“Six of our regt lived together …”: Mess Groups, Carrying Food … (and a Little Bit of...

“Six of our regt lived together …”

Mess Groups, Carrying Food … (and a Little Bit of Tongue)

in the Armies of the Revolution

John U. Rees

Contents

Mess Groups

Food Distribution

Carrying Food

The Burden of Rations

And, Tongue

____________________

This monograph was inspired by a November 6-8 2009 Welbourne, Virginia,

immersion picket (living history) event. My experience that weekend provided a few

insights and led me to share a bit on Continental Army mess squads, carrying rations in

knapsacks versus haversacks, and the issue of beef tongue to the troops. Some of the

information below is excerpted from several of my military food columns in Food

History News, as well as a longer work, to be published in Military Collector &

Historian, titled:

"’To the hungry soul every bitter thing is sweet.’: Soldiers' Food and Cooking in the War

for Independence”

Subheadings:

"The manner of messing and living together": Continental Army Mess Groups

“Who shall have this?”: Food Distribution

"A hard game ...": Continental Army Cooks

“On with Kittle, to make some hasty Pudding …”:

How a "Continental Devil" Broke His Fast

1. The Army Ration and Cooking Methods.

2. Eating Utensils.

3. The Morning Meal.

4. Other Likely Breakfast Fare.

Mess Groups. Enlisted men formed themselves into mess or cooking groups, usually based

around those soldiers assigned to a single common tent. Mess groupings in the American

Civil War sometimes gave themselves fanciful or humorous appellations; here are a few

examples, circa 1861, “Screws,” "Hard Corner Sharps," “Bristol Boys," "Happy Crew,"

"Montgomery Guards," "Punch Bowl Hotel,” "Kensington Boys," and “Happy Family”

messes.1

Information is sparse on names for Continental Army mess squads, but two references

indicate that some did have special monikers and how they were awarded. Fifer Samuel

Dewees Captain Ross’s company, 11th Pennsylvania Regiment (then 10

th and finally 6

th

Pennsylvania) described the apportionment of food to messes, and two ways those groups

were identified:

The Orderly Sergeant of each company divided the meat into as many messes as were in

each company (six men constituting a mess) and then a soldier was made to turn his back to

the piles. The Sergeant would then put his hand upon or point to each pile separately and

ask, “Who shall have this?” The soldier with his back to the mess piles then named the

number of the mess or the soldier that was always considered as head of the mess, and in this

way they proceeded until all was dealt out.2

So, Continental Army mess groups could be known by the name of the soldier who acted

as leader or by an assigned number. Pvt. Samuel Hallowell, a soldier of Col. Rufus

Putnam’s Massachusetts Regiment in 1777, told of at least once instance of a facetious

designation being used, writing in his memoirs, “Respecting being lowsey [Lt.] Colo.

[Ezra] Newhall observed one time it was Difficult for him to keep clear of them for they

likt clean clothes. Six of our regt lived together called the ‘Lowsey Mess,’ whether by

themselves or others is unsure.”3

Food consumption involved more than just filling troops’ bellies. On an administrative

level there was a real need to regulate and oversee the distribution and preparation of

provisions, while for the common soldiers it was often better to spread the daily cooking

duties among the group rather than relying upon one individual. To make these tasks easier,

and taking advantage of the natural tendency among the men to band together, mess squads

were formed, these being generally comprised of six men, the usual number allotted to

occupy a single soldiers' tent.4

Maj. Gen. Friedrich Wilhelm de Steuben’s 1779 Regulations gave some rules each mess

was to follow:

The utensils belonging to the tents are to be carried alternately by the men ... The soldiers

should not be permitted to eat in their tents, except in bad weather; and an officer of a

company must often visit the messes; see that the provision is good and well cooked; that the

men of one tent mess together; and that the provision is not sold or disposed of for liquor.5

Each six–man mess was allotted a kettle, sometimes with a wooden bowl, they had to

carry with them when on the march (the tents and tent–poles were put in wagons). A 19

June 1778 army order directed, "In future the Camp Kettles are always to be carried by the

Messes; each soldier of the Mess taking it in his turn, and no man is on any Account to

presume to put the Camp Kettle belonging to the Mess in a Waggon." This stipulation was

reiterated at intervals during the war. Other items were sometimes assigned each mess, as

evidenced by 10 June 1777 army orders, “Such regiments as have not already drawn

Tomahawks, are immediately to provide themselves with at least one or two to a mess. The

Quarter Master General is to charge those to the regiments, and each mess charged with

what is delivered to it, that they may be returned when called for, or pay for them, if lost."6

Soldiers of Capt. Andrew Fitch’s company, 4th Connecticut Regiment, in their mess

groups preparing an evening meal. (Model Company event, Putnam Park, Redding,

Ct., 25 to 27 September 2009. Photograph courtesy of the recreated Corps of Sappers

and Miners: http://thecorpsofsappersandminers.org )

______________________________

Optimally, the creation of scores of these close–knit groupings served as a basis by which

companies and regiments were welded together. They also served to emphasize the

distinctions between the rank and file and those who commanded them. Orders at "Boston

June 28. 1777” refer to that separation: “A Sergeant & Ten private Men are to barrack in a

Room, the Men in each Room will form themselves into two Messes & the Quarter Master

Sergeant will draw Provisions accordingly; the Serjeants will form into a Mess & Diet by

themselves ..."7 The distinction between commissioned officers and their men was strictly

enforced: General Orders, 13 July 1777,

Lieut. Cummings of the 1st. Virginia regiment charged with 'Messing with common soldiers

[among other charges] ...' The Court ... are of opinion, considering the peculiar

circumstances of the matter (as to the charge of his messing with private soldiers) related by

the prisoner, and having no evidence to prove the contrary, that he should be reprimanded by

the commanding officer of the regiment he belongs to, at the head of the regiment.8

Messmates shared cooking responsibilities, as well as the task of finding extra food to

supplement the official allotment or replace missing items. Hopefully, they could also be

http://thecorpsofsappersandminers.org/

counted on to look out for each other's welfare, too. Joseph Plumb Martin recounted that at

White Plains, New York, in autumn 1776

One day after roll call, one of my messmates with me sat off upon a little jaunt into the

country to get some sauce [vegetables, roots, or greens eaten or cooked with meat.] of some

kind or another. We soon came to a field of English turnips … and … pulled and cut as

many as we wanted … [Shortly afterwards Martin took sick and] was sent back to the

baggage to get well again ... When I arrived at the baggage … I had the canopy of leaves for

my hospital and the ground for my hammock. I found a spot where the dry leaves had

collected between the knolls. I made up a bed of these and nestled in it ... I had nothing or eat

or drink, not even water, and was unable to go for any myself, for I was sick indeed. In the

evening, one of my messmates found me out and soon after brought me some boiled hog's

flesh (it was not pork) and turnips ... I could not eat it, but I felt obliged to him

notwithstanding. He did all he could do. He gave me the best he had to give, and had to steal

that, poor fellow.9

A portion of Gen. George Washington's 4 August 1782 order alludes to the mess squad as

a social grouping: "… the mode of cooking and manner of living are objects which require

attention. Officers should every day visit the tents and kitchens, observe and regulate the

Cookery, see the soldiers at their meals and take care that they mess and live properly

together." Sgt. Andrew Kettell seconded this when he wrote with some emotion of the bond

that could grow between men who messed together. 21 September 1780, "I had the

Unwelcome News at the Death of W. Lite which was as Greate a Shock as I ever met with

in my life as [he] was [an] agreable Mess Mate and a obliging Companion ..."10

Non-commissioned officers’ mess eating in their tent. (Capt. Andrew Fitch’s company,

4th Connecticut Regiment, Model Company event, Putnam Park, Redding, Ct., 25 to

27 September 2009. Photograph courtesy of the recreated Corps of Sappers and

Miners: http://thecorpsofsappersandminers.org )

http://thecorpsofsappersandminers.org/

Often mess groups would be formed among men from the same town or region, but

occasionally soldiers who did not know each other were thrown together. J.P. Martin wrote

of such a situation during the summer of 1780, when he was drafted out of his regiment into

the newly–raised Corps of Sappers and Miners.

I immediately went off with … the other men drafted from our brigade, and joined the corps

in an old meetinghouse at the Peekskill [in New York]. ... I had now got among a new set,

who were, to a man, entire strangers to me. I had, of course, to form new acquaintances, but

I was not long in doing that. I had a pretty free use of my tongue, and was sometimes apt to

use it when there was no occasion for it. However, I soon found myself at home with them.

We were all young men and therefore easy to get acquainted.11

While these connections could be made with some ease, it seems that messes were not

formed in an off–hand manner. Two days after his joining the Corps the first issue of food

was made to Martin and his comrades: "We then drew, if I remember right, two days rations

of our good old diet, salt shad, and as we had not, as yet, associated ourselves into regular

messes, as is usual in the army, each man had his fish divided out by himself."12

Ties to old comrades were not soon forgotten. Soon after Martin joined the Sappers and

Miners, the army moved down towards Tappan. "Just before arriving at our encamping

ground, we halted in the road an hour or two. Some four or five of our men, knowing that

the regiments to which they formerly belonged were near, slipped off for a few minutes to

see their old messmates." The army being ready to move again, and the men not having

returned, Martin was detailed "to remain with their arms and knapsacks till they came [back]

... I accordingly waited an hour or two before they all returned."13

Despite such connections, problems with theft occasionally cropped up. During the 1779

Indian Expedition Maj. Gen. John Sullivan Campaign wrote,

It is with great Grief and Astonishment the Comdr. in Chief is informed that some of the

Soldiers steal the stores of the Army and even the private allowance of their Messmates,

while others are so vile as to throw away their own provision. this discovers an unjust and

ungenerous disposition as well as an inattention to their own comfort and safety ... [To

remedy this, he decreed] that as the Army have drawn provisions to a certain period [and] he

will not suffer the Army to return thro' want of Provision untill that period be expired ... 500

lashes [are] to be inflicted when any person [is] detected in the before mentioned offences

and in addition thereto to draw only one lb. of Flour and Meat pr. week during the

Campaign.14

Soldiers did occasionally waste their food or consume it too quickly. In June 1777

General Sullivan attempted to persuade his troops to conserve their provisions to last the

allotted time. "Flemington [New Jersey] 18th June 1777 The Genl orders that all the troops

be immedietly furnished with 3 days Provision to have it Cook'd Dirictly & that no Soldier

make any plea after the 3 Days is expired, that he has no provisions As the Genl is

Determined None Shall be Drawn till that time is Expired ..." This tendency was not limited

to American forces. An officer serving under Lt. Gen. John Burgoyne in summer 1777

noted that campaigning British soldiers carried on most marches not "less than four days

provision ... [which] added to his accoutrements, arms, and sixty rounds of ammunition,

make an enormous bulk, weighing about sixty pounds."15

If some of this equipment had

been dispensed with

they might have carried more provision. Admitting this it would not remedy the evil, it being

with difficulty you can prevail on a common soldier to husband his provision, in any

exigency whatever. Even in a settled camp, a young soldier has very short fare on the fourth

day after he receives his provision; and on a march, in bad weather and bad roads, when the

weary foot slips back at every step, and a curse is provoked by the enormous weight that

retards him, it must be a very patient veteran, who has experienced much scarcity and

hunger, that is not tempted to throw the whole contents of his haversack into the mire,

instances of which I saw on several of our marches. When they thought they should get fresh

provision at the next encampment, and that only when they were loaded with four days

provision: soldiers reason in this manner: the load is a grievous incumbrance – want but a

little way off – and I have often heard them exclaim, 'Damn the provisions, we shall get

more at the next encampment; the General won't let his soldiers starve.16

Food Distribution. A primary purpose of mess squads was to regulate food preparation; the

first step in that process was the distribution of provisions, an operation that could be quite

time consuming. The following orders illustrate some common aspects of food issuance.

