This forage cap is in first class museum quality condition. Both the exterior and the interior are free of any damage.

The body of the cap is made of very tightly woven dark blue wool cloth with a central seam running up the back to an ample disc at the top. The disc is outlined with a thin welt made of cloth covered reed. The body of the cap is very roomy and causes the disc to slope far forward giving the item a nice character when displayed. Attached to each side are Infantry “I” eagle buttons that provide the anchor for a very pliable chin strap with both keepers. The chinstrap buckle is separate from the cap due to a broken center post but the buckle is present with the item. The leather visor is very short with an unbound edge, a tooled line along the border and very light surface crazing.

The interior is as nice as the exterior. The sweatband is complete and in excellent condition. It is lower than the regulation sweatband and meas. approx. 1.50 inches high and is firmly anchored all the way around its base. Running behind the sweatband is a strip of what looks to be cardboard. This supplies rigidity to the base of the cap and acts as a sweat shield between the sweatband and the body of the cap. This cardboard strip has one tear and goes most of the way around behind the sweatband with a 3.00 inch gap. Either there is a piece missing or the strip was just cut short. The body is lined with black polished cotton that is in very good condition with no separations or tears. The lining runs to the base of the disc and down to the bottom edge of the cap being anchored by stitching behind the cardboard ring mentioned above. The base of the disc is lined with brown leather and impressed with a maker’s mark that reads “A. W. POLLARD & CO., MILITARY GOODS, NO.6 COURT STREET, BOSTON.” Abner W. Pollard was in business from 1830 under various company names and addresses but was known as A. W. POLLARARD & CO. at 6 Court Street beginning in January 1863.

This is a very fine example of a commercially manufactured Civil War forage cap worthy of either an officer or the well to-do enlisted man. It was originally part of the well-known James Stamatelos collection of Massachusetts.

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