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Post by Wade Dillon on Sept 17, 2009 19:23:49 GMT -5
Wade, Are you asking if Travis ever bought clothes in San Felipe or if he bought clothing in San Felipe before heading off to the Alamo? I can't remember off the top of my head where he bought the flag and leggings but this was on his way West. I believe those leggings are actually what some today would call gaiters but that's another discussion altogether! ;D SMc Just in general, I believe I remember reading that Travis purchased clothing from San Felipe.
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Post by Wade Dillon on Sept 17, 2009 19:39:07 GMT -5
A list compiled by Sarah Martin from William Barret Travis's diary. Thought it would be useful in this thread.
Clothing:
Frock Coat - 20th of Oct, 1833 Vest - 20th of Oct, 1833 Suspenders - 20th of Oct, 1833 Pantaloons (Red) - 21 of Sept, 1833 "Pumps" (Dancing shoes) - 29th of Sept, 1833 Stockings - 20th of Oct, 1833 Shirts (obviously) - Collars...? (that's what I read) - 1st of Nov, 1833 Silk handkerchief - 14th of Oct, 1833 Boots -18th of Sept, 1833 bought [Brown linen and black bombeztte for coat and vest] - 28th of Nov, 1833 Socks, flannel drawers - Capote (hooded cloak) - 5th of Dec, 1833 'Blanket Coat' (haha my mom said it's a snuggie.) - 23rd of Jan, 1834 1 white hat - 29th of Jan, 1834 Black suit & vest - 13th of Feb, 1834 (Had clothes washed and laundered by a 'Melinda') cane - 5th of Oct, 1833
Horses:
Borrows mules/horses - 18th of Sept, 1833 Exchanges horses often - 24th of Oct, 1833 Has missing horses - 21st of Oct, 1833 Paid someone to get a horse for him - 2nd of Dec, 1833 Buys a Bay horse then sells it the very next month, haha - Buys another Bay horse named Shannon - 20th of March, 1834 Attends a Jockey race - 9th of Apr, 1834 Gets back a black Spanish horse of his lost the fall previous
Mannerisms, phrases, odd things, etc:
"Pretty Country" referring to landscape. -31st of Aug, 1833 Generously lets other sleep in his office -8th of Sept, 1833 Gambles - 2nd of Sept, 1833 (Plays Monte, Faro, Brag, Poker, and Euchre - William Barret Travis: His Sword and His Pen by Martha Anne Turner p. 67) Buys 'fancy' letter paper and candy - 15th of Sept, 1833 Comments on the morning frost - 18th of Oct, 1833 Refers to his father, Mark, as Mark Travis or M. Travis - 24th of Oct, 1833 Buys vials of Bergamont and Lavender - 10th of Dec, 1833 Gives guy advice about potatoes - 15h of Dec, 1833 Enters two kids into a school - 19th of Dec, 1833 Makes arrangements for a ball - 23rd of Dec, 1833 Buys cologne and cinnamon - 25th of Dec, 1833 Gets the books 'Vivian Grey', 'Westward Ho!', 'Life of Josephine' - 30th of Dec, 1833 Buys bottle of whiskey for indians - 30th of Dec, 1833 Starts to read 'Westward Ho!' - 31st of Dec, 1833 Finishes 'Westward Ho!' - 3rd of Jan, 1834 Starts 'Vivian Grey' - 4th of Jan, 1834 Still reading 'Vivian Grey' - 5th of Jan, 1834 Finishes 'Vivian Grey' - 6th of Jan, 1834 Notes the anniversary of the victory at Battle of New Orleans - 8th Jan, 1834 Returns books and gets 'Dutchman's Fireside' and 'Wacousta'. Starts to read 'Wacousta' - 9th of Jan, 1834 Starts to read 'Court and Camp of Bonaparte' - 11th of Jan, 1834 Excited about the repeal of 'The Law of the 6th of April, 1830' and he remarks 'Joyous intelligence!' - 13th of Jan, 1834 Reads 'Dutchman's Fireside' - 19th of Jan, 1834 Returns 'Dutchman's Fireside' - 21st of Jan, 1834 Sends his 'negro boy Jared' off to Brazoria and sends off clothing and material for him, too - 23rd of Jan, 1834 Gets haircut & shave - 27th of Jan, 1834 Gets raisins, a shave, and some handkerchiefs - 30th of Jan, 1834 Gets shaved AGAIN - 2nd of Feb, 1834 "Fun!! Dined at Dursts" - 4th of Feb, 1834 Elected for Ayuntamiento and declines - 5th of Feb, 1834 Proposes to Rebecca and explains his "situation" - 16th of Feb, 1834 Gets money to buy snuff - 21st of Feb, 1834 Gets yet another shave - 26th of Feb, 1834 Notes that Charles is in New Orleans with his mother - 3rd of Mar, 1834 Buys black cashmere - 4th of Mar, 1834 "Waters all swimming and prairie so boggy - can't cross" "first time I ever turned back in my life" - 9th of Mar, 1834 Goes to the Cummings' and puts in a TON of &c's - 12th of Mar, 1834. Gives Rebecca a breast pin and takes a lock of hair - 13th of Mar, 1834 Gets ring from Rebecca - 14th of Mar, 1834 Swims in Mill Creek - 20th of Mar, 1834 Spends day in 'the society of my love' - 21st of Mar, 1834 Rode mustang and was thrown twice - 29th of Mar, 1834 Goes to Rebecca and has a cold reception but warm conclusion - 1st of Apr, 1834 Gets half vial of medicine (mercury?) - 7th of Apr, 1834 Fishes and shares caresses w/ Rebecca - 12th of Apr, 1834
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Post by stuart on Sept 18, 2009 0:41:29 GMT -5
"Collars...? (that's what I read) - 1st of Nov, 1833"
Yes indeed. The idea was that you could wear shirts and other undergarments for days at a time, but if you wanted to make an impression you put on a clean collar - either of paper (cheap) or heavily starched material.
I have a recollection that some of the Heavy Artillery regiments drafted into Grant's army from the Washington defences in 1864 were derided as "paper collar soldiers"
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Post by sloanrodgers on Sept 18, 2009 4:34:39 GMT -5
Great thread. Flannel drawers sound hot and scratcy for summer wear, especially in Texas. A vial of mercury medicine is a little interesting. Does this mean that Col. Travis was a calomel addict or just that he had syphilis or some purging ailment?
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Post by TRK on Sept 18, 2009 7:18:48 GMT -5
Flannel drawers sound hot and scratcy for summer wear, especially in Texas. IIRC, if you wore flannel drawers under wool outer garments (pants and jacket) in the summer, they somehow had a cooling effect on the wearer...or was it cotton drawers?
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Post by mustanggray on Sept 18, 2009 8:55:11 GMT -5
Wade,
Cool, I have a very similar list but I went further and recorded the goods he purchased to make several of the garments including the prices, how much he paid tailors to make the garments and other related bits. Travis' journal is a real treasure trove for material culture geeks!
To answer your question yes, he purchased clothing in San Felipe as well as Brazoria. The newspaper adds I have been perusing are certainly merchants Travis was dealing with and in some cases he mentions them by name!
Interesting to me are mentions of things like stocks, mudboots and how often he buys pumps.
RR,
I've worn canton flannel drawers on numerous occasions in the summer and they're not really as hot as one would think, they're definitely not scratchy. The reason I don't have any now is that my old ones wore out and it's hard to get canton flannel here in the last couple of years. Either way, drawers are a real blessing when wearing woolen trousers, trust me!
SMc
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Post by Herb on Sept 18, 2009 11:46:50 GMT -5
"Collars...? (that's what I read) - 1st of Nov, 1833" Yes indeed. The idea was that you could wear shirts and other undergarments for days at a time, but if you wanted to make an impression you put on a clean collar - either of paper (cheap) or heavily starched material. I have a recollection that some of the Heavy Artillery regiments drafted into Grant's army from the Washington defences in 1864 were derided as "paper collar soldiers" Starched collars are still part of the Full Dress and Dress uniforms at West Point - as I imagine also with the full dress US Marine uniform. The point about wearing the same shirt for days and just putting on a clean collar is exactly on the mark.