Delaware Regiment orders, "Lincoln Mountain [New Jersey] July 1st 1777 … an Off[icer].

of each Company constantly [to] attend the Drawing of Provisions for their Respective

Companies and take Care that no unsound Provision be delivered to them." Jackson’s

Additional Regiment orders, "Boston Augt 13. 1777... An orderly Corporal must be

appointed to each Company – whose Duty will be to receive the Provisions of the Quarter

Master for the Company to which he belongs & equally divide it to the different Messes in

the Company." 1st Pennsylvania Regiment orders, 25 February 1783, "Camp on James

Island," South Carolina, "The Officer of Police reports that the provisions are cut up in

several of the huts, this practice will soon render the Encampment very filthy, it must

therefore be immediately put a stop to – In the rear of the huts, and no place else, the

soldiers are ordered in future to cut up and Divide their Provisions –"17

Fifer Samuel Dewees described in detail the issue of rations at West Point, New York:

To each regiment there was a Quarter Master attached, who drew the rations for the

regiment … [and] a Quarter–Master's Sergeant that drew the rations for and dealt them out

to the companies ... The Quarter Master's Sergeant at a proper hour would take [the]

Sergeants and as many men as might be necessary, and repaired to the store–house and

slaughter–house, which were built at the edge of the North River and extending some

distance into the river ... These men always took poles with them that were kept for the

purpose ... of carrying meat upon to the camp. They also took camp kettles with them for to

carry Vinegar, Whiskey, &c. into the camp. These men on their return, were marched in

front of their respective companies. The Roast Beef [a drum call signifying food

distribution] would then 'be beat up,' and the men ... would hasten ... and stand ready to

receive their quota. The Orderly Sergeant of each company divided the meat into as many

messes as were in a company (six men constituting a mess,) ... I have been down at our

slaughter–house at times for the purpose of assisting in carrying the provision to camp, and

have seen a great many cattle drove into it at one time. I recollect that, once we had to wait

until the butchers would kill. They drove upwards of a hundred sheep into the slaughter–

house, and as soon as the doors were closed, some of the butchers went to work and knocked

the sheep down in every direction with axes, whilst others followed and stuck or bled them,

others followed them, skinned them, hung them up and dressed them. A very short time

elapsed from the time they commenced butchering them until our meat was ready for us. I

recollect having been there at another time when they were killing bullocks ... I have known

very great numbers of very fine and fat cattle slaughtered there … [and] I have seen many

very poor and indifferent ones killed there also ... But with these we had to be content in the

absence of better ...18

In the same vein, Gen. George Washington’s 4 June 1777 orders at Middlebrook, New

Jersey, noted some field camp considerations: "The Commissary General to have his

slaughter–house, at least a mile in the rear of the camp ... He must be provided with

waggons, to convey the meat to places near each Brigade, for the more commodius

distribution of it; and must see no relicts are left in those places, through carelessness."19

As Fifer Dewees noted, music regulated the soldiers’ day.

… the musicians knew at once when a particular roll or march was named, what tune to

play, and the soldiers all knew at all times what duty was to be performed upon the hearing

of the musicians “beat up” … There was always a great difference manifested in the manner

of attending the calls, “Fatigue’s March,” and “Roast Beef.” The soldiers at the Fatigue’s

call generally turned out slowly and down hearted to muster upon fatigue parade. When an

officer would sing out, “Orderly Drummer, beat up the ‘Roast Beef,’” and the musician

fairly commence it, the soldiers would be seen skipping, jumping and running from their

tents and repair to where the rations were to be issued out. That there would be a difference

manifested will not be wondered at when it is stated that the Fatigue Men had to muster for

the purpose of going to labor, chop, dig, carry timber, build, etc., etc., whilst the others

would turn out voluntarily to learn what they were to draw for breakfast, dinner, etc.20

“Jonas,” an anonymous soldier in the British 68th Regiment, described a similar

process in an encampment on the Isle of Wight in 1758. After cooking the meal for his

messmates, they had him,

bring the dinner to the tent, where … I found my comrades all placed on the grass … in a

circle, and I had orders to fix the kettle in the center. Some had knives, while others had

none; as to spoons and forks, we were all in one case, destitute, and no porringers or

bowls, but to supply the want of the last, we took the kettle lid; one who was the best

skilled in carving, was, by consent ordered to carve the flesh into six equal shares, and

lay them abroad on the grass with the greens; when this was done, another received

orders to call them; which is, one points his finger to one of the lots and cries, ‘who shall

have this?’ the man whose back is turned names one of the mess, and so proceeds till

every man’s lot is called … After the meat was divided and called, every one took up his

lot, and then proceeded to eat the broth in the best manner we could, with our canteen

tops instead of spoons. We all put an equal share of ammunition bread into the kettle,

which bread is delivered to us on set days, and stopped out of our pay, it is as black as our

hats, in general, and quite sour.21

Like “Jonas” and his comrades, Continental troops had to make do with insufficient

supplies of eating utensils, as we shall see below.

The process of issuing rations seems generally to have resulted in the men receiving

less than their due proportion. As Private J.P. Martin described the situation when he and

his comrades received their food: "... what was it? A bare pound of fresh beef and a bare

pound of bread or flour. The beef, when it had gone through all its divisions and

subdivisions, would not be so much over three quarters of a pound, and that nearly or

quite half bones." Martin's recollections are seconded by Brig. Gen. Jedediah

Huntington’s comments, "Brigade Commissaries have no Allowance for Wastage in

dealing out Provisions, they are therefore under a strong Necessity of giving short Weight

to the Regiments or be liable to account for the Wastage in the same Way, the Iniquity

proceeds to the Men, after the Provisions are divided and subdivided to Companies and

Messes the Pound is often reduced to 12 Ounces. the Commisaries ought to deal the full

Quantity to each Company." Pilfering also played a part. Regimental orders, 28 February

1783, "Camp on James Island,” "Corporal Young was tried upon the following Charge

Viz. In defrauding the men ... of their provisions when Distributing of it – pleads guilty –

but says the quantity he took was so small as not to exceed 1/2 lb – and that he took it for

the purpose of greasing his Gun."22

An order for the 4th Pennsylvania Battalion serving in northern New York illuminated

additional concerns surrounding the ration issue. 17 April 1776,

It is once more recommended to the Weekly officers and Serjents that they see that their

men do not Waste their provisions nor devide them after they receive them for their

Messes. The major took notice that some men when they receive their provisions took

and cut peices from their meat and put them on sticks to broil them on the fire and if they

do this they will certainly not have provision enough, but will always be some that will

suffer with hunger. The provision must be kept and cooked together and the men who are

in messes must eat together and no division to be made except for those on Guard, which

their comrades are to bring them their Provision when cooked. The Provisions must be

divided for every day what they will cook as allso the Bread.23

This 1776 order was echoed by General Washington's 10 October 1777 directive: "The

General being informed, that much provision is wasted by the irregular manner in which

it is drawn and cooked, does ... exhort the officers ... to look into and prevent abuses of

this kind ..."24

We will close this chapter by looking at ration issues aboard a British troop transport

crossing the Atlantic, and during the American Civil War (1861–1865), revealing both

similarities and differences with Continental Army practice.

Hessian Pvt. Johannes Reuber, Rall Grenadier Regiment, noted on shipboard, 12 April

1776,

Every morning six men receive four pounds of ship's zwieback [hard bread, "twice–

baked"] or bread, one and one–half as salted biscuits. On Sunday six men, as a group

receive peas and four pounds of pork. Monday a gruel is cooked from oats, butter, and

cheese. Tuesday six men receive four pounds of beef, three pounds of flour, one–half

pound of raisins, and an equal amount of beef fat, from which a pudding is made. Six

men receive a numbered pouch in which the pudding is served. Wednesday again a

cooked gruel, plus butter and cheese. Thursday six men receive four pounds of cooked

pork and peas. Friday again oatmeal gruel, plus butter and cheese. On Saturday again a

pudding as on Tuesday. Every day six men receive four measures of small beer to drink

and every morning a can of rum. These are served at eight o'clock. The officers have their

own victuals cooked by our cook in the German manner and eat together.25

A month and a half later Reuber wrote:

29 May [1776] – Here I shall note our [shipboard] housekeeping. In the morning at eight

o'clock, bread, meat, butter and cheese are issued by a sailor who is called the steward, in

the presence of an officer ... Each man receives a small can of rum and vinegar. When it

is cooked and is done, every six men have a wooden bowl with a number thereon

representing the berthing spaces, from number one to the end. The cook calls first and

fills it, and so until the last. And what we receive each day, I have previously noted. The

soldiers must stir the pudding themselves, and for every six men, a bag is provided on

which is the number of their berthing place, also. When it is ready, the cook calls the

number and the six men divide the pudding. The same procedure is used with the meat –

one piece for six men, which is then divided into six pieces. The one who divides it

points with his fork and asks who should have it. Another [of his mess], who has turned

away, gives the answer. It would be a great pleasure to watch this activity if the portion

of meat were not so small. Often a piece of meat is served which consists of more bone

than meat.26

While coffee and sugar were rarely issued to Revolutionary soldiers, Union

artilleryman John Billings’ 1860’s description of dividing rations mirrored Continental

Army practice:

It would have interested a civilian to observe the manner in which this ration was served

out when the army was in active service. It was usually brought to camp in an oat–sack, a

regimental quartermaster receiving and apportioning his among the … companies … then

the orderly–sergeant of a company … must devote himself to dividing it. One method of

accomplishing this … was to spread a rubber blanket on the ground, – more than one if

the company was large, – and upon it were put as many piles of the coffee there were

men to receive rations; and the care taken to make the piles of the same size to the eye, to

keep the men from growling, would remind one of a country physician making his

powders, taking a little from one pile and adding to another. The sugar which always

accompanied the coffee was spooned out at the same time on another blanket. When both

were ready, they were given out, each man taking a pile, or, in some companies, to

prevent any charge of unfairness or injustice, the sergeant would turn his back on the

rations, and take out his roll of the company. Then, by request, some one else would point

to a pile and ask, ‘Who shall have this?’ and the sergeant, without turning, would call a

name from his list … This process would be continued until the last pile was disposed of.

There were other plans for distributing rations; but I have described this one because of

its being quite common.27

Carrying Food. Optimally, soldiers were issued haversacks (a coarse linen bag) to carry

rations on the march. The haversack was slung it over a man’s right shoulder, hanging

under his left arm. One surviving British example measures 13 1/2 inches high by 16 3/4

inches wide, with a two-inch linen strap (for photographs see,

http://www.najecki.com/repro/misc/Nannos/HaversackBody.html ). On at least one

occasion Continental soldiers were directed to construct their own. "College Camp [

Williamsburg , Virginia ] October the 11th. 1775 ... [A] Captain of Each Company is to

Apply to the Quartermaster for Linnen Cloth to make a habersack for Each Soldier one

yard of Oznabrigs is Supposed to be Sufficient for the purpose of making the sack ...

Each Soldier to make his own sack ... as near one General Size & patern as Possible.

Thread Sufficient for the purpose must be Drawn ..." (Haversacks could be multi-

purposed. In November 1757 British troops at Annapolis, Nova Scotia, went to an apple

http://www.najecki.com/repro/misc/Nannos/HaversackBody.html

orchard and "filled bags, haversacks, baskets and even their pockets with fruit." When in

Pennsylvania , soldiers of the 64th Regiment were ordered to convey a ration issue to

camp: "Ashtown Camp 14th September 1777 ... The Men are to go with their

Haversacks for flour to Hills Milles.")28

Detail of Continental soldier wearing a haversack and canteen. (Artwork by George

C. Woodbridge.) For photographs of original haversack see,

http://www.najecki.com/repro/misc/Nannos/HaversackBody.html .

Bennett Cuthbertson noted in his 1768 military treatise, "a Soldier cannot conveniently

get through the Duties of a Campaign, without a Haversack of strong, coarse, grey linen

(which is always issued as part of the Camp-equipage) to carry his bread and provisions

on a March..." With that said, Continental soldiers were often without haversacks due to

supply shortfalls. For example, an "Abstract of the Arms & Accoutrements deliverd out at

Philadelphia to the Continental Troops by the Commissary Genl. of Military Stores” for the

period from 1 April 1777 to the beginning of August the same year show only 3,135

haversacks issued as opposed to 13,297 knapsacks. This at a time when the army under Gen.

George Washington’s immediate command numbered approximately 14,000, leaving at

least three quarters of the troops without haversacks.29


(See next page for caption.)

(Photo on previous page)

Linen haversacks were the preferred receptacle for carrying food. (One surviving

British example measures 13 1/2 inches high by 16 3/4 inches wide, with a two-

inch linen strap; the haversack’s flap is closed with two buttons.) Here we see a

typical Continental soldier’s haversack, with boiled beef and hard biscuit in a wooden

bowl. Linen bags inside the haversack were used for storing meat, flour, biscuits,

bread, and other rations. Also shown are a tin cup, horn spoon, and tin canteen with a

wool cover. (Photograph by the author.)

