"Uniforms of Alamo Era New Orleans Greys" Topic

I was looking recently for any ideas on painting schemes for the Texas War for Independe era formation known as the New Orleans Greys. My research has led me to believe there were two companies formed and had a basic grey uniform, but i found no pictorial representation. I wondered if anybody knows of any sites that have images of these infantry.

Call me a rebel but if they are called greys, I paint them grey. There are lots of paintings but cameras weren't all too prevalent during the battle(Yuck, yuck). Listen, go with grey, and for the Alabama Red Rovers, go with red. Haha..Then you have the Tennessee sharpshooters go with a mustard. Then you have some dark blue military troops I believe. Go crazy!

I visited the Alamo for the first time in my life 2 years ago, and bought Osprey's "The Alamo and the War of Texan Independence" at their gift shop. (By the way, the visit was far above my expectations!) There is an illustration of the New Orleans Greys on plate C. All-grey uniform. Grey "muffin" cap with black front visor. Top part of the cap is ribbed or seamed in what looks to be strips of cloth sewn to run up to the center of the top (not viewed). The top "puffs" out all around more than I am used to seeing for the conventional US Army muffin cap of the period. Below that is a probably 2" wide band all around, with peak attached to the front.

Stand-up gray collar, probably 2.5 inches. VEry prominent gray cuffs, about 3.5 inches. Grey shoulder flaps with brass button close the collar with rounded end. The end at the sleeve end is sewn into the seam, and straight across. Sincle breasted coat with brass buttons, closed to the waist. Probably a shell jacket, but is tails, they are covered by the side satchel and wooden canteen. Appears to be a brown waist bels with open, squared brass buckle. Whitc crossbelt over left shoulder, with black bullet pouch on right rear buttock. Another white cossbelt with bayonet in black leather scabbard with brass "ferrule?" Straight grey trousers down to the black shoes, and down over them. I see no laces, so these may be short pull-on boots. White side satchel as might be seen in the ACW, with flap and 1 brass button visible. The wooden grey water bottle could pass for British in the Peninsular War era@ with brass plug, andon mid-brown shoulder strap. No letters on the side of the canteen. Black back pack, squared, British-looking from the waterloo era. On top, a rolled coat or blanket in a grey that shows a tint of brown. White straps (2?) around the blanket on top of the pack. You could use British Waterloo period private-man figures with converted head.

The musket has two steel bands, and the band at the muzzle end is also steel. The butt plate appears to be brass, and turns over the top of the stock, with what may be a screw holding it there. The fire mechanism and plate appear to be steel. The trigger guard is not clear, but may be brass.

By the way, the same plate shows an Alabama Red Rover – yes, weathered red hunting shirt to the knees. and a Volunteer, ex-US Army.

GdeP

canfodmins.com/ALAMOTEXIANS.htm

Cannon Fodder's beautiful line; scroll down for the Greys,

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King and Country sells magnificent minis of the Alamo -- including one NOG.

Cannon Fodder haha! Yeah, I remember those. The painting is great but some of the sculting poses are ridiculous. Look at Bowie in the white shirt. He looks like a contortionist. Haha! Painting is very nice. Also, if the guy bends over, he suddenly shrinks. His legs get short, torso shrinks and so on. That range needs to be redone. All in all, its ok. I am just spoiled. Keep in mind it's all just one poor soul's opinion.

Been studying the Alamo for 13 years. I live 2 hrs from there and 30 minutes from John's Wayne's Alamo. Have all the books and so on. Great fun. I am working on my 10mm Alamo army. I have 5oo figures for my 28mm Alamo I handmade out of wood, 1/4 inch ply mostly using a scroll saw. I use great rules called "Come and Take it." These were printed in the Courier in the early 90's. Wow, I am getting damn old.

I think the CF minis are first rate. Bowie is so sick he's about to die, of course he's shakey and toddering.

