Civil War stable jackets

[major bill]

I think I understand what a stable frock was but what made a Civil War jacket a "stable jacket"? The limited images I have seen seem to show a nine button short work jacket for officers with low collar. These are less fancy than a normal officer jacket but not anything like a stable frock.


Does anyone have a source that covers Civil War officer stable jackets in any depth?

 

[Package4]

The stable frock was intended for mounted enlisted men so that their jackets would not be otherwise soiled while performing fatigue duties associated with the mounted arm. i.e. mucking stalls or brushing the mounts.

The stable frock was a short lived item, though it made it into the 60s and was replaced by the ubiquitous sack coat.

I do not believe I have ever heard of a "stable jacket" as such, officers would undoubtedly have an enlisted man tend to his mount and it was doubtful an officer would be mucking stalls.

Could it just be a name for a short jacket in lieu of a frock coat, for officers?

 

[major bill]

The couple of photo i have seen of them they look like simple dark blue jackets. I saw one with nine brass buttons and a very short collar. One theory could be a jacket an officer would use while supervising work in a stable. Even if an officer was not doing the work himself, there might still be a possibility of dirtying his frock coat as he was supervising in a stable.

As a lieutenant I keep an older fatigue uniform I could put on when supervising dirty work like cleaning the under sides of large trucks. I did not want to wear a brand new uniform when I crawled under a truck that had just been washed to ensure the job had been done to my standards.

I wonder if officer stable jacket was a term for an officer fatigue work jacket?

 

[Package4]

The couple of photo i have seen of them they look like simple dark blue jackets. I saw one with nine brass buttons and a very short collar. One theory could be a jacket an officer would use while supervising work in a stable. Even if an officer was not doing the work himself, there might still be a possibility of dirtying his frock coat as he was supervising in a stable.

As a lieutenant I keep an older fatigue uniform I could put on when supervising dirty work like cleaning the under sides of large trucks. I did not want to wear a brand new uniform when I crawled under a truck that had just been washed to ensure the job had been done to my standards.

I wonder if officer stable jacket was a term for an officer fatigue work jacket?

Page 137 of Langallier's Army Blue, there is a wonderful picture of what he refers to as a "stable jacket", it is a beautiful half jacket, not quite a round about or shell jacket, more like a truncated frock. The jacket has a velvet collar, so I don't think it is for overwear, but for comfort, while still appearing military. Looking at it, it is obvious that the term was just adopted for a type of jacket and not the purpose. I would suppose the modern day "car coat" or "barn jacket"...........

 

[jpro]

You've all probably seen this image before. It's my favorite of that coat/frock jacket!!!

 

[Package4]

You've all probably seen this image before. It's my favorite of that coat/frock jacket!!!

View attachment 161257

Yes those are stable frocks, more like a duster and used to keep the dust off and protect in the stalls while mucking and brushing.