information

[Grizzle Bear]

I was going through the list of suppliers and information sources that Frenchie posted, and found this.  Although these folks are all Civil War reenactors, I have seen the same and worse at NCOWS events.  And I know I am as guilty as anyone about being farby!

Anyway, check this site out, and learn from their mistakes.  And you can laugh at them, too!   

http://www.geocities.com/happyfriends1/index.html

Grizzle Bear

[Be-A-triss Bandit]

"farby" from Merriam-Webster Online

"Spelling Help Powered by Franklin Electronic Publishers
The word you've entered isn't in the dictionary. Click on a spelling suggestion below or try again using the search box to the right."

Seems the alleged word is not period correct - for any period. 

[Delmonico]

It was only slightly know till the "Confederates in the Attic" book came out, ya know the one about the guy who goes to far the other way and becomes a farbee (the way I've seen it spell) despite the fact he's tryin' not to be.

[Be-A-triss Bandit]

Gentleman, That was posted tongue in cheek!
My first shoot a guy told me my borrowed holsters were "farby as hell" and told me how "real" cowboys dressed.  When I found out what farby meant I about fell over laughing.  The dude, and I mean "dude" in the city slicker sense, with the helpful suggestion was shooting stainless 38 Specials and wore sunglasses and a synthetic vest.  But, the vest had four pockets and we know all cowboys wore vests with four pockets.  Well, the website Grizzle Bear linked reminded me of some '70s TV shows and movies.  And kids grow up thinking it's history.  I know I'm a little farby but, I'll get there.  Just let me have fun 'til I do.
Twisted and dry,
BB

[River City John]

Link did not work for me, Griz. Tells me that the site has exceeded data transfer capabilities? something like that.

[Be-A-triss Bandit]

The link worked half an hour ago.
Some of it's funny.  Mostly anachronism and history as they imagine it to be.  Good for a chuckle.

[Frenchie]

RCJ, Happy Friends is on a low-budget server that shuts down after reaching a certain amount of bandwidth in 24 hours. When someone like moi gives the link to a bunch of people who haven't seen it yet, it hits the limit fast. Just wait a couple of days and try it again. Be sitting down and don't have liquids near the keyboard - some of the images have been blamed for everything from frightening children to bleeding from the eyes.

"Farby": My pet theory on the source of the word is the German farben, "colored" or "colorful". It refers to the tendency of bad period "costumes" to be not only wrong in material, pattern and construction, but garishly hued as well.

[Be-A-triss Bandit]

Ah hah!  That seems plausible, too.  Like the '30s period musicals that had COLORED  costumes because the film was in COLOR.

[Delmonico]

It's also said to be from folks sayin' "far be it for me to critize."

[Delmonico]

Worked fine later last night and this mornin',  most likely how many are on it at a time rather than how many have looked at it.  


Funny thing is the folks all complain about folks in Civil War and other time period units being to large, wonder if any of them ever notice most are also too  old.  Course if they ever worried about that to much most units would not have enough manpower to man.  Maybe they should put as much effort into requitin' younger folks into their hobby as the do pickin' and whinin', not that you don't want to encourge folks to do as good as possible, but with out some new, young blood there ain't gonna be much in a few more years.  What are around would be better off doin' GAR and it's southern counterpart.

[Be-A-triss Bandit]

Good point Delmonico.  We're mostly too tall and too fat to be cowboys or troopers.  What was the average cowboy or cavalryman?  About 5'6" - 5'7" and 145 - 155 lbs?  If the realism gets to the point that we have weight and hight police, it'll die fast.  And the lament about participants getting too old?  It's a good generalization.  Half the CAS shooters I personally see should be in a rocker on the front porch rambling about the "good old days" in Veracruz.  The reality of it is that younger people don't have the resources and generalizing, can't make the commitment to the organizations.  When responsibilities and priorities change and disposable income and time get directed at hobbies instead of kids or keeping up with the Jones', we're thirty years past the average age of privates.  Heck, we're older than most working people lived to in 1880.  I'm younger than most in my posse and I'm a '49er.  Until my wife passed away, I didn't think I had the time or money to be involved in CAS.
I did but, my priorities were different as most "youngster's" priorities are different.
BB

[River City John]

When I was able to visit the site, the only thing I could pull up was the "Farbys on Parade".
Have to admit, that except for three, maybe four people out of the whole group that really stuck out, the rest looked good enough for any shoot, whether NCOWS, SASS or the GAF.

Not sure what lesson is to be learned by the average NCOWS member.

