This period is one of the low points in the appearance of the southern armies. The government was not prepared for a long war and had not geared up its supply system to handle the needs of the troops. Additionally, this was a period of very hard campaigning that wore out the pre-war militia uniforms; consider Jackson's Valley Campaign. If painting units for this time, the painter should mix in more civilian and captured clothing. Pants usually wore out more quickly than jackets. A soldier could be mistaken for an enemy in a captured jacket, or shot as a spy if captured wearing one. Civilian clothing can be virtually any color, but it is best to stick with basic colors.
Uniforms are going to look more tattered with more captured clothing and civilian clothing being worn.
Troops will begin to use captured haversacks, the black-tarred ones. More backpacks will be discarded in favor of blanket rolls.
Due to the smaller number of smashing victories won in the west, the proportion of civilian clothing to captured clothing should probably be higher in the western armies.
Officers are most likely to no longer be wearing blue uniforms.
Kepis are possibly being replaced by slouch hats, although there are many elaborate ones still in use. This replacement would have taken place faster in the western armies.
Copyright 1995 by the American Civil War Society