Join Mark Perkins of the Kent Civil War Society for a presentation on Coffee in the Civil War. 

About the presentation:

As much as bullets, disease and boredom, coffee was an important component of the Civil War.  It was part of the official army ration and often the first thing a soldier turned to when afforded a break on the march.  When it was not available, soldiers, especially Confederate soldiers, improvised with everything from chicory to sweet potatoes to dandelions.  Comfort in coffee was something the highest ranking generals shared with the lowest ranking privates, though the vessels containing it differed greatly.  

In Hardtack & Coffee, the classic recounting of the life of the common Union soldier with a title proving the point about the value of coffee to the soldier,  John D. Billings of the Tenth Massachusetts Battery wrote: “The coffee ration was most heartily appreciated by the soldier.  When tired and foot-sore, he would drop out of the marching column, build his little camp-fire, cook his mess of coffee, take a nap behind the nearest shelter, and, when he awoke, hurry on to overtake his company…”

This presentation will look at the state of coffee in the 1860s, how the army used it and moved it and how the soldiers experienced it.

Registration for this free program is required and begins Wednesday, April 8 at 9 AM. To register, click the button below, call (330)688-3295, ext. 4, or stop by the library.