Object

Hunting Shirt

Date:

c. 1800

About this artifact

Hunting shirts were worn by Southerners before the French and Indian War. By the end of the American Revolution, they had become common outerwear for many of the American soldiers. Men on both sides of the attack on the Springfield Arsenal might have worn over-shirts like this. The shirts commonly had one or two capes with fringe along the edges and were open down the front. The front and bottom edges also had fringe. When wearing a hunting shirt, the man would cross the fronts over one another and keep the garment closed with a sash or a belt. This shirt was made for Michael Crow by his wife. They lived in Greene County, Pennsylvania. It has one cape and no collar. The sash shown is a piece of modern cloth wrapped to show how the shirt looks when it is closed.