of the belt is loose and has no method to secure it in place, which, as per the first example above, could indicate the former presence of tension loops or the intention to have the soldier stitch the belt to his waist measurement.
Officers’ Saber Belts:
Officers in the Army of Northern Virginia were able to purchase both inexpensive enlisted belts as well as higher quality belts that the Richmond Arsenal produced and made available for their needs via the Ordnance Store House. There are numerous surviving examples of higher quality belts in various configurations utilizing Shay, Williamson, and Co. hardware. A few interesting examples are presented here.
This high quality officer belt is made with the finer Shay, Williamson, and Co. buckle with English lettering, but the crudely cast hook and rings associated with enlisted belts. Rather than studs, a brass buckle with iron tongue identical to the type seen on Richmond Arsenal-produced officers’ haversack and Clarksville Ordnance Harness Shops-produced officers’ saddles is used to adjust the saber hanger strap. An iron wire hook of the type seen on Richmond and Clarksville gun slings is used to adjust the belt. The combination of hardware along with the use of undyed bridle leather as opposed to black enameled leather is a possible indication of manufacture at the Clarksville Ordnance Harness Shops in early 1863, which noted having exactly this combination of materials available for the making of officers’ belts. -Courtesy of the American Civil War Museum, Richmond, VA.
This fine officer belt is made similarly to the example above, instead utilizing both the buckle with English lettering and the thinner brass wire rings.
Sharing similar construction to the officer belts above, this example also features undyed bridle leather and an iron wire adjustment hook. While a cruder “enlisted” buckle is used, the finer brass wire hook and rings are included. Unlike the former examples, this one lacks both provision for a shoulder strap and the leather safes behind the saber hanger strap hardware.
Details:
While the manner of trimming the end of the belt and the length and quality of the stitching varied, the bullet point stitching method remained consistent.
The majority of belts that retain their leather loops show very crude construction of the loops—most are simply stitched wrong sides together with the seam toward the body of the wearer. Only a few examples are butted together, and these are hastily done rather than with a nicer butt stitch.
The hook and ring were attached to the belt with a short leather strip that was sometimes positioned entirely on the outside of the body of the belt, and other times can be seen looping over to the back.
Rarely do saber belts retain their saber hanger straps, and even more rare are surviving saber hanger strap loops. The small handful that do survive are simply butted together with a few stitches. -Courtesy of the American Civil War Museum, Richmond, VA.
References
The American Civil War Museum collections, Richmond, VA.
Business record, Shay, Williamson, and Co.; Confederate Papers Relating to Citizens or Business Firms, Record Group 109; National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, DC.
Compiled service records, Captain Maxwell T. Clarke, Captain James Dinwiddie, Major W.S. Downer, Captain O.W. Edwards, Colonel Josiah Gorgas, Captain Henry Pride, Private John Speck, and others; Compiled Service Records of Confederate Soldiers, Record Group 109; National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, DC.
Virginia Historical Society collections, Richmond, VA.
The authors would like to thank the numerous collectors and dealers who shared photographs or permitted their belts to be examined.