Crazed by their losses, the conquerors offered
No truce to cadavers; the corpses were stabbed
In hopes that life's spark would be spared to afford them
Seconds on killing. Then some, taking count,
Bawled out that Bowie was balking them still;
Like weasels in warrens they wound through the fort,
Hunting the hero they hated the most.
Least of the lucky, at last some found him,
Fettered to bed by the fever and dying,
Burnt up and shrunken, a shred of himself.
Gladly they rushed him, but glee became panic.
Up from the grip of the grave, gripping weapons,
Gizzardsbane rose to wreak his last slaughter,
Killing, though killed. Conquered, he won.

"Up from the grip of the grave, gripping weapons"

That's that mini.

The above is, of course, from THE DEATH OF BOWIE GIZZARDSBANE, by John Myers Myers.

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I want to thank all, the details are excellent. If anyone had anymore sites with pictures i really like the inspiration. The campaign look of the CF figures makes me wonder how long were the New Orleans Greys in Texas before the battles of Alamo or San Jacinto (excuse my spelling) or Golidad. Did they stay after hostilies ended? Please continue to send info. Thanks all for the replys, humbly horseandmusket.

I don't think many of the Grey's were left after the Alamo and Goliad.

The Greys came early in the war, and were part of the force that captured San Antonio at the start of hostilities.

Yes, they were pretty much wiped out at Alamo and Goliad.

HANDBOOK OF TEXAS ONLINE:

NEW ORLEANS GREYS. The New Orleans Greys, two companies of United States volunteers that served together in the Texas Revolution,qv were organized at a meeting held in the grand coffee room of Banks's Arcade in New Orleans on the evening of October 13, 1835. The arcade owner, Thomas Banks, was a supporter of Texas independence, and his red-brick, three-story building on Magazine Street between Natchez and Gravier streets was often used for meetings in the service of Texas independence. Nacogdoches alcaldeqv Nicholas Adolphus Sterneqv was present at this meeting and offered weapons to the first fifty men who would volunteer for Texas. By the evening's end nearly 120 men appear to have been recruited; no original muster role exists. Two companies were formed, the first under Capt. Thomas H. Breece and the second under Capt. Robert C. Morris.qqv Weapons and equipment were provided, probably from the stores of the Washington Guards, whose armory was located on the second floor of the arcade. Hermann V. Ehrenberg,qv who joined Breece's company, indicates that the uniforms were "grey…for service on the prairie." Ebenezer Heath, a member of Morris's company, stated that "the color of our uniform was a grey jacket & pants with a seal-skin cap." Indians around Nacogdoches mistook the Greys for United States regulars. The descriptions seem to suggest that both companies wore the 1820s-pattern United States fatigue jacket and either the M1825 or M1833 United States forage cap. The Greys' arms were described as "rifles, pistols, swords & large knives"; Morris's company possibly carried rifles, and Breece's men were issued United States-pattern muskets.

The two companies left New Orleans within two days of each other. Breece took an overland route, up the Mississippi and Red rivers aboard the steamer Washita. His company disembarked at Alexandria and then, avoiding Fort Jesup, followed the Old Spanish Trail to its crossing into Texas at Gaines Ferry.qv Between the ferry and San Augustine, a delegation of local women greeted the company and presented it with a blue silk banner that bore the words "First Company of Texan Volunteers from New Orleans." The company was welcomed with a public dinner at San Augustine. At Nacogdoches, also, the Greys were treated to a dinner of roasted bear and champagne. Here some two-thirds of the company were given horses before proceeding to San Antonio.

Morris's sixty-eight-man company sailed from New Orleans and arrived at Velasco on October 22, 1835. There elections were held for company officers, and Morris was reconfirmed as captain; William Gordon Cookeqv of Virginia became second officer. Morris's company proceeded to Brazoria by steamship and marched inland to Victoria, where some of the men were issued horses. The rest secured mounts at La Bahía. The company then proceeded to San Antonio to join the Texas army. They arrived before Breece's company. In San Antonio Morris was appointed a major and assumed command of a division made up of both companies of Greys; Cooke assumed command of Morris's old company. Cooke noted that seventy men were in his company and fifty in Breece's.

