"VMI Cadet Uniforms" Topic

I am about to paint some VMI Cadets, and after looking at pictures and paintings, I am totally confused. Can anyone give me some accurate answers as to what they wore. I've seen gray kepis with a black band and black piping going around it, dark blue kepis or forage caps, light blue forage caps, different shades of gray or gray/blue shell jackets,and gray pants with black stripe or sky blue pants.
What is accurate, or were all those variations worn? I know you guys can help me out!

I went through this. There are films with them wearing white cross belts and jackets that make them look like bandsmen or something.

Anyway, I settled on grey uniform with black cuffs and leg stripe and kepi with black piping. I was painting the Redoubt 25mm set which have puttee things on their lower legs, I painted them brown for a bit of contrast but I seem to remember that black was an option there too.

No doubt I am horribly wrong, but they look OK to me.

I can call my cousin (VMI grad) tonight and see if he knows or can get his hands on some info.

Liam

I think the pants are white.

They're only white in Hollywood. They're grey with a black stripe.

The pants are also white in Lexington. The current Keydet dress uniform is a blue-gray jacket, white pants, white cross-belts, and black shako. I have no idea what they wore at New Market, but I doubt it was that :-)

The painting in the Hall of Valor Museum at New Market shows them in confederate gray, but I have no idea how accurate that is.

the painting is accurate, and the museum underneath has a uniform that looks like the painting,
I think it was worn during the battle. The kids were in their earily teens by the looks at the size of it
found a picture from 1909 black and white, but shows that they wore gray, and the rest of the unifrom was fairly simple i am guessing you ment New market unifrom right?
i think the guy in the picture has a unifrom close to that

link

Young, indeed.
VMI says the age range of the New Market cadets was 15 to 25. They were mostly from the younger end of that range.
Of the ten dead, five were 17, two were 18, three were 19.

picture

picture

picture

More on the VMI and New Market battlefield pages

vmi.edu/museum/nm

vmi.edu/archives

One of Don Troiani's latest paintings is Put in the Boys. You can see it on the internet (use Google for Troiani).

He usually researches intensively.

The Institute will be heard from today. Is a painting of the cadets. Don is a premo source for this also. If need be contact Mr. Greg Bair at the museum and he will help you. Note: If you happen to see the movie "Fields of Lost shoes that is me as the Confederate commander.

Great information! I knew I could count on you all!
Thank you,
John Mayer

I posted this a while back in another VMI Cadet Thread:

"I was president of the VMI CWRT (which was also a reenacting club) in the late 80s. We did a lot of uniform research. The uniform will depend on the period. In 1861 the cadets had the coatees and white duck trousers. The corps went to Richmond to drill the troops in those uniforms. Most of the Corps resigned to enlist. That was the end of the dress uniforms.

When the school reopened in 1862 the Cadets wore the Richmond depot shell jacket uniform and standard confederate equipment (Roller buckle belts, etc. NO VMI BELT PLATES, but they did have VMI cartridge box plates). They tried to stay, as much as possible with grey uniforms but there were color variations. Not as much as you would find in a Confederate infantry unit. For head gear use a mix of blue and grey forage caps and Kepis. The school bought a large order of Blue forage caps in 1861, but they would not have lasted the whole war.

The Tac officers with the companies should be dressed as Virginia Militia Oficers in Blue Frock Coats. Scott-Shipp probably wore a grey frock coat.

Most paintings and other sources have the uniforms dead wrong."

Hey Guy!

I didn't know you did the miniature gaming schtick!

And of course I concur with your message, since I was there with you looking for all that stuff at the same time.

John Mc.

P.S. How did the WWI event go? Send me an e-mail...

VMI has both a winter and summer uniform. The winter uniform is wool, grey with black stripes, and smells like a dead sheep when wet. The Summer uniform uses cotton white pants without beltloops. That is of course unless they've added them recently.

VMI uniforms were designed around an Austrian Military School pattern at the time.

And the design doesn't change very often. I was wearing the overcoat of a cadet that graduated in the 60's when I was there in the late 70's. Still looks good - although the fit is a real problem these days

mikeah,

He doesn't say it directly in his message, but I'm pretty certain he's wanting information about Civil War-era uniforms.

The dress VMI uniform is a copy of the one worn by West Point, which in turn was copied from that worn by the Regulars at the Battle of Chippawa during the War of 1812 ( link ) rather than the usual blue.

VMI '86

John,

I lost your email address. Try me at ggormley@cox.net.

Guy