_______________________

Whether or not haversacks were available, soldiers transported food other ways, too.

Portions of a mess squad's food were occasionally carried in a camp kettle, each man

taking his turn with the burden. Connecticut soldier Joseph Martin wrote of this occurring

autumn 1777, when his regiment halted in Burlington, New Jersey , "where we procured

some carrion beef, for it was not better. We cooked it and ate some, and carried the

remainder away with us. We had always, in the army, to carry our cooking utensils in our

hands by turns, and at this time, as we were not overburthened by provisions, our mess

had put ours into our kettle, it not being very heavy, as it was made of plated iron."30

Other items were specifically intended to hold food or converted to that purpose. In

May 1779, the colonel of the 1st Pennsylvania Regiment directed his officers that the

"Compys will have the [new] Knapsacks delivered, that the men may appear with their

Cloathing in them this afternoon. The old Knapsacks the men have in their Possession,

they will keep to carry their Provisions in them." In February 1776 a "new invented

Knapsack and Haversack" was advertised to Maryland. The manufacturer touted it as

already “adopted by the American regulars of Pennsylvania, New Jersey & Virginia ..." The

truth of that assertion is open to doubt, but the item is interesting in that it was a dual

purpose knapsack intended to carry a soldier's clothing as well as food.31

Soldiers also packed food in their primary knapsacks along with clothing and other

necessaries. Orders for Jackson 's Additional Regiment, " Boston Oct 4. 1777 The

Regiment to hold themselves in readiness to embark ... it is expected that every Non

Commissioned Officer & Soldier, will have his Cloathing & Necessaries put up in their

Knapsacks this afternoon, together with two days provisions Cook'd ..." The same month

a private with General Horatio Gates' Northern Army noted, "at night we drew rations

and were notified to be ready early on the next Morn' to march to Stillwater, so we boiled

our Meet and had our provisions all in our Paiks ready ... early in the Morn' [we] were

paraded and marched off ..." Joseph Martin wrote of returning to the Valley Forge camp

in early spring of 1778, carrying "two or three days' rations in my knapsack," and in July

1779 the troops on Sullivan's Expedition were issued rations and ordered "to take [them]

in their packs ..."32

Using equipment unsuited for carrying food increased the troops' burden considerably,

and without adequate containers to carry provisions they were easily spoiled or lost, thus

wasting the extraordinary effort expended to obtain it. Unfortunately, in the Continental

Army haversacks, canteens, and camp kettles had a high rate of attrition. Prior to each

campaign large supplies of each were needed to complete the men adequately, but often

sufficient quantities had not been received even after the army marched. This remained true

until the war's end. While preparing to take the field in 1782, Quartermaster General

Timothy Pickering informed General Washington that nothing more was needed "except

knapsacks, canteens & camp kettles." He particularly mentioned canteens as "an article so

frequently lost & broken."33

Following a time-honored tradition soldiers were forced to improvise and suffer the

inconvenience. Orders for the attack on the British at Germantown (4 October 1777)

directed soldiers to "take their provision in their habersacks [sic], such as have not

habersacks are to take their provision in their pockets, or in such manner as may be most

convenient." Writing after the battle, Timothy Pickering, then Washington's adjutant

general, noted that "Haversacks ... are exceedingly wanted for carrying the men's provisions.

In the last action the men having no other way tied their provisions up in their blankets and

shirts some of which were left in consequence thereof." (In a similar manner Sgt. Jeremiah

Greenman, travelling to Valley Forge in 1778, "toock sum provision in a hankerchife.")

When the New Jersey Brigade had a large influx of drafted men in June 1778, their

commander wrote, "There is about 450 of the new Leveys come in. I do not know what we

shall do for want of Haversacks, should we March, to carry their Provisions. Coll. Cox has

given orders to the first and 2d Regts. to get as much cloath from his agent here as will make

them [haversacks] but he says there is no more therefore the 3d and 4th [Regiments] must be

served from camp."34

Every locale saw shortages. In May 1778 a two-thousand man expedition was sent against

British held St. Augustine, East Florida. From "Camp at Fort Howe on Alatamaha" River,

Georgia, an American officer complained to William Moultrie, "you have been much too

parsimonious in your fitting us out for this expedition ... what is more inconvenient than to

have only one camp-kettle to ten, twelve or fifteen men? and in this hot climate to have one

small canteen to six or eight men? we think no expense too great to procure men, but we do

not think after we have got them, that we ought to go to the expense of preserving their

health ... the Gen. requested me to desire you to send round in a boat ... 500 canteens, 100

camp-kettles, and 35 or 40 tents ..."35

Units earmarked for John Sullivan's 1779 Indian Expedition experienced similar

difficulties. General Edward Hand wrote in March, from Minisink on the New York/New

Jersey frontier, that he "wish[ed] to know where we may be supplied with ... Camp Kettles

& Canteens all which we are destitute of ..." (The units under his command were the 2nd

New York Regiment, German Regiment, Spencer's Additional Regiment, Armand's Legion

Infantry, and Captain Schott's Independent Company.) A series of receipts made early in

1779 show severe shortfalls in numbers of canteens and knapsacks needed by the New

Jersey Brigade for the year's campaign. On 29 January, 301 knapsacks and 175 canteens

were issued to the 2d New Jersey Regiment; four months later on 25 May an additional 50

knapsacks, 229 canteens, and 35 camp kettles were issued to the same unit. (Thirty five

kettles would supply 210 common soldiers; during this period the overall strength of the 2d

New Jersey ranged from 431 non-commissioned officers and rank and file in January, to

356 three months later.) In April, when the entire Jersey Brigade numbered 1,011 men, "86

Canteens 581 Knapsacks ... [and] five Hund. Canteen Straps" were issued to supply a

deficit. Haversacks were also wanted. General orders at Wyoming, 27 July 1779, stipulated

that "The Comdg. officers of regiments & corps will forthwith ... furnish their troops with

knapsacks, haversacks and canteens complete." On 23 August 1779, after the troops under

Sullivan had already marched great distances in difficult country, General Sullivan, at

Tioga, Pennsylvania, ordered "The different Corps ... immediately to call on the Qr.Mr Genl

For ... Knapsacks, haversacks, & Canteens."36

A 21 August 1779 return for Sullivan’s army

still shows shortages of much-needed food-related equipment, including knapsacks and

haversacks (see below):37

"A General Return of Stores in The Quarter Master General's Department with the Army under the

Command of ... Major General John Sullivan on the Western Expedition Fort Sullivan, Tioga," 21

August 1779.

Camp

Kettles Bowls

with Camp Iron and

Covers Kettles Cups Dishes Canteens

Maxwell's Brigade 184 26 80 957

Poor's Brigade 213 19 869

Hand's Brigade 109 555

Proctor's Artillery 13 39 180

Knapsacks Haversacks

Maxwell's Brigade 1044 765

Poor's Brigade 851 535


Proctor's Artillery 100

Unit strength August 1779:

Present Officers N.C.O.'s and Privates

Fit for Duty and Staff Present, Fit for Duty

Maxwell's Brigade 1225 83 1142

(1st, 2d, 3d New Jersey Regiments, and Spencer’s Additional Regiment)


(1st, 2d, 3d New Hampshire Regiments, 2d New York Regiment)

Hand's Brigade 800 66 754

(4th and 11th Pennsylvania Regiments, German Regiment, Morgan’s Rifle Corps,

Schott’s Rifle Corps)

Procter's Artillery 147 16 131

(4th Battalion, Continental Artillery)

In another example, in June 1778, just before the Monmouth Campaign, the 1st

Pennsylvania Brigade had 840 non-commissioned officers, and rank and file, but only 505

knapsacks and 24 haversacks. Returns for other Continental Army units show severe

shortages of haversacks and knapsacks as well. (See endnote for equipment returns for

several brigades and a single Massachusetts company, spanning the period from 1778 to

1782.)38

(See next page for caption.)

(Photo on previous page) Mess groups occasionally carried provisions in camp kettles. Connecticut soldier

Joseph Martin wrote of this autumn 1777; his regiment halted in Burlington, New

Jersey, "where we procured some carrion beef, for it was not better. We cooked it

and ate some, and carried the remainder away with us. We had always, in the army,

to carry our cooking utensils in our hands by turns, and … as we were not

overburthened by provisions, our mess had put ours into our kettle …" This

photograph shows a small sheet-iron kettle, with rations of beef, rice, dried peas,

and chocolate. Also pictured are a camp hatchet and soldier’s brimmed wool hat.

Joseph Plumb Martin, Private Yankee Doodle: A Narrative of Some of the Adventures,

Dangers and Sufferings of a Revolutionary Soldier (Boston and Toronto: Little, Brown

and Co., 1962), 81. (Photograph by the author.)

__________________________

The Burden of Rations. The amount of food a haversack could hold depended upon its

size, which may have varied even in the British army. A 1762 listing of equipment carried

by British troops in America included "A Haversack, with a Strap Containing Six Days

Provisions." (The weight of the soldier's entire burden given in this list was slightly over

sixty-three pounds, at least twelve of which was comprised of foodstuff.) Ens. Thomas Glyn

noted orders for the British Guards, 19 August 1776, “When the Brigade disembarks two

Gils of Rum to be delivered for each mans Canteen which must be filled with Water,

Each Man to disembark with a Blanket & Haversack in which he is to carry one Shirt one

pair of Socks and Three Days Provisions …” A British officer with General John

Burgoyne, writing in August 1777, told of soldiers carrying an "enormous bulk, weighing

about sixty pounds" including "four days provision ... [which] load is a grievous

incumbrance."39

Continental troops often carried a similar quantity of food in their haversacks or

knapsacks. Here are several examples: General Washington's "Head-Quarters, Smithe's

Clove, June 10th, 1779. The Rum and whiskey in the maggazine to be Delivered amongst

the Brigade Commissaryes, and a Gill Pr man to Be Issued to the whole army this Day. Four

Days' flour to be Issued to the Troops, so that the whole Army will be supplyed up to

Sunday Next Inclusive. Two Days' fresh Beef to be Issued this Day, and Cattle Eaquel to

two Days' supply to be with each Brigade Commissary, Redy to be slaughtered when

wanted." "Head Quarters, New Windsor, July 20th, '79. ... If the maggazines will afford it,

the Brigade Commissary will allway[s] have about them, Redy to Issue at a Moment's

warning, tow Days' salt Provisions and a Larger Quantity of Bread or flour. The troops are

allways to have two Days' [meat] Cooked ... that they may be Redy to march at a moment's

warning." On 30 July 1779 Maj. Gen. John Sullivan's soldiers in Pennsylvania were ordered

"to take in their packs ten days bread, part hard & part soft, also two days' salted meat." (The

allotment of these articles had been set on 11 July at "1 1/4 pound of soft bread or flour or 1

pound of hard bread per day [and] 1 1/4 [pounds] of fresh or salt beef ...")40

And … Tongue. The scenario for the November 2009 progressive event at Welbourne

Plantation, near Middleburg, Virginia, was to portray a company of the York County,

Pennsylvania militia during the autumn 1777 Philadelphia campaign. Learning of the

event impression, I remembered the memoirs of York County militia Private John Adlum

(then serving with the Flying Camp), who recalled that while posted at Fort Lee, New

Jersey,

Just after dusk in the evening [of 12 November 1776] the drum beat to arms ... [and] were

informed that the enemy were landing on our side of the river ... I immediately tied up a shirt

and a pair of stockings in my blanket and a piece of bread and the greater part of a neat's

tongue that my mother gave me when I left home, and I kept the greater part of it with great

care for an emergency. I left my knapsack in our hut; I encumbered myself as little as

possible ...41

With that in mind, when I packed for the weekend my knapsack contained half a cooked

and cured beef tongue. I don’t know how the tongue would have fared in warmer weather,

but the 27 to 50 degree Fahrenheit temperatures at Welbourne were certainly proof against

spoilage, and while the appendage certainly looked as if it had recently graced a bovine

mouth, the meat was quite good to taste.

Beef tongue is not only suited to home-supplied American militia, Continental and British

soldiers were occasionally issued them on a small scale. Thomas Simes noted army rations

in his 1768 Military Medley:

American Weekly Allowance of Provisions for one Person.42

Seven pounds of bread or flour.

Seven pounds of beef or pork.

Half a pound of rice.

Three pounds of peas; and

Six ounces of butter.

