T^1850 PATTERN CAPSi^ 



iJiNCE THE ADOPTION of the 1832 pattern dress caps 

 and the 1832 and 1839 pattern forage caps, the Army 

 had fought in Florida and Mexico, under widely vary- 

 ing climatic conditions. By 1850 the concentration of 

 troops on frontier duty was greater than e\'er before. 

 As a result of these changed conditions there was con- 

 siderable desire \oiced by officers and men ahke for a 

 more practical uniform for field wear to replace the 

 tight-fitting, parade-ground dress which had been in 

 use for so many years. Colonel Sylvester Churchill, one 

 of the Inspectors General of the Anny,'-" reported in 

 March 1849 to the Adjutant General that he had 

 talked to "probably more than half the officers of the 

 Army" and the concensus was that the "full dress uni- 

 form coats, caps and hats as now worn . . . should 

 be entirely dispensed with and substituted by the frock 

 coat .... and the forage cap, with suitable plumes 

 or pompons for full dress. . . .'' They had specifically 

 complained that the full dress cap was not "well 

 adapted to actual service, nor indeed convenient for 

 any service: that on campaign the .... forage cap 

 [was] generally worn — always preferred. . . ." Not 

 only were the dress items expensi\e and difficult to pro- 

 cure except in the larger cities, they further complained 

 that in the field such items were "useless" and were 

 stored with frequent loss or damage. Churchill him- 

 self termed the full dress cap as "high, stiff, and pon- 

 derous" and went on to state: "It is supposed that 

 in the service likely to be performed by our foot and 

 mounted troops, perhaps for many years, in the wilder- 

 ness and Indian regions, protection of the head and 

 body against the elements will be more important than 

 guarding them against the sabers of well drilled 

 dragoons." "' He qualified these opinions only to the 

 extent of recommending that all officers be permitted 

 to wear the full dress as prescribed while away from 

 troops.^'" 



As a result, Secretary of War George W. Crawford, 



who had receixed many similar complaints, directed 

 Churchill to explore further the subject of a uniform 

 change and to have samples prepared for his examina- 

 tion.^"' After a comprehensive sursey and in conjunc- 

 tion with the Quartermaster General, the Inspector 

 General had patterns prepared and submitted to Craw- 

 ford in December. ^^* Crawford approved and the uni- 

 form as recommended was made regulation in General 

 Orders, No. 2, War Department, 13 February 1850. 

 Paragraph I made clear the reasoning behind the 

 change : 



... A large number of the Officers of the AiTny, prob- 

 ably more than half, have applied since the war with 

 Mexico, to have a unifonn less expensive, less difficult 

 to procure, and better adapted to campaign and other 

 service. Their opinions, reasons and wishes are entitled 

 to attention and respect; and it is important that the 

 garments and equipments shall protect the persons of 

 the wearers, preserve their health and make them 

 efficient. . . . 



The portions of the order pertaining to headgear were 

 as follows: 



. . . FOR OFFICERS . . . IV . . . Cap, of the ma- 

 terial and nearly the pattern of the present forage 

 cap worn by officers; the band or body to be three 

 inches high, the front of which to be thickened 

 with felt or other light material on each side of the 

 plume stem, so as to form a groove for its reception ; the 

 visor 23/4 inches broad, reaching back to within half 

 an inch of the tip of the ears, projecting nearly hori- 

 zontal, but somewhat concave, so as to shade well the 

 eyes and face, with oil cloth cover or case, having a 

 flap or cape from one point of the cap visor to the other, 

 and made to fold, double, inside of the case when not 

 wanted for protection of the neck. The cap to be worn, 

 without the cover, in full dress, with plumes as now 

 used, e.xcept that those of the Dragoons will be orange 

 color; and the Mounted Rifles, light green; those of 

 mounted officers will rise four and those of foot officers 



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