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CIVAL WAR PERIOD
COSTUMES
1861 to 1865 raged one of the most brutal wars in our History. It faced
of Neighbor against Neighbor and Brother against Brother. It was a war
that would see and end to Slavery and Yankees united with Rebels to
become one Nation. America.
  Above are Generals Grant (in dark blue) and Lee (in gray). Today we celebrate that time as a hard and sad time, but also a time that remembers Heroism, Romance and in it’s end, a country reborn. The Civil
Wars Soldier Uniform is worn to honor an ancestor who fought valiantly
for his beliefs, not only by dressing the part, but also by joining in
a re-enactment of a particular battle as are held in famous battle
sites on the dates they actually happened. If you are a Lady
on the other hand, you may want to be in a Southern Belle Gown to dance
at your soldiers side at the next Southern Ball, usually held
around the time of an historical battle or event….but sometimes JUST
because it’s time for people to get together, get handsome or
beautiful, and dance Old Ballroom style.
Here's a great Photo
of
Civil War Period Costumes.
 Children are welcome to dress in traditional Civil War Period Costumes also. The children of the Civil War didn’t have it easy. They did what they could to help by the time they reached a double digit age of 10 or 11, many male children went to war. There they drummed out orders or tended the wounded. They basically did many of the smaller jobs while their fathers did the actual fighting. Girl children acted as nurses or stayed home and sewed their little fingers to the bone making shirts and blankets for the soldiers. Your children would probably enjoy dressing for the Civil War Period and it would be a wonderful opportunity for learning the History of the South… and ultimately America. If it is
"authenticity" you are striving for I might suggest that you make your
own Uniforms and/or Ball Gowns, etc. If that is not an option
then there ARE some "costumes" of pretty good quality to which you can
ADD your own finishing touches to make the costume more authentic and
to your liking.
Here(pics just
below) at Frank Bees, for example, there are several
acceptable, but possibly not EXACT, Civil War Period Costumes to choose
from:
 Here are a few more Civil War Period Costumes from my friends at BuyCostumes.com (please forgive the size of the pictures, once you click on one it will take you to a size you may view easier)
Now here's something I just had to put up for you..Civil War Long Johns..(just when I thought I'd seen it all :-) Through this website I hope you will find ALL of your Civil War Costume needs. Some people prefer to make their own clothing in this case, as they are working off of pictures of anchestors and have taken on a great burden in being as accurate as possible. I respect this TOTALLY and I can tell you where to find Fabric, Patterns, and other Sewing Materials to make the Civil War Costume that you are aiming at. For the BASIC Civil
War
Uniform (for each side), check out this McCalls Pattern M4745. Of course you will need the Cap that goes with the
uniform...Click below for the Replica of your
choice.
 Deluxe Kepi (Forage Cap) - Confederate  Confederate Infantry Officer, Gray - X- Large Ladies, for a
beautiful
Civil War Period Dress there is McCalls Pattern M4744. The Pattern pages show you a picture of the costume
and also Sizes and Yardage required. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
At
NetLink Enteprises,
Inc. you will find
many MANY Replicas from the Civil War
Period. There are Caps, Hats, Gloves, Gauntlets (US Civil War OFFICERS
Gloves),Sword Belts, Rifles, Pistols, and Swords. There are Wooden
Canteens from the Civil War and even an Officers Spurs Replicas. There
are Miniature Cannons and larger ones too. When I happened
upon this place I was very pleasantly suprised at their range of time
periods and types of replicas. I found it a facinating place
to visit. I hope you do too. And I HOPE you find every thing
you need there!
Amazon.com also carries some Civil War
Weaponry:
Isn't
internet
shopping a wonderful thing? One never even has to leave the
house...EXCEPT, of course, when it's time to step out as a beautifully
gowned Southern Belle.
It has
occured to me that one way to "prepare"..as in gathering
costume ideas, or simply getting in the mood
for your Civil War adventure, whatever that may be, might be
to watch a few MOVIES on the subject. The first one that comes to mind
of course is the Classic "Gone with the Wind". It is a movie
RICH with Costume ideas. Then there are the morefactual movies
also..some that I will list here. Amazon.com has a large
selection of these types of movies so if the topic interests
you...Amazon.com is only a click away.
Civil War
Events are more popular than one might think. There are Weekend(or
longer) Encampments and Famous Battle Re-enactments. There are Grand
Civil War Balls and Festivals. Check with the online Events
Locator in the "EVENTS" section here in the Historical
Costumes category to find out what’s going on in or
near your area.
OR..to fine tune
your
search even MORE..try HERE:
I wish you
and
yours a very fulfilling and educational
experience.
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