Bedding?

[Mild Will Cheatum]

I'm building a rope bed and going to make a straw mattress cover out of ticking fabric.  Would flannel sheets be period correct?  I use a flour sack for a pillow case but I don't want to make an error out of pure and simple ignorance.  Thanks for your help.  Mild Will (whose old bones are too stiff to sleep rough) Cheatum.

[River City John]

Mild Will,
Howdy, first of all. Great question.
I'm going to guess you're putting this together for primitive camping.

To give a quick answer, yes, flannel has been in use since well before the 19th century.

The flour sack as pillowcase would be a nice rustic touch, but back in our time period they used cotton, silk, linen, etc. for bedclothes, so no reason not to use those fabrics, too. Just stay away from the 'Bed, Bath and Beyond' color print selections.   You can save those flour sacks as totes, or maybe dishtowels.

If for primitive camping, most folks do away with flannel bedsheets and use a plain canvas or similar ground/mattress cover, and then various blankets or quilts as top covers. Vary thickness and number to the season. Wool is a best bet. Lot of the sutlers to the Civil War reenactors carry wool blankets, or keep checking at the secondhand thrift shops, plus places like Sportsmen's Guide (?- the surplus discount place) sell a lot of military surplus wool blankets out of Switzerland or Italy. The last I looked they still carried the gray with black edge stripe. They're cheap and you could get several.

If you're going to be on the ground rather than your rope bed, add a waterproof groundcloth under your bedding. Some use treated canvas, or get one of the Civil War rubberized ponchos to lay down.

The few people I've known who experimented with rope beds had mixed results. They stretch out and sag somewhat, so may need readjustment occasionally. Usually in the middle of the night. Use plenty of padding, either by putting lots of straw in your mattress pad, or, quite frankly, no reason not to get a modern foam pad to put in your mattress cover. Who's going to see it once it's covered?

Here's an interesting link to period portable furniture, including beds, and a type of bedroll. You'll have to scroll through to get to the illustrations.

http://www.kancoll.org/books/marcy/index.html
     "The bedding for each person should consist of two blankets, a comforter, and a pillow, and a gutta percha or painted canvas cloth to spread beneath the bed upon the ground, and to contain it when rolled up for transportation." - a quote from Chapter One.

Books O'Toole has done several articles in The Shootist on portable camp furniture based on Marcy's book and other sources. If I remember right, he has built himself a rope bed also. I believe he and his Missus tried it out and one of them complained of the 'waffle-pattern' embossed on their backside.   Hence the advice to use plenty of padding.

Ottawa Creek Bill and Delmonico have both offered How To's on creating a typical soogan, or cowboy bedroll. Perhaps they will repost their efforts.



RCJ   

[Delmonico]

On my to do list is get better pictures of mine, but here is what I have:





That as is, should be good (comfortable) to at least 0, not that I plan on testing it at that.

[Ottawa Creek Bill]

Del.......I want that top quilt!!

Bill

[Delmonico]

Del.......I want that top quilt!!

Bill

Can't have it.

This one is heading out your way in a little over a week, I need to get it to Yuma City Kid:



But Jeff most likely won't let you have it either:

[Delmonico]

I'm guessing this is the one you mean Bill:



This is the backside:



I didn't include one of them black dogs for Jeff,   that was taken in Sept of 2006, he's growed a bit.

[Steel Horse Bailey]

Said Del:

"... that was taken in Sept of 2006, he's growed a bit."


Me or the Dog, Rowdy?

[Steel Horse Bailey]

And yes, Bill - I'll be happy to show it off er, let you see it.




I suspect it'll be at the Nationals.  With me.  Hopefully in the Olde Weste "Village."

[Dr. Bob]

I suspect that linen or cotton would be most appropriate.  It was very late in the 19th century that cotton flannel became common.  Most flannel during the period was WOOL flannel.  I mostly use a foam mattress with my bed, cause it is more comfy.  Sometimes I use a bed tick that covers a sleeping bag with a feather tick on top.  My 1840's bed has wood slats on the bottom and I just add some extra when I don't use the mattress.  I use cotton sheets and vary the number o blankets depending on the temp.  None or a very light one in the summer and 5 when it gets below freezing.  I'm wimpy when it come to cold!  Been that way since I contracted Lyme's disease.

[Books OToole]

A rope bed is very appropriate for a homestede; but they are a pain in the a$$ for camping.

The famous "army cot" was pattened in 1890.  There are a couple field bed/cots illustrated in The Prairie Traveler, by Randolph Marcy (1859). 

