Unlike most other forms of masculine Anglo outer dress, Hunting shirts were sometimes worn with belts. Sadly many of the references are vague and confusing. Undoubtedly leather buckled belts were used in the period; however some of the references indicate they were tied around the waist.
"They wrap it round them tight, on a march, and tie it with their belt, in which hangs their tomahawk." ( To Mrs. Elizabeth Deane. Philadelphia, June 3d, 1775; The Deane Papers. Vol. 1, 1774-1777. In Collections of the New-York Historical Society for the year 1886. Printed for the Society, New York. 1887.).
"A surly growl of his dog was heard, and then the retreating footsteps of the sound. See now got up, put on his hunting shirt, tied his belt around him, w. knife & shot pouch - and taking his gun, lay w. it in
his arms, the muzzle down between his legs, & the britch in his arms." [Draper Manuscripts 11CC141
Printed: Filson ___ History Quarterly, 8:220-228 (October 1884) Special Collections: Draper Manuscripts -- Draper's Interview Notes with Ephraim Sowdusky ftp://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/usgenweb/special/draper/s3200000.txt]
Dodderidge:
"The belt which was always tied behind, answered several purposes, besides that of holding the dress together. In cold weather the mittens, and sometimes the bullet-bag, occupied the front part of it. To the right side was suspended the tomahawk and to the left the scalping knife in its leathern sheath." p. 91.
"The Indian then threw his tomahawk at his [un-named man] head but missed him; he then caught hold of the ends of his belt which was tied behind in a bow knot. In this the Indian was disappointed , for the knot came loose so that he got the belt but not the man, who wheeled around and tried his gun again." p. 221.
(Doddridge, Joseph; "Notes on the Settlement and Indian Wars of the Western parts of Virginia and Pennsylvania from 1763 to 1783..." Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. 1912. At Google Books.)
"belted with the
skin of a rattlesnake"
Twenty DOLLARS reward. Deserted
from Elk Ridge landing, Maryland, the 5th of February last, four
soldiers belonging to capt. Charles Flemings company of the 7th
Virginia Regiment... had on a hunting shirt dyed black, fringed
round the capes, ruffles, tail, and down the breast, belted with the
skin of a rattlesnake, had with him a bundle in a blanket. (April 4, 1777 The Virginia Gazette).
"with a Belt as curious"
Late 17th century Buffalo wool woven sash fragments from Pine Island on the Tennessee River in northern Alabama (Penelope B. Drooker (2017) Fabric fragments from Pine Island, Alabama:
indicator of an evolving male costume item, Southeastern Archaeology, 36:1, 75-84, DOI:
10.1080/0734578X.2016.1247633)
"To begin at the Foot-over a Pr. of Boots I draw a Pr. of Woolen Trousers of coarse Coating. A short double breasted Jacket of the same, over this comes a Present from a Southern Gentleman-a short Shirt after the Rifle fashion-curiously fringed, with a Belt as curious. By Way of Hat another Present-A small round Hat with the Brim turn'd up-on the Top a large Fox Tail with a black Feather curld up together-the Donor I suppose meant to help my Deficiency in Point of Size. MY Blanket slung on my Back, as that's a thing I never trust from me. To these add a Tommahawk, Gun, Bayonet, &c. and you have your Brother Aaron-And pray how do you like him?" (Aaron Burr to Sally Burr Reeve, September 24th 1775, in Mary-Jo Kline ed, Political Correspondence and Public Papers of Aaron Burr, 1756-1836. 2Vols. (Princeton: Princeton University Press) 1983).
Grant Horn- Warnock Collection. "Elaborate and fully engraved powder horn depicting the plan of the middle and lower towns of the Cherokee nation; an Indian war dance; hunting scenes and Fort Prince George. Horn is fitted with carrying strap of woven beadwork".
Sash Collected by Sir John Caldwell (8th Foot) ca. 1774-80. Canadian Museum of History- Speyer Collection.
Self portrait of Hilis Hadjo or Josiah Francis (Creek) 1815 British museum.
Bartram's 1794 Travels through North and South Carolina, Georgia, East and West Florida, the Cherokee country...used very similar terminology to describe what may have been finger woven and beaded belts in the Southeast worn by Indian warriors. "The shirt hangs loose about the waist, like a frock or split down before, resembling a gown, and is sometimes wrapped close, and the waist encircled by a curious belt or sash."
Wampum Belts
Top: Wampum belt, The Two Dog Wampum, Kanien'kehá:ka, 1775-1780. Sold by David Swan to David Ross McCord in 1919, M1904, McCord Stewart Museum
Bottom: Wampum belt, Huron-Wendat, 1760-1815. M20401, McCord Stewart Museum In 1783. Benjamin West wrote "…remembering an acquaintance who possessed a hunting shirt & leggens I have obtained and sent them by Mr. Wister, such our riflemen used to wear with Powder Horn & shot pouch of the Indian fashion, with Wampum Belts, small Round hat of bucks tails and some times Feathers. Very often these shirts were dyed brown – yellow, pink, and blue black colour according to the fancy of the companies. [ Benjamin West to Charles Willson Peale, August 4, 1783, in Jules David Prown, Art as Evidence: Writing on Art and Material Culture (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2001) 170].