The Greys took an active part in the siege of Bexar,qv in which Breece's company apparently suffered one killed and two wounded; Cooke's company suffered six wounded. After the capture of Bexar both companies underwent a series of organizational changes as a result of the Matamoros expedition of 1835-36.qv All but twenty-two members of Breece's company and one of Cooke's company left San Antonio under Francis White Johnson and James Grant.qqv Those who remained at San Antonio were under the command of Capt. John James Baugh.qv When Baugh became garrison adjutant, William Blazebyqv took command of the company, all members of which died in the battle of the Alamo.qv The company standard was among the flags captured by the Mexicans; it is now the property of the National Historical Museum in Mexico City.

The Greys who went south with Grant and Johnson became members of either the San Antonio Greys under Cooke or the Mobile Greys under Capt. David N. Burke.qv After Cooke's departure with Sam Houston in January 1836, his company was commanded by Samuel O. Pettus.qv Though a number of the Greys continued with Grant, including both Morris and Breece, most chose to become part of the garrison at Goliad under Col. James W. Fannin, Jr.qv Nathaniel R. Brister of the Greys was promoted to regimental adjutant when Fannin reorganized his command in February. Both Morris and Pettus were killed with Grant. Nineteen members of Cooke's old company were killed in the Goliad Massacre.qv Four members of the Greys escaped from the massacre, including William L. Hunterqv and Hermann Ehrenberg. Three, including Joseph H. Spohn, were spared. Although the Texan disasters at the Alamo and Goliad destroyed the New Orleans Greys as military units, at least seven Greys were present at the battle of San Jacinto,qv including William Cooke, the only senior officer of the Greys to survive the Texas Revolution. Thus the Greys are one of the few volunteer units to be able to claim Bexar, the Alamo, San Patricio, Refugio, Coleto, Goliad, and San Jacinto as battle honors.

BIBLIOGRAPHY: Harbert Davenport, Notes from an Unfinished Study of Fannin and His Men (MS, Harbert Davenport Collection, Texas State Library, Austin; Barker Texas History Center, University of Texas at Austin). Sam Houston Dixon and Louis Wiltz Kemp, The Heroes of San Jacinto (Houston: Anson Jones, 1932). Hermann Ehrenberg, Texas und Seine Revolution (Leipzig: Wigand, 1843; abridged trans. by Charlotte Churchill, With Milam and Fannin, Austin: Pemberton Press, 1968). Walter Lord, A Time to Stand (New York: Harper, 1961; 2d ed., Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1978).

Kevin R. Young

I don't own it, but there's a book about the Greys:

Volunteers in the Texas Revolution: The New Orleans Greys (Paperback)
by Gary Brown

Amazon has it.

You will find some useful information here:

alamosentry.com/forum

Check out the art and literature board and look at the drawing of gary Zaboli you will see at least one colour image including a Grey.

Also check out the history board for many references to the Greys.

Also the latest Alamo movie of 2004 has some decent shots of the Greys and their uniforms are distinctly worn and tatty which is probably a fair representation as they had been involved in the fighting in San Antonio prior to the Alamo.

So you could include a mixture of drab colours to represent new trousers, some faded etc etc not necesarily all in grey colour.

As the Handbook entry mentions, there is a suggestion the Greys wore a leather cap. That explains the different bulkiness of some sculpts compared to regular US hats. Perhaps painting a charcoal grey/black would be appropriate for that interpretation?

Thanks for the link; Alamo Sentry was new to me, and looks excellent.

Try these:

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Once again, well done gentlemen. I really like the links. These are both informaional inspirational. thanks again, horseandmusket