Starting a Fire: Vol. VI, Episode 15

[@mickeyholding7970]

Great topic Will on a subject that most don't think of, but is critical for a reenactor.

[@Beaguins]

Back in 1995 I took a two-week wilderness trip with a bunch of urban teenagers. I remember they flipped out when I blew into the campfire; they thought I would put it out like a candle. Thanks for another good video.

[@MANC2311]

I always think about flint and steel, its a reminder to me how settled most states were that the average soldier had no knowledge of frontier basics.

[@hardcorehistorybuff5230]

i would love to see a video go deep into the more personal items a solider would have had, combs, shaving, what kind of tobacco pipes and what kind of tobacco, bibles, wallets, writing, housewifes, tobacco pouches, that sort of thing forgive me if it has been covered but I would love to see a whole episode on just personal items of a solider and maybe different levels, Pvt, NCO, officer, because I am sure they all had there differences! Gearing up for silent machines I find myself doing a lot of research on this topic.!

[@coltonregal1797]

Something I've found works well is pine cones. They light easily and burn hot for a good couple of minutes.

[@CivilWarDigitalDigest]

Excellent idea, if you have them nearby! Good input.

[@BlenderWeasel]

In my experience milkweed fluff is AMAZING at catching fire. So if you have that available that would be great.

[@CivilWarDigitalDigest]

It is not something I have seen in any 19th century documentation, but makes complete sense and would have been there.

[@BlenderWeasel]

Pro tip: When you think you have enough, you don’t have enough.

[@CivilWarDigitalDigest]

VERY well said!

[@pipthelimey]

Great video! The candle trick works great if you use a log cabin style fire start. This is a perishable skill, and can be practiced when you're not at events.

[@77thNYSV]

Thanks! I suck at fire making. Hopefully, I'll get better with this advice.

[@MrSheckstr]

A couple of things to consider 1 “take the top rail only” One would THINK that this is out of respect to the owner of the fence. A rail fence is going to have at least three maybe as many as six pieces of post size pieces of Timber per section of fence one verticals posts, 2-3 Maybe four rails and one maybe two diagonal sections of ground is soft. All of this connecting to the next section’s vertical post. It’s gonna be ALOT easier for that farmer to rebuild that fence by replacing six top rails instead of having to rebuild an entire section and fit it into the existing fence. But that’s not why it was done this way. Let’s face when you consider how much these farms were tore up just by the army moving through, caring about the fence is kinda silly. No they key thing is a fence without a top rail is still a fence. It can be defended, fortified. One can take shelter behind it and make shelter from it (two different things from a soldier’s point of view. It can be both bench and supper table and hitching rail. You leave the fence 85% intact along it’s entire length because that fence has immense value to a marching army. Second thought is about the whole act of making fire. I would hope it would stand to reason that not every fire in an encampment is made. Lighting a fire from first spark to self sustaining (meaning you’re just tossing one more wood) takes a LONG time and there are a lot of other things that needs to get done around the camp. Slit latrine trenches to be dug, water to be collected, shelters erected, water collected, foraging, perimeters established, duty rosters assigned etc. So what’s going to happen is a select few fires are going to be made from scratch and from those fires new fires will be lit directly at the large piece phase. And because of that those first fires are going to be lit using every aid possible to get them lit faster. You might be able to use a few drops of kerosene, or some low quality Gun powered

[@NSYresearch]

I would assume that most people of the era would know how to build a fire, it just shows how skills can be very quickly lost.

[@sebastienhardinger4149]

Awesome episode! If you are at all planning a follow up, I'd love to see the ideal fire configuration (if it existed) that soldiers would use for cooking, versus something just for warmth

[@theezeelife292]

When I was a reenactor, we would find a pine knot and cut it up. Great for starting a fire if you can find them. Where I reenacted, we always had pine trees, so finding a pine knot wasn't difficult.

