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TESTING YOUR AUTHENTIC APPEARANCE

I had been working for a while now on some way for members of the company to rate the appearance of their uniforms and equipment.  The company has never had a specific uniform requirement, but instead relied on the general guideline having a mid-war look for Lee’s army.  At times we have all deviated from this, either from lack of knowledge or personal vanities.

The idea that I came up with is a scorecard that can be used to rate various parts of a soldier’s impression.  I had thought of using it at a reenactment when everybody is lined up in formation.  But, I didn’t want it to seem like an official requirement to pass this test, so I sat on it.  However, I still think it is a good way for members to evaluate their impression on their own, and to see where they might need improvement.

The standards I used in developing this scorecard are based on numerous articles I have read over the years concerning authenticity research.   Since we don’t have a standard uniform, I didn’t score different styles of hats or jackets, colors or materials.  But, I did try to take in account the little details of these that go toward the overall appearance.  Some items, like havelocks, may be appropriate for an early war or western theater impression, but loose points on this scorecard.  They should only be used at the appropriate reenactments.   I did not give any points for Virginia issue items, since we reenact a lot of battles portraying units from other states in the Army of Northern Virginia.

The scorecard starts with a base of 100 points.  From it there are deductions for inaccuracies and bonus points for extra effort toward authenticity.  The amount of points added or subtracted depends on how much I felt the item affected the overall look, and is purely subjective on my part.  A final score is tabulated and you check the scale to see where you rate.

So, take a few minutes to go through the list, and then tally your score to see how you rank.  Review the scoring to check on where you might need to improve your impression.  Some of you may have a different opinion on how I rated some things.  That is okay by me, if you can back it up with your own research.  My goal is for you to be knowledgeable about your proper appearance.