[Be-A-triss Bandit]

John,
I thought that whomever runs the site had a thing for modern eyeglasses and coolers.  Judging from the men's hairdos, he found a box of pictures from the 1970's.  That's what I was laughing at.
BB

[Delmonico]

I figgered it was someone with nuthin' better to do but whine.

[Dr. Bob]

Size is an interesting topic.  In the War if 1812 the Company of the 1st US Infantry Reg't. stationed at Ft. Osage, 27 miles east of present day down town Kansas City, MO had an average height of 5' 8½ inches and privates in thier 40's.  The would not have been likely to be much over weight.  Even in WW II the normal ches size of slodier & saiors was about 36 -38 inches and waist sizes ran 28 - 32.  [I have a small collection of WW II uniforms and look at what is in the thrift shops and antique malls.  This is probably due to diet.

Age is also interesting.  While the average life expectancy was 47 or so,  this factors in large numbers of infants that died befor age 16 and mothers who died in child birth.  In the 19th Century, if you lived to be 16, you had a good chance to live to your mid to late 60's.  The quality of life caused folks to age faster.  A 50 year old in 1875 would likely look like a 65 year old today. 

The age is not so much of a problem as the size and weight of the 21st Century population.  But even though I try to be authentic in my impression, but I know that I fall short. 

But, we do this to have fun and I won't spend time obsessig about sizes of participants, or what outfit they are wearing.  Life is just too short for that.

[St. George]

The sizes of those WWII uniforms accurately reflect who wore them - kids - and they weren't through growing.

The average soldier was in his late teens and early twenties - with a 22-year-old Company Commander being called the 'Old Man'.

This was true for WWI and earlier conflicts, as well, with the average size for a WWI soldier being 5'6" and 156 pounds.

Before that - it was smaller - due in large part to diet.

My Civil War Great-Great Grandfather - a 33-year-old Cavalry trooper - stood 5' 6 1/2" in 1861 - a good size for a trooper to be, since it was easier on the horse.

By the time my generation donned their uniforms - over a hundred years later - better early nutrition as well as different genetics gave us increased height and weight - and I stood 6' 1 1/2" when I raised my right hand and swore the Oath.

As far as the creating of an accurate Impression goes - it's most believable when the individual aligns his chronological age and physical ability to that of his chosen Impression.

Not everyone who inhabited the Frontier West was a Cowboy - nor was he a Cavalry officer.

Some were those things, but they retired, while others were townsmen, businessmen and the like.

Just like today...

Vaya,

Scouts Out!

[Fox Creek Kid]

...as well as different genetics...

  Extrapolate, please.

[St. George]

Simple.

As America expanded - so did its populace.

No longer did newly-arrived immigrants stay in the bigger cities, in enclaves - they travelled.

And when they travelled - they met folks who didn't hail from their home countries or even townships as they did before- they met folks from different places...

Eventually - they'd find attraction, marry, and all of a sudden - you had the 'Melting Pot' bubbling over.

Nothing propinks like propinquity...

Vaya,

Scouts Out!

[Irish Dave]

Dr. Bob:

... an average height of 5' 8½ inches and privates in thier 40's

Well, it's no wonder, then, that we won the war... but I'll bet they walked funny.

[Kid Raven]

Size is an interesting topic.  In the War if 1812 the Company of the 1st US Infantry Reg't. stationed at Ft. Osage, 27 miles east of present day down town Kansas City, MO had an average height of 5' 8½ inches and privates in thier 40's.  The would not have been likely to be much over weight.  Even in WW II the normal ches size of slodier & saiors was about 36 -38 inches and waist sizes ran 28 - 32.  [I have a small collection of WW II uniforms and look at what is in the thrift shops and antique malls.  This is probably due to diet.

Age is also interesting.  While the average life expectancy was 47 or so,  this factors in large numbers of infants that died befor age 16 and mothers who died in child birth.  In the 19th Century, if you lived to be 16, you had a good chance to live to your mid to late 60's.  The quality of life caused folks to age faster.  A 50 year old in 1875 would likely look like a 65 year old today. 

The age is not so much of a problem as the size and weight of the 21st Century population.  But even though I try to be authentic in my impression, but I know that I fall short. 

But, we do this to have fun and I won't spend time obsessig about sizes of participants, or what outfit they are wearing.  Life is just too short for that.

When my dad joined the USMC in '43 he tells of a few old Marines that were retiring. 2 were privates and 1 was a PFC. If you liked to drink and raise hell on liberty you'd lose your stripes and sum pay but they'd keep you in if you did your job right while on duty.