Shoeless Soldiers

[Josh The Lighthouse Guy]

There's a common perception of Confederate soldiers as frequently shoeless, especially in their invasions of Maryland and Pennsylvania.

More recently there has been a recognition that the Army of the Potomac was struggling with footwear during the Gettysburg Campaign.

Problems on both sides seemed to stem not so much from an insufficient number of shoes being manufactured, but moreso from issues with distribution and durability. Shoe quality was not good and they wore out easily on long marches, especially if pounded on hard macadam road or when trudging through mud.

Did the Western Theater and Trans-Mississippi have shoe problems as much as Virginia? Did many of Sherman's men march arrive barefoot in Savannah, having worn out their footwear in the march from Atlanta?

 

[JOHN42768]

Leather has away of wearing down quickly on rough surfaces and weather.

 

[Missouri Swampfox]

Many of Marmaduke's cavalry returned from Hartville, MO in January 1863 shoeless and bleeding.

 

[RedRover]

The Army and Navy Journal reported in 1865 that shoe leather was the one critical issue in Sherman's march through Georgia...

 

[13 IL Cav & 64 GA Inf]

The Army and Navy Journal reported in 1865 that shoe leather was the one critical issue in Sherman's march through Georgia...

View attachment 574190

Very good reply, @RedRover.

 

[uaskme]

Issue at Knoxville. Confederates and Federals. Federals at Chattanooga were besieged for a couple of months. Jefferson Davis's division went to Knoxville with Sherman. When they got back to Chattanooga reported half his men were shoeless. Longstreet after Knoxville had shoes made from green raw hides of cattle. Frozen ground with sharp chards of ice. He left men in camp who were shoeless. Federals problem was logistics when Army was extended beyond their supply chains. Confederates were lack of shoes and supply chains.

 

[NH Civil War Gal]

The 10th Vermont were stationed around Poolesville, MD in late 1862 into 1863 and they were having problems with shoe leather.

In a lot of ways, the technology of long-lasting shoes/boots just wasn't there in a mass production kind of way for soldiers yet.

 

[NH Civil War Gal]

Does anyone remember the tv shows on PBS that had actual people live in the actual ways of of past times? One of them was set in Maine and it was early period Colonial settlers - late 1600s. I happen to know one of the men who did it for nine months. He gave a talk about it. He said the worst part about it wasn't the cold, food or lack of privacy per se but the lack of shoe/boot technology that we have today. His feet were permanently damaged from wearing actual Puritan type shoes in the snow and rain and cold. And you couldn't take them off when wet because you'd never be able to get them back on. He had severe nerve damage.

I'm currently reading something about the 10th Vermont and they are facing the same situation. Shoes/boots technology with mass production that can really help is about 75 years away.

 

[bankerpapaw]

Leather has away of wearing down quickly on rough surfaces and weather.

Always felt sorry for both sides where soldiers were barefooted in the winter.

 

[Josh The Lighthouse Guy]

Always felt sorry for both sides where soldiers were barefooted in the winter.

I wonder about Hood's men outside Nashville in that ice storm and it's aftermath, having marched from south of Atlanta to North Georgia to North Alabama to Central Tennessee. About 400 miles which is double the distance Lee covered to reach Gettysburg.

 

[G Low]

Does anyone remember the tv shows on PBS that had actual people live in the actual ways of of past times? One of them was set in Maine and it was early period Colonial settlers - late 1600s. I happen to know one of the men who did it for nine months. He gave a talk about it. He said the worst part about it wasn't the cold, food or lack of privacy per se but the lack of shoe/boot technology that we have today. His feet were permanently damaged from wearing actual Puritan type shoes in the snow and rain and cold. And you couldn't take them off when wet because you'd never be able to get them back on. He had severe nerve damage.

I'm currently reading something about the 10th Vermont and they are facing the same situation. Shoes/boots technology with mass production that can really help is about 75 years away.

I'll bet the puritans didn't live as long either, Wooden shoes don't sound so bad now, at least you could take them off!! Or set them on fire to warm up your !! How old were you when you got your permanent shoes and did you have to ware them off? Like running a car till the wheels fall off.

 

[Nathan Stuart]

This thread title made me wonder whether or not the 'shoelessness' of large portions of combative armies had any relevant impacts (lowering morale, restricting mobility/maneuverings etc.) on field actions during the CW.

