Smoking, Chewing & Snuffing

By Matt Merta

This article originally appeared in the June, 1992 issue of Camp Chase Gazette ( Vol. XIX, No. 7 )

Call me the Morton Downey Jr. of Civil War reenacting, but there are a lot of little things that people involved in this field do which really irritate me. One of these things involves smoking.

I have nothing against smoking, for I do it myself, and so did thousands of soldiers during the Civil War. However, I do get miffed at times when I see a Reenactor smoking a cigarette. If someone wants to be a living historian, why would he spend hundreds of dollars on clothing and equipment to have the appearance of a Civil War soldier, then spend all that time on weekends drilling and probably taking on a first person role of a soldier, want to suddenly break character and light up one of those white smoke sticks? In some cases, it may be lack of knowledge about the subject. Hopefully, the following information on tobacco will help to solve this dilemma for some.

Tobacco, an annual of the genus Nicotiana, is related to the tomato, potato, and eggplant. The non-edible leaves are harvested, dried (or cured), fermented slightly, and are used for smoking, chewing, and snuffing. The two tobacco species, Tabacum and Rustica, were being cultivated by the American Indians before Europeans went to the New World. The word tobacco derives from "tobago," the Indian name for a pipe.

A Brief History

Smoking was introduced to Europe in the 1550's by sailors returning from the New World. By the beginning of the 17th century, it had spread to Russia, Turkey, and the Orient. However, it was not widely accepted, with many rulers placing taxes and penalties on use of the substance.

When Jamestown was settled in the early 1600's, tobacco became economically important to the colonies. By 1621, restrictions had to be placed on tobacco planting to permit production of food crops. Due to the scarcity of money, tobacco became the medium of exchange, and was accepted in payment of taxes and debts, and was often used to pay the salaries of public officials, colonial militia, and clergymen.

During the Civil War, tobacco was an important part of the soldiers' life. It was part of his past time, as much as reading, writing letters, or singing songs. However, tobacco was much more plentiful in the South. Many books on the War Between the States tell of incidents where, when there was a lull in the battle, Confederate soldiers would call a truce with their Union adversaries so as to exchange tobacco, which was easy for them to get and was a hot item among the Yanks, for supplies that they were in need of, such as coffee or sugar.

Smoking, chewing and snuffing

Tobacco was basically enjoyed three ways during this period: smoking, chewing, and snuffing (in order of preference). Snuffing was not that common among enlisted men, and although quite popular in the years prior to the Civil War, there are not many accounts of this habit in available texts as the other two processes. Chewing was very common among soldiers. Chewing tobacco at that time was commonly a hard piece of compressed and dried leaves, known as a chaw, and could last a long time for a soldier, as he only needed a small bit to chew on and would stay in the same state of freshness (if you want to call it that) for great lengths of time in his haversack. This was also easier to ship from the North to the soldiers in rebel territory. However, chewing the tobacco calls for the constant spitting of tobacco juice, which can be messy and hard for the Reenactor to get used to, especially if one does not have a good aim at spitting. Moreover, chewing will leave a very bitter, burning sensation in the mouth, which the glands in your mouth have to get used to over a long period of time, which is why many people who attempt to start chewing end it very quickly.

Smoking tobacco was achieved by two ways: as a cigar or with a pipe. Evidence has existed of cigarettes dating back to 1518, when Spanish explorers witnessed the Aztecs rolling crushed tobacco in corn husks. Paper-wrapped cigarettes existed in Mexico around 1765, and there is some written proof of it appearing with American soldiers during the Mexican-American War, but they did not appear in the U.S. for regular use until shortly after the Civil War. In other words, smoking a cigarette in camp would be FARBY.

Cigar smoking was pretty much reserved for the wealthy until about 1800. By that time, however, a cheaper make of cigars became available from Germany and Belgium. In 1850, the English had developed a wooden mold that doubled cigar production. Still, cigars remained handmade until 1917, when the rolling machine was developed in North Carolina. Demand for better quality cigars did not become big until after the Civil War, which is why most smoking was done with a pipe.

Pipe Smoking

From the early 1600's to a few years prior to the Civil War, most pipes were made from clay. The bowl was round and narrow, and the stem varied in length from 1 3/4" to 13". These could be made very inexpensively, which is why tavern owners of the colonial period would keep them handy for customers to use while drinking. The longer stemmed pipes were made that way for a number of reasons: the pipe could be held by the stem, which was relatively cool, instead of by the bowl, which could get quite hot with tobacco burning inside. It also meant that if the pipe was used by a number of different people, a small bit of the stem where the mouth is placed could be broken off so as not to spread germs to the next user. The bowls of clay pipes remained pretty much unchanged until about 1730, when painted or molded designs were placed on the outside. About the time of the Revolutionary War, all-clay pipes were slowly being overshadowed by pipes that had clay bowls with stems made from reed, wood, or metal. This design was still popular during the Civil War, as it proved more durable to the soldier than an all-clay pipe.

In the few years before the Civil War, many Europeans and Americans were trying to develop a pipe that would be more durable than the clay pipe, yet would still be easy to hold without burning the hand. Some all-metal pipes were introduced, but these proved to conduct heat very well, and were hard to hold. Porcelain and meerschaum were ideal, but were only available to the wealthy. Wood was soon being experimented with, as it was light, durable, and a bad conductor of heat. The need was for a close-grained wood that would not easily crack from heat, yet would be easy to shape. American pipe makers were trying their luck with Cherry wood, while Europeans were working with the root of oak, which led to the discovery of using the briar root, which is probably the most popular material to make pipes to this date. In Missouri, countrymen helped solve this problem by the use of the corn cob. While it was not rare to see them in the Western theatre, corn cob pipes did not become popular in the United States until after the Civil War.

Guidelines for re-enactors

For the Reenactor looking towards authenticity, it is best to stay with the clay bowl/reed stem pipe, as these were the most common among soldiers. These should be available through at least one sutler at any reenactment, and are not expensive. Corn cob pipes could be used, but you will want to locate one with a reed stem, and not the more commercially available ones with the plastic mouthpiece. As for cigars, choose ones that look hand rolled, and not machine cut. To find out more about cigars and choice of pipe tobacco, look in the Yellow Pages under "Cigar, Cigarette & Tobacco Dealers-Retail". Check with one of these dealers. They are usually more than happy to help you in your choice of tobacco (and there are many types) and will often let you sample different blends for free. They will also help you get started with pipe smoking by showing you the proper way to smoke a pipe (yes, there is a right way to do it, and it is not that simple, of which I will not get into here) and can work with you to get a special blend of tobacco that you are comfortable with.

In conclusion, I hope that this information has helped shed some light on smoking during the Civil War and how to go about it authentically. The thing to remember is that you should try to appear as authentic as possible to the spectator, and it is usually the little things, like smoking a cigarette, that they notice about your appearance.

Sources:

Dunhill, Alfred. The Pipe Book, The Macmillan Company, 1969.

The Encyclopedia Americana, International Edition, Grolier Incorporated, 1989.

Hume, Ivor Noel. A Guide to Artifacts of Colonial America, Alfred A. Knopf Incorporated, 1969.

Next: Evidence for cigarettes