Following this recital, Simes further explains, “When they receive fresh meat, each person is

to have one pound of beef a day; and one pound of flour; a bullock's head is to be issued for

eight pounds, a tongue for three pounds, and a heart for its weight."43

Orders for Jackson's Additional Regiment, "Boston Oct 4. 1777 The Regiment to hold

themselves in readiness to embark ... it is expected that every Non Commissioned

Officer & Soldier, will have his Cloathing & Necessaries put up in their Knapsacks this

afternoon, together with two days provisions Cook'd ..." Continental soldiers often

carried provisions in their knapsacks when haversacks were not available. Pictured

is a two-strap design, based on the British model, with separate bags holding flour

and a beef (neat’s) tongue. Also shown are a horn cup and spoon, and wooden bowl

and canteen. Private John Adlum, York County, Pennsylvania militia, volunteered to

defend Fort Washington, New York, in November 1776, taking "a shirt and a pair of

stockings in my blanket and a piece of bread and the greater part of a neat's tongue

that my mother gave me when I left home [in July], and I kept the greater part of it

with great care for an emergency." Continental troops were occasionally issued

tongue; campaigning against the Iroquois, New Hampshire Capt. Jeremiah Fogg wrote

on 28 August 1779, "This morning we had a dainty repast on the fruits of the savages

... sitting at a dish of tea, toast, corn, squash, smoked tongue, &c." Howard H.

Peckham, Memoirs of the Life of John Adlum in the Revolutionary War (Chicago, Il.,

1968), 49. Jeremiah Fogg, 2nd New Hampshire Regt., Journals of the Military

Expedition of Major General John Sullivan Against the Six Nations of Indians in 1779

(Glendale, N.Y.: Benchmark Publishing Co., 1970), 94. (Photograph by the author.)

_______________________________

While tongues were certainly issued at times other than winter camp, to date the only

ration returns I have located mentioning them date from the 1777-78 Valley Forge

cantonment. First, "A General Return of Provisions & Stores Issued in Camp ... [to

Washington's Army] for the Month of December 1777" lists large quantities of flour and

beef, with lesser quantities of bread, pork, fish and "Veal or Mutton." Two hams and a small

amount of tongue are also noted.44

A Commissary return dated 30 January 1778 includes a

surprisingly small quantity of barreled beef, but does show “3 barrels tongues”:

January 30, 1778, “Commissarys Office” 45

“The Commissaries Magazine”

525 barrels flour

37 barrels biscuit

47 barrels salt provision

½ barrel shad

8 barrels soap

3 barrels tongues

1 hogshead spirit

7 hogsheads rum

3 hogsheads “Ginn”

4 hogsheads whiskey

2 hogsheads bacon

1 hogshead beef

2 hogsheads molasses

9 hogsheads salt

2 tierces dried Gammon

2 tierces fresh pork

½ tierce rice

90 head of cattle

“The Bake House”

35 Bls Flour

254 Bls Biscuit

2000 loaves of bread - weighing 10,000 pounds

4 hogsheads of biscuit

1 tierce of biscuit

Two provision returns for the New Jersey troops also show tongue being handed out. The

first is for a single regiment, the 2d New Jersey, giving rations issued at camp January to

May 1778. The document is included in its entirety to show proportions of different

foodstuff. It must be noted that the 2d Jersey left Valley Forge at the end of March to a new

station in and around Haddonfield, New Jersey; the small amounts of food issued in April

and May was likely for men detached from the regiment or left behind in Pennsylvania.46

2d New Jersey Provision Issues, January to May 1778 47

January 1778 February 1778 March 1778

6062 pd of flour 3930 pd of flour 3871 pd of flour

2614 pd of bread 3963 pd of bread 3118 pd of bread

8325 pd of beef 4974 pd of beef 4426 pd of beef

269 pd of pork 636 pd of pork 112 pd of pork

15 pd of fish -------- 289 pd of fish

-------- 210 pd of biscuit -------

-------- 150 pd of gammon -------

-------- 28 pd of tongues -------

39 pd of soap 63 pd of soap 12 1/2 pd of soap

7 pd of candles 25 pd of candles 19 1/4 pd of candles

-------- 8 pd of tallow -------

-------- -------- 256 gills of rice

-------- -------- 200 pd Indian meal

April 1778 May 1778

267 pd of flour 208 pd of flour

261 pd of bread --------

317 pd of beef 64 pd of beef

27 pd of pork 30 pd of pork

-------- 36 pd of fish

Rations issued to the New Jersey Brigade at Valley Forge (having at the time only two of

four regiments present) for the month of May were as follows:48

7,827 pounds of flour

9,782 pounds of bread

8,064 pounds of beef

4 barrels of "Gams. Bacon or Gammo." *

26 barrels of salt pork

6 barrels of fish

2 barrels of salt

247 pounds of soap

341 pounds of candles

5 gallons of brandy

108 gallons of rum

52 1/3 gallons of whiskey

10 gallons of vinegar

2 bushels of peas or beans

48 pounds of tongue

56 pounds of sugar

6 firkins of butter

14 pounds of cheese

3 barrels of Indian meal

* “Gammo” is likely gammon, i.e., "Smoked ham."

Several accounts, one from the War for Independence and two from the American Civil

War, indicate that tongue was a treat for soldiers used to coarser fare. Commanding a

company of the 2nd New Hampshire Regiment campaigning under Maj. Gen. John Sullivan

against the Iroquois, Capt. Jeremiah Fogg wrote on 28 August 1779, “This morning we had

a dainty repast on the fruits of the savages. Our friends at home cannot be happier amid their

variety of superfluities, than we were while sitting at a dish of tea, toast, corn, squash,

smoked tongue, &c." Some eighty years later, on 17 July 1861, 2nd Lt. Eugene Carter, 8th

U.S. Infantry, noted after sleeping "in a field by the roadside" he awoke and "ate a

sumptuous breakfast, composed of hard bread and half-boiled tongue." His brother Walter,

serving with the 22nd Massachusetts Volunteers, Warrenton, wrote in mid-November 1862

that during a visit to Eugene, he treated Walter and brother Bob to "a royal meal, composed

of roast beef, pickled tongue, sweet and Irish potatoes (the latter mashed in butter and milk),

bread and butter, and sherry wine ... We had a gay dinner and a gay time."49

Finis. So, next time you go out for a living history event, give some thought to alternate

ways of carrying provision, trying some tongue (no, not that way), and naming your mess

squad … who wants to be the “Lowsey Mess”?

Endnotes

1. One memoir gives the names of over a hundred mess appellations. At the end of May

1861 the newly-recruited companies of several regiments of the Reserve Volunteer Division

of Pennsylvania moved to their camp at a fair grounds about one and a half miles west of

Easton, a town on the Delaware River. Their accommodations were “long rows of bunk

rooms, three of which were assigned to each company.” As Adjutant E.M. Woodward of the

2nd Regiment, Pennsylvania Reserves, noted,

Among the first things that agitated the brains of the men, was to devise quaint names and

mottoes to place over the doors to their quarters, and although they were not purely classical,

some of them were typical of those who adopted them.

Commencing on the extreme south of the eastern side, was Captain McDonough’s

company, with “Fourth Ward, City of Philadelphia;” “Fort McCandless, Sergeant Dillon

commanding;” "Fort Mann, Lieutenant John J. Gill commanding;" "Fort , Lieutenant J. D.

Schock commanding" On the right of this was "The Quaker City Head Quarters;" "Camp

McClare;" "Fort Wm. T. Blundin;" "Quaker Bridal Chamber;" "Calahan Hall;" "Live and

let live."

Next, "Fort James N. Byrnes;" "Screws;" "Hibernia Fire Engine Company;" "Bird in

Hand;" "Finney House." Next, "Continental Hotel," "The Rose Cottage;" "Dart's Head

Quarters:" "Hard Corner Sharps;" "The Old House at Home;" "Independent Rangers;"

"Nailer's Head Quarters;" "Gay Rooster;" "Diamond Hall;" "Don't Tread on me;"

"Minerva Hall;" "Git up and Git;" "Old Lebanon Garden, Captain Mealey."

Next, "Happy Home of the Constitutional Rangers, Captain William Knox;" "Punch

Bowl Hotel;" "Black Horse Hotel;" "Astor House;" "Ellsworth Hotel;" "The Government

keeps us, and we will keep the Government ;" "Cohocksink Hotel;" "District Attorney's

Office;" Notice, "Upon any, liquors being brought in, the moral character of applicants to

practice at the Bar, must be strictly inquired into."

Next, "Bristol Boys, Captain Wm. S. Thompson;" "Bower of Love;" "Happy Crew;"

"The Old School House;" "The Old Spring House;" "Hole in the Wall;" "Montgomery

Guards;" Next, "Einwechter's Head Quarters;" "Tenth and Eleventh Street Depot,

Exchange Tickets, Seven cents;" "The Serious Family ;" "Out for a Day's shooting."

Next, "Ontario House, Captain Horatio G. Sickel;" "Donaghy's Inn;" "Bill Pool Club;"

"We Respect all, and Fear none;" "Never Sink;" "Live Oak;" "Kensington Boys;" "Hike

out and Simmer down." Next, "Balmoral Castle;" "Scotch Rifles, Captain J. Orr Finnie;"

"Wallace's Cave, Lieutenant J. B. Fletcher;" "De Korponay;" "Struther's Retreat;" "Pony

Hall."

Next, "Penn Rifles, Captain George A. Woodward;" "De Korponay;" "The Flag

Wyoming." Next, "Taggart Guards;" "De Korponay Bricks;" "Sunday Mercury, Captain

E. M. Woodward;" "Spicket's Head Quarters;" "Railroad House;" "The abode of Virtue."

Next, "Consolidation Guards, Captain P. I. Smith;" "De Korponay Pidgeon Box;" "Gay

and Happy;" "Fort Defiance."

Next, "Flatborough Guards, Captain I. W. Kimble;" "Free and Easy;" "Happy Family."

Next, "Wide Awake Hall, Captain Wm. D. Curtis;" "Long Island, of Reading;"

"Keystone Hook and Ladder Company;" "Elephant Guards."

Next, "The Star of North Birdsboro', Captain Jacob Lenhart;" "Fort Sumter;" "Japanese

Hotel;" "Arctic Circle;" "Death to Traitors;" "Jeff Davis at the Sheriff's Ball;" "The Blue

Eyed Stranger;" "Moonlight Assassinators;" "Mount Vernon;" "Washington and

Lincoln;" "Victory or Death;" "White Hall, Newtown, Captain David V. Feaster;"

"Traitor Hunters;" "Love and Glory;" "Game Chickens;" "Ellsworth Avengers;" "Rebel

Killers;" "Hard Scrabble Rangers;" "Chester County Volunteers ;" "Never Surrender;"

"The Wheat Field;" "The Red Curtin;" "Susquehanna Tigers;" "Gloria Dei;" "Ellsworth's

Heart," etc.

E.M. Woodward (adjutant, Second Penna. Reserves), Our Campaigns; or, the Marches,

Bivouacs, Battles, Incidents of Camp Life and History of Our Regiment During Its Three

Years Term of Service (Philadelphia: John E. Potter, 1865), 34-36.

2. Samuel Dewees, A History of the Life and Services of Captain Samuel Dewees ... The

whole written (in part from a manuscript in the handwriting of Captain Dewees) and

compiled by John Smith Hanna (Printed by R. Neilson, 1844), 163–165; see also Dillon

Music (World Wide Web),

http://www.dillonmusic.com/historic_fifes/sammy_the_fifer.htm

See also Samuel Dewees, pension file (W9405), Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty -

Land - Warrant Application Files, National Archives Microfilm Publication M804, reel

266.

3. Henry Hallowell in 1777 was a private in Capt. Ebenezer Winship’s Company, Col.

Rufus Putnam’s Massachusetts Regiment. Howard Kendall Johnson, ed., Lynn in the

Revolution Compiled from Notes [by Carrie May Sanderson], two volumes (Boston:

W.B. Clarke Company, 1909), part 1, 163.

