Tag Archives: civil war

December 9, 2025

Explore Historic Military Drumming Manuals

By Kyle

Greetings everyone! I’ve added two more resources to the Historical Documents page. The first is “Infantry Tactics” by Silas Casey, published in 1863. While this is first and foremost a military manual used during the Civil War, it contains specific instructions for drummers covering the various calls and beats to be used.

The second is “The Sergeant-Drummers Manual; or Drum, Flute & Bugle Duty Tutor”, also called “Potter’s Drum, Flute & Bugle Duty Tutor” by Samuel L Potter and revised by J. J. Renwick, a British manual published in 1886. As stated in the Introduction, the primary purpose of the manual “is to bring about a greater uniformity in the training of Drum and Flute Corps in the Army.”

Happy drumming!

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February 8, 2024

Expanded Historical Documents

By Kyle

I’m very excited to announce a major expansion of the Historical Documents resources. Nine new drum manuals have been added, dating back to 1778! These are incredible examples of the early methods of drum notation and give great insight into our drumming heritage. This brings the collection of manuals, books and other documents to 24. I hope you enjoy exploring them as much as I have.

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November 26, 2022

Army 2/4

By Kyle

Available now for your drumming pleasure is “Army 2/4”, a fun solo from 1862. It’s available on the Rudimental Solos resource page. Also available is a new video of yours truly performing this solo on the official Drummin’ Around YouTube channel @drumminaround. Happy Drumming!

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October 25, 2022

New Resources

By Kyle

Some new resources have been added with more to come!

The 40 Essential Rudiments

Paddy on the Handcar

Both are downloadable PDFs. Enjoy and happy drumming!

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October 26, 2015

Drummer Boy Diaries and Recollections from the Civil War

By Kyle

Quite by chance I stumbled upon the published diary of a young Civil War drummer boy. Naturally, I was curious if other such accounts existed. I am happy to say that indeed other publications exist. Below you will find information about three such books. These books are in the public domain and I am making them available for download in PDF format. Links are also provided to the original online source where other formats are available. I’ve only just begun to read these and hope you look forward to reading them as much as I.

Since these accounts refer to specific dates and locations during the Civil War, you may want to brush up on your Civil War history. Here are some links to get you started:

The Civil War

Civil War Timeline

Civil War Timeline

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April 7, 2012

Conklin’s Drum Beatings

By Kyle

Conklin’s Drum Beatings has been added to the Resources category. These are from “Col. H.C. Hart’s New and Improved Instructor for the Drum” by Col. H.C. Hart (1862) and includes “Conklin’s 2/4 Flam Tap Beat” and “Conklin’s 2/4 Stick Beat.” These were original drum beatings by Matthew Conklin, Drum Major of Dodworth’s Brass Band, and were included by Hart at the request of an unnamed individual(s).

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April 5, 2012

“Grenadier’s Quickstep”

By Kyle

Grenadier’s Quickstep from “Col. H.C. Hart’s New and Improved Instructor for the Drum“ by Col. H.C. Hart, 1862 has been added to the Resources section under Rudimental Solos. This download includes both the fife and drum part.

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March 31, 2012

“Frog In the Well” Added to Growing Resources Collection

By Kyle

“Frog In the Well” is a Civil War tune based on the folk song “Froggie Went A-courting.” The tune first appeared in the 1611 publication “Melismata – Musicall Phansies Fitting the Court, Citie, and Countrey Humours, To 3, 4, and 5 Voyces.” The first line of the lyrics was: “Twas the Frog in the well… And the merry Mouse in the mill.” This version is from “Col. H.C. Hart’s New and Improved Instructor for the Drum” and includes both the fife and drum parts.

“Frog In the Well” – fife and drum

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March 27, 2012

The “Rogue’s March”

By Kyle

This photo was taken in July or August of 1863 at Morris Island, South Carolina. It depicts the practice of “drumming out” (dishonorably discharged) a soldier, always to the tune of “Rogue’s March.” Being drummed out consisted of having the head shaved, the uniform stripped of all buttons and insignia and then paraded in front of the remaining soldiers. In this photo, the man is wearing a sign which reads:

“THIEF. This man, Benj. F. Ditcher, 55th Mass. Vol’s, STOLE MONEY From A Wounded FRIEND.”

The "rogue's march" - drumming a thief out of camp

The "rogue's march" - drumming a thief out of camp

The tune “Rogue’s March” dates back to at least 1812, where it appears in “A New, Useful and Complete System of Drum Beating” by Charles Ashworth. In comparing 7 different manuals from 1812 – 1862, the music remained unaltered, with the exception of Bruce and Emmett’s version, in which the order was changed.

I have included the drum and fife parts for the “Rogue’s March” from Hart’s manual (1862). Special thanks to Will Chappell for his assistance in deciphering the drum part.

“Rogue’s March” – Fife and Drum Combined, Fife Only, Drum Only. (These will be added to the Resources page.)

A higher resolution of the above image is available from the Library of Congress.

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March 25, 2012

Civil War Drummers

By Kyle

This photo was taken between 1861 and 1865. It pictures three soldiers of the 2nd Rhode Island Infantry in camp with their drums. A higher resolution image is available for download at the Library of Congress website.

Three soldiers in camp with drums

Three soldiers in camp with drums

 

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