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"Knapsack and Haversack Packing 101"

by Kevin O'Beirne
This article was originally published in The Watchdog, Autumn 1999 (Vol. 7 No. 4)

"Bring for your men shelter-tents and drop all excess of baggage." Major General John McClernand, XIII Corps, April 21, 1864 (Red River Campaign)

"considering the fact that three days’ [rations] has heretofore been the maximum amount [carried], the board recommends as follows: 1. That all extra clothing, except a change of underclothing, be stored. 2. That five days’ rations of bread and small-stores be placed in the knapsack. 3. Three days’ cooked rations in the haversack, and five days' fresh beef upon the hoof. 4. Two mules per regiment to carry camp-kettles, rice, beans, &c. Each soldier will carry Haversack 5¾ lbs., Knapsack 6 lbs., Blanket 5¼ lbs., Clothing 2 lbs., Total, 19 lbs. Making 13¼ pounds in the knapsacks, being 2¼ pounds less than the weight usually carried by soldiers in this army in their knapsacks." Report of Board of Officers Convened per Army of the Potomac General Orders No. 65, March 7, 1863 (prior to the Chancellorsville Campaign)

"The troops carried through the campaign only those things most necessary for their constant use. A blanket should have been taken, but no overcoat. Both weigh a man down too heavily, and are not necessary in moderate weather." Brigadier General Rufus Ingalls, Chief Quartermaster, Army of the Potomac, May 29, 1863

The average reenactor qualifies as a "heavy camper", and one of the easiest, most satisfying, least-expensive ways to improve your authenticity is to lighten your load and reenact with less. While it includes packing of eight days’ rations more than any reenactor would ever carry it is interesting to note that the recommendations of the Board of Officers in response to General Orders No. 65 (see above) was adopted by the Army of the Potomac for the Chancellorsville campaign. Reenactors should consider the fine example set by the Federal soldiers of 1863 the next time they pack their gear for a two-day reenactment.

The first resolution to make in lightening your reenactor’s load is to use no more than what you can comfortably carry in a single trip, and never bring your car into an encampment site. If the Army of the Potomac could go eight days without issuing rations from wagon trains, then surely a hearty and hale living historian can survive a two-day reenactment without having to use a motor vehicle for anything other than transportation to the event’s participant parking lot. Once you arrive at the participants’ parking lot, don your traps and knapsack, shoulder your musket, and march into camp. Not only will you be more authentic, but you will also avoid the hazards and traffic problems associated with bringing your vehicle into and out of a campsite.

The second (and final) resolution is to pack so that your knapsack and haversack contain only the essentials, and only items that a soldier of 1861-1865 would have had on campaign. What each man packs is up to the individual, but remember, your pack should be light enough for you to comfortably wear it into each battle scenario during a weekend-long event. If the pack is too heavy to wear to all the battles, then start lightening the load by casting off the non-essentials.

Below is a packing checklist that the author uses in preparation for living history events. Your "essentials" may vary.

Knapsack:
1 Blanket: One good 5 lb., 100 percent wool blanket is all any reenactor needs, even in cold weather. Make sure the blanket is good-sized; the writer’s blanket is 57"x 80" and was obtained from the Wisconsin Veterans’ Museum Store. Similar blankets can be obtained from Quartermaster Woolens, (612)-469-6904, qmwoolens@aol.com

1 Gum Blanket: Essential for use as a ground cloth, raincoat, or shelter. Excellent, large (46"x 70") gum blankets with properly-sized grommets can be obtained from C&D Jarnagin.

1 Shelter Half: Decent shelter halves can be obtained only from authentic vendors, such as Haversack Depot, ReprOriginals, Artifakes, J. Blunt Clothiers, and Czekanski Leatherworks. A proper shelter half should weigh only 1.5 lbs., compared to an actual weight of 4.0 lbs. for a Panther Lodges shelter half. A shelter half is essential for protection from the elements. Individual soldiers should not carry full tents (i.e. two shelter halves) and evidence that triangular end-pieces for dog tents were ever available to the average Billy Yank is exceedingly scant.

Journal Book and Pencils: A non-essential personal item which comes in handy for a soldier on campaign to record his thoughts, write letters home, use as a fire-starter, or to use as "paper" in "an emergency".

Extra Pair of Wool Socks: Perhaps the real soldiers did not always have extra socks, but it is recommended that all reenactors carry a second pair for warmth at night and for health-purposes. Further, one extra pair of socks is a small, light addition to your pack.

Extra Drawers: A non-essential item that was not available to most soldiers on campaign.

Extra Shirt: Completely non-essential in the warmer months, an extra shirt is a necessity for colder-weather reenacting.

Vest: Non-essential, and used mainly for colder-weather reenacting. The idea that every soldier in the field had a vest is a "reenactor myth", so take your choice on whether you want to carry one.

Greatcoat: Leave the greatcoat home in warm weather (soldiers placed them in storage until the autumn). However, a Federal-issue overcoat for reenacting in the colder months is one of the most useful items in the living historian’s kit. It serves as both a coat and a blanket, and at night the cape can be used to completely cover your face and head for warmth.

Small Towel: Not of the modern-day terrycloth variety, a period-correct towel, such as "Huckabuck" towels sold at Wal-Mart (unbleached, off-white, plain cotton towels usually sold in a pack of five for $5.00, in the dishtowel department), or the excellent NPS reproductions, is useful in washing up your person and/or your gear. Carry a bar of lye soap (or, better yet, part of one) with the towel.

