Vigo County Historical Society

Historical Treasure Article

Historic Treasure of the Week - March 4, 1984
By Richard L. Tuttle
Vigo County Historical Society

Red coat cloaked in mystery

There is an air of mystery surrounding the red military coat which can be viewed in the Military Room of the Historical Museum of The Wabash Valley, 1411 S. Sixth St.

The coat was probably made around 1740-1750 with the epaulette added later. It is constructed of fine wool broadcloth, with a homespun linen lining. The quality of the tailoring is attested to by the fact that is over 225 years old.

The coat was most likely a British officer's "undress" or sealed coat, although it may have originally been a civilian coat, converted to military use at a later date.

The buttons are definitely civilian design. By the time of the Revolutionary War, all British army fighting units had buttons indicating regiments. The single epaulette on the right shoulder may have indicated the rank of captain.

The coat was given to the muumuu by E. Sheldon Hohonnott in 1967. It hung for many years in an outbuilding on a farm owned by a relative of the donor. The farm is located on the Fox River about four and one-half miles west of the town of Antioch, Ill.

The story goes that the original owner of the farm, John Sanborn, was visited by a group of friendly Indians with whom he passed the time of day. Shortly after the Indians left, a group of British soldiers, led by a major, arrived at the farm. After threatening to return and seize the farm in the name of the British government, they moved off in the same direction as the Indians. Instead of the British returning, the Indians returned and made Sanborn a gift of the coat.

The research done on the red coat after it was given to the museum pretty well debunks the above tale. The British that probably bothered Sanborn would have been participating in the War of 1812 and would have been uniformed differently.

But if you consider that there may be a grain of truth in the legend, it sure makes one wonder what happened on that farm in McHenry County, Ill. so many years ago.

Who actually wore the coat? Why was the epaulette added? That's the fun of history.

The Historical Museum of the Wabash Valley is open from 1 to 4 p.m. Sunday through Friday.