BACKGROUND

The following guidelines focus on the 6th Mississippi Infantry of Cleburne's Brigade, Hardee’s Corps, at the Battle of Shiloh in April 1862.

UNIT HISTORY

The 6th Mississippi Infantry Regiment was organized on paper in February 1861 as one of eight regiments in the state’s army, and formed and accepted into Confederate service for twelve months in August 1861 at Grenada. The unit was comprised of men from the central Mississippi counties of Rankin, Copiah, Scott, Simpson, Smith, and Leake. The majority of the regiment was composed of farmers, clerks, laborers, and tradesmen from counties with relatively low slave populations compared to the delta region of the state, with only two counties having majority slave populations (Rankin and Copiah, both with approximately 52% slave populations). The regiment would elect a former Unionist delegate to the state’s secession convention, John J. Thornton, to command.

The ten companies of the 6th Mississippi present in April 1862 were as follows:

• Company A – Rankin Rough and Readies – Rankin County

• Company B – New Guard – Rankin County

• Company C – Quitman Southrons – Leake County

• Company D – Lowry Rifles – Smith County

• Company E – Lake Rebels – Scott County

• Company F – Crystal Springs Guards – Copiah County

• Company G – Rockport Steel Blades – Copiah County

• Company H – Simpson Fencibles – Simpson County

• Company I – Rankin Greys – Rankin County

• Company K – East Mississippi Greys – Scott County

The 6th Mississippi would move into camp near Bowling Green, Kentucky in October 1861. The regiment would spend the winter being equipped, drilling, and suffering through bouts of typhoid and measles. After the fall of Fort Donelson the 6th would move with General Albert Sidney Johnston’s command to Corinth, Mississippi. The regiment numbered 425 officers and men as it moved to assault the enemy at Pittsburg Landing.

IMPRESSION GUIDELINES

The Quartermaster and Ordnance requisitions and receipts for the 4th Quarter of 1861 and 1st Quarter of 1862 show the expected issues of clothing and equipment being distributed to infantry units recently accepted into Confederate service.  Throughout the winter the regiment would be supplied with uniforms from local aid societies made from state-supplied fabric, coats, pants, and caps from the Confederate Quartermaster Department in Nashville, accoutrements both from the state and the Nashville Arsenal, and would be fully supplied with double blankets. It is evident from the receipts that in April, the 6th was clothed and equipped to a reasonable degree of adequacy.

The idea behind these impression guidelines is to create a best guess through research and an understanding of the workings of the Mississippi State Quartermaster and the Confederate Quartermaster and Ordnance Departments in Nashville. Our goal will be to create a regimental impression.  This means some degree of matching patterns of haversacks, or matching canteen types, or matching knapsack types is most appropriate.  The idea is to replicate the look of a regiment that was being issued clothing and equipment from the state and national government.  We're not definitively saying that the 6th Mississippi only had X, Y or Z, but what we are saying is that, a Confederate regiment in this context during this period of the war, didn't have 50 different unique haversacks, and 50 different “commutation” jackets made of 50 different fabrics, etc. 

Coat

1. Military frock coat made of grey or brown jeans, either plain or simply trimmed as per Nashville-made frocks. Participants should endeavor to acquire a coat that copies the details of a surviving original specimen such as the Ryan, Conn, or Neely coats rather than a speculative piece.

2. Plain military jackets made of grey or brown jeans, preferably lined in osnaburg, representative of the jackets made by county aid societies utilizing state-supplied factory-made cloth. Mississippi buttons are encouraged.

   Fabric other than basic grey or brown jeans, wild button or trim patterns, and early 1861-specific Mississippi trim colors and patterns are unacceptable.

Pants

1. Military-style pants made from grey or brown jeans. *GROUP BUY OPTION AVAILABLE

   Avoid U.S. Army pants and pants made of oddball fabrics.

Shirt

1. Plain, untrimmed wool flannel shirts. Ready made wool flannel shirts were commonly red or blue in the mid-19th Century, and Quartermaster Department documents indicate grey and white flannel was used. *GROUP BUY OPTION AVAILABLE

2. Government issue shirt made of cotton osnaburg.

3. Citizen's shirts. We're trying to limit the number of "homespun" check shirts, not because they're wrong, just very over represented in our opinion.  So if you have a nice cotton print shirt, or plain cotton or wool citizen's shirt, go with that over the homespun.

Drawers

1. Cotton government issue drawers

2. Citizen’s cotton or wool drawers.

Headgear

1. Military caps made of grey wool, with or without a black band.

2. Citizen’s “slouch” hats.

   Please avoid oddball hats, kepis made of material other than plain grey cloth, kepis with fuzzy leather brims, and Richmond kepis. Just wear a good citizen’s slouch hat if you do not have an appropriate kepi.

