Indian Spies and knapsacks. Oh, did you know I started a business?

     Well, the warm weather finally broke and we got some cooler days. Almost felt like fall there for a second but then it shoots back up into the upper 80s and Mother Nature laughs at us. Just when we were getting comfortable. Oh well. 

    I've been doing some reading in preparation for the Dunmore event in a months time. I have never really delved to deeply into the Indian spies aspect of life on the frontier but it peaked my interest lately as I was reading one of the books compiled by Dale Payne, "Indian Warfare and Massacres on the Virginia Frontier Part 3." In it there is a whole pile of narratives from pension applications of guys who served as spies. It went something like this. You'd join up for a particular time of service and then you'd spend 3-6 days, sometime longer, out scouting around miles away from the fort. I've often wondered about the idea of guys wandering around in the woods aimlessly. The historical trekking format of the 80s and 90s seemed to be something along the lines of a primitive skills camping trip. People in the 18th century were not going "camping" or "trekking" just for the pure enjoyment of it, at least not in the same way we do. It wasn't a time for them to "get away from it all" and enjoy the relaxation of a night spent out in the woods around a fire. No, it was often the case that venturing out had a purpose and it could be a pretty big risk to life and limb. Now, I don't want to over play the idea of "survival" because that conjures up stereotypes and images that are based partly in reality and mostly in our "rugged frontier" mythology. So, instead of that, let's look at the more practical side of things before we get the idea that everyone was just living rough off the land, women in shifts and men bathing in walnut dye. 

We watched the gaps and low places...

 John Bradshaw gives us a good idea of the circumstances of the Indian Spy when he recounts : 

"I served as an Indian Spy in the years 1776 to 1779....The practice was for two men to leave Fort Cook, Monroe County, and be out 3-4 days each week, others taking their place on the return. We watched the gaps and low places in the mountains for thirty miles, to a point where we met the spies from Burnsides Fort. We were strictly forbidden to make a fire, no matter how inclement the weather."  

So here we have a nice account that gives a foundation for a trek or trip in period gear on foot in the 1770s. There's other reasons one might be out. Maybe you're away  from the cabin hunting on foot for a few days. But largely people were not doing this stuff for "fun" or "sport." It was a means to an end, and that end was the continued welfare of the family and the community. 

    So what of the gear, that's always the question? Well, we have several examples of gear carried that have been covered, recovered and covered again by this blog and several others. So, I won't bore you with a lot gear details but I do want to discuss the "knapsack." In his account. John Dickenson says "I was frequently out five and six days at a time subsisting on such provisions that I could pack in my knapsack."

Eating out of the knapsack 

     There are so many shoddy knapsacks and packs out there that I think the best and most plausible option remains what has been labeled the Uhl style knapsack. A simpler design you will not find and it steers you away from the more overly stylized ones and the off the rack variety. A simple linen knapsack with straps so as to be worn over the shoulder like a backpack. Now, what provisions might one subsist on for 3-6 days in the woods? 

    With the idea that fires were prohibited, as Bradshaw mentions above, we can assume that the food needed to be something that would keep and that could be eaten cold or dry without need of cooking. We can also assume that fresh game wasn't the object of the spying trip and that the only time you'd want to fire your gun would be if faced with danger from the enemy. 

    We can go back a few blog posts to the often quoted : "They take about a gallon of corn and parch it well, then they pound it fine and mix it with sugar as would make it sweet enough for coffee, then put it in a buckskin bag and stow it in their knapsack; then take a chunk of raw bacon, wrap it up well and stow in their knapsack." 

    So, pretty simple right? Meat, parched corn, sometimes made into a coffee of sorts. Enough to last 4-5 days.

     Another account given by William Hutchinson recalls "....I served at the imminent hazard of my life, lying out at night, with no covering but my blanket, and no other shelter but the forest."

No covering but our blankets. Oh, also, don't camp under one of these rock overhangs in a rain storm in a low spot. Ask me how I know.

     I don't know how many videos exist on YouTube that detail various "kits" of frontiersmen. So many of them have these elaborate bedrolls with various tarps and waterproof oil cloth etc. But here we have it from the horses mouth. "No covering but my blanket." Wait, are you saying they never had any waterproof canvas of any kind???? Nope. I'm just saying that we overcomplicate this stuff and I'd love to see more treks attempted in this manner. Sometimes the miserable ones are the most memorable. 

    Maybe I'll attempt one of these camps soon. It's getting a tad chillier at night and it might be a good idea to put my gear through a test for a night. It's been a while. 

    In other news, I have started a trading company. If you've been reading this blog for a while you may have seen a page called "J. Book at the sign of the Gilded Beaver" up at the top with a picture of me and Matthew Fennewald that said "Coming Soon...." Well, it hasn't been soon, but the time has finally come. We hope to be out at some events next spring and hope to see you there! Stay tuned for more updates!     

