Berdan Sharpshooter Uniform
date: label: date made
content: ca 1861
label: unit formed
content: 1861
name: label: commander of unit
content: Berdan, C. H.
label: authorized unit
content: Lincoln, Abraham
notes: label: Description
content: Physical Description
label: Description
content: Jacket of army wool dyed a distinctive green color. Green wool forage cap with leather trim. Frock coat of green wool with brass buttons were later replaced with hard, black rubber buttons to prevent reflection from the light.
label: Description
content: General History
label: Description
content: Uniform and hat of soldiers of the 1st Regiment of U.S. Sharpshooters, better known as Berdan's Sharpshooters. Mustered in 1861, this unit was commanded by Colonel Hiram Berdan. Berdan was an inventor considered by some to be the best marksman in America. At the outset of the Civil War, Berdan believed that current infantry tactics were outdated. He wrangled a meeting with President Lincoln and presented his idea of forming a special unit of soldiers. These soldiers would be “Sharpshooters” from every state. Their goal would be to fire on specific targets rather than simply firing en masse. Lincoln was impressed with the idea and authorized 100 men to join Berdan. To qualify, recruits had to place ten shots within five inches of a bull's-eye at a distance of six hundred feet. They were the only volunteer unit in the war to bear the designation “United States” and the only one supplied by the federal government.
topic: label: related event
content: Civil War
label: related event
content: Civil War and Reconstruction
setName: label: See more items in
content: Military and Society: Armed Forces History, Military
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content: Military
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content: ThinkFinity
label: Exhibition
content: Price of Freedom
label: Exhibition Location
content: National Museum of American History
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: AF.24939
label: accession number
content: 64127
label: catalog number
content: 24939
objectType: label: Object Name
content: coat, frock
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: wool (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: green (overall color)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 35 in x 16 in; 88.9 cm x 40.64 cm