Military Button I.D. Help Needed

[Ripcon]

Here's a button that I found at a civil war camp in Raymond, MS. The button is in rough condition. When I found it, it was folded over and missing the back. It was a 2-piece button. I've straightened it out and repaired it the best I can....but WHAT IS IT?? I can't seem to find a match for it. It's definitely a Napoleonic eagle with a "Confederate" feel to it. Can anyone help me with this one? Thanks for any assistance.

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

Agony and Death on a Gold Rush Steamer: The Disastrous Sinking of the Side-Wheeler Yankee Blade - Grab it through Amazon!

[fyrffytr1]

I am stumped. I did a quick look through Albert's and Tice's books and didn't see anything like it. What is in the center of the eagle's body? It looks like the attachment loop from the back was forced into it leaving the semi-circular impression. Is there a shield in the center? Is it cuff size or coat? I will keep looking but, hopefully someone else here will be able to ID it for you.

 

[TheCannonballGuy]

Some people think it is an extraordinarily rare variant of the Albert book's button CS-26. (Upright spread-winged eagle, whose wingtips point downward, no shield, and no stars.) To help with the ID, please tell us an enormously important piece of information you somehow left out of your post. Did you find mostly CS or mostly US bullets in that camp? What types of bullets? Also, what kind of other buttons, and what types? In cases like this, "context" matters a lot.

 

[Ripcon]

I am stumped. I did a quick look through Albert's and Tice's books and didn't see anything like it. What is in the center of the eagle's body? It looks like the attachment loop from the back was forced into it leaving the semi-circular impression. Is there a shield in the center? Is it cuff size or coat? I will keep looking but, hopefully someone else here will be able to ID it for you.

It’s quarter sized. I don’t see where there’s a shield on the eagles breast.

 

[Ripcon]

Some people think it is an extraordinarily rare variant of the Albert book's button CS-26. (Upright spread-winged eagle, whose wingtips point downward, no shield, and no stars.) To help with the ID, please tell us an enormously important piece of information you somehow left out of your post. Did you find mostly CS or mostly US bullets in that camp? What types of bullets? Also, what kind of other buttons, and what types? In cases like this, "context" matters a lot.

The only bullets I found in the camp were .69 caliber minie balls and some .54 calibers and cap and ball pistol bullets.
I found an 1830 period eagle button, one piece with a blank shield.

 

[AU Seeker]

The closest buttons I found that has similar eagles on them are from the War of 1812, but nothing exactly like your's.

 

[Ripcon]

Just curious..who would’ve manufactured a Confederate variant button? Would it have been a foreign company or one in the South? Was it a custom made button?

 

[creskol]

Maybe I just found this while researching something else:

 

[devldog]

That is a nice button. Obviously pretty rare one would think. I think Creskol may have stumbled onto something. This button looks very similar to the one you found.

 

[Ripcon]

That is a nice button. Obviously pretty rare one would think. I think Creskol may have stumbled onto something. This button looks very similar to the one you found.

It certainly could be a variant of this button. I just haven’t found an exact match.

 

[creskol]

It certainly could be a variant of this button. I just haven’t found an exact match.

Send your photos and information to William Leigh..You can find his email address on his website under the heading "Ordering Information: https://www.civilwarbuttons.com

 

[Ripcon]

Send your photos and information to William Leigh..You can find his email address on his website under the heading "Ordering Information: https://www.civilwarbuttons.com

Thanks...I’ll send him an email.

 

[TheCannonballGuy]

Ripcon, the button referenced (and pictured) by Creskol is Albert-book button CS-20, and it shiows the eagle sourrounded by stars. Your button has no stars, which is why in my previous post I said it appears to be a variant of CS-24, "Upright spread-winged eagle, whose wingtips point downward, no shield, and no stars."

You replied to my request for info about any bullets found at that camp by answering:
> The only bullets I found in the camp were .69 caliber minie balls and some .54 calibers and cap and ball pistol bullets.

Okay... what specific kind of .69 Minie-balls? (As you know, roundballs aren't Minie-balls... so I assume you mean some kind of cylindrical .69 bullet). If you do not know their specific type identification, please post a photo of the .69s and the .54s and the pistol bullets.​

Ripcon also asked:
> Just curious.. who would’ve manufactured a Confederate variant button? Would it have been a foreign company or one in the South? Was it a custom made button?

In your button's case, it would definitely be a button-maker in the Confederacy. Custom made? Well... military buttons were made to fill an order from a customer, who told the maker what type of emblem was preferred. Sometimes the customer was a State Government ordering buttons for its State Militia troops' uniforms... and sometimes the customer was a personally-wealthy unit commander, or group of the unit's officers, who paid for that unit's "distinctive" buttons out of his/their own pocket. By "distinctive" I mean the button was designed with a distinctive logo/emblem which was different from any other unit. Some examples of that are the Arkansas 2nd Regiment CSA buttons, the famous CS South Carolina "Palmetto Guards" Regiment buttons, and the CS Louisiana Madison (county) Infantry "Meet Us" buttons.
​

​

The photo below shows the "custom made" Confederate Arkansas 2nd Regiment button, which says "CSA 2 ARK R" encircling a star. Its distinctive emblem was designed by that regiment's officers, who ordered it from button-maker Casimir Rouyer in New Orleans. The button's backmark says "C. Rouyer / N.O."

 

[Ripcon]

Ripcon, the button referenced (and pictured) by Creskol is Albert-book button CS-20, and it shiows the eagle sourrounded by stars. Your button has no stars, which is why in my previous post I said it appears to be a variant of CS-24, "Upright spread-winged eagle, whose wingtips point downward, no shield, and no stars."

You replied to my request for info about any bullets found at that camp by answering:
> The only bullets I found in the camp were .69 caliber minie balls and some .54 calibers and cap and ball pistol bullets.

Okay... what specific kind of .69 Minie-balls? (As you know, roundballs aren't Minie-balls... so I assume you mean some kind of cylindrical .69 bullet). If you do not know their specific type identification, please post a photo of the .69s and the .54s and the pistol bullets.​

Ripcon also asked:
> Just curious.. who would’ve manufactured a Confederate variant button? Would it have been a foreign company or one in the South? Was it a custom made button?

In your button's case, it would definitely be a button-maker in the Confederacy. Custom made? Well... military buttons were made to fill an order from a customer, who told the maker what type of emblem was preferred. Sometimes the customer was a State Government ordering buttons for its State Militia troops' uniforms... and sometimes the customer was a personally-wealthy unit commander, or group of the unit's officers, who paid for that unit's "distinctive" buttons out of his/their own pocket. By "distinctive" I mean the button was designed with a distinctive logo/emblem which was different from any other unit. Some examples of that are the Arkansas 2nd Regiment CSA buttons, the famous CS South Carolina "Palmetto Guards" Regiment buttons, and the CS Louisiana Madison (county) Infantry "Meet Us" buttons.
​

​

The photo below shows the "custom made" Confederate Arkansas 2nd Regiment button, which says "CSA 2 ARK R" encircling a star. Its distinctive emblem was designed by that regiment's officers, who ordered it from button-maker Casimir Rouyer in New Orleans. The button's backmark says "C. Rouyer / N.O."

Thanks for the info.
The .69 caliber minie balls I found were the standard 3 ring variety.

I feel these were from a Confederate camp.