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MODEL 1885 UNIFORM CAVALRY GREATCOAT – A VERY
ATTRACTIVE SPECIMEN OF “THE” ICONIC FRONTIER
UNIFORM ITEM FROM THE INDIAN WAR PERIOD - IN EXCELLENT
CONDITION:
A true veteran of the
Frontier Indian Wars Army, this original Model 1885
Cavalry Enlisted Man’s Overcoat, also known during the
period as a “Greatcoat”, is complete with the correct
detachable cape lined in yellow wool.
Elevated in the national
consciousness by such notable artists as Fredrick
Remington in his paintings of the frontier soldier, and
later by John Ford and John Wayne in such films as “She
Wore A Yellow Ribbon” and “Rio Grande”, these US Army
Cavalry Greatcoats are arguably the most iconic piece of
frontier clothing. Due to their prominence on the
painters’ canvases and on the silver screen, these
yellow caped Cavalry Greatcoats are as recognizable as
the buffalo, the war bonnet, and the Winchester rifle to
students of the history of the Frontier West.
Much of the equipment adopted by the army during this
period were subject to changes and modifications as the
initial patterns were subjected to trials and
improvements were suggested, until the powers to be
finally settled on the finished project. Such was the
case with the overcoats of this era. Generally based on
the pattern of the Model 1883 Overcoat, this pattern,
known as the Model 1885 Overcoat, was established under
the direction of the Quartermaster Department Uniform
Specification No. 148, adopted on May 28, 1885.
The cape, a feature of US Army overcoats from the
antebellum period, continued with this pattern, however
as incorporated in the design of some of the earlier
Indian War pattern coats, this cape is attached with a
series of hook and eyes under the collar that permitted
the soldier to remove the cape when the additional
warmth and protection was not required. The cape, as
detailed in the specifications, was lined in wool cloth
in the color of the branch of the service to which the
soldier was assigned – red for Artillery, yellow for
Cavalry, dark blue for Infantry, and so on. In the case
of this cape, the lining of yellow wool “shirting” or
flannel, indicates this coat was issued to a soldier in
the Cavalry.
The sleeves of the Model 1885 Greatcoat no longer had
folded or rolled cuffs; rather they are finished with a
double line of stitching. The exterior edges of the
cuffs are clean and solid with no wear or loss of
material. The interior lining of the sleeves is fully
intact at the arm pit areas, and only show minor wear
just inside the cuffs.
There is the regulation single breast pocket on the
inside left edge of the coat body which is lined with
the same white cotton material used to line the
sleeves. Evidence of the efforts of the Indian War
soldiers to personalize their uniforms, on the interior
of the right side of the front of the coat is sewn a
fairly large pocket made of green velvet (Lord only
knows where a soldier would lay his hands on a piece of
green velvet cloth on the frontier, but I’ll leave that
up to your imagination). Neatly done, and obviously
intended to carry something specific due to its size, it
could have been intended as a pocket to keep something
from freezing in the harsh winters of the northern
plains, or possibly a place to hide a flask from the
First Sergeant. In any case, it is an interesting
feature and one that personalizes the memory of the
soldier who wore this coat.
The rear of the coat is split to approximately knee
height to allow room for the soldier’s stride. To
further facilitate the soldier’s movement, both front
bottom edges of the coat were fitted with hooks with
corresponding thread loops sewn to the face of the coat
approximately 12” above the bottom hem and roughly the
same distance in from the front edges of the coat. This
allowed the front corners to be turned up and secured
out of the way to allow the soldier a full stride when
marching – a feature believed to have been adopted from
the French Army. Both hooks and one of the thread
loops are present, the second loop could be easily
restored if the new owner so desired.
Condition: This coat presents very well, still retains
its shape and body, and looks for all intent and
purposes as if it were just hung up by a soldier coming
in from a long winter night on picket duty. In addition
to a number of minor design changes, the most obvious
difference in appearance was the increase of the number
of buttons on the double-breasted front of the coat from
five pairs to six pairs of buttons.
All of the original buttons
are present on this coat. (There were no cuff buttons
on the Model 1885 Greatcoats.) All of the hooks and
eyes that attach the cape and secure the collar at the
throat are present and intact. The material is in very
good to excellent condition, being neither rotted nor
torn, nor showing any severe soiling, stains or fading.
The wool still retains the “live”, supple feeling, and
those of you familiar with old wool know that this old
material often has a “hardened” texture to the surface.
There are a few small scattered moth holes, the worst of
which are shown in the photographs below.
The lining on the body and
the cape is intact and has not torn loose.
All of the seams and
stitching is intact and the coat is not fragile in any
way. There exterior of the lower hem is in very good
condition, while the interior edge of the lower hem
shows wear, probably where it brushed against the heels
of the soldier’s boots and snagged on the rowels of his
spurs.
The interior of the sleeves are
lined with a beige cotton jean material.
There are no Quartermaster
Depot or contractor’s ink stamps that I could find, and
their absence seems to be consistent in this particular
pattern of greatcoats.
I
have indicated all the above points of wear to provide
an honest description, however overall the wear that is
present is minimal, and this overcoat is still a very
attractive specimen.
Never commonly encountered, these cavalry specimens with
the yellow lined cape are particularly rare. Indian War
period uniform pieces are becoming increasingly
difficult to find on the market, particularly examples
of this quality that have not been used to destruction
or subjected to the ravages of time in poor storage.
This Model 1885 Cavalry Overcoat would make a dramatic
back drop or center piece for a Frontier army Cavalry
weapon and accoutrement display.
SOLD
NOTE: To say that photographing
blue wool is a challenge is an understatement. In
normal lighting, it appears black and none of the finer
features or condition details can be seen clearly. In
order to highlight the features, I have to change the
contrast settings and as a result, the even blue wool
appears to have faded or discolored. This coat is an
even medium blue color as is seen in the overall full
views, the odd coloring coming out when the smaller
details of the coat are photographed so as to be
visible.
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