Video

Fort Apache?

Men doing manly things

Yeah, kool-aid in your cup. Everyone drinks that stuff at reenactments, it definitely isn't something a bit more mature.

No they had standards! And just because you’re at war doesn’t mean your construction should look like shit! The 50th are now my go too reference for quality under stress. OoohRAH!

The switch from having two crossbelts for bayonet and cartridge box to just 1 for the box and a belt for the bayonet and cap pouch is interesting. The British at the time has the cap pouch sewn into the strap instead of being on their belt so it's interesting seeing the differences

Ft. Phil Kearney. The Fetterman massacre in 1868. Can't recall any of the forts in Texas, other than the Parker family stockade, (Cynthia Parker taken by Comanche) located east of Waco.

Topiary town. I say they didn’t get enough time.

Looks like the he Battle or Schrute Farms

I've been curious as to left-handed Cavalry Troopers during the American Civil War? Were there specially made left-handed sabres?

Megs was just cry baby hurt because they skipped the quarter master chain and he felt he wasn’t included in the buy out because he couldn’t throw his two cents in. Things never change, ain’t it the truth….He He He.

Was he a galvanized ? Them Southern boys can get rather wild .!!!

Wow, I just wonder where the other 998 rounds landed !!!!

Thanks for taking your viewers out (virtually) to these locations. From all the way out in California, it's neat to see the places our own 2nd Volunteer Cavalry visited.

Fort Defiance and also Fort Wingate I believe 🤔

Was major Dundee there???

Probably tents for the enlisted

can we get a full video of the 11th OVC's time spent at Fort Laramie from 1862 to 1866. It would be neat to know what they there during that time.

This is called pride in your work

No timber

Great points, very valuable video and advise.

I saw a video a few days ago about a mounted Federal infantry raid into Confederate Georgia that could only find mules. I don't know if this mule story was true, but the Colonel Streight raid did not go well. I admit mounted infantry probably only envisioned these mule mounts for transportation, not cavalry tactics. I suspect this raid's failure had more to do with inept leadership and poorly thought tactics, than horses vs mules. Infantry should have been able to defend themselves from Forrest's cavalry fairly easily.

And you already know they had the craziest living quarters

I mean they were engineers. If something wasn’t as nice as they wanted it to be, they could literally just redesign and build/renovate it😂

No TREES!!

Bozeman Trail forts

Odds are really good Rufus did his own thing but honestly who knows? Maybe the Official way to wear it was really stupid and Rufus and the boys figured a better way..

They seem reminiscent of stave churches

What saddle would the 2nd Minnesota Regiment of Cavalry used on Lt. Gen. Alfred Sully's campaign against the Sioux in 1864? It seems almost too early to be issued the early 1857-58 McClellan based on supply issues.

What's the song's name? Shazam keeps sending me to a spoof result u.u

WHAT IS APPROPRIATE ? : Tactically, the question is an issue of expediency. A shelter half is easier for one man to carry while a wall or Sibley tent requires a wagon. Even one half of the shelter still provides shelter. If your job is to fight, then remaining light allows you to lean forward toward the enemy, while the encumbrance of a large supply train will cause you to be slower and worry about protecting its large number of wagons and feeding its horses. If your job is to chase and make close contact with the enemy, then maybe even shelter halves are too cumbersome. It depends on your mission, time of year, location, eventual access to supply wagons, distance travelled, and whatever your brigade and regimental commanders desire. I would think large tents were probably used by militia units in the beginning, but were eventually jettisoned as units learned to use shorter supply trains on shared supply routes. I also think units in actual combat probably travelled relatively shorter and slower in the first years, as they encountered southern forces, but probably longer and faster as the war wound down and the south disintegrated. While bivouac areas no doubt had well-organized company areas in perfect lines, probably no one did that on the road in actual pursuit. On the other hand, large moving bodies probably did pitch tents as a practical exercise in hygiene and organization. When not in immediate danger of combat, brigade and regimental bivouac areas would have been assigned wherever large open areas were available. I would think the issue of tents might be cleared up by starting with general orders of the adjutant general and working your way downward through all subordinate commands to your specific regiment. EVERYTHING was accomplished by orders and records, so tentage was very likely an issue covered at some point. But along with tentage came their reasons for use and the many elements of a proper bivouac. Contemporary photos will offer clues about how to approach these practical issues for serious practitioners of reenacting. I would think the official records might offer some information, but so might general orders and annual reports (which can nearly all be found online for at least the general staff level) and official manuals and handbooks. State laws and state adjutants-general might also provide insight. Each state will be different. Another source may be diaries and letters (like those presented here), and even regimental histories. If you just want to have fun, then digging deeply into this issue is probably too much to ask. However, if you command a unit or are in charge of a campaign, then this issue is probably relevant. The public will probably not know or care about the question, but it is one more step toward "reenacting"-and therefore experiencing-historic actions practiced in the past. Privates pitched tents while generals planned and assigned bivouac areas, so reenactors should experience these actions, too. Therefore, while this question is a good one, maybe it should be approached from an authentic level of command and be answered in the form of a written general order or regimental order instead of being a matter of taste and expedience for company-level organizations. If authenticity is important, then seek (or create) guidance from your higher headquarters that can be disseminated down the chain of command. Post it if you have something to post it on. Give your Privates as much to gripe about as Privates undoubtedly griped about between 1861 and 1866. There is no Enlisted pleasure as delicious to experience as the order to move a tent 2-inches in one direction to align with the tent beside you-after you have just finished erecting your tent. I think EVERY Private should be so blessed with a Sergeant or Corporal who cares deeply about these matters and Officers who boast to each other about how straight their tents are aligned. These little aggravating experiences can be authentically reenacted with any kind of tent, including shelter halves. So, what is appropriate : shelter halves or wall tents? An authentic answer will require a balance of research, authenticity, and fun because water is not the only thing that runs down hill.

Ft Bowie stockade and ft Union NM the original, fort defiance

Fascinating, thank you.

Reminds me of the opening scene in Dances With Wolves. I also wonder how many soldiers purposely missed?

My question is why was discipline not instilled and enforced before this situation? And how long had the unit been active by this time?

This period was not called the wild West or nothing.

👍

Eggnog riots at West Point and A Full Battalion of Cavalry that couldn’t hit a drunk on a horse! Damn! The army in the 19th century was WILD!!

Interesting, actually

That is so interesting, I never would have thought about that. On a second unrelated matter,you have really nice teeth.❤

"Strange harness" literally my feelings about the US Army Load Bearing Equipment I wore 120 years later.

"Too much time" fascism has cooled us

Bruh thats amazing

I love what you guys do!

Only took em a week

Nope, they just set the standard for how the other engineers should build their buildings

So in short, during war, you rode what you got and you didn’t throw a fit!

I learned that the wider your waistline the more gear you can wear.

Everyone did their own thing

One thing I can't abide is a cavalryman wearing his saber like a pirate.