U. S. Army Mackinaw Coats 1907 to 1919

[world war I nerd]

Of all my uniform oriented posts, this is perhaps the most inconclusive in respect to presenting actual facts. In fact, this particular effort is riddled with supposition, speculation and theories, all of my own devising. However, I prefer to call them educated guesses, as they were not just made up out of thin air. If you are a careful reader, you will find that there is a small amount of evidence and an even smaller amount of actual fact hidden within the text.

 

Nevertheless, I have reached the end of my research rope as far locating hard proof. In order to further my own knowledge, I am presenting what I think I know in the hopes that others will know what I don’t and prove whether or not if my notions are wrong or if they are right.

 

Think of the theories presented as a list of suspects suggested by the available, yet indecisive evidence left at a crime scene. Just as any good detective would do, each person of interest, or theory, must be carefully examined and either eliminated or moved further towards the top of the list of potential suspects.

 

With that in mind, please view my suppositions as suspects, not perpetrators. You, the collective Forum audience, must act as potential witnesses who might add a valuable piece of information to this perplexing puzzle, thus allowing me to eliminate either one or two or possibly all of the so called persons of interest from my inquiries.

 

I have absolutely no problem adjusting any or all of my presumptions if new evidence comes to light. I am also very interested in hearing whether or not speculative posts such as this are of any benefit to the collecting community?

 

I encourage all to add new information and or photographs, or to comment, either favorably or unfavorably, on the usefulness or lack thereof, of the information contained within this post.

Thanks for looking … World War I Nerd

 

U. S. Army Mackinaw Coats

1907 to 1919

A Brief History of the Mackinaw Coat

 

A Mackinaw or Mackinaw Coat is a short, double breasted coat that was made from a thick, often plaid or patterned, woolen material. The coats were cut short to allow freedom of movement. They were typically double breasted, belted and had a stepped collar. Mackinaw coats could also be single breasted and sometimes featured a double shoulder.

The name “Mackinaw” likely originates from the Straights of Mackinak in present day Michigan. This area was an important trade artery during the late 18^th and early 19^th centuries. One of the chief items of trade among the Native Americans and fur traders was a type of heavy woolen cloth blanket that was made in an array of bright colors and patterns.

 

It is said that in 1811, Captain Charles Roberts, the commander of the British fort located on St. Joseph Island in the St. Mary’s River, hired Native American women of the Ojibwa and Algonquian Indian tribes to make winter coats for the forty men under his command. The coats were made out of the colorful woolen blankets that were favored by the Indians.

 

Later during the War of 1812, Captain Roberts captured and occupied an American fort in Michigan called Fort Michilimackinak. When winter set in he once again ordered that winter coats be made from the warm Native American blankets.

 

Over time, the short double breasted style of coat that was commissioned by Captain Roberts became known as a “Mackinaw”. Before long the style of coat created from the colorful, heavy wool blankets became a favorite among local loggers, fur trappers, sailors, hunters and other outdoorsmen in the Northeastern United States and later across the entire nation.

 

Photo No. 01: Prior to 1912, research indicates that all traditional Mackinaw coats were made with a “stepped” or “notched” collar. When the stepped collar was left unbuttoned at the top, and the excess fabric folded back a sort of mock lapel was formed. Mock lapels can be seen on the pair of pre 1912 Mackinaw advertisements bookending the fully buttoned Mackinaw Coat in the center. All three of these Mackinaws have stepped, not shawl collars.

 

Center photo courtesy of the Musee McCord Museum

[world war I nerd]

1907 Pea Jacket

 

Beginning in 1907 the Quartermaster Department adopted two new patterns of warm outer garments for the American soldiers. The first was labeled as a “Canvas Pea Jacket” and the second was named a “Mackinaw Coat”. Both were more or less hip length, had fully buttoned fronts, and very likely had stepped collars.

