A american armed conflict in which troops on both sides wore flat caps called

Ozem Gardner was born in Ohio to parents who were staunch abolitionists. This would account for its present distorted shape. It may have lain on the Fort Smith battlefield for days, suffering the elements before being picked up by Rev. Fade lines on the pointed crown indicate it probably was creased during wear. Made of olive-green wool felt, it has a wide floppy brim with traces of brown grosgrain ribbon to stiffen the edge so it could be worn flat or slightly turned up. This style of hat is called 'slouch' or 'beehive,' and was common in all theaters of the war. He picked up this hat and a sword from the body of a dead Confederate soldier. It is unclear whether Gardner actually witnessed any of the action at Fort Smith, but at some point he did venture onto the battlefield to collect souvenirs. Ozem Gardner mustered in with the 13th Kansas Infantry on September 1, replacing the previous chaplain who had died of disease. Union forces succeeded in winning Fort Smith back from the Rebels in a series of encounters in late August. But by late 1863, this approach was failing. Their strategy was to draw attention and, most importantly, troops from the eastern theater of the war. The fort was important because it lay along an old military road, it was located on the Arkansas River, and because Native Americans-many of whom were loyal to the Confederacy-lived just to the west.Ĭonfederate troops used the fort as a base from which to raid federal supply trains, interrupt lines of communication, and skirmish with Union soldiers. In late summer of 1863, Union and Confederate forces clashed over control of Fort Smith, Arkansas.

Ozem Gardner, chaplain for the 13th Kansas Infantry, found the hat on a little-known but important battlefield in Arkansas. The tragic story behind this hat has its roots in an overlooked theater of the Civil War-the action west of the Mississippi.

A american armed conflict in which troops on both sides wore flat caps called