Extra Ammunition: Pack ammunition correctly in paper packages of ten rounds plus one paper tube with twelve percussion caps. This approach is authentic and takes up the least space in your knapsack.

Roll of Twine (String): About 20-30 feet of twine or hemp is the campaigner’s essential companion for rigging up shelter. Make sure the twine has no modern fibers.

Extra Food: Food for a two- or three-day reenactment should fit in the haversack but, in the event you pack heavy, or are bringing more than three days of food, put the extra into the knapsack.

Hygiene Items: The writer carries a muslin poke bag with a wooden toothbrush, comb, and two small glass vials with corks (one vial contains baking soda for tooth powder, and the other is for sunscreen).

"Haversack Stuffers": Minimize your haversack stuffers and, to increase room in the haversack (which is primarily for rations), place your "stuffers" into the knapsack. Authentic "stuffers" a soldier might well have carried include a tintype of his family, razor, religious items (rosary, scapulas, etc.), sewing kit, a few pieces of dry kindling, pipe and tobacco, and other personal items. Evaluate all your stuffers and determine if they are "essential" for a soldier on campaign. Chances are, after some soul-searching, you will decide that most of your stuffers especially "necessary" flasks are useless trash that take up important room in your pack.

Haversack:
Rations: Limiting campaign-rations primarily to salt pork, hardtack, and coffee not only makes one more authentic, but these items take up less room and weigh less than the rations consumed by most reenactors. Forget about canned food!

Tin Plate: A good tin plate is essential as a serving dish, frying pan and, if necessary, digging implement (for fire pits or fortifications). Assuming it fits inside, a plate adds rigidity to your haversack. A canteen half will serve the same purpose as a plate.

Eating Utensils: A knife, fork, and spoon are essential, and living historians may want to consider wrapping them in a rag or in a small canvas sack. Also, a pocketknife in your pants pocket or haversack is essential.

Tin Can: A period-correct tin can with a wire bail attached is excellent for use as a coffee cooler and as supplemental mess gear. The writer also carries a very small tin container from Jarnagin that is used for gun oil but, as a more authentic alternative, lubricate your weapon with pork fat (note, it will not rust the metal).

Candle: One beeswax candle is essential. A candleholder is not required but, if you do opt for one, make it as small as possible and carry it in the knapsack. As a less-bulky, more authentic alternative, an upside-down mess cup makes an excellent candleholder.

Matches and Matchsafe: It is a good idea for each reenactor to carry one box of matches in a matchsafe (i.e. a small box that protects the box of matches from being crushed). Matches can also be carried in a jacket pocket. Reproduction matchsafes are generally not very correct but, with some careful shopping at an antique store or relic vendor, one can find a fairly inexpensive period matchsafe.

Rags: Carry one or two period-correct rags (not the modern blue or red bandannas sold by the "sutlers"). These will come in handy as potholders, clean-up wipes, &c.

During the preparation of this article, the writer packed his knapsack and haversack as recommended above and then weighed each. The haversack contained two days’ rations of salt pork, hardtack, and coffee (total weight of rations per Army regulations: 3.7 lb.), along with a few haversack "stuffers" and mess gear, including a tin dipper attached to the outside of the haversack. The total weight of the haversack was 5.7 lb. The knapsack was packed with a blanket, gum blanket, authentic shelter half, greatcoat, towel, socks, extra drawers, 40 blank cartridges, journal book and pencils, and a few miscellaneous "stuffers". The weight of the full knapsack was 17.5 lbs.; when the greatcoat was removed, the weight of the knapsack was 14.0 lb.

How does the recommended reenactor’s packing list stack up against the Army of the Potomac’s marching load at the beginning of the Chancellorsville campaign? Answer: fairly well. The reproduction items weighed included only two days’ rations, plus a gum blanket and the weight of the haversack and knapsack proper. The Board of Officers’ recommendations included three days’ full rations in the haversack; in the knapsack were five days’ rations of hardtack, 2 lbs. of clothing (roughly equivalent to a pair of socks and a shelter half), and a blanket. Note that the Board of Officers’ recommended load does not include the weight of the a gum blanket, which was carried by all soldiers of the Army of the Potomac during the Chancellorsville campaign, or the weight of the haversack and knapsack themselves. [For copious quartermasters’ reports on how the Board of Officers’ recommendations fared on campaign, see the War of the Rebellion: Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Volume 25, Part 2 , pages 544-559.] The Board’s recommended load includes about 7.9 lbs. of food not in the reenactor’s haversack and knapsack, while the weight of the reenactor’s gum blanket, haversack, and knapsack totaled about 7.5 lbs. The reenactor’s journal book, 40 blank cartridges, and other nick-knacks more than account for the difference of 0.4 lbs. Therefore, it can be concluded that the packing list recommended in this article is fairly authentic. Further, the writer asserts, based on personal experience, that it is sufficient for protection from the elements and includes enough food for a two-day reenactment.

The items listed above are what a real Civil War soldier would have had on campaign. Note that the list does not include a whiskey flask, lantern, ammunition box, tent poles, camp stools, multiple blankets, canned food, railroad spikes for tent stakes, or other useless items that do nothing but add bulk and weight to your campaign-kit and detract from your authenticity. Try reenacting with the packing list included in this article, and you’ll be surprised at how easy it is, how comfortable you’ll be, and how authentic you’ll feel.