Pinky Rings...

[Private Watkins]

One more pre-war Pinky Ringer... I'm thinking this guy's got a "double"...

 

[Private Watkins]

Here's another nice image with pinky ring...

Has anyone ever heard of this potential symbolism of the pinky ring...?

During the Victorian era, both single men and women uninterested in pursuing marriage could wear a ring on the little finger of their left hand.​

 

[lelliott19]

And one more batch...View attachment 100028

I bet Ive looked at that image of Capt Augustus Columbus Thompson a hundred times and never even noticed the pinky ring. Thompson was the Captain of Co G aka Jackson Rifles and Oconee Vols. He was shot through the groin at Crampton's Gap and captured/paroled. The wound ended his war service.

I was doing my 16th Georgia presentation in Jackson County GA back in the winter and was fortunate to have in attendance Thompson's great grand daughter and great great grandson. Wish I would have known about the pinky ring then. I would have asked if they perhaps knew of its whereabouts. Very interesting thread @Private Watkins

 

[12th Missouri Yankee]

I know some guys that wear their father's ring on their little finger because it does not fit any other one. The pictures are really fascinating here. My own dad has an ancient ring he wears on his pinky finger that is passed down each generation in the family as a tradition. He wears it at weddings and Christmas.

 

[JerseyBart]

Interesting photos!!! Thank you for sharing.

 

[civilken]

Thank you for the picture I did not know they were pinkie rings back then thank you.

 

[Eleanor Rose]

A thread that @Tom Hughes started on a lovely amethyst ring he had recovered led me to these pics of Civil War era men's pinky rings. I have included the captions that accompanied them on this page. Was this really a "thing" back then?

"This is a dug brass pinky ring which was recovered at Cold Harbor with the land owner's permission. On each side, it shows a naked woman. Very risqué for the CW era! The back is broken but design and main face are great. Very cool example of a young soldier's real interests!"

"This gold plated ring was dug in one of Butler's Union Camps at Bermuda Hundred in Virginia. It shows saucy naked women on the sides. Guess the lads needed to be reminded of what waited back home if victorious!"