[@Joshua-in2hv]

Anyone have a source on period correct matches? And the candles used? I've always used beeswax thinking they were more common. Great video! Thanks CWDD.

[@philovance1940]

One of the most difficult things to get going when out of doors.

[@CivilWarDigitalDigest]

Hope this helps!

[@davidwilliams1334]

I remember that wahatchie event the rain was horrible took forever for my uniform to dry

[@elijahmccormick3360]

My pants and brogans still have mud on them to this day.

[@davidwilliams1334]

@@elijahmccormick3360 my gum blanket does as well

[@mickeyholding7970]

I was wondering if there was a video on civil war period tenting and couldn't find one. Can you do one on them please. Thank you Will

[@dougdukes1039]

Any reports of soldiers using powder from a cartridge to start a fire?

[@marcusaurelius9631]

Great video guys keep up the good work!

[@marcusaurelius9631]

Would it have been common knowledge during this period to carry an alternate form of fire building kit such as using flint and steel or a magnifying glass if weather was good and you didnt have matches on hand? Would soldiers have carried anything like that? Is there any evidence to support or deny this possibility?

[@jeffreyrobinson3555]

Were hatchets/ axes an issue per man or mess? Or an own purchase?

[@danielkohli1542]

On page 169 in the Revised Regulations For the Army of the United States, it has a table that two axes and two hatchets are issued "To every 15 foot and 13 mounted men". This is ignoring the stuff issued to the engineer troops and the possibility of private purchase. However I am fairly certain that private purchased wood whackers were soon discarded. Edit: I am sorry for writing such a paragraph of an answer.

[@jeffreyrobinson3555]

Daniel Kohli thanks. I’m sorry when I’m writing I can’t say hi in a paragraph. Can’t catch an answer in less then two.

[@adamcapritti750]

Anyone have a good source on a decent repro pocket knife? I've bought a couple of sutler row knives, but they seem cheesy and would like something authentic and useful.

[@CivilWarDigitalDigest]

Check with South Union Mills.

[@philovance1940]

You can still find Barlow folding knives at flea markets and stuff. They are pretty traditional.

[@knoxvillehermitfreemoviesm3625]

WERE THEY ALLOWED TO hunt H on THE LANDES FOR BETTER FOOD THAN ARMY RATtions?

[@CivilWarDigitalDigest]

Firing guns in an active war zone and alarming the men near you? Trying to hunt where you and 25,000 to 80,000 of your best friends just tramped in to? We run in to very few hunting references in the accounts. More fishing near coasts, but few hunting.

[@southron1861]

6 min 30 sec... when did he light the fire 🤔 6 min 35 sec... where'd the fire go 😲 😅

[@CivilWarDigitalDigest]

It is all there. We spent some of it up to make you not sit through a 17 minute video.

[@wmschooley1234]

The more I watch your channel, the more I think that reenactors are just boy scouts who have aged out of their troop. Earning a Firem’n Chit is a rite of passageFire building is almost always the first skill every tenderfoot scout learns as soon as he gets his handbook. Will, here’s yours filestore.scouting.org/filestore/jpg/firemn.jpg

[@stevenjohnson2273]

Boy Scouts have adult supervision.

[@Jubilo1]

Do Federal re-enactors really need a video to learn how to burn things?

[@youngdz98]

you would be surprised how many people can not start a fire

[@CivilWarDigitalDigest]

We did not say this was for federal’s only. Many of us live in cities and don’t have opportunities to work on the skills!

[@MayoFilms83]

They did not grow up in the south in the country to know how to make fires. Country boys did. Federal soldiers came from big cities.

[@josephgonzales4802]

Only if they had R. Gordecki with them, he show,em a thing or two! 😄

[@MayoFilms83]

@@josephgonzales4802 In the book Cold Mountain when Inman he goes to the Cabin to chase after those three union soldiers he could tell they couldn't build a fire. So he knew they where from the city folk. But in the movie they changed that a little bit.