4. “As soon as a regiment has taken the field, the soldiers composing it should be divided

into regular messes, consisting of not more than five or six men each. The usual was of

dividing them into messes of ten, twelve, or even sixteen men each, is liable to many

objections. It is seldom, indeed, that a sufficient degree of harmony prevails among so

many men to render their mess comfortable; to which may be added, that a large mess is

always productive of less comfort, and more dirt, than a small one; when these

circumstances are maturely considered, the balance will be found to lean considerably to

the side of small messes.” Quoted from Robert Sommerville "Memoir on Medical

Arrangements" (date unknown, but prior to 1798); cited in William Blair, A.M. (Surgeon

of the Lock Hospital and Asylum and of the old Finsbury Dispensary, London), The

Soldier's Friend, or the Means of Preserving the Health of Military Men; Addressed to

the Officers of the British Army (London: “Published by Mr. Longman; Messrs. Vernor


and Hood; Messrs. Hookham and Carpenter Sold also by Messer. Mudie & Sons,

Edinburgh; and by all other booksellers. 1798"), 25–26 (Excerpts courtesy of Mike

Williams, Detached Hospital, Brigade of the American Revolution, Senior Surgeon, 1323

Shoreline Trail, Graham, NC 27253–9731).

5. Friedrich Wilhelm de Steuben, Regulations for the Order and Discipline of the Troops of

the United States Part I. (Philadelphia: Stymer and Cist, 1779), 83–84.

6. General orders, 19 June 1778, John C. Fitzpatrick, ed., The Writings of George

Washington from the Original Manuscript Sources 1745-1799, vol. 12 (Washington, DC:

GPO, 1934), 93–94; General orders, 19 June 1781, ibid., 22 (1937), 233. General orders, 10

June 1777, ibid., 8 (1933), 211–212.

7. Orders, 28 June 1777, Orderly Book, possibly belonging to Lt. Col. William Smith of

Jackson's Additional Regiment, 1777–1780, target 3, Numbered Record Books Concerning

Military Operations and Service, Pay and Settlement Accounts, and Supplies in the War

Department Collection of Revolutionary War Records (National Archives Microfilm

Publication M853, reel 3, vol. 17, 7–8) RG 93, NA.

8. General orders, 13 July 1777, Fitzpatrick, Writings of George Washington, 8 (1933), 400–

401.

9. Joseph Plumb Martin, Private Yankee Doodle: A Narrative of Some of the Adventures,

Dangers and Sufferings of a Revolutionary Soldier (Boston and Toronto: Little, Brown and

Co., 1962), 52–53, 55, 100.

10. General orders, 4 August 1782, Fitzpatrick, Writings of George Washington, 24 (1938),

463; General orders, 10 February 1783, reiterated this sentiment: "The greatest regularity

and good order [is] to be observed by the men, as to the mode of cooking their victuals and

the time of eating; as well as in the manner of messing and living together ...," ibid., 26

(1938), 111–112; Journal of Sgt. Andrew Kettell of Massachusetts, May 1780–March 1781

(W13568), reel 1477, Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty Land Warrant Application

Files, Record Group 15.

11. Martin, Private Yankee Doodle, 194–195.

12. Ibid., 195.

13. Ibid., 197.

14. General orders, 27 August 1779, Orderly book of Col. Oliver Spencer's Regt., 27 July

1779 – 28 September 1779, Early American Orderly Books, 1748–1817, Collections of the

New–York Historical Society (Microfilm edition: Woodbridge, N.J., 1977), reel 9, item 93,

112–113.

15. Joseph Brown Turner, ed., The Journal and Order Book of Captain Robert Kirkwood of

the Delaware Regiment of the Continental Line (Port Washington, NY: Kennikat Press,

1970), 86; Thomas Anburey, Travels Through the Interior Parts of America in a Series of

Letters by an Officer, vol. I (New York: The New York Times & Arno Press, 1969), letter

XXXVI, 8 August 1777, 378–381.

16. Ibid., 378–381.

17. Turner, The Journal and Order Book of Captain Robert Kirkwood, 93; Orders, 13

August 1777, Orderly Book, possibly belonging to Lt. Col. William Smith of Jackson's

Additional Regiment, 1777–1780, target 3, Numbered Record Books (National Archives

Microfilm Publication M853, reel 3, vol. 17, 10–11). "Lieutenant Colonel Harmar's Orders

for the First Pennsylvania Regiment [Book] No. 1.," 6 November 1782 to 28 March 1783,

Harmar Papers, Clements Library, microfilm, vol. 27, reel 10.

18. Samuel Dewees, A History of the Life and Services of Captain Samuel Dewees ... The

whole written (in part from a manuscript in the handwriting of Captain Dewees) and

compiled by John Smith Hanna (Printed by R. Neilson, 1844), 163–165; see also Dillon

Music (World Wide Web),

http://www.dillonmusic.com/historic_fifes/sammy_the_fifer.htm In describing "the Different Beats of the Drum," de Steuben's 1779 Manual gives the

signal to go for provisions as "roast beef." de Steuben, Regulations for the Order and

Discipline of the Troops of the United States, 91–92; see also, Raoul F. Camus, Military

Music of the American Revolution (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1976),

103–104.

"A Song in Praise of Old English Roast Beef" by Richard Leveridge (Lyrics by William

Chappell). Popularly known as the "Roast Beef of Old England." Musical score available in

Camus, Military Music of the American Revolution (see above).

(Words supplied courtesy of Kim Newell)

"When mighty roast beef was the Englishman's food,

It ennobled our hearts, and enriched our blood;

Our soldiers were brave and our courtiers were good

Oh, the roast beef of old England!

And oh, for old England's Roast Beef!

But since we have learned from effeminate France,

To eat their ragouts, as well as to dance,

We are fed up with nothing but vain complaisance,

Oh, the roast beef ...

Our fathers of old were robust stout and strong,

And kept open house with good cheer all day [long]

Which made their plump tenants rejoice in this song;


When good Queen Elizabeth sat on the throne,

Ere coffee and tea and such slip slops were known,

The world was in terror if e'en she did frown,


In those days when ships did presume on the main,

They seldom if ever returned back again,

As witness the vaunting Armada of Spain,


Oh, then we had stomachs to eat and to fight,

And when wrongs were cooking, to set ourselves right,

But now we're a––hm!–– I could but good night.

Oh the roast beef ..."

19. General orders, 4 June 1777, Fitzpatrick, Writings of George Washington, 8 (1933),

181–182.

20. Dewees, A History of the Life and Services of Captain Samuel Dewees, 163–165.

21. Anon., A Soldier’s Journal, Containing a particular Description of the several

Descents on the Coast of France last War, With an entertaining Account of the Islands of

Guadaloupe, Dominique, &c., And also of the Isles of Wight and Jersey, To which are

annexed, Observations on the present State of the Army of Great Britain (London:

Printed for E. and C. Dilly, in the Poultry, 1770) (Courtesy of Steve Rayner). Here is the

entire relevant passage:


(Memoir of a soldier of the 68th Regiment of Foot, on his first days in camp on the Isle of

Wight in 1758) “The morning after I was joined to the company, I had to put my quota of

money into the mess; that some of us might go to market to buy provisions, which, when brought

home, we drew lots who should cook, and the lot fell upon Jonas. Now I began to commence

cook; in the first place I lighted my fire, then filled my kettle with water, then put in my meat,

which was a shoulder of mutton[;] the vegetables were some long coleworts and I had

instructions to make broth: But I managed this affair very indifferently; it was the first attempt

indeed I ever had made in the art of cookery. I often asked my neighbour cooks if they thought

my contents were sufficiently dres’d? Some replied yes, and others no. At length some of my tent

mates came, and gave me orders to bring the dinner to the tent, where when I arrived, I found my

comrades all placed on the grass, without [i.e., outside] the tent, in a circle, and I had orders to fix

the kettle in the center. Some had knives, while others had none; as to spoons and forks, we were

all in one case, destitute, and no porringers or bowls, but to supply the want of the last, we took

the kettle lid; one who was the best skilled in carving, was, by consent ordered to carve the flesh

into six equal shares, and lay them abroad on the grass with the greens; when this was done,

another received orders to call them; which is, one points his finger to one of the lots and cries,

‘who shall have this?’ the man whose back is turned names one of the mess, and so proceeds till

every man’s lot is called. The bone fell to my share, and did so every day; the reason of which I

discovered by degrees. When they called the allowances, they began ‘who shall have this?’ John

T––––; ‘who shall have this?’ Thomas I––––; ‘–and– who shall have this?’ Jonas; which was sure

to be the worst lot. Thus my share was distinguished by –and– prefixed: “And who shall have

this?’ After the meat was divided and called, every one took up his lot, and then proceeded to eat

the broth in the best manner we could, with our canteen tops instead of spoons. We all put an

equal share of ammunition bread into the kettle, which bread is delivered to us on set days, and

stopped out of our pay, it is as black as our hats, in general, and quite sour.”

Researcher Steve Rayner also provided the following. Lieutenant William Bligh,

somewhere between Tahiti and Timor, after the Bounty mutiny: “Monday the 25th. [May, 1789.] At noon some noddies came so near us, that one of them was

caught by hand. This bird was about the size of a small pigeon. I divided it, with its entrails, into

18 portions, and by a well–known method at sea, of, –Who shall have this?*– it was

distributed…” *One person turns his back on the object that is to be divided: another points

separately to the portions, at each of them asking aloud, 'Who shall have this?’ to which the first

answers by naming somebody. This impartial

method of division gives every man an equal chance of the best share.”;

William Bligh; The Mutiny on Board H. M. S. Bounty, N. R. Teitel, ed. (First printed

1792. Reprinted New York: Airmont Books, 1965), 143–144;

From Thaddeus Weaver:

“’Who Shall Have This? An impartial sea method of distributing the shares of short

commons. One person turns his back on the portions, and names some one, when he is

asked, ‘Who shall have this?’ [We are glad to learn that this matter is impartially managed

afloat. In barracks, the recruit usually finds it the reverse, which is managed by merely

laying a stress on the word ‘shall.’ – ‘Who shall have this?’ when Johnny Raw is named as a

matter of course.]” Annie Barnes, The United Services Magazine, (H. Colburn, 1867), 550.

Original at the University of Michigan, digitized 9 May 2006 (World Wide Web),

http://books.google.com/books?id=m–yDhirnqWAC&pg=RA1–PA550&lpg=RA1–

PA550&dq=%22who+shall+have+this%22&source=web&ots=mFGpa8kd–

G&sig=y9I3ky7CBZTUkcjckWOll63lJ20

22. Martin, Private Yankee Doodle, 286. Jedediah Huntington to George Washington,

concerning observations on the army, 1 January 1778, George Washington Papers,

http://books.google.com/books?id=m-yDhirnqWAC&pg=RA1-PA550&lpg=RA1-PA550&dq=



Presidential Papers Microfilm (Washington: Library of Congress, 1961), series 4 (General

Correspondence. 1697–1799), reel 46. "Lieutenant Colonel Harmar's Orders for the First

Pennsylvania Regiment [Book] No. 1.," Harmar Papers, Clements Library, vol. 27, reel 10.

23. "Orderly Book, Fourth Pennsylvania Battalion, Col. Anthony Wayne, 1776,"

Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography, 30 (1906), 95–96.

24. General orders, 10 October 1777, Fitzpatrick, Writings of George Washington, 9 (1933),

347.

25. Bruce E. Burgoyne, Enemy Views: The American Revolutionary War as Recorded by the

Hessian Participants (Bowie, Md.: Heritage Book, Inc., 1996), 22–23.

26. Ibid., 23–24.

27. John D. Billings, Hardtack and Coffee or The Unwritten Story of Army Life (Boston:

George M. Smith & Co., 1887), 122–123.

28. British haversack pattern (1992), Brigade of the American Revolution. Haversack kit

available from Roy P. Najecki, Sutler, 1203 Reynolds Rd., Chepachet , RI 02814; based

on an original in the collections of J. Craig Nannos (World Wide Web),

www.najecki.com . Brent Tarter, ed., "The Orderly Book of the Second Virginia

Regiment, September 27, 1775-April 15, 1776", The Virginia Magazine of History and

Biography, vol. 85, no. 2 (April 1977), no. 3 (July 1977), 165-166. "Plan for the

Cloathing of the Infantry", 1779, George Washington Papers, Presidential Papers

Microfilm (Washington, D.C., 1961), series 4, reel 63. John Knox, captain, 43rd

Regiment, The Siege of Quebec and the Campaigns in North America, 1757-1760, Brian

Connell, ed., (Edinburgh, U.K., 1976, originally published 1769), 50. Order Book of the

64th Regiment of Foot, George Washington Papers, series 6B, vol. 3, p. 2.

