Model 1885 Enlisted Artillery Full Dress Coat
by Patrick McSherry
by Patrick McSherry
The Model 1885 Enlisted Infantry Full Dress Coat is made of dark blue wool, with nine buttons sewn in a single column. Each button has the Arms of the United States on its face with the letter "A" for the "artillery" in the middle of the shield on the eagle's chest. The cuff flaps, shoulder straps, collar and tail flaps are made of red wool, with red piping along the front of the coat. The cuff and tail flaps have smaller versions of the buttons on the front of the coat, three on each cuff, two on each of the tail flaps. Rank insignia is in red.
The Model 1885 Enlisted Light Infantry Full Dress Coat and the Model 1887 Enlisted Cavalry Full Dress Coat were identical to the aforementioned coat, but the button design reflected the branch of service, and the infantry version had longer coat tails and, of course, the branch-specific facing colors: white for infantry and dark orange-yellow for cavalry.
Images of the Masterson's uniform, Courtesy of the Indiana War Memorial Museum
This particular Model 1885 Enlisted Artillery Dress Frock Coat belonged to William Courtland "Courtney" Masterson (1874 - 1961) was a native of New Hope, Kentucky, and eventually lived in Mishawaka, Indiana. Masterson served in the Spanish American War and also in the Philippine-American War, with the 1900 Census showing him as being with the 5th U.S. Artillery, Battery F in Manila, Philippines.
The three red stripes on the upper arm
indicate that Masterson was a sergeant. The two yellow stripes on the
lower arm are service stripes, indicating that he served at least six
years,
Find-a-Grave listing for William C. Masterson, Memorial 97076609
(https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/97076609/william-courtland-masterson).
The Twice-A-Week Messenger (Owensboro, Kentucky). Saturday,
September 17, 1898 p. 4.
U.S. Army Quartermaster Department, Regulations and Decisions pertaining to the Uniform of the Army of the United States, Second Edition, 20 June 1898, (Washington, Government Printing Office, 1898).
U.S. Census, 1900.