Vigo County Historical Society
Historical Treasure Article

Historic Treasure of the Week - November 29, 1998
By Barbara Carney
Vigo County Historical Society

Frock stirs up bit of mystery

There is an air of mystery surrounding a red wool frock coat that can be viewed in the Military Room of the Vigo County Historical Museum.

The coat was probably made around 1740 to 1750 with an epaulette added later. It was most likely a British officer’s "undress" coat, although it may have originally been a civilian coat, converted to military use.

While the epaulette on the right shoulder suggests military use, the buttons are not regimental. Historians have found it was not regulation uniform of the British Red Coats, but perhaps the property of a gentleman volunteer.

Given to the museum in 1969 by the late N. Sheldon Johonnott, the coat was found hanging on a book in the attic of a home in Spring Grove, Ill., owned by his aunt, Lillian Sanborn. It had been brought from the Sanborn family home in New Hampshire.

The story handed down by the Sanborn family was that a group of Friendly Native Americans visited their farm. They were followed by a group of renegade British soldiers who threatened to return and confiscate the property for the British government. Instead the Native Americans came back and presented Sanborn the red coat.

At the time the red coat was given to the Historical Society, much research was conducted with military and costume authorities throughout the country. Looking at the coat, we wonder who actually wore it, why the epaulette was added and in what conflicts, if any, the wearer was engaged. That’s the fun of history.

The Historical Museum of the Wabash Valley, 1411 S. Sixth St., is open from 1 to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday.