The survival of a soldier in any war may certainly be a risky business. A soldier's life in the 'War of Rebellion,' a bit more than midway through the nineteenth century, was perhaps even more of a gamble. A Civil War soldier's chance of survival, on average, was 75% - which also meant that one of every four men would not live to see home and family again. And, if he were to die, there was a better than even chance that it would be disease, not a bullet, that would kill him. Typhoid fever, pneumonia and tuberculosis devastated the troops with alarming regularity. Nearly one-third of the Federal troops would be stricken with malaria. An amazing 99.5% of all soldiers could count on suffering dysentery or chronic diarrhea. Most Federal encampments were littered with all matter of rotting refuse, food, litter and human waste. The lack of potable water was always a huge problem.
The Federal Army was made up of surprisingly young men. Nearly one-third of all Union Soldiers were 18-years of age or younger at enlistment. An even greater number of soldiers were under 21-years old. Amazingly, there were more than 300 boys aged thirteen and younger who served in the Union Army, primarily as drummers and fiffers. According to records compiled from muster-rolls after the war, we know that the "average" Union soldier was an American-born farmer, 25 years old, 5'8" tall, weighed 143 pounds, had brown hair, blue eyes and a light complexion. Roughly two of every three soldiers was unmarried. Nearly one-fourth of all Union soldiers had been born abroad. One in ten white soldiers (and seven of ten black soldiers) were illiterate. Nearly half were farmers, with an additional 16% listed as "unskilled laborers."
The Federal infantryman typically wore a dark blue flannel sack coat, woolen or jersey trousers, wool socks, and a kepi, or slouch cap. The government offered a $42 allowance for each infantry soldier's clothing needs for a one-year period. This included a cap, blouse, trousers, shirts, drawers, socks, shoes, sometimes an overcoat, and a woolen and a rubber blanket. Should the soldier not be able to make the outfits provided him last a year, the Quartermaster would provide replacements. Any amounts beyond the government allowance however, would be charged to the soldier and deducted from his pay. On the other hand, in the unlikely event that the soldier used less than his allotment of clothing, the balance in cash would be refunded to him. The one-hundred days troops of Ohio, by comparison, were given a clothing allowance of $21.51.
A fully-equipped Union infantry soldier might carry 50 pounds of gear with him, including a cotton haversack, extra clothing, a gray wool blanket (5 pounds by itself), a gum blanket (which served as a poncho or tent floor), a rifle, cap and cartridge boxes, bayonet, canteen and cup. He probably also carried some personal items such as a pipe, razor, jackknife, sewing kit, and maybe even a bible. All of this would be carried on marches of perhaps 16 miles, day after day, with an occasional 30-mile day thrown in as required. In the early years of the war, the armies used the Silby tent, a large teepee-like affair that slept from 12 to 20 men. The enforced familiarity of these tents were hugely unpopular. Federal troops of 1864 however, slept in wedge tents; seven feet of canvas draped over a horizontal ridgepole. Reveille was at 5:00 A.M. in the summer, an hour later in the winter.
While in the field, the men ate primarily salt and pork, corn bread, and maybe dried beans. There was an abundant supply of hard tack, a flavor-less cracker of sorts, and massive quantities of coffee. Anything else the soldier might want was probably available from the camp or regimental Sutler. These official civilian merchants of the military, appointed by the Secretary of War for a three-year term, were attached to virtually every military post or regiment in campaign. A newspaper correspondent of the time said that Sutler's were "a wretched class of swindlers." In fact, "Sutler" is a Dutch word meaning, "to undertake low offices." The Sutlers sold nearly everything the army didn't supply; newspapers, tobacco, candy and other 'luxuries' at often over-inflated prices. A Union infantry Private's wages were just $13.00 per month; the Sutler's were strictly regulated against selling on credit to an enlisted man more than one-third of his monthly pay in any given month. A Private therefore, would only be allowed to legally purchase $4.33 worth of goods on credit during any given month. It was not an abundant credit line, given the Sutler's typically high prices. A pound of butter might sell for one dollar, cheese was available at 50-cents per pound, milk at 75-cents per can, navy tobacco at $1.25 per slug, and molasses cakes were six for 25-cents. The infamous 'Sutler's Pies,' a strange item described as "moist and indigestible below, tough and indestructible above, with untold horrors within," were an arguable bargain at 25-cents each.
Any desired delicacies of food not readily available might be assigned to the foragers that existed in virtually every regiment. Foraging the countryside for food and other items was officially unauthorized and technically forbidden, but officers tended not to notice the inevitable. Sweet potatoes, poultry, honey, hams, corn meal, flour, bacon sides and corn on the cob were often the most desirable of target for the foragers. Small, and hopefully quiet, parties of foragers might leave camp at midnight or so and return before daybreak. Sometimes, dozens of men might set out in the middle of the night, heading in the general direction of the coming days march. They might then be found, hours later, sitting along side the road with their collected bounty in hand, waiting for the regiment and the Quartermaster's wagon to catch up. Foraging tended to keep the men more content than might otherwise be expected. Unfortunately, there were many foragers killed or captured by the enemy while away from their regiments in the dead of night. Still, the practice continued and was occasionally elevated to artistic perfection. One such practitioner was Private Billy Crump, an orderly to Colonel Rutherford B. Hayes of the 23rd Ohio. Private Crump once borrowed his Colonel's horse and left on a quest of sorts. He returned to camp, hours later, with a haul that became legendary. Crump's 'spoils of war' included 50 chickens, 30 pounds of butter, and 20-dozen eggs. When Hayes became the 19th President of the United States in 1877, he made Billy Crump his White House steward.
In the infantry, "guard mounting" began at 8:00 each morning. The guard consisted of reliefs, first, second and third guards, each serving post duty for two hours on and four hours off, thereby serving guard for eight hours out of twenty-four. When not on guard detail, much of a soldier's life was made up of drills and exercising, followed by boredom, homesickness and occasional bouts of sheer terror. The boredom was often relieved by playing cards or baseball, boxing or an occasional cockroach race. Many soldiers also found the need to partake of "horizontal refreshments," visiting the abundant prostitutes that made themselves available to the war effort. Washington D.C., the capital city, alone had more than 450 bordellos with at least 7,500 full-time prostitutes. More than one Ohio farm boy no doubt marvelled at the variety of entertainment available to a soldier.