Saturday, February 16, 2013

Patten's Bayonet Drill Manual from 1865

I wonder if Brig. General George Patten has any relation to General George S. Patton? Hmmm....

Sunday, February 3, 2013

Printable US Army enlistment papers from 1861.

Round out your impression with some authentic paperwork! These are very nice, clean digital scans enlarged from John D. Billings' reenactor bible: Hardtack & Coffee, published in 1881Print these and fill them out, either as a keepsake, something to frame on your wall, or use them as an example of 1860s paperwork at a living history. I suggest printing on a special parchment paper, which you can easily get at Staples or Office Depot. Something a bit more yellowish and marbled than just bright white printer paper. Also, print out at an odd size, because documents in the Civil War were anything but 8.5"x11" inches. Letters and papers sent through the mail were about half the size of today's office papers, because envelopes were smaller.