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Post by Wade Dillon on Sept 18, 2009 17:14:40 GMT -5
It surely is, Scott! I love it. I'm curious about what the dancing pumps looked like. Travis certainly had taste.
And thank you for the explanation on the collars, Stuart. Very interesting.
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Post by Herb on Sept 19, 2009 11:55:07 GMT -5
Wade, Are you asking if Travis ever bought clothes in San Felipe or if he bought clothing in San Felipe before heading off to the Alamo? I can't remember off the top of my head where he bought the flag and leggings but this was on his way West. I believe those leggings are actually what some today would call gaiters but that's another discussion altogether! ;D SMc Scott, I believe what were commonly called leggings at this time were actually more similar to what we would call shotgun chaps, today. Makes sense for a cavalryman who thinks he might be operating in the Brush Country.
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Post by sloanrodgers on Sept 19, 2009 14:04:45 GMT -5
RR, I've worn canton flannel drawers on numerous occasions in the summer and they're not really as hot as one would think, they're definitely not scratchy. The reason I don't have any now is that my old ones wore out and it's hard to get canton flannel here in the last couple of years. Either way, drawers are a real blessing when wearing woolen trousers, trust me! Scott, Well, you would know more about period underwear than I, so I'll bow to the expert. Although Col. Travis' fancy dancy wardrobe is very interesting, I was more intrigued by his apparent drug/ snuff use and other diary entries. I didn't know they were so detailed and would like to see the complete printed version. By the way Scott. I realize few people here, care about your recently completed work on the Jack Hays documentary, but I have to congratulate you again. I visited the director's Driftwood ranch home Frday and saw the unfinished film. All I'll say here is that it looks fantastic with great costumes, good acting, beautiful sets and cool special effects. I almost cried with joy upon seeing the production quality. Adios. PS. I was given your 12 ft. Comanche lance prop with the long blade. Nicely done and I'm glad my living room has a 12 1/2 ft. ceiling. ;D
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Post by Kevin Young on Sept 19, 2009 16:02:03 GMT -5
Most libraries with a good Texana selection have the printed version that Texian Press did back in 1966. The original is at the Center for American history at UT-although they are saying it is restricted due to preservation.
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Post by Wade Dillon on Sept 21, 2009 0:40:30 GMT -5
Since this thread seems to be a good place to discuss the culture at that time, perhaps it'd be safe to discuss daily rituals, such as hygene, in the 1830s?
Also, perhaps we may post up examples of period clothing in the "Images" category. I have a few examples from displays that I may post. Gotta love William Sydney Mount's depiction of urban America in the 20's and 30's.
All the best, Wade
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Post by TRK on Sept 21, 2009 6:38:45 GMT -5
Since this thread seems to be a good place to discuss the culture at that time, perhaps it'd be safe to discuss daily rituals, such as hygene, in the 1830s? Nah, better to start another thread and keep this thread on-topic, unless you're talking about store-bought personal hygiene products of the 1830s.
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Post by mustanggray on Sept 21, 2009 11:44:14 GMT -5
Wolf,
I won't argue with you that leggins could be a leather leg covering similar to shotgun chaps, especially if we're talking from a Tejano or a frontiersy type Anglo. However, in this case since it was a term being used by Travis and William Fairfax Gray I'm going to go with what was being worn by Anglos of the period. I would certainly like to do more research on the item and see if I can find them elsewhere in Texas at this period.
It just makes since that someone who would buy stocks, dance pumps and mud boots would be buying more of an Anglo clothing item than a leather Tejano piece. Having said all of that, when I portrayed Travis at A169 I made sure to have my leggins across the pommel of my saddle! ;D SMc
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Post by marklemon on Sept 21, 2009 15:18:14 GMT -5
Speaking of W.S. Mount, I find it particularly interesting that in his 1835 painting "Undutiful Boys" he shows a farmer wearing a handkerchief, or linen bandana stretched tightly on his head, with the loose ends tied in little knots. When I saw Jack Nicholson with the same thing on his head in "The Missouri Breaks" (1976) I thought at that time that such a headgear was an anachronistic affectation of the 1960's or '70s. But evidently this means of wearing a bandana goes way back. Such a thing must have been used as a sort of ersatz sweatband.
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