The Massachusetts Provincial Congress resolved on 23 April 1775 that each man enlisted for a year should be given a coat as bounty. Each coat was to made of brown wool, with no lapels and a collar and cuffs and working pockets. It was based on a simple working man's jacket of the period. Samples of the wool were sent out to each town and they were responsible for making a number of jackets equal to the men from that town who had enlisted. When done they were collected and sorted by shade and regimental marked buttons attached. By 28 December 1775 13,000 coats had been made. These so called"bounty coats" served as the first uniform.
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| Construction of Bounty Coat. |
But a more military style uniform was desired. Although Washington recommended uniforms of hunting shirts, lack of tow cloth in New England scuttled that idea. On 20 October 1775 at Cambridge headquarters Washington and delegates from continental Congress agreed that soldiers would be provided cloth to make new uniforms for 1776 at a cost of 10 shillings per man. On 17 November ordered officers commanding 26 continental regiments meet at the Quartermaster General's office at Cambridge to agree on uniform for their regiments. Cloth for uniforms ware to be dyed brown with facings (collar, cuffs and lapels) and numbered buttons to distinguish regiments.
What materials were available for these uniforms? First, there were captured british uniforms; examples were 338 uniforms red faced buff from the 22nd regiment and 336 red faced buff uniforms from the 40th regiment. These would have their facings removed, coats dyed brown and facings reattached. Additional cloth obtained included two bales containing 420 yards blue cloth plus miscellaneous amounts of cloth in various colors. These were to be made up into 2,000 blue, brown, and green coats and waistcoats, with red, blue, pink, green, yellow, white, buff, brown, and crimson facings. In addition 2,000 felt cocked hats with white bindings were collected. These regimental uniforms were drawn for by the Colonel of the 26 regiments when they became available for delivery on 5 January 1776. A mixture ofa , civilian clothing, the 1775 bounty coats and these new regimental coats give a glimpse of how the new regiments appeared.
On 20 February 1776 Washington ordered that each regiment be furnished with colors that match its uniform. The suit of colors for each regiment was of two standards and four grand division colors. First standard was the union and second was in regiment's facing color and marked with it's number and a motto.
In an army where uniforms were rare some system of identification of rank was needed. These were adopted in the summer of 1775 by the army in Cambridge.
Commander in Chief - light blue ribbon across breast between coat and waistcoat.
Major General - purple ribbon
Brigadier General - pink ribbon
Aides-de-camp - green ribbon
Field Officers - red or pink cockade
Captains - yellow or buff cocked
Subalterns - green cocked
Sergeant - epaulette or strip of cloth of red on right shoulder
Corporal - one of green.
The 27 Continental Line regiments uniforms and standards based on returns and deserter descriptions. These paint a confusing picture of what the early American army looked like. Cloth colored coats were undyed wool. When blue or brown coats were mentioned they could have been bounty coats or civilian coats.
1st Continental Regiment
Green coats and breeches officers. Green hunting shirts men
Numerous references to white and brown hunting shirts
Standard a tiger enclosed by netting defended by a hunter in white and armed with a spear on a crimson field with motto.
2nd Continental Regiment
Blue faced green
3rd Continental Regiment
Cloth colored coat and jacket. Also one man sailors jackets
6th Continental Regiment
Brown faced red or white.
7th Continental Regiment
Various brown or blue coats
Sailors dress
Standard white field with black thorn bush and flesh colored hand extended to pluck the bush. Motto "He that touches me shall prick his fingers. "
10th Continental Regiment
Light brown coats faced red or buff. Also some blue jackets.
11th Continental Regiment
Brown hunting shirts and coats faced white. Officer silver lace
12th Continental Regiment
Blue coats faced buff
13th Continental Regiment
Brown coat
Standard light buff/yellow with line tree and field of Indian corn. Two officers in uniform one wounded in breast with blood flowing pointing to children. Motto " for posterity I bleed. "
14th Continental Regiment
Light colored coat faced red. Blue coat tared trousers.
15th Continental Regiment
Blue faced white with white smallclothes. Officers gold lace
Musicians had same uniform as men.
16th Continental Regiment
Green uniforms. Standard red on white field.
17th Continental Regiment
Coats had black facings.
Blue clothing. Butternut colored coat and scarlet waistcoat. Light colored coat.
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| Modern illustration 17th Continental. |
18th Continental Regiment
Cloth colored coat faced buff. Regimental standard buff.
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| Modern illustration 18th Continental. |
19th Continental Regiment
Blue coat faced red. Blue coat with brown waistcoat. Light colored coat.
20th Continental Regiment
Blue jacket and trousers.
Short sailors jacket
21st Continental Regiment
Blue jacket
22nd Continental Regiment
Regimental coat faced red. Light colored coat.
24th Continental Regiment
Same color as 7th
25th Continental Regiment
Blue coat faced buff
26th Continental Regiment
Brown coat blue waistcoat white breeches. Straw colored standard.
Grenadier company had embroidered mitre caps.
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| Modern illustration of the 26th Continental. |
27th Continental Regiment
Brown coat.
The following Sources were used in compiling this list;
Henry M. Cooke IV, “The Massachusetts Bounty Coat of 1775,” The Brigade Dispatch, vol. XXVIII, no. 3 (Autumn 1998), 2-10.
Philip Katcher. Uniforms of the Continental Army.
1981
Charles Lefferts. Uniforms of the American, British, French, and German Armies in the War of the American Revolution 1775 - 1783.
1926a
Martin Zlatich. General Washington 's Army (1) 1775-78.
1994
One book I have not mentioned is "An Illustrated History of Uniforms from 1775-1783: The American Revolutionary War". Stay away from that one, it's a waste of time.