Preparations for Dunmore's War and did I mention I don't Shave between events?

DISCLAIMER: I don't shave my beard between events. But I DO shave for events and you should to. 

    As I write this on the morning of August 16th, I am thinking of Dunmore's War and the preparations I need to make as the 250th anniversary event at Pricketts Fort looms not very far in the future. The Dunmore campaign is something I have always wanted to reenact and portray. My 7th Great Grandfather, Francis Cooper was stationed at Glade Hollow Fort in modern day Russell County, Virginia.  

    So the question is, what should one take with them on Indian Campaign? I'm a sucker for a good gear post about lists of items one decides to take with them. I've made lists of basic backcountry gear in previous posts, but I'm going to try to dig a littler deeper this time around and see what happens. 

    I'm going with a cocked hat for this one, and a red cockade (which I have to make still) based on the following description : 

"My Brother Jams went with Dumore as a Lieutenant.  He raised some of his men in our county.  They had Cockades of red ribond. I admired the looks of these soldiers so much I would have been glad to have went with them if I had been old enough." -Westward Into Kentucky: The Narrative of Daniel Trabue p42

    Hunting shirt of natural linen and red leggings. In some instances blue leggings were issued. I am trying to pair down my gear a great deal from what I normally take. I want it to feel like the descriptions I've read of going on Indian Campaign. This will be a fun challenge. I think when we approach this stuff, we want to bring all our toys with us, cause let's face it, we accumulate a lot of gear and pieces of clothing in this hobby. So leaving stuff behind can make us second guess and think "But what if I need that?" or "What if I want to wear that?"

    So let's break down what I am carrying. It's still probably too much, but maybe I just overthink it. 

    First I have my shot pouch and horn. Just a basic pouch, inside is a cuttoe knife, patching for cleaning, and a few blank cartridges as I am not going to carry roundball at an event for safety reasons. From the bag hangs my Kyle Wilyard trade knife. 

    

    Next up, I have my tobacco pouch of muskrat and pipe in a native style. It also contains my flint and steel and fire kit. I based carrying this on a Cresswell account and I think it would have been a plausible item to have. He writes: 

Sunday, October 1st, 1775. Took leave of most of my acquaintances in town. Mr. Douglas gave me an Indian Tobacco pouch made of a Mink Skin adorned with porcupine quills.

     Next is my wallet with bags for dried foods and such. This will eventually contain parched corn, jerked meat, dried peas and bread along with a little flower or cornmeal. It will also house my horn spoon and bowl. In a previous article, Matthew Fennwald wrote about a "Wallet Well Stored" which I recommend and will provide some good period accounts of goods carried on Indian Campaigns. 

Moving along we have my water bottle, or pocket bottle. Kobuck has been writing and advocating for such for a while now and I'm going to take him up on it and see how this works. I can't find any evidence for canteens being issued so I'm leaving my wooden behind this trip I think (although I did carry it on my hike today.) 

    This time around I am going to ditch the knapsack that I usually like to carry (because of all that space for junk I don't need) and I am going to just carry a blanket on a tumpline. Inside the blanket will be a knit cap, extra shirt and maybe a jacket. Tied to the tumpline will be my trade kettle for cooking. 

    As my side arm, I am carrying a hunting sword rather than a tomahawk.

    That basically rounds out the gear. Now, how should one carry this gear. Carrying gear is all about strategy and common sense. I'm always amazed at how many guys I've seen over the years would show up to an event with gear hanging sloppily all over them, haversacks that hung so low at the knee that I highly doubt they had ever really been in the woods. If they had, that would snag on everything. So, a balance between high and tight, but loose enough to be able to get it on and off easily must be struck. 

    

Yes, I have a beard. Yes, I will shave for the event. 

    I put on my gear in this order. 

-Horn and Bag

-Canteen (if carried) 

-Hunting sword 

-Blanket roll 

    The order is based on the importance of the gear. If I have to make a run for it and I want to shed gear, my most important gear is going to be my shot pouch and horn, so it stays close to the body and everything else can be shed as I run from whatever danger. Obviously a scenario I don't want to experience. 

 

    The kettle ended up riding really nicely hung from the blanket roll and I was extremely comfortable. I love when I really nail tying up the bedroll. It's aesthetically pleasing and it makes hiking that much more enjoyable when everything is riding comfortably. 

    Hiked a mile on a local trail and everything really worked and functioned. Still tweaking and wanting to add a bit more on the practical side of things, but overall I am pleased with the outcome. 

    

    Thanks to my best reenacting buddy who also happens to be my beautiful wife for enabling the weirdness and taking pictures. She's the best.