Uniforms of the US Navy

While the uniform of US Navy sailors of the War of 1812 was not as closely prescriptive as modern naval uniforms, the Navy Department provided ready-made “slop clothing” produced by contractors to an established pattern, while a ship’s own “Internal Regulations” specified exactly what clothing each man was to own and when to wear it. While slop clothing only came in three sizes, sailors skillfully picked apart and resewed their clothing into the tight look fashionable in the 1810s, or paid a shipmate to do it for them. The Secretary of the Navy described slop clothing as such:

The following, are considered articles of the first necessity, & what is generally understood, by the term, Slop Clothing, viz.

• Common Hatts

• Pea Jacketts

• Cloth Jacketts

• Cloth. & Duck Trowsers

• Duck frocks

• Guernsey ditto

• Check shirts

• Com[mon] shoes

• Stockings

While not all Ship’s company members own all of the items described by the Secretary of the Navy, our basic required Dress Uniform consists of

• A black hat made of wool felt with a tall crown, narrow brim, and plain black grosgrain ribbon, made on a round block (preferred source is M. Brenckle, Hatter)

• A dark blue wool double-breasted broadcloth jacket with welted pockets and 9 small “lazy eagle” buttons or plain brass buttons on each breast and 3 on each functional cuff, faced in same dark blue wool. Sleeves may be lined or unlined. This item must be made from the unit sealed pattern, which is available in chest sizes 34-48” and provided to all dues-paying members to copy for free upon request. Ship’s Company purchases navy blue broadcloth by the bolt for members to purchase by the yard at a discount, and provides the uniform buttons for discounted sale as well. No other jacket is acceptable.

• A red wool square-cut waistcoat with welted pockets and small yellow metal buttons

• A white or blue and white checked linen (preferred) or cotton shirt with a tall 1810s collar

• A square black silk neck-cloth

• Fall front early 19th century style white trousers in linen or hemp, cut tight in the thigh and straight below the knee, waistband reaching above the naval and held up by braces or suspenders

• Wool socks in a natural color

• Low (preferred) or tall/brogan (less preferred) tie (preferred) or buckle black leather shoes

Optional garments include

Hot weather/working uniform:

• Jacket in white linen, hemp, or cotton in the sealed jacket pattern

• Waistcoat in white or white and blue striped linen or cotton

• Linen frock

Cold weather:

• Knit wool Monmouth cap in grey, white, black, red, blue, or brown.

• Overcoats and pea jacket to period patterns

• Guernsey frock

• Dark blue wool broadcloth trousers in same pattern as whites

As with historic fashions of the time, all clothing should be well-fitted to the individual. Any visible stitching above the waist must be done by hand.

Want to join? Send us a message and get started! Many items can be purchased ready-made from sutlers or made from commercial patterns, and our in-house system for patterning and cutting uniform jackets means that you can have a hand-tailored, historically-patterned jacket for an affordable price with a minimal wait time.

Sources and Recommended Reading

Articles of the First Necessity: US Navy Uniform Clothing during the War of 1812. Matthew Brenckle in The Journal of the Early Americas, August 2013.

The Department of the Navy of the early 19th century was a small entity, with only six full time employees at the Department’s headquarters in Washington, DC. Much of the work of supplying was done through naval contractors, as outlined in the “Act providing a Naval Armament” passed by Congress in 1798. From wood to carpenters, cannon foundries to hull coppering, provisions to clothing, most of the work was provided through contracts managed by a Navy Agent at each port the US Navy had a presence in.

Many of these contracts were held or fulfilled by women, who preserved foodstuffs that would be purchased in bulk and issued as rations, assembled the large quantities of slop clothing purchased by the Navy and issued to sailors, and sewed flags and pennants. Women also operated taverns and chandleries in the maritime communities where ships, gunboats, and sailors were stationed.

Ship’s Company demonstrate the contributions of civilian contractors and businesspeople to the US Navy through its Supplying the Navy programs, which demonstrate flag construction, the hiring-out system for slop clothing assembly, and the purchase of flour for baking into ship’s biscuits.

The uniform for the U.S. Marine Corps in the War of 1812 was established by the uniform order of April 19, 1810, promulgated by Marine Commandant Franklin Wharton. The 1810 uniform was very similar to that established by the uniform orders of March 25, 1804 and October 14, 1805.

Ship’s Company works closely with the Marine Corps Historic Company to provide accurate, respectful Marine interpretation of the highest quality.