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THE QUARTERMASTER CORPS
Excerpted from the web site of the 17th PA Volunteer Cavalry Co. E
by Dale Leppard
QMSgt. 17th Pa. Co. E
| The Quartermaster’s
Department provided the quarters and transportation of the army, storage and
transportation for all army supplies, army clothing, camp and garrison equipage, cavalry
and artillery horses, mules, fuel, forage, straw and stationary. It also paid the
incidental expenses of the army including per diem to extra duty men, postage on public
service, the expenses of courts-martial, the pursuit and apprehension of deserters, the
burials of officers and soldiers, hired escorts, expresses, interpreters, spies and
guides, veterinary surgeons and medicines for horses, the supplying of water for posts,
and the authorized expenses for movements and operations of an army not expressly assigned
to any other department. The Quartermaster’s Department was also responsible for
keeping the sealed patterns used in acquiring new contracts for uniforms and equipment,
and provided supplies for the construction and maintenance of the United States Military
Railroads. It engaged in the building of roads, bridges, ships and docks, and maintained
repair shops for its wagons which employed thousands. Early in the war, the Department was
also responsible for the ambulances, and the transportation of the sick and wounded
soldiers and medical supplies. The appropriations from the Federal Government for the
Quartermaster's Department totaled more than one billion dollars. |
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The Federal Army
organization provided for a Chief Quartermaster for each Army with the rank of Colonel.
For each Corps within an Army was a Chief Quartermaster with the rank of Lieutenant
Colonel. Each Division within a Corps had a Divisional Quartermaster with the rank of
Major. Each Brigade within a Division had a Quartermaster with the rank of Captain.
Finally, each Regiment within a Brigade had a Regimental Quartermaster with the rank of
Lieutenant. All of these had staffs and assistants. The Regimental Quartermaster had,
under his direction, a Regimental Quartermaster Sergeant charged with the responsibility
of storing and transporting the property assigned to the Regimental Quartermaster for the
Regiment. |
| Beginning in 1862, each Company of
Cavalry was authorized a Company Quartermaster Sergeant. The Company Quartermaster
Sergeant was under the direction of the Company Commander and the First Sergeant. He was
responsible for the Company wagon and all the property it contained, including the tents,
the Company mess gear, the Company desk, the Company library, the ordnance, the
subsistence provisions, and the Company tools (blacksmith, carpenter, gunsmith, etc.). He
was further charged with overseeing the camp set-up of the tents and picket lines. He
inspected the Company horses and mules, and reported any problems to the Veterinary
Surgeon of the Regiment. He was also responsible for acquiring the fuel (wood), forage for
the horses, and straw for bedding. These would normally be drawn from the supplies of the
Regimental Quartermaster, along with replacements for uniforms and equipment. When not
available, the Company Quartermaster Sergeant was responsible for forage parties to
acquire them. The Company Quartermaster Sergeant was required to sign for the uniforms and
equipment that were in his custody. Similarly, before disbursing these items to a soldier,
he required a signature of receipt, countersigned by an officer. The rank of Company
Quartermaster Sergeant was not a command position, although he was required to know the
drills, and the duties and responsibilities of the line NCO’s. He was a member of the
Company, and his name was recorded next after the First Sergeant on the Company rolls.
During combat, his place was safeguarding the Company wagon and its supplies. He was
generally required to fight only in defense of the Company property. In an extreme
emergency, he could be used to replace a fallen line NCO, but this was extremely rare. The
wagons were driven by Teamsters, who were usually members of the Company. Additionally,
each Cavalry Company was authorized a Wagoner with the rank of Corporal. The Company
Quartermaster Sergeant was designated by his chevrons which were three stripes with a
single tie in worsted. This was an unofficial chevron that was not incorporated into
United States Military regulations until 1866. It was, however, the standard chevron of
Volunteer Cavalry Companies since 1862. |
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Sources:
- Customs of Service, by August V. Kautz, Philadelphia, 1864.
- Arms and Equipment of the Civil War, by Jack Coggins, Garden City NY, 1962.
- Military Dictionary, by Colonel H. L. Scott.
- Chevrons, by William K. Emerson, Washington DC, 1983.
- Civil War Uniforms, by Philip Katcher.
- American Civil War Armies 2 Union Troops, by Philip Katcher and Ron Volstad.
- Mathew Brady’s Illustrated History of the Civil War 1861-1865, by Benson J.
Lossing, LL.D.
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