My bed roll consists of one wool blanket, one Mexican cotton blanket and a linen sheet, all rolled  in a piece of canvas.  I usually add a couple of sheep skins between my bed roll and a matress tick (stuffed with grass, straw or a thermarest).  When laid out on my "Marcy" bed it makes for a good nights sleep.  [And it is all documentable; except for the thermarest.]

Books

[Delmonico]

I added this last year, 5 1/2 feet by 7 feet, not really a quilt, more of a matteress:

One side, blue denium on heavy upholstry material:



Other side, wools pieced on the same:



In between there are 3 layers of old wool army blankets pieced together.  Padding for comfort and from the cold.  I need better pictures but my wife can't hold it up for me, it must weigh 40 pounds.

[River City John]

The famous "army cot" was pattened in 1890. 
Books

This is what a lot of our Blue River Regulators use, myself included. I have found the older Army cots with wood frame at surplus outlets, although they are getting a bit scarce here abouts. As long as the wood and metal are in good shape the canvas part can be replaced, or used as a pattern to sew one out of plain Sunforger canvas. 

[Delmonico]

I sometimes use a cot when it's cold and damp.  I have two, they are metal with the metal mesh springs but those are from the period, better beds and cots had them.  These were free and since I never travel ight to events anyway one or both are easy to boomer down somewhere on the load.



I need better pictures, the metal legged picnic table looks out of place along with the case for my camera on the bed.

[Trinity]

Del, Those are some great looking quilts!

Here's a rope bed that a friend made for himself.  He's a robust feller, yet he sleeps comfortably on it with his thick homemade mattress.  He's been sleeping on this for several years, so the ropes have already stretched and he doesn't have any problems.



For myself, I have a makeshift bedroll made of a treated tarp from TSC and wool blankets depending on need.  I plan to get a more PC ground cloth at some time, but for now, this works.

Summer:




Fall:  (excuse the mess.  I am a restless sleeper and had appointed myself the fire keeper for the night.)

The blue is a non-PC blanket that I needed because the temps dipped into the low 40s this evening





For winter, I cheat and use a sleeping bag under my blankets.  It doesn't get as cold here in NC as further north and out west, but my activities last month were just a bit too cool so I bought a new cold weather sleeping bag (-15).  Of course, that means that the temps will not dip below 50 degrees for the rest of the season.

btw, Sportsman's Guide and the other outfitters no longer offer the surplus blankets as cheaply as they did two years ago.

[Ottawa Creek Bill]

Trinity.....

The orange/brown/tan color of your canvas is PC. Sail cloth ranged from light tan to dark brown when treated. I have one of the early dark brown (9'x9' almost Black) tarps made from real sail cloth that I use for a ground cloth and lean-to on occasion.

I'm not sure how early grommets are (Del may know), I have smooth rocks fastened along the edges and corners, tied on with 1/4 inch hemp rope.

I'll see if I can dig up a photo and post it here.

Bill

[Trinity]

OCB, I remember your earlier post with pictures about your bedroll.  I didn't save them and when I went back, they were already gone.

Yes, the grommets are what displease me.  Unfortunately, they are larger than the hem, so in order to cut them off, I would have to leave the sides unhemmed (I'm not handy with a thread and needle).

I also do late 18th century and plan to buy the reddish-brown (or Spanish brown) cloth as sold by Crazy Crow.  What are your thoughts on this color for the late 19th century?

http://www.crazycrow.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=3633-100-098&Category_Code=

[Ottawa Creek Bill]

OCB, I remember your earlier post with pictures about your bedroll.  I didn't save them and when I went back, they were already gone.

Yes, the grommets are what displease me.  Unfortunately, they are larger than the hem, so in order to cut them off, I would have to leave the sides unhemmed (I'm not handy with a thread and needle).

I also do late 18th century and plan to buy the reddish-brown (or Spanish brown) cloth as sold by Crazy Crow.  What are your thoughts on this color for the late 19th century?

http://www.crazycrow.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=3633-100-098&Category_Code=

That is probably closer to the original color of sail cloth. After some use it should darken.

Bill

[bear tooth billy]

I made a marcy cot and my wife sewed up a couple of feather ticks. I bought a couple of wool
blankets and tanned my first buffalo into a robe. I was at a shoot a few years ago, sleeping
on the ground when it got well below freezing, froze my --- off, didn't sleep, and then didn't shoot
worth a dang the next day. I went to Books' seminar on camp furniture at the conv. a couple
of years ago, and now its like staying at the Holiday Inn

[Books OToole]

I went to Books' seminar on camp furniture at the conv. a couple of years ago, and now its like staying at the Holiday Inn

Books

[Delmonico]

I don't have dates or sources, but those groments did exist, I've seen them in photo's.  My guess is they came along in the pre-Civil War industral revaloution.  Probally existed much longer than that but would have had to be hand made and expensive.