 

The Canvas Pea Jacket, Specification No. 866 was adopted by the Army on May, 15, 1907. One month later, on June 18, 1907, a second Canvas Pea Jacket, Specification No. 876, superseded the first. A third and final pattern Canvas Pea Jacket, Specification No. 929 followed sometime in 1908.

 

The Canvas Pea Jacket was devised because uniform regulations forbid both enlisted men and officers from mixing any article of their service dress with that of the fatigue dress. Because the regulation olive drab overcoat was classified as a part of the service dress, work parties under orders to wear brown or blue denim fatigue dress had no authorized outer garment to wear outdoors during harsh winter weather. The Canvas Pea Jacket was adopted to correct this oversight.

 

At present, I am unaware of what the difference were between the three different specifications that were issued for this particular garment. Nor do I know if the cut of the three jackets or the materials from which they was made differed from one specification to another.

 

If anyone can add additional information (or photos) regarding any one of the three Canvas Pea Jackets, please do so.

 

Photo No. 02: The left hand photograph is presumed to be one of the three specifications of the Canvas Pea Jacket. This example is comprised of a khaki cotton duck outer shell, lined with dark blue wool. The double breasted jacket has a large stepped collar and the front is secured by two rows of rimless bronze eagle buttons. Executed by the artist Henry Alexander, the cropped detail from the background of an illustration depicting U.S. Army winter clothing circa 1907, is thought to be the 1907 Canvas Pea Jacket.

 

Right hand photo courtesy of the U.S. Victory Museum collection

[world war I nerd]

1907 Mackinaw Coat & Trousers

 

In 1907, the Quartermaster Department also adopted a dark blue woolen Mackinaw Coat, Specification No. 863, and a matching pair of Mackinaw Trousers, Specification No. 864. Both garments were adopted on May 15, 1907. They were to be used specifically by troops stationed in the Department of Alaska.

 

After years of searching, no photos of either garment have been found. The only written information available on the dark blue Mackinaw Coat and Trousers is that they were occasionally named in the Quartermaster General’s annual report. They were sometimes mentioned (only by name) in the uniform regulations published between 1907 and 1912. Also, a few lines were devoted to them in William K. Emerson’s tome on U.S. Army uniforms and insignia:

 

As if marking an end to the western frontier, in 1907 the Quartermaster Corps issued dark blue woolen, short, double breasted mackinaw coats and matching “mackinaw trousers” for troops stationed on the last frontier, Alaska.

 

Encyclopedia on United States Army Uniforms & Insignia, William K. Emerson, 1996, page 472

 

Both the Canvas Pea Jacket and the blue wool Mackinaw Coat were supplied only on a need to have basis. When either garment was no longer needed it had to be turned back in to either the Quartermaster Department or the Company’s Quartermaster Sergeant. In other words, they were not a regulation article of clothing, like a flannel shirt or woolen overcoat that was issued and kept be each soldier. They were instead “borrowed” for a short period of time from either company or Quartermaster stores. When no longer needed the articles were to be returned in the same condition in which they had been issued. If not, and if there was no acceptable explanation as to how the garment became damaged, the individual soldier would be charged for either its repair or its replacement.

 

If anyone can add additional information (or photos) regarding the dark blue Mackinaw Coat or trousers, please do so.

 

The “Nansen”, “Shawl” & “Roll” Collar

 

Until 1912, the so called “shawl” collar that has commonly been associated with the Mackinaw Coat had never before that time been a part of the Mackinaw Coat. Prior to 1912 all Mackinaw coats featured some variation of a stepped collar, similar to the one used on the 1907 Canvas Pea Jacket shown in photo number two.

 

Clothing designers at the Patrick Duluth Woolen Mills were apparently the first to incorporate a shawl type collar on a Mackinaw Coat. In 1912, Patrick Duluth introduced a refined new Mackinaw design in the hopes of catching the eye of collage aged buyers, as that age group was known to set the styles for both young men’s and women’s clothing.

