Trans-Mississippi Confederate Uniforms

(part 1 of 3 -- introduction)

If (as Ron Field in his 1998 history of Confederate uniforms suggests) the study of the Eastern and Western Confederate Depot systems is still in an embryonic stage, then the study of the Trans-Mississippi Depots may justly be said to be at the point of conception. Indeed, within the re-enacting community there is at present no portrayal of this important theatre in Britain, and only a few units doing 'make-shift' Trans-Mississippi impressions in the United States. Over the past few years I have been accumulating data on the uniforms and accoutrements of Trans-Miss Texas and Louisiana units from contemporary newspaper articles, photos and museum visits. More recently I have been in contact with, and have received valuable information from Frederick Adolphus, - one of the best authorities on the Trans-Mississippi Depot Systems. Taking all this together I can now make a report on my findings.

Strictly speaking, the Confederate Trans-Mississippi Theatre states were Louisiana, Arkansas, Missouri, Texas, and the Indian Territory (Oklahoma). However for much of the Civil War, Mississippi was in a sub-theatre termed the Department of Mississippi and Eastern Louisiana. Since this department was usually occupied by Trans-Miss units, and as Trans-Mississippi forces such as the Army of the West sometimes crossed over into the state, its uniforms and depots are also considered here. The short-lived armies of the Trans-Miss Dept. of Miss. and Eastern Louisiana included: the Army of the West (commanded by Van Dorn in 1862, veterans of the Pea Ridge and Corinth Campaigns), the Army of New Mexico (commanded by Sibley in 1861-62), the Army of the Department of the Mississippi (a.k.a. the Army of Vicksburg; commanded by Pemberton in 1863), and the numerous ad hoc forces put together to meet threats to Arkansas, Louisiana, and Texas in 1863-65. Sterling 'Pap' Price also commanded various organizations composed principally of Missourians who conducted offensive operations in 1861 and 1864.

The most important land battles in the Trans-Mississippi included: Wilson's Creek (MO, 1861), Pea Ridge (AR, 1862), Valverde & Glorieta (NM, 1862), Prairie Grove (AR, 1862), Arkansas Post (AR, 1863), Milliken's Bend (LA, 1863), Honey Springs (OK, 1863), Bayou Fourche (AR, 1863), Mansfield & Pleasant Hill (LA, 1864), Poison Spring & Jenkin's Ferry (AR, 1864), and Westport (MO, 1864). It is also worth noting that Shiloh (TN, 1862), Corinth (MS, 1862), Baton Rouge (LA, 1862), Champion Hill (MS, 1863), Vicksburg (MS, 1863), Port Hudson (LA, 1863), Holly Springs (MS, 1862), and Chickasaw Bluffs (MS, 1862), though technically 'Western Theater' battles, involved a good number of troops which did not subsequently serve in the Army of Tennessee, but returned to the Trans-Miss.

Good uniform information is not available for all Confederate units that fought in the Trans-Miss. Photographic coverage and personal accounts mentioning uniforms are better for some units than others. Missouri troops, like those of Kentucky, were 'orphans' very early in the war and either dressed in make-shift civilian uniforms or received issues from depots where they found themselves. The principal depots which concern this study were those of Houston (Texas), Shreveport (Louisiana), Jackson & Enterprise (Mississippi), and Little Rock (Arkansas). The cut and cloth of uniforms and the types of accoutrements manufactured by these depots have, to some extent, been documented and will be discussed in coming articles. As in the Eastern and Western theatres idiosyncratic company uniforms and civilian dress began to be replaced by state depot issues as early as the Autumn of 1861. But the issue of formal uniforms was slow in coming. As examples of this: the 3rd Louisiana received its first state uniform issue from contractors in Baton Rouge in September 1861, the 2nd Texas Infantry received their first uniform issue in March 1862 from New Orleans via private contract, Waul's Texas Legion got theirs in November 1862 from a Mississippi depot (probably Jackson), and many Texas and Louisiana units in the west had to wait until sometime in 1863 for their first issue uniform. The Confederate States Quartermaster Trans-Mississippi Depots were operational by the end of 1862 and continued until the end of the war, although their output was constrained and often interrupted by shortages of cloth and other raw materials. Also of interest is the relatively significant input of kit imported from Britain, including buttons, blankets, and finished uniforms, - with most of these arriving in quantity by mid 1863.

The next two installments of this three part series will deal with early commutation state issues, and CS Quartermaster Depot issues respectively.

Return to Article Index