By far the salted meat issued out to the army gave more trouble to the quartermasters than any other item in their inventories. Complaints concerning the meat are documented from Nova Scotia to the Carolinas. Rotten, stinking brown meat along with its unpleasant odor was a smell that all A.D.Q.M.G.'s encountered. They also heard the complaints from the regimental Q.M.'s as the men in turn complained to them. To understand these problems we need to know the processing procedures for the meat as was used during that time.

Most salted meat was packed during the fall. November 11 or Martinmas (St. Martin was patron saint of soldiers). In England this was the traditional day to begin slaughtering animals for the winter (Fort Loudoun Journal, Vol. 8, #4). This time of year offered the best weather for the slaughtering of the hogs and cattle. First, after the slaughtering and dressing of the animal carcass the meat was rubbed down with salt and left in a cool basement for a few days.

The meat was now ready for the barreling operation. Salt was sprinkled into the bottoms of the barrels. Meat was placed into the barrel in layers with salt between the layers. The rinds were usually placed touching the sides of the barrels (Luecke, page 97). Each barrel was to contain twenty-eight pieces of meat. Sometimes the hams were removed, along with the feet and snout. Each barrel would contain no more than one head, and the total weight of the meat was not to fall below 112 pounds (Grandish, page 152). At this time the barrel was packed with the meat and boiling water added to fill it up. The meat was then weighted down so that it stayed under the pickle (Luecke, page 97). The pickle would make up about 11 gallons. This weight of pickle would bring the weight up to 200 pounds. The barrel was then sealed.

Very few criticisms were heard about the quality of the processed meat. The procedures used were old and well thought out. The reason there were complaints was that the barrels were ineffective in holding the pickle. Therefore, when it leaked out the meat was prone to rot. Quartermasters had to take care and inspect the barrels closely when these rations were delivered into his principal magazine.

Another problem was an error made if the meat was processed in too cold of weather. In these conditions the carcass would stiffen and not allow all the blood to drain. Later when packed, the blood would drain into the pickle and a fermentation would occur which would render the meat unfit to eat. Another complaint that the regimental Q.M. would hear from the troops was that their ration portion contained too much bone. This was caused by inappropriate packing at the packinghouse (Grandish, page 152).

Flour, Biscuits, and Bread

The only complaints generally heard concerning the flour was that it was old and musty (Farmer, page 32). The English were used to white flour well bolted to be fine. However, in North America the bolting was not as fine. Therefore, the British soldier complained about this gray flour; nevertheless, eventually he was forced to accept it, but still with a grumble. For the most part, flour was shipped in barrels or bags, yet in the majority of the campaigns in North America the soldiers were issued plain flour. However barrels were also used to store bread in, and especially biscuit, on some occasions. The biscuits would sometimes go bad if the contractor packed them when they were still hot from the oven. The humidity when sealed would create moisture in the barrel. Therefore the biscuit would get moldy (Bouquet Papers Vol. XI).

Fresh Meat and Vegetables

Fresh meat was a blessing to the quartermasters. Cattle and bullocks were driven with the armies and provided the meat for the soldiers. In addition, the fresh meat was useful for the better nutrition of the soldier. The only civilians the A.D.Q.M.G. needed to contact were the persons willing to sell the cattle and drovers to keep them with the army. Some special considerations had to be overcome with the fresh meat because the organs and head were issued out as rations also.

Fresh meat allowances decided by General Amherst at Albany on April 20, 1759.

A bullock's head is issued out as 8 pounds of beef. A tongue as 3 pounds of beef, and a heart for its weight.(Bulletin, Vol. XIII, #2, page 449)

Fresh meat could not be cooked until it had bled out. Generally it was boiled as soon as possible to help preserve it if it could not be consumed right away. In addition, the military establishment would never allow the meat to be fried, only boiled, or sometimes roasted over the fire.

Fresh vegetables again gave little problems to the Quartermaster. If they were available they were issued out in an orderly style to prevent wastage and allow them to be available as long as possible as a substitute for dry fair. Fresh vegetables were issued as often as they were available or could be bought. Soldiers received greens and vegetables from the gardens at Fort Edward in 1758, and with them they received a gill of vinegar each (Bulletin, Vol. XII, #5).