29. "Abstract of the Arms & Accoutrements deliverd out at Philadelphia to the Continental

Troops by the Commissary Genl. of Military Stores from the 1st. of April 1777 to the 1st of

August following ...," (enclosure) Board of War to Washington, 18 October 1777, GW

Papers, series 4, reel 43. Bennett Cuthbertson, System for the Compleat Interior

Management and Oeconomy of a Battalion of Infantry (Dublin, 1768), 85.

30. Martin, Private Yankee Doodle, 81.

31. Regimental Orders, 26 May 1779, The Orderly Book of the First Pennsylvania

Regiment, Col. James Chambers, 23 May 1779 to 25 August 1779, John B. Linn and

William H. Egle, eds., Pennsylvania in the War of the Revolution, Battalions and Line.

1775-1783, II (Harrisburg, Pa., 1880), 442. "Philada Feby 10th 1776

Dear Sir

Inclosed you receive a proposal to furnish our Troops with the new invented Knapsack and

Haversack & of Cartouch Boxes &c ...

Your obedt Servant

Saml Chase"

Samuel Chase to Thomas Jenifer, 10 February 1776, "Journal of the Maryland

Convention, July 26-August 14, 1775/Journal and Correspondence of the Maryland

Council of Safety, August 29, 1775-July 6, 1776," William Hand Brown, Archives of

Maryland, vol. 11 (Baltimore, Md., 1892), 150. A "rough draft of the new Invented

napsack and haversack in one that is adopted by the American regulars of Pennsylvania,

New Jersey & Virginia ...", Samuel Chase to J. Young, 9 February 1776, (includes a

rough sketch of new invented knapsack and haversack, Maryland State Papers, (Red

Books), Archives of the State of Maryland, access. no. MdHR 4561, loc. 1-6-3-38, 4,


item 13.

32. Orders, 4 October 1777, Orderly Book, possibly belonging to Lt. Col. William Smith

of Jackson's Additional Regiment, 1777-1780, Numbered Record Books Concerning

Military Operations and Service, Pay and Settlement of Accounts, and Supplies in the

War Department Collection of Revolutionary War Records, Record Group 93, National

Archives Microfilm Publication M853, reel 3, vol. 17, target 3. M.M. Quaife, ed.,

"Documents - A Boy Soldier Under Washington : The Memoir of Daniel Granger",

Mississippi Valley Historical Review, XVI, 4 (March 1930), 546. Martin, Private Yankee

Doodle, 117. General orders, 30 July 1779, Order Book of Lt. Col. Francis Barber, 26

May 1779 to 6 September 1779, Louise Welles Murray, ed., Notes from Craft Collection

in Tioga Point Museum on the Sullivan Expedition of 1779, (Athens, Pa., 1929), 55.

33. Timothy Pickering to George Washington, 8 February 1782, Nod. Record Books, NA,

roll 26, vol. 83, 72-73. George Washington, 8 July 1777, "Canteens, Tomhawks and other

camp-utensils must be very beneficial to the troops; but unless more care be taken to

preserve, it will be impracticable to supply them," General orders, Fitzpatrick, Writings of

George Washington, vol. 8 (1933), 369-371.

34. John F. Reed, Campaign to Valley Forge: July 1, 1777-December 19, 1777

(Philadelphia, Pa., 1965), 214. "Return of Cloathing wanting in the Brigades ... Camp at

Towamensing", 13 October 1777, The Papers of the Continental Congress 1774-1789,

(National Archives Microfilm Publication M247 roll 38); Record Group (RG) 360, National

Archives (NA), Washington, DC, 117-118. Robert C. Bray and Paul E. Bushnell, eds.,

Diary of a Common Soldier in the American Revolution: An Annotated Edition of the

Military Journal of Jeremiah Greenman, (DeKalb, Il., 1978), 119. William Maxwell to

George Washington, 5 June 1778, Washington Papers, series 4, roll 49.

35. Kenneth Coleman, The American Revolution in Georgia 1763-1789 (Athens, Ga.,

1958), 106-108. Charles Pinckney to William Moultrie, 24 May 1778, William Moultrie,

Memoirs of the American Revolution. vol. I (reprint, New York, N.Y., 1968), 212-214.

36. Edward Hand to George Washington, Washington Papers, series 4, reel 56. Receipts for

equipment, New Jersey troops, 29 January, 27 April, 25 May 1779, James Abeel Receipt

Book 1778-1779, Lloyd W. Smith Collection, Morristown National Historical Park Library

(microfilm edition), reel 1. For unit strengths see Charles H. Lesser, Sinews of

Independence: Monthly Strength Reports of the Continental Army (Chicago, Il. and London,

1976), 100, 112. Orderly book of Col. Oliver Spencer's Regt., 27 July 1779 - 28 September

1779, Early American Orderly Books, roll 9, item 93, 31.

37. Thomas Armstrong to Nathanael Greene, 21 August 1779, "A General Return of Stores

in The Quarter Master General's Department with the Army under the Command of ...

Major General John Sullivan on the Western Expedition Fort Sullivan, Tioga,"

Miscellaneous Numbered Records (The Manuscript File) in the War Department Collection

of Revolutionary War Records 1775-1790's, National Archives Microfilm Publication

M859, Record Group 93 (Washington, D.C., 1971), reel 94, no. 27523.

July 1779 strength return, Lesser, 124-125.

Procter's Artillery Battalion, October 1779 return, 138 (N.C.O.'s and privates)

38. “A Return of officers and men Camp Equipage now Present in the 1st. Penna. Brigade Commanded by

Coln. William Irvine” [included the 1st, 2

nd, 7

th, and 10

th Pennsylvania Regiments. The original return is broken

down by regiment.]

June 3, 1778

Field Officers 10

Commissioned Officers 79

Staff Officers 14

Non Commissioned Officers 111

Rank and File 729

Marqueas 2 Wooden Bowls 4

Horsemans Tents 4 Axes 13

Common Tents 74 Hatchets 0

Knapsacks 505 Tomahawks 44

Haversacks 24 Spades 9

Camp Kettles 128 Shovels 6

Canteens 112 Pickaxes 0

Buckets 11 Bell Tents 24

“A Return of officers and men Camp Equipage now Present in the 1st. Penna. Brigade Commanded by Coln.

William Irvine” (Included the 1st, 2

nd, 7

th, and 10

th Pennsylvania Regiments. The original return is broken down

by regiment.) Thomas Alexander, Brigade Quartermaster, 3 June 1778, General William Irvine Papers,

Historical Society of Pennsylvania. (Courtesy of Lee Boyle)

_______________________________________________

With Sullivan's Army, 21 August 1779

Present Officers N.C.O.'s and Privates

Fit for Duty and Staff Present, Fit for Duty




Procter's Artillery 147 16 131

(4th Battalion, Continental Artillery)

Camp

Kettles Bowls

with Camp Iron and

Covers Kettles Cups Dishes Canteens

Maxwell's Brigade 184 26 80 957



Proctor's Artillery 13 39 180

Leather

Knapsacks Haversacks Portmanteaus




Proctor's Artillery 100 22

Felling Fascine Fascine

Axes Shovels Spades Picks Knives Hatchets

Maxwell's Brigade 56 8

Poor's Brigade 96 4 11 3

Hand's Brigade 22 5

Proctor's Artillery 10 5 8 6 6

Thomas Armstrong to Nathanael Greene, 21 August 1779, "A General Return of Stores in

The Quarter Master General's Department with the Army under the Command of ... Major

General John Sullivan on the Western Expedition Fort Sullivan, Tioga," Miscellaneous

Numbered Records (The Manuscript File) in the War Department Collection of

Revolutionary War Records 1775-1790's, National Archives Microfilm Publication M859,

Record Group 93 (Washington, D.C., 1971), reel 94, no. 27523. _______________________________________________

Col. Clark’s North Carolina Brigade (1st and 2

nd NC), Col. Bailey’s 4

th Massachusetts

Brigade (2nd

, 8th, 9

th, Mass.), and General Patterson’s Brigade (10

th, 11

th, 12

th, 14

th, Mass.).

NC Brigade (126 officers, 541 rank and file present, fit for duty; 128 rank & file sick, on command, and on

furlough)

2 marquees

21 horseman’s tents

168 common tents

123 tent poles

122 camp kettles

495 knapsacks

98 haversacks

26 pails

185 canteens

31 leather portmanteau

12 leather valises

1 canvas valise

1 cutting box

1 cutting knife

1 broad axe

14 narrow axes

2 handsaws

6 chisels

2 augers

2 hammers

4 shovels

4 spades

3 picks

2 covered wagons

16 open wagons

64 wagon horses C.P.

8 ditto P.P.

6 riding horses C.P.

8 ditto P.P.

4th Mass. Brigade (164 officers, 628 rank and file present, fit for duty; 229 rank & file sick, on command, and

on furlough)

4 marquees


173 common tents

10 tent poles

25 tent lines

136 camp kettles

132 knapsacks

22 haversacks

19 wooden bowls

58 pails

559 canteens


4 canvas valise

30 iron cups

26 narrow axes

1 handsaw

1 drawknife

2 chisels

1 gouge

1 iron square

1 compass

1 gimblet

1 file

5 shovels

7 spades

1 picks



16 ditto P.P.

Patterson’s Brigade (223 officers, 981 rank and file present, fit for duty; 147 rank & file sick, on command,

and on furlough)

3 marquees


192 common tents

23 tent poles

27 tent lines

174 camp kettles

346 knapsacks

64 wooden bowls

76 pails

797 canteens


6 canvas valise

32 iron cups

26 narrow axes

8 shovels

11 spades

6 picks

1 covered wagon

4 wagon horses C.P.


6 ditto P.P.

"A Return of Quarter-Master-General's Stores in The Brigades at West Point &

Constitution Island," 1 August 1779, The Papers of the Continental Congress 1774-1789,

(National Archives Microfilm Publication M247, 1958, vol. 3, reel 192, 145), NA. _______________________________________________

“Return of the Pennsylvania Division in the service of the United States, Commanded by

The Honble Major General Arthur St: Clair. October 1st. 1779.”

4,032 rank and file (not including officers, staff, and non-commissioned officers)

Good Wanting repair

Clothing

coats 293 1632

waistcoats 364 1566

breeches 171 834

linen overalls 2586 560

stockings 149 632

neckstocks 112 3

hunting shirts 10

shoes 887 967

hats 9 1545

caps 407 176

blankets 546 570

Camp Equipage

marquees 9 2

horseman’s tenst 66 5

wall tents 14 2

common tents 315 98

valises 21 2

leather portmanteau 17

knapsacks 1692 86

covered kettles 60 common kettles 389 41

canteens 967 38

bowls 51 5

spoons 84

axes 96 21

spades 22

shovels 8

picks 6

Woolen overalls and axe slings are returned as zero.

“Return of the Pennsylvania Division in the service of the United States, Commanded by

The Honble Major General Arthur St: Clair. October 1st. 1779.” Returns transcribed by

Mathew Grubel Oct 6, 2003 from photostats at Morristown National Historical Park filed

unded United States Army Returns. Original manuscripts at the Historical Society of

Pennsylvania _______________________________________________

3rd

, 5th, 6

th, 9

th Pennsylvania Regiments, plus “Brigadier and others.”

The brigade returned 4 covered camp kettles (two with the 5th Regiment, two with the brigadier general), 196

camp kettles (61 (3rd

), 48 (5th), 41 (6

th), 44 (9

th), and two with the “Brigadier and others”), 36 wooden bowls

(10, 17, 2, 6), and 20 iron spoons (12, -, -, 8).

Total brigade strength was:

3rd

(55 officers, 240 rank and file present, fit for duty; 80 rank & file sick, on command, and on furlough)

5th (51 officers, 201 rank and file present, fit for duty; 78 rank & file sick, on command, and on furlough)



(Lesser, July 1779 return, 124)

3rd

(55 officers, 240 rank and file present, fit for duty; 80 rank & file sick, on command, and on furlough)

1 marquee


61 common tents

1 wall tent

50 tent poles

61 camp kettles

208 knapsacks

10 wooden bowls

215 canteens


3 canvas valises

12 iron spoons

18 espontoons

1 scythe

1 scythe stone

17 narrow axes

1 adze

1 handsaw

2 chisels

1 auger

1 gimblet

1 file

1 plane

1 shovel

1 spade

2 picks

4 open wagons


8 riding horses P.P.