 

Like the traditional Mackinaw, their new design was double breasted. It featured the customary matching waist belt and was made from a variety of appealing colors and patterns of woolen cloth. However, the trendy new design included something its designers called a “Nansen” collar, which was nothing more than a stylish name for what we know as the shawl collar. Patrick Duluth’s new design was also a hit, because in a matter of months every Mackinaw manufacturer across the U.S. was turning out Mackinaw Coats with shawl not stepped collars.

 

To me, this would indicate that the Army issued olive drab Mackinaw Coats made with shawl collars were designed and manufactured sometime after 1912.

 

Photo No. 03: Just one of many post 1912 Mackinaw Coat advertisements showing the coat with the now tremendously popular shawl collar.

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Photo No. 04: In virtually every post 1912 advertisement marketing Mackinaw Coats, every coat shown sported a shawl collar, not a stepped collar. This selection of ads dating from 1913, 1915 and 1917 respectively, were no exception.

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The 1917 “Driver’s” Coat

 

Apart from the one line entries about the dark blue 1907 Mackinaw Coat made in the uniform regulations, the next time a Mackinaw Coat was mentioned came towards the end of 1917, in Special Regulations, Change No. 1 issued on December 29, 1917. The relevant text read as follows:

 

103. OVERCOAT – Change subparagraph (d) and add subparagraphs © and (f) as follows:

(e) Mackinaw coats or a similar garment, will be issued to drivers of motor trucks, motor cars, motor ambulances, and motorcycles, in lieu of the olive drab overcoat.

 

Special Regulations No. 41, Change No. 1, December 29, 1917

 

Although I’ve yet to find any proof to support the following assertion, it is my belief that the olive drab Mackinaw Coat was adopted by the Army as a “Driver’s Coat” sometime during the fall or winter of 1917 in order to replace the regulation enlisted man’s overcoat which was found to be both too long and too cumbersome for men driving motorized vehicles. The reasons why I suspect this to be so are:

 

• The Army’s need for motorized vehicles of all types was expanding by leaps and bounds almost daily in late 1917 … Thus making the Army’s need for more appropriate specialists’ clothing more apparent.

 

• All of the pre 1917 Army uniform regulations stated the following about the Mackinaw Coat:

74. COATS, MACKINAW. – To be of dark blue Mackinaw as issued.

Besides stating the obvious that the Mackinaw was dark blue and not olive drab in color, the term “as issued” was at that time Army speak for anything that was not considered to be the personal property of the soldier to whom it was issued. The “as issued” article either remained the property of the Quartermaster Corps or that of the regiment or company to which the soldier belonged.

In other words the blue Mackinaw Coat and the Mackinaw Trousers were only issued temporarily for perhaps, guard duty during extremely cold weather. As soon as the soldier was relieved from that duty he had to return the garments to their place of issue where they would very likely be reissued to the next man assigned to guard duty.

• There is absolutely no mention of an olive drab Mackinaw style coat in any U.S. Army or Quartermaster Department documents or periodicals prior to 1917.

• An olive drab Mackinaw Coat has yet to be seen in any pre 1917 period photographs.

 

• The Army’s new “Driving Coat” featured a shawl collar which was evidently never used on a Mackinaw prior to 1912.

Photo No. 05: Here the olive drab Mackinaw Coat or “Driver’s Coat” as it was sometimes called, is being worn for the task for which it was in all probability, originally intended.

 

Photo courtesy of the John Adam-Graf collection

[world war I nerd]

Type I & II Olive Drab Mackinaw Coats

 

Over the course of examining dozens of period photographs of olive drab Mackinaw Coats worn by enlisted men, I have identified seven different types or styles. For the purpose of this post I have designated each style as follows:

• Type I – Which believe to have been the first pattern shawl collar Mackinaw issued.
• Type II – Which I believe to have been the second pattern shawl collar Mackinaw issued.
• Transitional – Which bear features found on both the Type I & II Mackinaw Coats. These coats were likely made when clothing manufacturers were transitioning from the Type I Mackinaw to the Type II Mackinaw.
• 1918 Mackinaw Coat – Which chronologically, was the third pattern (Type III) to have been issued. Thus far, the Type III Mackinaw is the only Mackinaw Coat to have its own specification number and adoption date.
• Commercial – Which are non-regulation or commercially made Mackinaw Coats that were specifically marketed towards American soldiers.
• Conversions – Which are makeshift Mackinaws that were in all probability converted from regulation overcoats.