The military establishment knew for a long time that fresh vegetables helped to keep the dreaded scurvy under control. Usually vinegar was issued out with the vegetables. Again, vinegar was thought to be helpful in controlling scurvy. During the Forbes expedition in 1758, when the army was halted for a time, they planted turnips so that fresh greens were available (Hunter, page 449). Each British fort in North America would have a garden. Sometimes these were large and lavishly laid out. The King's Garden at Fort Pitt contained a deer park and a bowling green. Orchards with apple, peach, and cherry trees were also available. This garden covered an area of ten acres just outside the fort walls. Some of the vegetables issued out were potatoes, parsnips, carrots, turnips, cabbage, and onions (Redcoat, page 39).

Therefore, as with any military campaign, the success depended upon the logistical supply of the army. The British military establishment in North America suffered from massive supply problems early in the war. Although these problems were still present in later campaigns, the experience gained was put to great use. Substitutions for ration items were found as the army adapted to the war conditions in North America.

Although they are never heard from as much as the field commanders who led the armies, the Deputy Quartermaster General and the Assistant Deputy Quartermasters were indispensable to the movement of the armies. It was a tiring job that never ended while in the field in summer, winter, or when the army was in quarters. The Quartermaster could be seen working over a desk of invoices and building up the stocks for the next year's campaign. Somehow, regardless of the difficulty, a way to handle the task of supply had to be found.

Bibliography

Notes on the sources used:

The evidence shows that items of food, camp, and barracks equipment changed little during the eighteenth century, and well into the nineteenth. In addition, with respect to rations and how they were packed and transported, these items also changed little, even in the later armies of the United States. Therefore, with this information I was able to go outside the Seven Years War era of the mid-eighteenth century. Of course, these sources were cross- referenced with sources of the era of the Seven Years War or prior. Using this approach gives a clearer understanding of the logistics of supple for the Seven Years War in North America.

With respect to barrel weights, these were confirmed from different sources and, in general, these measures tended to remain reasonably stable throughout the eighteenth, nineteenth, and twentieth centuries. Thus, 200 pounds was the weight of a barrel of salted beef in 1758 (Grandish) and was the same amount packed in 1958 (Farmers Yearbook).

Army Lists for the 60th R.A.R. 1755-1763.
Barker, Arthur J., Redcoats: the British Soldier in America, London, 1976.
Booth, Russell H., The Tuscarawas Valley in Indian Days 1750-1797,
Cambridge, OH, Gomber House Press, 1994.
Bouquet, Henry, The Papers of Henry Bouquet, Vols. I-VI, S.K. Stevens,
Donald H. Kent, Autumn L. Leonard, eds., Harrisburg, PA, Historical and Museum Commission, 1972.
Farmer, Dennis, The King's Bread Second Rising, Fort Niagara Assoc., Youngstown, NY, 1989.
Glover, Michael, Wellington's Army in the Peninsula, 1808-1814, David and Charles, London, 1977.
Grandish, Steven F., The Manning of the British Navy During the Seven Years War, The Historical Society, London, 1980.
Hunter, William A., Thomas Barton and the Forbes Expedition, The Western Pennsylvania Historical Society, October, 1971.
Kemp, Anthony, Weapons and Equipment of the Marlborough Wars, Blanford Press, Dorset, 1980.
Luecke, Barbara K., Feeding the Frontier Army 1775-1865, Grenadier Publications, Eagan, MN, 1990.
"The Moneypenny Orderly Book," The Bulletin of the Fort Ticonderoga Museum, Vol. XII, #5 and #6, Vol. XIII, #1 and #2.
Stone, Wes, "Some Important Annual English Events," The Fort Loudoun Journal, Vol. III, #4.
Williams, Edward, The Orderly Book of Colonel Henry Bouquet's Expedition Against the Ohio Indians, 1764, Mayer Press, Pittsburgh, 1960. Williams, Edward, Bouquet's March to the Ohio; the Forbes Road, The Historical Society of Western Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh, 1975.

More British Army Supply of the Seven Years War

Introduction
The Packaging of the Military Stores
Some Notes on Supplies Issued: Salt Pork and Salt Beef

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