1 marquee


57 common tents

3 wall tents

41 camp kettles

224 knapsacks

17 wooden bowls

229 canteens


3 canvas valises

12 narrow axes

7 shovels

6 spades

5 picks

1 covered wagon

4 open wagons





1 marquee


42 common tents

2 wall tents

50 tent poles

41 camp kettles

166 knapsacks

2 wooden bowls

126 canteens


1 scythe

10 narrow axes

1 shovel

1 spade

1 pick

1 covered wagon

4 open wagons






33 common tents

2 wall tent

45 tent poles

44 camp kettles

144 knapsacks

6 wooden bowls

84 canteens


2 canvas valises

8 iron spoons

11 espontoons

1 scythe

1 scythe stone

10 narrow axes

1 gimblet

2 shovela

3 spades

4 picks

1 covered wagon

4 open wagons




“Brigadier and others”

4 marquees


3 common tents

5 tent poles

2 covered camp kettles

2 camp kettles

1 wooden bowl

1 canteen


2 canvas valises

1 espontoon

3 narrow axes

1 chisel

1 iron square

1 ruler

1 gimblet

4 shovela

4 spades

4 picks

2 covered wagon

8 open wagons

1 riding horse C.P.


3d, 5th, 6th, 9th Pennsylvania Regiments, plus “Brigadier and others.”

The brigade returned 4 covered camp kettles (two with the 5th Regiment, two with the brigadier general), 196

camp kettles (61 (3d), 48 (5th), 41 (6th), 44 (9th), and two with the “Brigadier and others”), 36 wooden bowls

(10, 17, 2, 6), and 20 iron spoons (12, –, –, 8).

Total brigade strength was:

3d (55 officers, 240 rank and file present, fit for duty; 80 rank & file sick, on command, and on furlough)




"A Return of Quarter–Master–General's Stores in the Second Pennsylvania Brigade ... at

Camp West Point," 4 August 1779

Papers of the Continental Congress (NA Microfilm Publication M247, vol. 3, reel 192, 3,

145, 153); Lesser, Sinews of Independence: Monthly Strength Reports of the Continental

Army, 124, July 1779 return.

"A Return of Quarter-Master-General's Stores in the Second Pennsylvania Brigade ... at

Camp West Point," 4 August 1779

The Papers of the Continental Congress 1774-1789, (National Archives Microfilm

Publication M247, 1958, vol. 3, reel 192, 153), NA. _______________________________________________

(Lesser, May 1781 return, 202)

“Return of Quarter-Master General Stores on hand in the first Connecticut Brigade Commanded by J

Huntington B.G.,” “Camp Highlands,” 25 May 1781.

1st. Regiment (45 officers, 147 rank and file present, fit for duty; 224 rank & file sick, on command, and on

furlough)

1 marquee tent

2 horsemen’s tents

1 wall tent

42 camp kettles

161 knapsacks

7 wooden bowls

4 pails

34 canteens

31 portmanteaus

3 iron wedges

1 broad axe

10 narrow axes

1 handsaw

1 hammer

5 spades

2 picks

1 covered wagon

22 espontoons

1 set of wagon gears

3rd

Regiment (42 officers, 187 rank and file present, fit for duty; 144 rank & file sick, on command, and on

furlough)


1 wall tent

73 camp kettles

138 knapsacks

18 wooden bowls

15 canteens

27 portmanteaus

9 canvas valises

1 iron pot

1 brass kettle

2 iron wedges

1 grindstone

1 broad axe

25 narrow axes

1 adze

1 handsaw

1 drawknife

1 auger

3 pincers

1 hammer

1 gimblet

6 spades

3 picks

1 covered wagon

18 espontoons


5th Regiment (39 officers, 118 rank and file present, fit for duty; 177 rank & file sick, on command, and on

furlough)


4 common tents

1 wall tent

54 camp kettles

43 knapsacks

23 wooden bowls

2 pails

21 canteens

27 portmanteaus

6 canvas valises

1 broad axe

14 narrow axes

1 handsaw

1 drawknife

1 hammer

3 spades

2 picks

1 covered wagon

12 espontoons

B[rigadier]. & staff


4 common tents

1 wall tent

4 camp kettles

1 pail

3 portmanteaus

2 canvas valises

1 grindstone

3 narrow axes

1 adze

2 hammer

2 covered wagons

18 espontoons


Also listed are 112 “Bad” knapsacks, 3 covered wagons “wanting Repair,” and 8 “Bad” espontoons

“Return of Quarter-Master General Stores on hand in the first Connecticut Brigade

Commanded by J Huntington B.G.,” “Camp Highlands,” 25 May 1781, Miscellaneous



Record Group 93 (Washington, D.C., 1971), reel 94, no. 27553. _______________________________________________

In July 1782 Captain Rufus Lincoln's company, 7th Massachusetts Regiment, contained

one sergeant, three corporals, and forty-three privates. An April company equipment return

listed 4 knapsacks, 1 haversack, and 5 canteens; in May knapsacks increased to 40 and

canteens to 37. Eventually during 1782 (April to October) 41 canteens, and 43 knapsacks

were issued, but no haversacks. James Minor Lincoln, The Papers of Captain Rufus Lincoln

of Wareham, Mass. (New York: Arno Press, 1968; reprint of 1904 edition), 125, 136, 137,

138, 140, 154, 162, 172, 175, 176, 197.

39. Arthur Baillie, lieutenant, to Henry Bouquet, colonel, 28 August 1762, Henry

Bouquet, Papers of Col. Henry Bouquet, series 21648, part 2 (Harrisburg: Pennsylvania

Historical Commission, 1940), 77-78. (Courtesy of R. Scott Stephenson, "'The Camp

Looks So Pretty With all the Lanterns': Thoughts on Reconstructing the Physical World

of the British Soldier on Campaign in North America", Standing Orders: A Newsletter

for Researchers of the British Army in North America, 1739-1765, vol. 3, no. 1

(November 1990)). Thomas Glyn; "The Journal of Ensign Thomas Glyn, 1st Regiment of

Foot Guards on the American Service with the Brigade of Guards 1776-1777," p. 7

(transcribed by Linnea Bass, Palatine, Il., 1987). See also Howe Orderly Book, orders, 20

August 1776, Howe Orderly Book; "Howe, William Orderly Book, June 30 - October 4

1776." "General Orders from 30th June to 5th. Octr. 1776:" "General orders by His

Excellency the Honble. Wm. Howe From 30th. June & ending 5th. October 1776."

Collection of Morristown National Historical Park. Wisconsin Historical Society

microfilm #P79-3244 (transcribed by Stephen Gilbert, 1992). Thomas Anburey, Travels

Through the Interior Parts of America in a Series of Letters by an Officer, vol. I (New York:

The New York Times & Arno Press, 1969), letter XXXVI, 8 August 1777, 378–381.

40. The Orderly Book of the First Pennsylvania Regiment, Col. James Chambers, 23 May

1779 to 25 August 1779, John B. Linn and William H. Egle, eds., Pennsylvania in the War

of the Revolution, Battalions and Line. 1775-1783, II (Harrisburg, Pa., 1880), 449, 470.

Louise Welles Murray, ed., Notes from Craft Collection in Tioga Point Museum on the

Sullivan Expedition of 1779, (Athens, Pa., 1929), 55. General orders, 11 July 1779, Orderly

book of Col. Oliver Spencer's Regt., 27 July 1779 - 28 September 1779, Early American

Orderly Books, reel 9, item 93, p. 31.

41. Howard H. Peckham, Memoirs of the Life of John Adlum in the Revolutionary War

(Chicago: The Caxton Club, 1968), 49.

42. Thomas Simes, The Military Medley: Containing the Most Necessary Rules and

Directions for Attaining a Competent Knowledge of the Art ... (Dublin: [n.p.], 1768;

reprint King’s Arms Press, 1994), 272, "American Weekly Allowance of Provisions for

one Person."

43. Ibid.

44. "A General Return of Provisions & Stores Issued in Camp ... for the Month of

December 1777," The Papers of the Continental Congress 1774-1789, (National Archives

Microfilm Publication M247 reel 199); Record Group (RG) 360, National Archives (NA),

Washington, DC, p. 579.

45. Thomas Jones, "Return of Provisions at Camp after Serving the Troops for Jan 31st. [sic]

January 1778,” 30 January 1778, courtesy of Lee Boyle, Miscellaneous Numbered Records

(The Manuscript File) in the War Department Collection of Revolutionary War Records

1775-1790's, National Archives Microfilm Publication M859, Record Group 93

(Washington, D.C., 1971), reel 76, no. 22110. Copy in The Papers of the Continental

Congress 1774-1789, (National Archives Microfilm Publication M247 reel 199, i192, f481);

Record Group (RG) 360, National Archives (NA), Washington, DC.

46. John U. Rees, "I Expect to be stationed in Jersey sometime...": An Account of the

Services of the Second New Jersey Regiment: Part I, December 1777 to June 1778 (1994, unpublished, copy held in the collections of the David

Library of the American Revolution, Washington Crossing, Pa.), contains seventeen appendices

covering various subjects including studies of the casualties incurred by the New Jersey Brigade

(1777-1779), the uniform clothing of the New Jersey Brigade (1776-1778), the use of the nine-

month draft in 1778, and names of all the officers and enlisted men of the regiment.

Chapter titles: The March to Winter Quarters: 13 December to 25 December 1777

General Orders, 20 December to 25 December 1777

Countering the "depredations of the Enemy": 23 December to 28 December 1777

The Valley Forge Camp in the Waning Days of 1777

A. General Orders: 25 December to 31 December 1777

B. "I fancy we may ... Content ourselves in these Wigwams ...": 1 January to 19 March 1778

Valley Forge in the First Months of 1778

General Orders, 1 January to 19 March 1778

"I Expect to be stationed in Jersey sometime ...": 22 March to 1 April 1778

General Orders of the Army, 20 March to 28 March 1778

"The Enemy Giting intelligence of our movement ...": 4 April to 30 May 1778

General Orders of the Army, 8 April to 6 May 1778

Reinforcements and Alarms: The Actions of Brigadier General William Maxwell and

the Remainder of the Jersey Brigade, May 7 to May 24, 1778

The Institution of Nine-Month Enlistments from the New Jersey Militia, February to June 1778

Procuring Arms and Equipment for the Regiment, March to June 1778

Clothing the Men in the Spring of 1778

The Jersey Brigade is Reunited, May 28 to June 19, 1778

47. Return of rations issued to the 2nd New Jersey Regiment for the period from January to

May 1778, Revolutionary War Rolls, New Jersey, 2d Regiment, 1775-1783, National

Archives Microfilm Publication M246, Record Group 93, reel 57 (21-22), miscellaneous

records.

48. "General Return of Provisions and Stores Receivd for the Troops in Camp ... for the

Month of May 1778," New Jersey State Archives [Trenton] Revolutionary War Manuscripts

(Numbered), Military Records, reel 5807861909, document 4312.

A second return signed by Deputy Commissary General of Issues Thomas Jones lists

ration quantities actually issued at Valley Forge from 25 to 31 January 1778. “6/7” seems

to means 6/7 of a pound.

Provisions Issued, 25-31 January 1778, include:

Rations due 21,370 2/7 per day

Drawn 17, 578 per day

Daily issues: 19,075 5/7 pounds flour

3,383 1/7 pounds bread

20,436 6/7 pounds of beef

1,748 5/7 pounds of pork

233 2/7 pounds fish

29 6/7 pounds mutton

24 4/7 pounds of soap

169 6/7 pounds soap

8 4/7 pounds candles

206 pints salt

3 pints of rice

558 4/7 jills spirits

760 1/7 jills Li[ ]

1004 6/7 jills vinegar

6/7 no. tongues

Totals:

20 ½ pints of rice

1189 ½ pounds of soap

7034 Jills of vinegar

Thomas Jones, Provisions Issued, 3 February 1778, courtesy of Lee Boyle, Miscellaneous



Record Group 93 (Washington, D.C., 1971), reel 75, no. 22033. Copy in The Papers of the

Continental Congress 1774-1789, (National Archives Microfilm Publication M247 reel 199,

f503); Record Group (RG) 360, National Archives (NA), Washington, DC.

Rations for January 1778 for New Jersey Brigade’s four regiments consisted of: 26,314 pounds of flour

10,913 pounds of bread

35,603 pounds of fresh beef

906 pounds of pork

9 bushels and 2 7/8 quarts of salt

193 pounds of soap

52 3/4 pounds of candles

109 gallons of rum

470 pounds of herrings

In addition to these items the brigade received lesser amounts of gammon, tongues, Indian

meal and rice.