Photo No. 06: A careful inspection of this photo of an unknown company of Doughboys in training reveals that all of the men are wearing reversed 1907 Winter Field Caps as well as olive drab Mackinaw Coats.

Photo courtesy of the John Adam-Graf collection

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Photo No. 07: A closer view of the Mackinaws shown in the above photo divulges that both Type I and Type II Mackinaws are being worn. Of the twenty-six men depicted in the photo, six of them are wearing Type II Mackinaws, all of which can be identified by the cuff strap and button placed near the bottom edge of the sleeve.

 

Photo courtesy of the John Adam-Graf collection

[world war I nerd]

Photo No. 08: Another easily identified difference between the Type I and Type II Mackinaw Coats are the button loops found on the collar of the Type I coat (center & right) and the button holes found on the collar of the Type II coats (left).

 

Left hand photo courtesy of the John Adam-Graf collection

Center photo courtesy of the National World War I Museum

[world war I nerd]

Type I Olive Drab Mackinaw Coat

 

The “Type I Olive Drab Mackinaw Coat” designation is not an official Quartermaster Corps title. It was invented entirely by me for the purpose of labeling the two distinct styles of olive drab Mackinaw Coats that appear to have been issued between 1917 and 1919.

 

So far, no information, other than what was mentioned in the 1917 dated Special Regulations, regarding the olive drab Mackinaw Coat has surfaced.

 

It is possible that neither the War Department nor the Quartermaster Corps made any distinction between the Type I and Type II styles. It is also entirely possible that the differences between the two styles were simply the result of how different contractors interpreted what the finished garments should look like.

 

However, because woolen cloth was in very short supply in the United States at all times during WW I, the use of that commodity was very closely monitored for waste. Therefore, it would seem unlikely that both the War Department and the Quartermaster Corps would allow some manufactures to add unnecessary details, such as cuff straps and pocket flaps to any military garment they were contracted to produce.

 

We must all keep in mind that two cuff straps, plus a pair of pocket flaps, plus the inner facing of the flap and the thread needed to sew them, when multiplied by hundreds of thousands of garments, would add up to a considerable number of yards of precious olive drab woolen fabric.

 

This is the primary reason why I believe that somewhere among the records of the Quartermaster Corps are documents noting why both the Type I and Type II Mackinaw Coats were developed, the date when they were adopted and the specification numbers with which they were assigned.

 

Photo No. 09: As previously mentioned, my theory is that the Type I olive drab Mackinaw Coat was the first of its kind to be issued by the Army. The following diagram lists the characteristics of a typical Type I Mackinaw.

 

Photo courtesy of the John Adam-Graf collection

[world war I nerd]

Photo No. 10: Three Type I Mackinaw Coats as worn by Doughboys serving in various branches of the Army in France.

 

Left & center photos courtesy of the John Adam-Graf collection

Left hand photo courtesy of the Charles Thomas collection

[world war I nerd]

Photo No. 11: A Type I olive drab Mackinaw Coat and its contract label. Note the collar button loop, flat belt end, open pockets, and the fact that it’s missing two of its composite buttons.

 

Photos courtesy of Advance Guard Militaria.com

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Photo No. 12: The interior of the above Type I Mackinaw Coat showing the garments partial lining, the absence of any other markings, tags or stamps, and the location of the contract label.

 

Photo courtesy of the Dragoon collection

[world war I nerd]

Type II Olive Drab Mackinaw Coat

 

At the time of posting no official information as to why pocket flaps and cuff straps might have been added to the Type II Mackinaw Coat has made itself available.

