11/29/2016 New information: The owner just emailed this information to me: the length from neck to hem is 52 inches. The sleeve length is 22 and the shoulders are 24. These may not be exact - It is a bit hard to measure this coat - It\'s not like a shirt that will lay flat! But Ralph tells me that it fits him perfectly, and he wears men\'s X-Large shirts. I hope this answers a lot of the questions I have been getting.
This is a large, authentic Buffalo hide Coat. From all the research I have done, I believe it was made around 1870.
Mr. Swett, the owner of the coat said this: “The coat has been inmy family all this time, I expect my great-grandfather had it back in the 1800s. His name was Daniel Henry Skinner. He was a Civil War vet woundedin theBattle of the Wilderness. He was in the hospital for over a year in WashingtonD.C. Later he rode all over New England in a buggy, helping war veterans and theirwidows get their pensions. I expect he wore this in the cold times.
Because it has dark plaid shirting as a liner, it may be older than that the 1970s.
I found a description of a similar type of coat used in the Civil War partial description reads:
While the army never issued a formal description or specifications for the buffalo coats, it is most likely the coats were purchased from civilian contractors who were already engaged in making the coats for the civilian marketplace. The pattern of the coats followed a general style that were ankle length, double breasted with five sets of large, black, hard rubber buttons, each closed with a twisted cord loop. The coats were set with two deep slash pockets lined with dark blue wool. The sleeves and body were lined as well, some with dark blue and blue-gray wool shirting and some with heavy brown cotton twill.
This coat has two deep pockets. All of the buttons are intact and alike, even the buttons on the back. The button closures were made of twisted cord.
The \"model\" is 5\' 10\" and the coat comes to within about 5 inches of his ankles. It hung very loosely on him, so it is made for a bigger person, or at least to go over several layers of clothing. It has one flaw - there is a straight tear a few inches above the back pleat. Otherwise, the rest of the coat is in good condition.
The Coat is heavy and will be shipped by weight and distance. If you want it sooner than Parcel Post, please let me know and I will invoice faster shipping.Thanks for looking.
