I have been fascinated all my life by Custer and his last stand, ever since i got record about it. Now with a trip out west in the spring I really want to dig into it.
I am looking for info/reference what the 7th Cavalry actually was issued and wore on the fateful campaign.
I have numerous references about that US army 1865-1898 or so. I know that the first half of the 1870's was a transitional time for the army. 1872/1874 tunics, 1874 shirt, etc. Colt SAA, Trapdoor carbines etc. New holsters, belts cartridge belts etc. I know what was supposed to be issued to troopers. I also know that units on campaign were often a law unto themselves. They often wore their older uniforms, fair weather Christian belts, civilian hats etc. I know that at least some of Custer's companies were issued 1873 Colt SAA's and trapdoor carbines.
What I don't know is what they had actually been issued before the campaign or what they are know to have been wearing on it.
Were all the 7th Cav. issued SAA's and trapdoor carbines?
Had they been issued newer holsters? McKeever pouches/Dyer pouches?
Had the 1876 prairie belt been issued to them?
Is there any info on what they might have been wearing at the time? I kinda assume that they were wearing the standard skyblue trousers, grey shirt and teh 1872? campaign hat. The one that had teh hook system.
Thanks for any help you can give me or any direction. you can point me.
I don't have access to the Ordnance Dept. records as far as issuance of holsters and belts for the 7th Cavalry, but an excellent source for equipages is "Arming & Equipping United States Cavalry 1865 - 1902", by Dusan P. Farrington. The question of what the 7th was issued
before the Big Horn & Yellowstone Expedition of 1876 is best answered by the practices of the Ordnance Dept. in that time frame. In particular, the Pattern 1876 cartridge belt was not developed and issued until reports came back from Capt. Michaelis and a lieutenant who accompanied him on a field inspection of Crook's command. The standard issue for carrying carbine ammunition was the M1874 Dyer Pouch and the Ordnance modified pistol cartridge pouch that were leftovers from the percussion version. (The mod included removal of the wool liner and addition of the wooden block that held six rounds of .45 caliber pistol ammo.) The problem with the Dyer pouch was the limited amount of carbine/rifle ammo, plus the concentration of weight on the trooper's belt. As Michaelis noted in his report, the majority of officers and troopers obtained "thimble" or Prairie belts with cartridge loops that would handle a lot more ammo, but distributed the weight more evenly. As to the holsters, while it is possible that Pattern 1874 or 1875 holsters might have been distributed, the latter which would accommodate the Schofield revolver, the more likely thing would have been issue of the full-flap Pattern 1863 holsters, of which there were a large quantity in ordnance stores following the CW.
Since Custer didn't join the 7th at Ft. Abraham Lincoln until just before the start of the campaign, I doubt he would have had much influence in the equipages of his troopers, that primarily being left to the individual company commanders. The primary clothing and campaign dress and gear of General Crook's troopers, on the main column of the BH&Y Expedition of 1876, was described by his aide, (then) Lt. John G. Bourke, (as nearly as I can recall the quote), "We looked more like a band of brigands than a military command!" He went on to describe that officers and men equipped themselves with whatever clothing and accoutrements (especially cartridge belts) that they could afford or scrounge.
Hope this is of some help in answering your questions.