Leather canteens

[Stophel]

Leather canteens. Definitely the "in" thing right now.
But, were they actually used in the 18th century at all? Is there any kind of documentation?
I have asked this question around here and there, and so far, the ONLY answer I have gotten was "they were found on the wreck of the Mary Rose". Well, heavy longbows and any number of other items were found on the Mary Rose, things which were simply not in use hundreds of years later in the 18th century!

Is there actually anything putting them in use in the 18th century, much less Colonial America?

 

[tg]

I have seen this tossed around on severa; forums and don't remember any docums to support them, I guess theywould have used them if the had them, or better yst think in terms of bullets and use a modern style canteen because a canteen is a canteen after all :v

 

[LRB]

Chris, from what I have found leather vessels were popular during the 17th c., and earlier, but not so much in the 18th c., at least in America. Examples have been found in earlier ship wrecks. I use one, but like TG said, a canteen is a canteen, and civilian use of any canteen, other than militia, appears rather rare. Creeks and streams were plentiful, relatively clean, and the folks then did not know of the dangerous life that may be in them, unless soon stricken with one of them, and even then may not have realized where the problem came from. There is a new filter out that will do 150 gallons of bad water for around $15.00 retail. The packet also comes with pills for what you may consider really dangerous water.

 

[Black Hand]

While they may not be extensively documented, I based mine upon the fact that jackware was available and used during the time period. But then again, canteens in general are a sticky issue for all but military.

Personally, I'll take the "authenticity" hit over a bad case of the "authentic" trots.

 

[Quartermaster James]

Look them up not as canteens but as leather costrels. :thumbsup: