Section of original Civil War Tobacco from a Pennsylvania veteran (SOLD,BG)

This is another great piece I recently acquired; it is an original large piece of Civil War tobacco. It was from the estate of a Pennsylvania veteran – unfortunately, his name was not saved, or just forgotten over time. It measures 6” x 2 ½” and at one time was a twist, but now flattened, but the original string is still present.

During the Civil War it was difficult for the general public to obtain tobacco, but for Union and Confederate soldiers it was never a real problem. Being that much of the fighting was taking place in the tobacco rich south; soldiers just helped themselves from the crops. For years, the U.S. Navy supplied its sailors with tobacco rations and in February of 1864, the Confederate government followed suit and included tobacco as part of the army’s rations.

Actually, there are reported instances where Confederate and Union soldiers exchanged goods – the traditional swaps were Northern coffee for Confederate tobacco. In just about all the Civil War museums you will see tobacco on display, including Gettysburg, Harrisburg, and Frederick Maryland.

Tobacco was extremely important to the Civil War soldier and I go into more detail in my latest book “The Civil War Soldier – His Personal Items”. In my revised edition I show a near identical piece which belonged to Sergeant Austin Stearns (see pictures). This is a great opportunity to acquire an original piece of Civil War tobacco. A must for any display of a soldiers personal items, and it comes in the glass top display case pictured.