Can recall that one-third of Hood's AoT routed at Nashville, was reportedly shoeless. Similarly, when Schofield's Army of the Ohio joined Sherman's combined force in its advance through the Carolinas, half the men were barefoot or wearing wrappings of old blankets or quilts. It's also estimated that a significant number of Lee's AoNV were without shoes during the invasion of PA (as a possible sampling, division commander, Heth, later recalled that shortly before Gettysburg, 'my men were sadly in want of shoes'.)

Was the 'shoelessness' of a Confederate army, in particular, a material factor in the outcomes of any specific field engagements?

 

[NH Civil War Gal]

had any relevant impacts (lowering morale, restricting mobility/maneuverings etc.) on field actions during the CW.

I think it was what I call a multiplier in possible adverse outcomes.

Depending on the season and ground conditions it is one more thing to overcome. If your soldiers are already in a weakened condition generally from exposure, lack of the right type of food or any number of camp illnesses making the rounds, it could be significant.

A lot of these soldiers were permanently aged beyond their years because of the extreme conditions living in camp especially before 1863 when the Union finally started to get quartermastering and supplies figured out.

 

[Nathan Stuart]

I think it was what I call a multiplier in possible adverse outcomes.

Depending on the season and ground conditions it is one more thing to overcome. If your soldiers are already in a weakened condition generally from exposure, lack of the right type of food or any number of camp illnesses making the rounds, it could be significant.

A lot of these soldiers were permanently aged beyond their years because of the extreme conditions living in camp especially before 1863 when the Union finally started to get quartermastering and supplies figured out.

If there were such large numbers of shoeless soldiers. To conceptualize, thinking about it a bit deeper.

Significant numbers of shoelesss combatants in some units might have hindered that unit's ability to quickly deploy/maneuver in difficult physical topography, say to take advantage of any field opportunities that arose.

Also. Being encamped and marching for extended periods without adequate footwear may have had negative psychological effects on those individuals involved by lowering their morale and fighting prowess (thereby impacting upon combat outcomes, if there were large enough numbers affected).

Can recall at least in one engagement where 'shoelessness' may have produced the above adverse impacts - i.e. in sections of the AoT at Nashville.

 

[Old Soldier]

The footwear was not like modern military boots. The standard footwear (if there actually was a standard) seem to be 'brogues' or 'Jefferson' boots

These examples are pretty typical - an 'ankle boot' = all-leather, sewn, with minimal lacing. Often the soles, heel in particular, would be iron-shod (nails). The height to ankle varied. Traditionally, the leather for the uppers was rough side out and laces were either leather or fabric. These boots wore out quickly. The brogue is traditional Irish/Scottish outdoor footwear. Why black? Tradition. They were easily maintained with either black shoe polish, which was readily available, or with clear wax with soot added to eliminate scuffs..

Comparison - The traditional European infantry ankle boot* was more elaborate with or without a toe cap. Nails and metal shoes on the thick leather soles were common, but a number of armies had the pull-on full boot - the 'jackboot' for infantry. In the majority of armies, the full boot was the preserve of the cavalry and often had a thinner sole without nails, but provision for spurs. Officers could often make their own choice - they bought their kit.

*The Brits called them 'ammunition boots' because they were procured by the Master of Ordnance and were of 'ammunition quality'.

 

[RedRover]

General Lee, September, 1862...

E. Porter Alexander noted of the time...

 

[NH Civil War Gal]

Just the idea of having to subsist on green corn and apples puts my belly into a horrible knot. All those poor men - on both sides, becoming malnourished.

 

[Old Soldier]

Just the idea of having to subsist on green corn and apples puts my belly into a horrible knot. All those poor men - on both sides, becoming malnourished.

Don't forget the hard tack.

 

[Nathan Stuart]

Wasn't previously aware that CW era worn brogans typically worn by infantry on both sides had such very short lifespans (usually less than several months), depending on the intensity of active campaigning.

As the war continued, Confederate soldiers wore a variety of footwear, if any, as the Southern manufacturing resources for producing standardized shoes disappeared.

Thought the below brief presentation illustrates CW footwear quite well:-

 

[Nathan Stuart]

All those poor men - on both sides, becoming malnourished.

Thought for many soldiers, the adrenaline rushes and preoccupations while engaged in active combat might have largely moderated (at least temporarily) the negative impacts of poor diets, thirst and shoelessness.

Of possibly more concern, might have been the psychological effects on these same soldiers of such experienced deprivations while in encampments or between active engagements. (As the saying goes, 'An idle mind becomes the devil's playground.')