Footwear

1. Domestic or imported military shoes.

2. Citizen’s shoes or boots.

3. Federal Bootees if that is all you have.

   
   

Canteen

1. Plain tin drum Mississippi state issue canteen on a cotton or leather sling.

2. Cedar Nashville Arsenal canteen on a cotton or leather sling.

   
   

Haversack

1. Nashville Arsenal haversack made of unpainted cotton canvas with inner divider.

2. Other Confederate haversack copied from an original government-made example. This is an easy way to create some uniformity within a company. Simple cotton haversacks such as the "Henry Neal" or "Goulding" bags are great options. Please avoid haversacks made of carpet, tapestry, ticking, etc.

   
   

Knapsack

Knapsacks are encouraged based upon surviving documentation from the 6th Mississippi prior to Shiloh. To match the type of knapsacks predominately contracted for the by the state of Mississippi and those issued via the Nashville Arsenal, and promote a semblance of uniformity, we have identified three types of knapsacks that will be acceptable for this event:

1. Mississippi or Nashville issue single bag knapsack (often called a “Mexican War” knapsack by reenactors) with a painted flap and unpainted, partially painted, or fully painted bag. “Kibler,” “Johnston,” and other similar versions are acceptable.

2. Imported British “Isaac and Campbell” or “Ross and Co.” knapsack.

3. Wood frame “hard pack” knapsack with oilcloth cover in limited numbers.

   If you don't have one of these types, go with a blanket roll.

Blankets

The state of Mississippi purchased exclusively double blankets for its troops and provided each soldier a “pair,” with the 6th Mississippi being well documented to have received enough for every soldier in the regiment. While we understand that not every participant can be expected to purchase a double blanket via the event Group Buy, we acknowledge that it is unlikely that every double blanket issued in the winter of 1861 survived to April 1862 and other types of blankets will be acceptable. That said, we strongly encourage participants who are able to acquire one of the 6-pound double length blankets copied from an original to do so. They are certainly a versatile piece of equipment that is both warm and manageable in a knapsack.

1. Mississippi state issue double blanket.

2. Other Confederate, import, and citizen’s blankets are acceptable.

   Old timey grandma quilts, Woolrich blankets, and surplus blankets are unacceptable.

Overcoats

Receipts from the winter of 1861-1862 show only a small number of “blanket coats” issued to the regiment. Instructions to produce makeshift overcoats from standard single Navy blankets (somewhat narrower than usual 5/4 width three pound white blankets with blue end stripes of the type that Mississippi contracted for) were published in Mississippi newspapers prior to the winter of 1861. As it would appear that the 6th Mississippi was a beneficiary of this effort, and no other receipts for overcoats can be found, military overcoats are discouraged.

1. Blanket coats as per the Mississippi instructions are acceptable in limited numbers.

2. Proper citizen’s overcoats are acceptable in limited numbers.

Arms

The 6th Mississippi was carrying primarily smoothbore .69 caliber muskets converted to percussion along with a number of Enfield rifle muskets. While it had long been thought that the 6th Mississippi had been issued a large number of Hall Rifles, recent research has shown that the Halls were issued to the 4th Mississippi (who the 6th had been brigaded with when arms were issued) and were subsequently captured at Fort Donelson. As such, Halls will not be permitted.

1. M-1816 musket converted to percussion.

2. M-1842 smoothbore musket.

3. P-1853 Enfield Rifle Musket.

   All arms must be clean, oiled, and in excellent working order.

Gun Slings

The 6th Mississippi was provided with large numbers of gun slings prior to Shiloh, and those who had been issued Enfields were provided with predominantly white buff slings. As such, gun slings are very strongly encouraged.

1. Fair or russet leather gun sling. The typical U.S. Army type is acceptable.

2. Those carrying Enfields should have an imported gun sling, ideally made of white buff.

   Late 1864 – 1865 cloth Richmond gun slings are unacceptable.

Accoutrements

Mississippi contracted with Magee & Kneass in New Orleans to produce accoutrements for its troops, and photos of members of the 6th Mississippi show the “forked tongue” belt often associated with the firm. The Nashville Arsenal contracted locally for accoutrements to be made and also issued large amounts of recently imported British army accoutrements, the majority of which were white buff Line accoutrements. Those carrying Enfields are strongly encouraged to, at the very least, acquire the white buff gun sling and bayonet scabbard with white buff frog that were issued with the first batches of Enfields.

1. Magee and Kneass cartridge box, cartridge box belt, cap box, belt (commonly with a “forked tongue” buckle), and scabbard.

2. Plain domestically-made Confederate issue cartridge box, cartridge box belt, cap box, belt, and scabbard.

3. Imported British cartridge box, white buff pouch belt, white buff cap pouch, white buff Ball Bag, white buff belt with snake buckle, and scabbard with white buff frog.

   U.S. accoutrements, especially 1864 cartridge boxes with riveted latch tabs, and cheap sutler row accoutrements with big white nylon stitches, are unacceptable.

Mess Equipment

The state of Mississippi provided the 6th with complete sets of mess equipment for each company, to included cast iron skillets with lids and camp kettles. Each company will be expected to bring a set of original cast iron skillets with lids and kettles. For additional information on Confederate mess equipment and how to identify period cast iron, see: Biscuit Bakers and Camp Kettles: Notes on Confederate Mess Equipment.