Cotton bale

[gary]

Does anyone have an image of a Civil War period cotton bale? I know they were used to "armor" ships, make breastworks and even sap rollers. I read that they were 30 lbs and were man portable.

 

[ColonelBuckwalter]

Both my maternal grandparents picked cotton from i think 19 years old on. My grandfather's family had a farm. My grandmother's family moved from one place to the next after a year or so. My grandfather had been in WW1 and 'she'll shock' didn't allow him much time to stay in one place.

I'll have my mom ask my grandmother what the average weight was. She's much older now and in a bad way. Not sure on the size that young. She has what I had thought were callous but is scar tissue in her palms.

 

[Pollaco]

I live near a state (Texas) highway. It was called the Cotton Road during the War.Bales were exchanged in Mexico for Munitions ,Medicines, or even gold.Cotton smuggling was a big industry for a short while,

 

[Pollaco]

Is the any reason I can't send a right side up picture to this forum?Here lately I've seen complaints on other forums as well.

 

[ColonelBuckwalter]

Both my maternal grandparents picked cotton from i think 19 years old on. My grandfather's family had a farm. My grandmother's family moved from one place to the next after a year or so. My grandfather had been in WW1 and 'she'll shock' didn't allow him much time to stay in one place.

I'll have my mom ask my grandmother what the average weight was. She's much older now and in a bad way. Not sure on the size that young. She has what I had thought were callous but is scar tissue in her palms.

So, according to my grandmother, a bag when she was young, was a hundred pounds. That was in the late 30s/eRoy 40s in west Tennessee.

 

[gary]

100 lbs is quite possible, but what a load if you have to drag it. The cotton bags used at Port Hudson were much lighter (had to be easily carried by the troops crossing difficultt terrain).

 

[danny]

Check out this pic. It's the seasons first cotton at my granddaddy's warehouse in 1942. Social Circle, Ga. View attachment 561567

"Tote that bale
Lift that barge"

 

[Old Soldier]

Ya gets a little drunk - an' ya lands in jaaaa-il.

 

[BartlbyAdams]

Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper: "Cotton Press Near Flat Rock, S.C. Destroyed by Sherman"; 08 April 1865; Volume 19-20
https://archive.org/details/franklesliesilluv1920lesl/page/32/mode/2up

 

[BartlbyAdams]

The Illustrated London News; 1862-08-09: Vol 41 Iss 1158

The Illustrated London News 1862-08-09: Vol 41 Iss 1158 : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive

The Illustrated London News 1862-08-09: Volume 41, Issue 1158.Digitized from IA1642421-03.Previous issue: sim_illustrated-london-news_1862-08-02_41_1157.Next...

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