"General Return of Provisions and Stores Issued to the Troops ... in the Middle Department

for the Month of January 1778," New Jersey State Archives [Trenton] Revolutionary War

Manuscripts (Numbered), Military Records, reel 5807861909, document 3638; reel

5798831908, document 4315. Gammon, “the buttocks or thigh of a hog pickled and

smoked,” Noah Webster, A Dictionary of the English Language: Abridged from the

American Dictionary, for the Use of Primary Schools and the Counting House (New York:

N&J White Publishers, 1836), 182. Gammon: a smoked ham, Richard M. Lederer, Jr.,

Colonial American English: A Glossary, (Essex, Ct.: Verbatim, 1985)

See also "Account of Provisions Deliver'd for the Use of the 6th. Pena. Regt. ...," January-

July 1778; "A General Account of Provisions &c Issued from Jany. 1st. 1778 to the 31st.

Inclusive," and provision returns for March, April, June and July 1778, for Late Conway's

3rd Pennsylvania Brigade and attached organizations, Records of Issuance and Receipt of

Provisions, 1776-83 and 1786, Numbered Record Books Concerning Military Operations

and Service, Pay and Settlement of Accounts, and Supplies in the War Dapartment

Collection of Revolutionary War Records, Record Group 93, National Archives Microfilm

Publication M853, reel 41, vol. 112 and 121, targets (6 Pa. 8-9, 44-45, 72-73) 26-27, 38-39,

90-91, 104-105. A series of accounts of provisions issued for the 3rd Pennsylvania Brigade

(late Conway's) and attached officers and organizations lists the following foodstuffs in

varying quantities: flour, bread, beef (salt and fresh), pork, fish, rice, tongue, mutton, beans,

molasses, gammon, bacon, biscuit, butter. The provision returns for the 6th Pennsylvania

Regiment for the first seven months of 1778 also include small quantities of vinegar, Indian

meal, cheese, "Heads & Plucks,” and peas.

49. Jeremiah Fogg, 2nd New Hampshire Regt., Journals of the Military Expedition of Major

General John Sullivan Against the Six Nations of Indians in 1779 (Glendale, N.Y.:

Benchmark Publishing Co., 1970), 94. Robert Goldthwaite Carter, Four Brothers in Blue

(Austin and London: University of Texas, 1979), 11, 163.

_________________________________ Works by John U. Rees related to food in the armies of the American Revolution:

"’It was my turn to cook for the Mess’: Provisions of the Common Soldier in the

Continental Army, 1775–1783,” Food History News, vol. VII, no. 1 (Fall 1995), 2, 8.

"’Sometimes we drew two days rations at a time.’: The Soldiers' Daily Issue,” FHN,

vol. VII, no. 3 (Winter 1995), 2–3.

"’Drew 2 pound of Shugar and 1 pound of Coffee’: Extraordinary Foodstuffs Issued

the Troops,” FHN, vol. VIII, no. 1 (Summer 1996), 2–3.

"’The unreasonable prices extorted ... by the market People’: Camp Markets and the

Impact of the Economy,” FHN, vol. VII, no. 4 (Spring 1996), 2–3.

"’Complaint has been made by many of the Inhabitants’: Soldiers' Efforts to

Supplement the Ration Issue,” FHN, vol. VIII, no. 2 (Fall 1996), 1–2, 7.

"’Whilst in this country’: Sullivan's Expedition and the Carolina Campaigns,” FHN,

vol. VIII, no. 3 (Winter 1996), 2, 6–7.

"’Hard enough to break the teeth of a rat.’: Biscuit and Hard Bread in the Armies of the

Revolution,” (Also in the same issue, information on cooking with biscuit and hardtack

during the American Civil War and the War for Independence in "Joy of Historical

Cooking: Using Hardtack & Crackers."), FHN, vol. VIII, no. 4 (Spring 1997), 2, 3–5, 6–

7.

"’The essential service he rendered to the army’: Christopher Ludwick, Superintendent

of Bakers,” FHN, vol. IX, no. 1 (Summer 1997), 2, 6.

“’The Gingerbread Man’: More on Washington’s Baking Superintendent, Then and

Now,” FHN, vol. XVII, no. 1 (Summer 2005), 2.

"’As many fireplaces as you have tents’: Earthen Camp Kitchens,” FHN, vol. IX, no. 2

(Fall 1997), 2, 8–9, plus “Matt and I Dig a Kitchen: Recreating an 18th–Century Cooking

Excavation,” FHN, vol. IX, no. 3 (Winter 1998), 2. Also published as "Earthen Camp

Kitchens,” Muzzleloader, vol. XXX, no. 4 (September/October 2003), 59–64. For online

version see (World Wide Web), http://revwar75.com/library/rees/kitchen.htm

"’Our pie–loving ... stomachs ... ache to even look.’: Durable Foods for Armies, 1775–

1865,” FHN, vol. IX, no. 4 (Spring 1998), 2, 7–8.

"’Tell them never to throw away their ... haversacks or canteens’: Finding Water and

Carrying Food During the War for Independence and the American Civil War,” FHN,

vol. X, no. 1 (37), 2, 8–9.

"’The victuals became putrid by sweat & heat’: Equipment Shortages, the Burden of

Rations and Spoilage During the War for Independence and the War Between the States,”

FHN, vol. X, no. 2 (38), 2, 6–7.

"’False hopes and temporary devices’: Organizing Food Supply in the Continental

Army”:

part I. “’To subsist an Army well’: An Organizational Overview,” FHN, vol. XII, no. 3

(47), 2, 9–10.

part II. “’Owing to this variety of waste …’: Producing, Storing, and Transporting

Bread,” FHN, vol. XII, no. 4 (48), 2, 9–10.

part III. “’We now have 500 head of fat cattle’: Procuring, Transporting, and Processing

Livestock,” FHN, vol. XII, no. 4 (48), 2, 8–9.

“’A perfect nutriment for heroes!’: Apples and North American Soldiers, 1757–1918,”

FHN, vol. XIV, no. 1 (53), 2, 6.

“’The oficers are Drunk and Dancing on the table …’: U.S Soldiers and Alcoholic

Beverages,” FHN, vol. XIV, no. 2 (54), 2.

“’The repast was in the English fashion …’: Washington’s Campaign for Refined

Dining in the War for Independence,” FHN, vol. XIV, no. 3 (55), 2.

http://revwar75.com/library/rees/kitchen.htm

"’Give us Our Bread Day by Day.’: Continental Army Bread, Bakers, and Ovens”:

part I. “’Waste and bad management …’: Regulating Baking,” FHN, vol. XV, no. 4 (60), 2,

9.

part II.“’A bake–house was built in eleven days …’: Contemporary Baking Operations and

Army Masonry Ovens,” FHN, vol. XVI, no. 1 (61), 2, 8.

part III. “’Seeing that the Ovens may be done right …’: Bake Oven Designs,” FHN, vol.

XVI, no. 3 (63), 2, 8.

part IV. “’The mask is being raised!!’: Denouement: Early–War Iron Ovens, and a

Yorktown Campaign Bakery,” FHN, vol. XVI, no. 4 (64), 2.

“’Invited to dine with Genl Wayne; an excellent dinner …’: Revolutionary

Commanders’ Culinary Equipage in Camp and on Campaign”:

part 1 “’Plates, once tin but now Iron …’: General Washington’s Mess Equipment,”

FHN, vol. XVII, no. 2 (66), 2, 8.

part 2 “’40 Dozens Lemons, in a Box’: British Generals’ Provisions and Mess Equipage,”

FHN, vol. XVII, no. 3 (67), 2, 8.

part 3 “’A Major General & family’: Nathanael Greene’s Food Ware,” FHN, vol. XVII, no.

4 (68), 2.

part 4 “’My poor cook is almost always sick …’: General Riedesel Goes to America,”

FHN, vol. XVIII, no. 1 (69), 2–3.

“’Sufficient for the army for fifteen days …’: Continental Army Frozen Rations,”

FHN, vol. XVIII, no. 2 (70), 2.

"’The manner of messing and living together’: Continental Army Mess Groups,” FHN,

vol. XVIV, no. 2 (74), 2, 5.

“’On with Kittle, to make some hasty Pudding …’: How a "Continental Devil" Broke

His Fast,” FHN, vol. XVIV, no. 3 (75), 2, 9.

"’A hard game’: Cooks in the Continental Army,” FHN, vol. XVIV, no. 4 (76)), 2, 9.

"’We had our cooking utensils ... to carry in our hands.’: Light-Weight Military Kettles,

1775-1782. Included in the endnotes:

“Tin Kettles, 1759-1771”

“British and German Kettles”

“Kettle Capacity and Weight, and Excavated Artifacts, Circa 1750-1815”

FHN, vol. XX, no. 1 (77)), 2, 7, 10.

"’They were made of cast iron and consequently heavy.’: Eating Utensils and Less

Commonly Used Cooking Implements, 1775-1783,” FHN, vol. XX, no. 2 (78)), 2, 4-5.

“’A capital dish …’: Revolutionary Soldiers and Chocolate,” FHN, vol. XX, no. 3

(79)), 2, 9, 12.

"’A better repast’: Continental Army Field and Company Officers’ Fare” (series

closing column, not yet published)

See also:

"'The foundation of an army is the belly.' North American Soldiers' Food, 1756-1945,"

ALHFAM: Proceedings of the 1998 Conference and Annual Meeting, vol. XXI (The Assoc.

for Living History, Farm and Agricultural Museums, Bloomfield, Ohio, 1999), 49-64.

Part I. "'I live on raw salt pork ... hard bread and sugar.': The Evolution of

Soldiers' Rations"

Part II. "Salt Beef to C Rations: A Compendium of North American Soldiers'

Rations, 1756-1945"

(World Wide Web, http://revwar75.com/library/rees/belly.htm )

"'To subsist an Army well ...': Soldiers' Cooking Equipment, Provisions, and Food

Preparation During the American War for Independence”:

"’All the tin Camp-kettles they can procure ...’: Iron Pots, Pans, and Light-

Weight Military Kettles, 1759-1782”

http://revwar75.com/library/rees/belly.htm

Subheadings:

“Tin Kettles, 1759-1771”

“British Kettles in the American War, 1776-1781”

“Continental Army and States’ Militia, 1775-1780”

“American Sheet Iron Kettles, 1781-1782”

“Officers’ Cooking Equipment”

“Kettle Covers”

“’The extreme suffering of the army for want of … kettles …’:

Continental Soldiers and Kettle Shortages in 1782”

“’A disgusting incumbrance to the troops …’:

Linen Bags and Carts for Carrying Kettles”

“’The Kettles to be made as formerly …”

Kettle Capacity and Weight, and Archaeological Finds”

Subheadings:

“Kettle Capacity and Sizes, 1759-1782”

“Louisbourg Kettle, Cape Breton Island”

“Fort Ligonier (Buckets or Kettles?)”

“Rogers Island (Bucket or Kettle?)”

“1812 Kettles, Fort Meigs, Ohio”

“Overview of Cooking Equipment, 1775-1783”

Military Collector & Historian, vol. 53, no. 1 (Spring 2001), 7-23.

“’Our wants of the common conveniences were sometimes curiously supplied …’:

A Revolutionary Soldier’s Wooden Bowl,” Military Collector & Historian,

vol. 61, no. 3 (Fall 2009), 210-214.

"'Properly fixed upon the Men': Linen Bags for Camp Kettles," The Brigade Dispatch, vol.

XXVII, no. 3 (Autumn 1997), 2-5.

(World Wide Web, http://revwar75.com/library/rees/kettlebags.htm )

"`A disgusting incumbrance to the troops': More on Kettle Bags and Carts in the Continental

Army, 1781," The Brigade Dispatch, vol. XXVIII, no. 3 (Autumn 1998), 12-13.

(World Wide Web, http://revwar75.com/library/rees/encumberance.htm )

“’General Wayne's detachment is almost starving.’: Provisioning Washington’s Army on the

March, June 1778,” Appendix N of "’What is this you have been about to day?’: The

New Jersey Brigade at the Battle of Monmouth,”

http://revwar75.com/library/rees/monmouth/MonmouthToc.htm

http://revwar75.com/library/rees/kettlebags.htm

http://revwar75.com/library/rees/encumberance.htm

http://revwar75.com/library/rees/monmouth/MonmouthToc.htm

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