CIVIL WAR ISSUE BLANKET WITH UNUSUAL BLUE “US”

CIVIL WAR ISSUE BLANKET WITH UNUSUAL BLUE “US”

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$3,500.00

Quantity Available: 1

Item Code: 1273-63

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To Order:
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This issue blanket measures approximately 71” wide and 83” long, making it just a tad larger than a sampling of eighteen blankets made for the Columbia Rifles Research Compendium, which ranged from 66 – 68” wide and 78 – 82” long, an insignificant difference allowing for age shrinkage or stretching, and especially allowing for the extremely small sample size given the huge numbers produced by domestic and also foreign manufacturers upon which the Superintendent of the Schuylkill Arsenal, for one, admitted he had to rely “for a considerable proportion of army blankets” during the war. This also follows the regulation pattern in having end stripes, 3” wide, approximately 4-1/2” from the lower edge and 3-1/2” from the upper edge, with both ends showing about 1/2” fraying. The width of the stripes and distance from the edge both falling within the samples in the CRRC article.

By regulation the blanket was to be gray and the end stripes black. As is the case with most surviving examples, the iron mordants used to fix the logwood dye in the gray yarn have oxidized, producing a tannish-brown color, something that likely occurred within two to four months of issue, judging from modern experiments. In this case the end stripes have also shifted to an olive brown, indicating the black yarn used in weaving them had also been dyed or perhaps that the blanket as a whole had been dyed after being woven rather the dye being in the yarn used for the blanket. In any case, the blanket is in excellent condition, with no obvious damage other than a missing 2x3” piece out of the lower right corner, below the end stripe.

The US is applied by hand as is typical, the U being about 3-1/2” tall and the S about 4”, but  placed a little below the center line of the blanket, and a tad to the right- the top of the “U” being 38” from the bottom edge and 28” from the left edge of the blanket, with the “S” about 34” from the right edge. This might be from miscalculation by the seamstress tasked with applying the letters, but the placement below the center line may have been to allow the letters to show when the blanket was folded, rolled and strapped to the top of knapsack.

More unusual is that the letters appear to be formed of very dark blue rather than black yarn, and rather than being made with a running or a chainstitch, are made with separate, small 1/8” x ¼” rectangles forming stepped or paving stone like letters, 4” tall, with the U rather broad and showing short, straight serifs at the top. The CRRC illustrates six different patterns of letters from their sample and this one is not included, but their sample is admittedly small. Still, the blue color would seem notable. This blanket comes from a Massachusetts collection and it is possible it comes from a state purchase or an early war issue to a Massachusetts Volunteer Militia unit where the color and stitch pattern of the US may have been one more decorative accent to a militia uniform.

The condition is excellent and this is a very visually appealing piece that would really dress up a display of camp and field gear. We recommend highly “The Army Issue Blanket,” by the redoubtable “Ed Quigley” in the Columbia Rifles Research Compendium, edited by John E. Tobey.  [sr] [ph:L]

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