help with Headgear ID please...

[7th Mississippi Infantry]

It's still from a romantic era. You have a very unique piece of American history.

The Spanish American War seems to be more forgotten than the War of 1812.

I would love to own any military artifact from the turn of the 20th century.

I do have some of my Grandfather's World War One gear, so I guess I'm fortunate.

 

[mloschen]

It's still from a romantic era. You have a very unique piece of American history.

The Spanish American War seems to be more forgotten than the War of 1812.

I would love to own any military artifact from the turn of the 20th century.

I do have some of my Grandfather's World War One gear, so I guess I'm fortunate.

 

[mloschen]

I think this may be another piece from the time period

 

[7th Mississippi Infantry]

LOL.

Please . . . one mystery at a time.

Here I go again, my first impression is 1840s-1850's Infantry dress shako ( Louisiana Militia)

However, I suppose it could be from the 1812 era.

 

[mloschen]

LOL.

Please . . . one mystery at a time.

Here I go again, my first impression is 1840s-1850's Infantry dress shako ( Louisiana Militia)

However, I suppose it could be from 1812 era.

I knew you'd like this one

 

[major bill]

This is just my opinion so don't take it to the bank just yet. Although this resembles the 1832 pattern pattern officer's cap and is similar to both the pattern 1831 enlisted dress shako and the 1833 pattern enlisted dragoon dress cap I am unconvinced it is any of these. All these were taller and had a strait back. This cap or shako appears to have a back that leans forward. These were common with militia companies in the 1850s before the Civil War with some companies still wearing them at the start of the war. If I understand the terminology correctly, it was called militia shako a and it was sometimes referred to as a Cadet Shako (West Point cadets wore similar shakos but the rear of the shako had a somewhat rounded back) . See the Dress Shakos worn by the 7th New York State Militia at the start of the Civil War. I have seen period reports calling this style of shako a 7th New York Shako. I have seen modern works using the term National Guard Shako for this type of headgear and may have seen the term used in period accounts.

Regardless of the exact nameof the shako, it does have a typical militia badge on the front. Look at the badge on the pre war 7th New York State Militia and you will see a badge of similar pattern.

I would need to see a side photograph showing the slop of the back of the shako to see if the back sloped like a Cadet Shako or like a Militia Shako. This is about as much as I know without doing some research. I hope this is helpful and to go in to much more depth I would need to ask a person much more knowledgeable than me, or research this in some of the reference books in my library.

 

[mloschen]

thank you for a considerable amount of time spent on this piece ...here's a side shot for you..thanks again

 

[major bill]

It does look like the pattern 1869 West Point Shako. These were a bit shorter than the pre war militia shakos and the sloping back is kind of like a hump. When West Point started using these in 1869 many military schools and many militia companies took up the style. At that time West Point also went to a shako badge some what similar to this one. I still believe the badge looks like militia badges from the pre to post Civil War eras. The badges often had the state name or name of the unit around the black center part of the badge and often a number on the black center of the badge. Again look at the 7th New York Regiment as this regiment's images are common on line. If I were you I would study Louisiana militia and military schools ca. 1870- 1890, but the lack of a unit name or regiment number will limit your search.

 

[St Albans Raid]

Greetings from Brrrrrrrrrrrrrmont mloschen. Welcome to CWT.