Coat

ca. 1862

Place madeUnited States, North America

Wool, silk, cotton, metal

Overall: 3 1/2 x 21 x 43 in. ( 8.9 x 53.3 x 109.2 cm )

Gift of Miss Bess Haring, through the Montclair Art Museum

1953.195a

The left arm of First Lieutenant Abram P. Haring’s frock coat still bears the black crape mourning band that general orders required Union officers to wear for six months following President Abraham Lincoln’s death as an appropriate public symbol of their collective grief. In late March 1865 Haring had arrived home in New York City on sick leave—he was shot in the underjaw while fighting with the 132nd New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment in the Battle of Southwest Creek during the Civil War—and Lincoln was assassinated two weeks later. Haring likely joined an estimated 11,000 soldiers in the funeral procession through New York City’s crowded streets on April 25, when all mourners in attendance wore mourning bands.

DescriptionDark blue wool single-breasted Infantry officer's frock coat with black crepe mourning band on left arm; 1" closed stand-up collar (one hook and eye); Infantry lieutenant's shoulder straps, with single bars against blue ground; 9 buttons down the front; closed (8" wide) sleeves with false cuffs, 3 buttons at each wrist; back made in 4 panels, 2 buttons near the center at the waistline above split skirt; all buttons cast with shield-breasted eagle with "I" at the center; coat and skirt lined with dark green silk, sleeves lined with white cotton, horizontal slit pocket at the left breast, clasp buckle at the waistline.

Markingscast: center face of each button: "I" stamped: reverse of each button: "*SUPERIOR* / QUALITY"

ClassificationsMILITARY TOOLS & EQUIPMENT: UNIFORM