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MODEL 1898 TROPICAL INFANTRY UNIFORM BLOUSE –
SCARCE EARLY PATTERN IN KHAKI TRIMMED WITH BLUE COLLAR,
SHOULDER STRAPS, POCKET FLAPS AND CUFFS – VERY GOOD
CONDITION: Approved at the start of the Spanish
American War, these khaki colored, cotton blouses were
adopted with the issue of General Order No. 39 on May 9,
1898. Ordered to be trimmed with the color of the
branch of service (G.O. 51, May 23, 1898), the collar,
shoulder straps, breast pocket flaps and cuffs of these
blouses were made in dark blue for the staff departments
and general staff, yellow for cavalry, red for
artillery, and sky blue for infantry. Providing a very
identifiable uniform for each branch, unfortunately it
was this very same distinction that resulted in a very
short service life for these uniforms, making them quite
scarce today.
As the uniforms were subjected to wear in the field, the
army quickly discovered that the wear out period for
cavalry and infantry soldiers in the field was
considerably shorter than it was for artillery and staff
department soldiers, resulting in a serious shortage of
replacement uniforms for the mounted and foot troops
while an overabundance of artillery and staff uniforms
sat unissued in storage. Due to the way in which this
pattern of coat was trimmed, changing the color of the
facings in order to meet the need for uniforms was not
practical.
As a result, less than two months later, on July 15,
1898, the Secretary of War issued a circular directing
that the colored facings be eliminated and replaced with
colored detachable shoulder tabs that could be issued
with the later pattern all khaki coats as appropriate
for the soldier’s particular branch of service.
Nominally made for less than two months - and then most
of those that were made being subjected to the severe
use and wear of combat soldiers in a tropical
environment - it is not surprising that these early
Pattern 1898 Tropical Blouses survive today in
relatively low numbers and when found, often show
evidence of hard use in the field. Further reducing the
likelihood of survival of these early pattern blouses,
was the common practice of issuing new uniforms to
troops returning from the tropics and requiring that
their old uniforms be burned to prevent the introduction
and spread of disease within the continental United
States.
This khaki cotton blouse follows the pattern introduced
by G.O. No.’s 39 and 51, and intended for issue to an
enlisted infantry soldier, is trimmed with sky blue
facing on the collar, shoulder straps, pocket flaps and
cuffs. While the blouse shows evidence of issue and
use, this specimen shows none of the dramatic fading and
wear associated with prolonged wear in the tropics. All
of the facings are intact with no appreciable fading –
just a trace of very light fading at the edges of the
collar and the shoulder tabs - and no wear to the edges
of the collar, cuffs, pocket flap edges, and along the
bottom edge of the coat. The fabric is in overall
excellent condition, with some minor soiling to the
front and the lower sleeves. All of the original
buttons are present on the shoulder straps, front,
pocket flaps, and the belt, and are mounted with split
rings. The original khaki belt is present, full form
and in excellent condition.
Introduced as our army was deployed to far away lands
and subjected to sweltering tropical heat, this blouse
shows some evidence of the soldier’s service, but it has
survived in extremely nice condition, and given the
scarcity of these color trimmed uniforms, it will be a
particularly nice addition to a Spanish American War
display.
SOLD
NOTE: To say that photographing
uniforms is a challenge is an understatement. In
normal lighting, the cloth absorbs the light and none of the finer
features or condition details can be seen clearly. In
order to highlight the features and provide you with an
accurate view of the material, I have to lighten the
contrast of the photograph which in turn causes even
colored cloth to appear faded or discolored
when such is not the case. This coat is has an
even khaki color throughout as is seen in the close up
photographs of the light blue trim.
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