 

It is a known fact that Mackinaw Coats were also issued to certain foot troops whose duties prevented them from wearing the bulkier regulation enlisted men’s overcoat. As a rule foot troops were prone to be more active than those who sat in the cab of a supply truck.

 

Therefore, I can only speculate that pocket flaps may have been added to the Mackinaw Coats that were intended to be issued to foot troops in order to prevent articles from falling out of the pockets. Hence the Type I Mackinaws may have been intended for motor vehicle drivers and the Type II Mackinaws for foot troops such as Engineers and Pioneer Infantry.

 

In respect to the cuff straps, they appear to serve no function whatsoever. This fact makes it entirely possible that the Type II style Mackinaw actually predated the first pattern. If so, then perhaps the pocket flaps and the cuff straps were both eliminated to conserve wool. My instincts tell me this was not the case, but it is a possibility that must be considered.

 

Photo No. 13: The following diagram chronicles the characteristics of a typical Type II Mackinaw.

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Photo No. 14: Three examples of Type II Mackinaw Coats, all of which have pointed belt ends, pocket flaps, slightly narrower belt loops and cuff straps. The left hand coat is likely a transitional coat as it still retains a button loop rather than a buttonhole on its collar.

 

Left & center photos courtesy of the John Adam-Graf collection

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Photo No. 15: Three additional Type II coats. The center coat is unusual in that it features pointed rather than straight pocket flaps. The Mackinaw at the far right is another example of a transitional coat bearing a button loop on the collar. Another unusual feature of all three coats is that each used regulation bronze eagle buttons to secure both its front opening and its belt. It is unlikely that the Mackinaws were delivered from the factory with bronze buttons. A more plausible scenario is that the wearer at some point replaced the original composite buttons with bronze buttons borrowed from a service coat.

 

Photos courtesy of the John Adam-Graf collection

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Photo No. 16: A transitional Mackinaw with pocket flaps, but without cuff straps at left, is shown next to a classic Type II Mackinaw.

 

Right hand photo courtesy of Bay State Militaria.com

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Photo No. 17: This transitional Mackinaw features pointed pocket flaps and a belt with a straight end. However, cuff straps are not present and the composite buttons have again been replaced with regulation bronze buttons.

 

Photos courtesy of Bay State Militaria.com

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Photo No. 18: These three soldiers gallantly posing for the camera at a stateside training camp have been issued Type II Mackinaw coats instead of the regulation overcoat.

Photo courtesy of the John Adam-Graf collection

[world war I nerd]

1918 Mackinaw Coat

 

An entirely new style of Mackinaw Coat, Specification No. 1343, was adopted in July of 1918. Chronologically speaking it would be a Type III Mackinaw Coat. However, since it has a known specification number, a more apt name for this garment is the “1918 Mackinaw Coat”.

Just like all of its predecessors, very little documentation on this pattern of Mackinaw Coat has been found. Its structure though, closely mirrors that of the Type II Mackinaw.

However, certain external details do differ from that of the Type II Mackinaw. Most noticeable being that:

• Button loops have replaced the button holes on the shawl collar.
• The outer edge of the coat’s front opening now relies on button loops rather than buttonholes to keep it closed.
• The cuff straps have been made functional and can now be adjusted.
• A storm flap has been added to the underside of the collar.
• A frame buckle has been substituted for the two buttons that were previously used to secure the coat’s integral belt.

In addition, the 1918 Mackinaw Coat was made from a khaki cotton duck outer shell that had been lined with olive drab woolen fabric.

 

Photo No. 19: These are the only images I’ve been able to find showing the 1918 Mackinaw Coat in use. The left and center views were cropped from the same photograph, which dates to either late 1918 or sometime in 1919. The right hand photo is circa 1922 based on the 3^rd Field Artillery DI worn on the underside of the brim of a winter field cap.

