Museum's reenactors Civil War uniform.

major bill said:

I was at a town's local history museum today. While they had some nice WWI to post Vietnam stuff, their Civil War uniforms were donated by reenactors. How do we know?

What are the giveaways that tells us these are nor museum quality reproductions? Anyone see telltale signs?View attachment 583471View attachment 583472The museum was fun and did have some nice original items.View attachment 583473View attachment 583474

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Trooper D said:

I'll bite....the bill and sweatband on the cap is wrong......or now manufacturers stamp and size number.
Cuff has wrong rope piping.
Tell me how I did?

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gary said:

Better than I. I would have suggested "Made in China" label.

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major bill said:

Sadly many small private history museums show whatever has been donated. Many lack curators who are experts on uniforms.

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Trooper D said:

I saw one antique display in Moss Landing, CA that had a "Cavalry" Bayonet for sale. I tried to explain the absurdity to one of the reenactors from back then but he wasn't seeing it. Got snippy with me even. Apologized later though.

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major bill said:

Sadly many small private history museums show whatever has been donated. Many lack curators who are experts on uniforms.

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gary said:

If I was a curator, I'd ask at Authentic Campaigner. Park Ranger Emanuel Dabney was on that site. At Petersburg National Battlefield Park I asked him if he was seasonal or full time. He said the latter. I then called him a lucky devil. He didn't know how to take it. I added, "In winter when no one is here you get to read all those books downstairs in the park's library and get paid for to read them!" He smiled.

Sometimes I wish I was a National Battlefield (or even local battlefield) park ranger. Mind you, Krick (the elder) told me that anything written while one is in the employ of the park is considered the park's intellectual property. They make the money and not the ranger.

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gary said:

How true. Museums are very limited on resources. I've maintained that most museums survive because of volunteers. Even curators at major museums have their shortcomings. I once spoke with the Smithsonian's Chief Curator for firearms and in the course of the conversation learned I had more expertise on one narrow subject matter than her. She was getting angry when I told her their website isn't quite right and I apologized said let's do this by email. By email another Smithsonian curator told me that a false muzzle was a type of suppressor. I suggested he look at the pictures in Bill Edwards' book, Civil War Guns, that showed John Amber (dec.) using one to load a target telescope rifle. Lessoon: A PhD outside of their area of expertise is a layman.

Museums need to have good libraries to enlighten the curator and to helps him/her interpret the object, educate the docents and curate the displays.

BTW, that chief curator isn't working for the Smithsonian any longer and for a while had a column in the NMLRA Muzzle Blasts Magazine. She was there at the time The Patriot was being filmed.

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R. Porter said:

Somewhere there is a current auction that lists "mounted cavalry" swords.

But seriously, didn't Australian mounted infantry make a charge on horseback armed with bayonets on October 31, 1917, against the Ottomans at a place called Beersheba? As I recall, it was quite the successful attack.

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CWdiaryPA said:

"...anything written while one is in the employ of the park is considered the park's intellectual property. They make the money and not the ranger."

Has that been tested? That can't possibly be legal.

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Jim in Wisconsin said:

I think the way it's legal is that you agree to it as a condition of employment.

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gary said:

Sometimes I wish I was a National Battlefield (or even local battlefield) park ranger. Mind you, Krick (the elder) told me that anything written while one is in the employ of the park is considered the park's intellectual property. They make the money and not the ranger.

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