A collaboration between

Trans-Mississippi Depot

& Otter Creek Tinware

 
Especially in the opening months of the American Civil War, many objects were patented and manufactured to make the soldier's life easier. Among these items was a filtering canteen by Charles Bartholomae. Although many people now automatically assume these were officers' items they were available for purchase by enlisted men as well. In his patent Bartholomae described his invention "as a canteen which may be worn with greater facility than those of usual construction, more readily filled and more convenient to drink from, and one supplied with an efficient filtering device, which may be used whenever necessity requires." In addition to the attached funnel to facilitate filling and the filter Bartholomae also highlighted what some people call a kidney shape to the canteen: "[T]he canteen, and that is, its curved shape admits of its fitting snugly to the wearer, and the swinging of the canteen is avoided. The ordinary canteens which are in the form of an oblate spheroid are continually swinging on the backs of the soldiers, especially while going through quick evolutions, so much as not only to be very disagreeable and embarrassing to the soldiers."

Until now reproductions of this canteen had the general shape correct but fell short on fixtures and finishing details. Our reproduction of the Bartholomae canteen is based on examination of three originals: one in the collection of the New Hampshire Historical Society and two in a private collections. (There is a missing original part to the New Hampshire Historical Society artifact, it has a fabricated tin replacement cap on the storage chamber tube.)

Our reproduction has the following features:

The cover material for the canteen is wool flannel, with a color choice of dark blue or gray. There is also an option of lettering the canteen with original period stencils. Many owners of this canteen marked them with their name and sometimes rank and unit.
 

The caps and tubes on original Bartholomae pantent canteens were not asembled from sheet tin. Notice the distinctive shape of the cap on the reproduction. It has a friction fit to the tube and incorporates incised lines, a flared bottom and domed top with attached loop for a fastening chain.. The russet strap has an iron roller buckle and the loop attaching it to the canteen body is closed with a copper rivet, as on the originals.

 

The capped chamber in the center of the canteen stores the filter when it is not in use. The filter screws into the drinking spout and a telescoping fitted cap with a screen can be removed to insert a filter medium such as wool, sponge or charcoal. Naturally this filter cannot be expected to remove more than silt; bacteria and other micro-organisms will still get through. It is our recommendation that the filter be reserved for display or demonstration purposes rather than used to prevent water-borne disease.

 

 

ALL RESERVATIONS FILLED,

NO MORE CANTEENS AVAILABLE AT THIS TIME

Extensive hand work involved in producing the fixtures and other details means only a few per year are made. Currently reservations are being taken for 5 canteens with planned delivery of mid July 2007 or earlier. The complete canteen, cover and strap are $215.00. Custom lettering with original period stencils is $1 per letter, painted in oil paint, plus $15.00 for shipping. Confirm reservation by emailing ottertin@verizon.net. Specify choice of color for cover and lettering. After email contact verifies a canteen is still available mail a check or money order made out to "John Peterson" for the full amount of the canteen, custom lettering (if any) and shipping to:

John Peterson

Otter Creek Tinware

26 Carver Street

Brandon, VT 05733

 

 

buy an original Bartholomae canteen!


TO OTTER CREEK TINWARE
 
TO TRANS-MISSISSIPPI DEPOT