"Federal Musician, Winter" Painting

"Federal Musician, Winter" Private Collection- he life of a Civil War regimental band member wasn't all treble clefs and drum sticks. During combat, they were pressed into service as field medics and ambulance drivers, running onto contested battlefields and dragging the wounded off for medical treatment. The bands were generally raised just before the units they would serve. Some were contracted by state legislatures and others by officers in units they had begun enlisting. The initial purpose of the band was to help get attention of potential enlistees as a sort of marketing campaign. When the units began training and later deploying, the bands would help keep morale up and sometimes assist with music for drills. But when the units took to the field, there were generally few uses for a full brass band in the middle of combat. Some were ordered to play music in the middle of the fray, like when a Confederate band played during the Battle of Gettysburg and men on both sides heard the music. Some musicians became runners, carrying messages as the bullets flew. But most were sent to remove the wounded. In 1862, Congress passed a bill to muster out nearly all regimental bands, leaving some at the corps and brigade levels as well as drummers, buglers, and fifers in the companies. Unsurprisingly since many of the men had worked in battles like Whitcomb's, they were happy to take their last paychecks and leave.

Painting:Gouache on Paper

Original:One-of-a-kind Artwork

Size:14 W x 18 H x 1 D in

Delivery Time:Typically 5-7 business days for domestic shipments, 10-14 business days for international shipments.