Wampum belts are also referenced in a 19th century account of Morgan's riflemen published in Virginia:
"When Morgan's Riflemen, made prisoners at the assault on Quebec, in 1775, were returning to the South to be exchanged, the British garrisons on the route beheld with wonders these sons of the mountain and the forest...marching always in Indian file....their singular and picturesque costume, the Hunting Shirts, with its fringes, the wampum belts, leggings and moccassins, richly worked with the Indian beads and purcupines quills of brilliant and varied dyes, the tomahawk and knife; these, with the well known death-dealing aim of these matchless marksmen, created in the European military a degree of awe and respect for the hunting Shirt, which lasted with the War of the Revolution." ("Daily Richmond Whig and Public Advertiser Vol 10, Number 92 16 Oct 1833 p2)
Daniel Trabue mentions buying wampum and other articles from an April, 1778 sale or "vendue" at "Boonsbourrah " in Kentucky after his party captured the items near the Cumberland gap:
"We sold the Indean plunder in the Fort on Munday at vandue and it Fetched Fifty shillings for each man. Lucust got no part of the plunder. The negro boy got his shear. I bought some of this plunder, some nise
wamp urn and a shot bag and powder horn, etc."
Although not common, several references to Virginia frontiersmen owning Indian manufactured belts and other straps survive:
"Jacob Stern to William Campbell...1774 To a Beaded Shot Bag [and?] Strap..." (The Montgomery County Story, 1776-1957: Crush, Charles W. )
Alexander Boyd's personal items included 'Indian Garters, belt, & 1 pr. Mockasoons' ( valued at 1/0/0).
"Colonial records reveal that the majority of sashes, sometimes referred to as ceintures sauvages (Native made sashes), were finger woven/braided, of black yarn, interwoven with beads (rassades) or decorated with porcupine quills, and most likely hand crafted by Native American women...In fact, Lebeau remarks that Native American women used porcupine quills to decorate 'sashes that they sell to Canadians'."
The practice of purchasing "Indian habit" as a souvenir or curiosity was a long standing one in Colonial America:
John Clayton From William Byrd 25th May 1686
“According to your desire I have herewith sent you an Indian habitt for your boy, the best I could procure amongst our neighbor Indians. There is a flap or belly clout, 1 pair of stockings, and 1 pair of mocosins or Indian shoes, also some shells to put about his neck and cap of wampum. I could not get any dyed hair which would have been better and cheaper. These things are put up in an Indian Basket, directed as you desired, there are bow and arrows tyed to it.”
With a tip of the hat to Jim Loba- Patrick M'Robert (
A Tour Through Part of the Northern Provinces of America; Edinburgh, 1776) wrote that:
"From this [Schenectady] is carried on an extensive trade with the Indians, on [and] the back settlements: they send batteaus loaded with rum, sugar, molasses, coarse clothing, powder, shot, guns, flints, toys, &c. .... these they exchange with the Indians for poultry, [peltry?], furr, and some conceits of Indian manufacture; such as belts, sashes, baskets, magazines, bandboxes, &c."
Woven Girths:
“The men generally wore hunting shirts of heavy tow linen; died brown with bark; they were open in front and made to extend down near to the knee and belted round the waist with dressed skin or woven girths." (Samuel Houston to Sidney S. Baxter, 1837, MSS2 H8184 a1 Collections of Va Historical Society Richmond).
Joseph Dodderidge's description of his home made loom used for weaving hunting shirt belts has been puzzling to me for many years:
"Young as I was, I was possessed of an art which was of great use. It was that of weaving shot pouch straps, belts and garters. I could make my loom and weave a belt in less than one day.- Having a piece of board about four feet long, an inch auger, spike gimlet, and a drawing knife; I needed no other tools or materials for making my loom. ... It frequently happened, that my weaving proved serviceable to the family, as I often sold a belt for a day's work, or making an hundred rails..."
The Mary Rose loom (no later than 1545, Oak, 65cm tall).
A recent post by the Mary Rose Museum may shed some light on Dodderidge's methodology. The museum posted images of an excavated Heddle or "Fiddle loom" used to make webbing on board the ship, which was lost in 1545. This fairly large and crude loom may have been similar to what Dodderidge quickly constructed with a board and auger in order to make belts.
A full size reproduction of the Mary Rose loom in use via facebook.
There is also the possibility that handkerchiefs were used as belts for hunting shirts, but I cannot yet specifically document that combination, although the pension application of James Braden (Brady) R1124 is worth sharing based on the merits of the song alone:
"Affiant is more fully convinced of his identity from the fact of affiant being wounded at the battle of the pine tree now Camden and belives James Brady to be the soldier that took a handkerchief from his Bradys waist and bound up affiants wound which was bleeding profusely affiant is fully convinced of his being the same man from there being a song in verse and sung in camp to the following effect.
My name is James Brady a lad that loves pleasure/ for drinking and fidling I am for ever at leisure/ to see me in the element all Ladys adore me/ with my hogshead of brandy a rolling before me.
Subscribed to and sworn before me on the date above [signed] Richard Porterfield"
As usual, I'd like to thank Steve Rayner for discussing this topic and his generosity in sharing info over the years. Happy belting!
