First Documented Confederate Taps

[tony_gunter]

When did the Confederates adopt Taps for lights out, and what's the first documented instance of it being played by Confederate troops?

 

[tony_gunter]

When did the Confederates adopt Taps for lights out, and what's the first documented instance of it being played by Confederate troops?

Anyone know who would know something about this? Seems odd that Taps seemed to replace the traditional Extinguish Lights so quickly without so much as a mention in a primary source.

 

[RedRover]

I assume by Taps, you mean the modern version, as established by Gen. Butterfield of the US Army in his brigade in the late summer of 1862. Don't know how one would know if the Confederates employed that specific version.

I can't read music, so have no means of understanding the distinctions given in various manuals. Consequently I am at a loss to fully explain this subject. But it is interesting.

But the Confederates did play a "taps... lights out" even from the commencement of the war.

The Army regulations, both armies, gave "tattoo" as the time for lights out generally. viz.

The tattoo was at night. And while it is not mentioned in the Army regulations, the music call is followed by "Taps" which specifically signalled the lights out. Like among the cadets at the Military Academy at West Point:

This was standard in the pre-war Regular Army. For example, Frank Mayer joined the Army in 1854 and explained in garrison or camp, the Tattoo was followed by some drum taps to signal lights out...

Now, during the war, and from its inception, there is reference to "taps" as the final signal to extinguish the lights after tattoo, to signal lights out, and it was not necessarily a bugle call, but often drum taps.

So pre-war and regulation taps... lights out is a few taps of the drum given after Tattoo.

So here is Tattoo of the US Army from 1835 into the 1860s. It also appeared in Gilham's Volunteer's manual, etc.:

Scott's Tattoo, 1835-62: youtube


Casey's US Tactics of 1862, gives the following for "tattoo" and "extinguish lights" for the infantry:

US Army artilleryman John Billings, in "Hardtack and Coffee" explains Tattoo and taps during the war like this:

It was noted that only in 1867, with Upton's Tactics replacing Casey's (of 1862) that all the daily calls were made uniform for all branches of the army, including what we popularly call "taps" today:

But during the war commenced there is the reference to "taps" given after tattoo, as "taps, lights out." This is given in General Daniel Butterfield's Camp and Outpost Duty for Infantry, 1862.

From the History of the 6th Indiana:

It was played from early in the war, from 1861:

From among Confederates, from 1861:

Here's a Confederate from Tennessee noting the federals beating Taps, lights out, in Western Virginia, in November, 1961:

Again, the story is that the modern and effective "taps" (the named Given to Butterfield's verses) was adopted by General Butterfields' brigade in the late summer of 1862 to replace the regulation one, and that it spread through the army. Bugler Norton of Butterfield's command noted post war:

General Butterfield himself recorded his "taps" or lights out of 1862 as follows:

Whether any Confederate units specifically adopted it, as it spread in the US Army (not standard until post-war) I don't know.