Civil War Brogans

[Billw12280]

No worries Bill, I gained in other ways … my uniforms were usually cheaper than anyone else's - helluva difference in yardage between a size #1 and a size #4

As to the 'b'iled leather', yes I've read or heard that somewhere too. May have been one of the books on Andersonville or the Feds on the 'Cracker Line' at Chattanooga. Don't know if you guys have a similar saying over there, but one of my favourite Britishisms is 'I'm so hungry my stomach thinks my throat's been cut ...'

That is certainly true and a great way to look at it. Less money for less material is a good thing.

I'll have to remember that Britishism, the one that comes to mind for me is "I'm so hungry I could eat a horse".

 

[Package4]

Sad story. In the early 80s I had just moved to Virginia and could study the War from local sites. On a visit to an old building that had been a hospital after both Manassas and was being renovated, I picked up an old holster and an ink laying next to the dumpster. What I did not know to pick up was the 20 or so brogans that were also laying next to the dumpster.

Now that would be a nightmare, reoccurring at that!

 

[Mint Julep]

Sad story. In the early 80s I had just moved to Virginia and could study the War from local sites. On a visit to an old building that had been a hospital after both Manassas and was being renovated, I picked up an old holster and an ink laying next to the dumpster. What I did not know to pick up was the 20 or so brogans that were also laying next to the dumpster.

I can see how these would have been mistaken for Converse hightops.

 

[Mint Julep]

That's a shame. Hopefully they did not end up going to some landfill. I'm picturing some lucky collector coming out of an alley with an armload of old beat up shoes smiling from ear to ear.

Honestly it is not something that most people would think about being collectible. When you think of, for example, Abraham Lincoln's wardrobe the first thing that comes to mind is probably his hat, then his suit and frock. Nobody ever thinks about his shoes, we all know he wore shoes but that's not what comes to mind. Nobody goes to the Smithsonian to see his clothes and says "yes, but what about his shoes?". View attachment 196479

He wore Brooks Brothers suits and wore a size 14 boot.

 

[Billw12280]

Christmas came early. I just received these Civil War brogans after several long months of them being on layaway. It is great to have found a pair of brogans since they are so rare but to find a pair in such nice condition is amazing. I never thought I would own a pair but I am proud to have them in my collection. There are obvious signs of use but overall they are in great shape. I'm not sure if the canvas lined insoles are original to the shoe or not but if they are you can see the indentation of the wearers feet right down to the toes!

 

[zburkett]

Great brogans. Congratulations. You make me want to cry. In the early eighties, after I had first moved to Virginia from the west, I was in Marshal, Virginia where they were renovating a building that had been a hospital after Manassas. Laying by the dumpster were twenty or brogans that I did not know to pick up. All I took was the holster laying on the ground next to them. Now I would pick up all the brogans then go dumpster diving.

 

[Billw12280]

Thank you @zburkett. I feel your pain and wish there was a way to turn back time, I'd be right with you tunneling through the trash.

 

[Package4]

Christmas came early. I just received these Civil War brogans after several long months of them being on layaway. It is great to have found a pair of brogans since they are so rare but to find a pair in such nice condition is amazing. I never thought I would own a pair but I am proud to have them in my collection. There are obvious signs of use but overall they are in great shape. I'm not sure if the canvas lined insoles are original to the shoe or not but if they are you can see the indentation of the wearers feet right down to the toes!
View attachment 205986 View attachment 205987 View attachment 205988 View attachment 205989 View attachment 205990 View attachment 205991 View attachment 205992 View attachment 205993

Very nice, now I have to post pics of mine, none of which are as nice as those beauties!

 

[Billw12280]

Very nice, now I have to post pics of mine, none of which are as nice as those beauties!

Thanks @Package4! I couldn't pass these up when I found them on the Horse Soldier's website. The only other pair I've seen up close was in the Col. Eli Lilly museum in Indianapolis and they were relic condition! I would love to see pictures of your brogans.

My ultimate goal is to put together a complete infantry uniform down to the sack coat. I'm in the process of buying a nice pair of NCO Massachusetts trousers from Will Gorges. I also have my sights set on a sack coat but it will take some saving, selling, and/or praying I win the lottery to obtain it (donations would also be appreciated...wink,wink ). I'll keep you updated as I piece together my dream uniform (Federally speaking of course).

 

[Package4]

Thanks @Package4! I couldn't pass these up when I found them on the Horse Soldier's website. The only other pair I've seen up close was in the Col. Eli Lilly museum in Indianapolis and they were relic condition! I would love to see pictures of your brogans.

My ultimate goal is to put together a complete infantry uniform down to the sack coat. I'm in the process of buying a nice pair of NCO Massachusetts trousers from Will Gorges. I have my sights set on a sack coat but it will take some saving, selling, and/or praying I win the lottery to obtain it (donations would also be appreciated...wink,wink ). I'll keep you updated as I piece together my dream uniform (Federally speaking of course).