 

Left & center photos courtesy of the National World War I Museum

Right hand photo courtesy of the John Adam-Graf collection

 

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Photo No. 20: A 1918 Mackinaw Coat and its heavily faded contract label.

 

Photos courtesy of Advance Guard Militaria.com

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Photo No. 21: A less faded contract label and the much faded 1918 Mackinaw Coat in which it was sewn. Note the storm flap protruding from beneath the coat’s collar.

 

Photos courtesy of the U.S. Victory Museum collection

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Photo No. 22: Reverse side of the 1918 Mackinaw Coats shown in photos number nineteen and twenty.

 

Left hand photo courtesy of Advance Guard Militaria.com

Right hand photo courtesy of the U.S. Victory Museum collection

[world war I nerd]

Photo No. 23: Another 1918 Mackinaw Coat and its contract label. Note the storm flap and corresponding button on the underside of the collar and the additional button on each sleeve used to tighten the cuff openings.

Photos courtesy of the Dragoon collection

[world war I nerd]

Commercially Made & Mackinaw Conversions

 

Outfitting both officers and enlisted men of the Army with everything from steel heart protectors to olive drab garments that loosely adhered to Quartermaster standards was big business on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean during WW I.

 

Within weeks or even days of the Army adopting a new garment, private manufacturers were quick to make and market their own version to any soldier who had both the means and desire to purchase it. The result of this rampant capitalism in action was that a wide variety of non-regulation, but vaguely familiar looking articles of a soldier’s uniform turn up in period photographs.

 

It was also not unusual, especially when certain garments were not available in sufficient quantities, for Quartermaster Corps purchasing agents to venture into the civilian clothing markets to buy up every single piece of commercially made clothing that came remotely close to matching Uncle Sam’s lowest standard. This was especially so in regard to underwear, stockings, sweaters, gloves, raincoats and warm outer garments.

 

Therefore one can never be absolutely certain if that odd looking raincoat, sweater or Mackinaw was commercially made, tailor made or purchased in bulk from a patriotic department store or outfitter for outdoorsmen and then issued as if it was a regulation item to Private Sad Sack by the Quartermaster Corps.

 

Photo No. 24: Here three uniquely different commercially made Mackinaw Coats can be seen. The left hand coat bears a stepped collar and a wider than normal belt with a frame buckle.

 

The center Mackinaw bears a mixture of Type I and Type II features - a shawl collar, composite buttons, open patch pockets and cuff straps, But unlike either the Type I or Type II coat it is single breasted and does not have the integral waist belt.

 

The right hand example is very much like a Type I Mackinaw Coat except for its unusually wide belt. It also appears to be made from a much higher quality of woolen fabric, which gives the garment a much smarter appearance.

[world war I nerd]

In some cases other regulation military garments were cut down or converted into a sort of makeshift Mackinaw. This could be the result of an enterprising soldier or of a deal struck between a Doughboy and a French seamstress. Modified and drastically altered could also have been accomplished by the AEF Salvage Service or done under orders by a regimental or company tailor.

 

Photo No. 25: At left is something that sort of resembles a Mackinaw Coat, but it’s just not quite right. It hangs a bit too loose. It may or may not have a belt, and it appears to have pockets that are hung on the inside which are accessed by means of a slit.

 

The center Mackinaw-like coat was probably at one time an officer’s overcoat. It has been shortened by a considerable length and the waist belt was likely fabricated from the leftover trimmings of the coat’s skirt.

 

The right hand Mackinaw is either a Mackinaw Coat of the commercially made variety or it is a reworked 1913 pattern enlisted men’s overcoat. It appears to have a stepped collar rather than a shawl collar. It also bears cuff straps, both of which were found on the 1913 and 1917 pattern enlisted men’s overcoats. The coat also hangs a bit sloppily and has a ridiculously wide waist belt.

 

Left hand photo courtesy of the Brennan Gauthier-Portraits of War.Wordpress.com collection