"Union cannon, backpack, blanket questions" Topic

I have a couple of questions. I bought a pack of GHQ union heavy artillery. The guns can be assembled as 20-pdr Parrott rifles, 32-pdr Howitzers or 12-pdr Model 1841 Heavy Field Guns. Which of these would be the most common to see on a civil war battlefield? And how can I tell the difference between the three? Know of anywhere that has pictures of different civil war artillery?

Also, I have some figures of union soldiers marching, wearing backpacks and blanket rolls. What would be the typical color of the backpacks and the blankets?

Honestly?
I'd say go with the 20lb Parrotts.

The others weren't as well known or used, or available.

Here's a link to help you out.

link

The backpack (Knapsack) was usually black. Blankets were usually blue or brown, depending upon maker, age, weathering, etc…

If they have the blanket roll, (the roll over their shoulder), then go ahead and make that black also, as it would probably be their gum blanket that you would see wrapped with the rest of their stuff in it.

The Parrot has the band at the breach and was fairly common. I'm not too familiar with either of the other two, except to say they don't turn up often in Civilw War armies. The howitzer should have a shorter barrel.

Backpacks are almost always tarred canvas so will be black. The blankets ca be seeral colors however, grey, nd lightbrown were fairly common.

"The guns can be assembled as 20-pdr Parrott rifles, 32-pdr Howitzers or 12-pdr Model 1841 Heavy Field Guns. Which of these would be the most common to see on a civil war battlefield? And how can I tell the difference between the three? Know of anywhere that has pictures of different civil war artillery?"

Here's my thoughts for what it's worth:

20-pdr Parrott rifles – useful and was part of the AoP and saw action on a few battlefields. Was VERY useful at Antietam and Fredricksburg

32-pdr Howitzers – Don't bother. Too big and troublesome for armies in the field.

12-pdr Model 1841 Heavy Field Guns – appeared mostly with Reb armies.

"Also, I have some figures of union soldiers marching, wearing backpacks and blanket rolls. What would be the typical color of the backpacks and the blankets?"

As has been said:

Union black knapsacks
Confederates can be black (mostly) or brown.

The Federal Government issued a gray blanket as 'standard' issue color. At times when demand outstripped supply they went to an emergency brown color. 95% of Union soldiers would have the gray. It is not likely they would get them from home except very early war. The reason is simple… you were issued the gray one. Anything from home would probably be bulkier and besides the issue blanket was double thickness and warm.

With the Rebs they could 'capture them from Union troops, some issues of browns/grays or get them from home. Most likely they also used the gray color predominantly.

Agree with the above – the commonest Parrott used was the 10 lb, but there were some batteries of 20 lb Parrott with the Army of the Potomac

The other guns would not have been used in the field

I paint all the Union backpacks black and usually grey blankets, but on occasion I paint them in a different colour(like red or light brown) to distinquish regiments one from the other

Thanks guys. It seems like the most common artillery on a civil war battlefield would be 12 pound "Napoleon" gun, or the 3 inch ordnance rifle. Is that accurate?

Pretty much…

The 12lbs and the 3 inch / 10 lb'er…

Very true for the Union army Squirrel, though other types, like the 10 pound Parrott, were in use throughout the war. The Confederates started the war with very few of these guns. While the CSA captured many Union guns and imported other modern artillery, they had to make do throughout the war with many obsolescent and inferior types, with bronze or iron 6 pounders, smooth bore or rifled, and 12 pound howitzers being the most common. Even late in the war many of these guns remained in Confederate artilery parks.

Artillery as above. As for knapsacks, they were black. If the blanket question is about rolled up blankets on top of union knapsacks, the are gray or brown. If the question is about blanket rolls worn in lieu of knapsacks, over the shoulder, then they were often wrapped in the standard issue rubber sheet and would be black.

If overcoats had been issued, U. S. regulations called for them to be rolled and strapped on top of the knapsack, where they could be easily accessed. The blanket was carried inside the knapsack. For variety you might want so paint some regiments with their sky-blue overcoats on their knapsack.

The 20th Mass. ("Harvard regiment") had red blankets.

Squirrel: You are dead right about the Napoleon and the 3" rifle being the most common field artillery – as noted, the Confederates had to "make due" for much of the early war – they did make their own guns, mostly Napoleons (in six different states, although Tredegar in Virginia are the best known) – and also made extensive use of captured Union artillery. The Napoleon was liked for simplicity and short-range firepower, the 3" rifle was liked as it weighed a fair bit less than a Napoleon (M1857 gun-howitzer, to be technical)

Here are some stats that I did for the Gettysburg Campaign.

12lb Nap Confederate 91 guns 37% Union 140 guns 40%
TOTAL 231 GUNS 39%

3" Ordanance Confederate 72 guns 29% Union 134 guns 38%
TOTAL 206 guns 35%

10lb Parrots Confederate 43 guns 18% Union 50 guns 14%
TOTAL 93 guns 16%

20lb Confederate 6 guns 2% Union 6 guns 2%
TOTAL 12 guns 2%

12lb Howitzers Confederate 24 guns 10% Union 2 guns 1/2%
Total 26 guns 4%

24lb Howitzers Confederate 4 guns 2% Union 0 guns 0%
TOTAL 4 guns 1%

Others 6lb 1 gun, 3" Navy 3 guns, 12lb Whitworth 2 guns, 14lb James 4 guns, 4.5 Rifles 9 guns.

VR
James Mattes

Both the Union and Confederate armies in the West had fewer of the preferred types (Napoleons and 3" rifles) than their Eastern counterparts, and correspondingly more of the older types, such as 6-pdr guns and 12-pdr howitzers, also James 12-pdr Rifles (actually a bronze 6-pdr gun that had been rifled).

Very few of the bigger Parrots were utilized as field arty, but since they did exist you could certainly deploy a few without upseting a "purist". Likely these things were mostly used in forts and maybe on some ships (ironclads and rams)??

Here is the full scope on the 20lbr. While it is a massive shotgun Hunt put the 20lb parrot to good use in all his field artillery. Not as a long range infantry killing weapon but for the use as "COUNTER BATERY FIRE" At which point these guns did a wonderful job. Hunt assigned 20lbrs to most artillery regiments just for this purpose.

Peter

Forgot this to

IN all my visits to museums and in the backrooms of such I have never found a BROWN knapsack. Very few Confederate issue knapsacks exist but there are plenty of federal ones that where taken by the confederates. It is a major myth that the confederats used just blanket rolls and at any given time a man would take a knapsack over a blanket roll. Also if you are going to paint a gum blanket over your blanket roll make sure your blanket sticks out below the gum blanket due to it be so short compared to your blanket

Peter

Most,if not all knapsacks were black,tarred canvas.Blankets were USUALLY a gray or light brown.I have a light brown blanket,copied from an original,with a dark brown stripe and U.S. stitched in dark brown as well.

Bob