Will's great, make sure you negotiate...…..

 

[Billw12280]

Will's great, make sure you negotiate...…..

He has been great to talk with. I haven't spoken to him since before the hurricane went through so I hope he didn't have any issues.

 

[Billw12280]

I just received my second pair of Civil War brogans and I am very happy to have them. These brogans appear to be early war and are similar to the Federal variation brogans pictured in Echoes of Glory. This pair was bought from Ebay and the seller stated they belonged to George W.P. Freeland.

Freeland, George W.P.
BATTLE UNIT NAME:
18th Regiment, Pennsylvania Cavalry (163rd Volunteers)
SIDE:
Union
COMPANY:
E
SOLDIER'S RANK IN:
Private
SOLDIER'S RANK OUT:
Sergeant
ALTERNATE NAME:
FILM NUMBER:
M554 ROLL 39
PLAQUE NUMBER:
NOTES:
none

This raises some questions for me. Were Cavalry soldiers issued brogans or boots? These brogans have heavy sole wear that I would think would be more indicative of a foot soldier than a mounted soldier. I'm wondering how accurate the attribution is? The seller said he bought the shoes decades ago directly from the Freeland estate in Dauphin County, PA but that is the only evidence I have to go on. Any thoughts? I will add more photos later when time permits.

 

[Billw12280]

Here are additional pictures.

 

[Banjo Pete]

Maybe he wore them for when he was not mounted. Around camp, etc. for sake of convenience. Tall laceless boots can be a pain to put on and more so to take off at the end of a tiring day.

In any case, very cool ! Congrats!

 

[Billw12280]

Maybe he wore them for when he was not mounted. Around camp, etc. for sake of convenience. Tall laceless boots can be a pain to put on and more so to take off at the end of a tiring day.

In any case, very cool ! Congrats!

Thanks @Banjo Pete!

It's also highly possible he wore them after the war since they were utilitarian, and one reason so few survive. The shoes have dried mud on the heel and some, what appears to be, horsehair inside.

 

[Banjo Pete]

Thanks @Banjo Pete!

It's also highly possible he wore them after the war since they were utilitarian, and one reason so few survive. The shoes have dried mud on the heel and some, what appears to be, horsehair inside.

I hear you ! Am more of a WWI guy myself and the "Pershing" ankle boots are pretty rare today for the same reasons you mentioned.

A little "patina" is not a bad thing and your Brogans look just swell. "Received Wisdom" is that a lot of the "minty" stuff that shows up is because it was either larger or smaller than the average and was therefore never issued.

 

[Billw12280]

I hear you ! Am more of a WWI guy myself and the "Pershing" ankle boots are pretty rare today for the same reasons you mentioned.

A little "patina" is not a bad thing and your Brogans look just swell. "Received Wisdom" is that a lot of the "minty" stuff that shows up is because it was either larger or smaller than the average and was therefore never issued.

I only collect pre 1900 militaria and still have a lot to learn. I have seen some of the WWI and WWII stuff at shows that is pretty amazing, but costly. My grandfather served as a field medic during WWII but after D-Day he transferred to Special Events where he organized celebrity visits and ran the movie projector. I loved listening to his stories from the war and he loved to talk until D-Day was brought up, he would clam up and refuse to talk about it. My nephew has his uniform which is probably the only post 1900 item I would be interested in. Not because its not interesting, just that I wouldn't know the first thing about what to look for.

I love my "minty" brogans but I think these ones are cooler because you can tell they were actually there. The "minty" ones were worn but very gently. With these brogans I get the feeling of them being worn for a long period and they possibly even "saw the elephant".

 

[Si Klegg]

They've been re-soled at some time or another, see here. That's how the cobbler who did my first Sutler-Row brogans re-soled mine.

 

[Billw12280]

They've been re-soled at some time or another, see here. That's how the cobbler who did my first Sutler-Row brogans re-soled mine.

Forgive my ignorance here, what evidence do you see that they have been re-soled? Not doubting you, I just don't know what you're seeing that I don't.

 

[Si Klegg]

Forgive my ignorance here, what evidence do you see that they have been re-soled? Not doubting you, I just don't know what you're seeing that I don't.

The sole would have been in one piece as in the photos above of the rivetted sides and soles brogans. The ones you're picturing here (and that I've copied) have a half-sole replacement - you can see the line of the new half-sole just forward of the big dink in the instep. If you run your finger along the bottom, there'll be a slight ridge.

If they were going to replace the whole sole in a repair, they would have had to remove the heel and basically rebuild the whole shoe. Instead, they cut off the worn front part and glue and peg-in a new portion at the front.