Tim/Civil War Facial Hair Archive
In all my efforts to grow every kind of facial hair I might imagine, I occasionally encounter ignorance by those who are completely unfamiliär with the nomenclature thereöf. I display that here along with the fruits of my labor, and of course some of history’s greatest facial-hair artists, the officers of the US Civil War. I present these pictures merely as examples, but to phynde a bit more about the person, pass your cursor over the picture.
The Moustache
August 2002: Camp Deerwood's annuäl 'Casino Night'  Halloween 2002: I'm a Great White Hunter  March 2001: Not actually Enstein, 'Picasso at the Lapin Agile' 2001 Benjamin F. Butler, an ambitious former politician who became one of most senior but worst Union Generals  Major General John C. Breckinridge, the last confederate secretary of war, who oversaw the flight of the government  Hiram Berdan, brevert general of the famed Berdan's Sharpshooters
Not one I like to wear for very long, I tend t’have a moustache only for costumes or plays. On the left, the "pencil thin" variëty, all the way thru some monstrosities I could only dream of growing. There has long been a strong connexionne betweeen moustaches and military service, so any moustacheless style is less likely t’have any Civil War adherents, thus certain gaps below.
The Soul Patch/Imperiäl
July 2003: Candlepin bowling at Meredith Lanes  July 2002: Camp Deerwood's annuäl 'Carnival Night'  June 2005: eXXtreme Croquet in Massamachusetts Brigadier General Alfred Napoleon Alexander Duffié was born in Paris France, died in Spain, and in between, managed to lead a successful read against the Virgina and Tennessee Railroad.  Colonel Robert G. Shaw of the MA 54th, the heroic devotion of whom few could match. Matthew Broderick portrayed him in 'Glory'  Colonel James Mulligan, an example of uniform idiosyncracies
A soul patch can be anything just under the lip, tho th’examples on the left are pretty much the size limit. This larger size can be called an imperiäl, tho I like to preserve this term for the long soul patch+moustache. Look at any 19th century Dutch painting for more examples of this one.
The Ra’as Al Ghul
May 2003: My first, civiliän attempt at a this style, in Nova Scotia  Halloween 2004: My actuäl Ra'as Al Ghul Costume Al Ghul himself was actually serving in the Napoleönic wars in this era
Altho the light is wrong in the first picture, I wouldn’t want to imply that this style is only useful for portraying the man himself, which certainly isn’t true. In any case, the Batman villain who gave his name to this style is sometimes shown with it growing down from the corners of his mouth, sometimes with it just growing from his jaw, so either is acceptable.
The Fu Manchu
October 2002: This early attempt from the Bates President's Inaugural Ball shows off my twin bald spots on either side of my mouth. Later I employed a comb-over.  October 2004: This Western style definitely needed its own costume, 2004  August 2004: Worn during my visit to California, the Fu Man Chu+Imperiäl was very hard to shave correctly. Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain led the critical bayonet charge on the Union left on Little Round Top, and went on to become president of Bowdoin College.  William Hopkins Morris commanded at Gettysburg, Mine Run, Bristoe Station, Wilderness, and Spotsylvania.  Hungariän-born Major General Alexander Sandor Asboth was made minister to Argentina and Peru for his gallant and faithful service during the war.
Sort of like a moustache plus a Ra’as Al Ghul, this one was also named for a super-villain—some would say the super-villain—Dr. Fu Manchu. Altho the doctor could grow his with just hair from above his lip, most of us have to cheat and use the hair on either side of the chin.
The Goatee
April 2003: I kept the goatee wide in order to facilitate shaving down to the Ra'as Al Ghul.  April 2006: I had this guy for more'n a month  May 2006: I just happened to wear the same shirt twice James Winning McMillan fought in the Mexican War, and took part in the occupation of Louisiäna, and subsequent defense of Baton Rouge, during the Civil War.  Confederate Commander-in-Chief Jefferson Davis only served a short jail sentence during Reconstruction
The nomenclature discrepency that actually inspyred me to creäte this page was to differentiäte between a goatee and a Van Dyke, below. A goat cannot grow a moustache, and its hair grows just from its chin, thus the goatee is just chin-hair.
The Van Dyke
My Hanukkah Party, 1999  first John Charles O'Neill memoriäl softball game, 2002  March 2006: The custom style I shaved into for Erik+Holly's wedding Nathan Bedford Forrest, a miliary genius, the greatest cavalrymen ever produced, also known as the barely literate founder of the Ku Klux Klan  Major General Erasmus S. Keyes rose from junior officer to commander of the IV Corps of the Army of the Potomac  Brigadier General Francis Patterson shot himself in 1862 rather than face an inquiry
I’ve never come anywhere near these truly fabulous Van Dykes, which is just a Goatee+Moustache one-two punch. I can hardly even imagine that that last one is for real... I started out thinking of that last one of me as an entyrely new style, but considering it just features a different interpretation of “goatee” I’m now convynced that it’s the same idea.
The Sideburns
December 2003: With Benjamin Bunny in London.  December 2003: At my brother's wedding in London.  Easter 2004 Brigadier General Abram Duryée was wounded at Bull Run and then again at Antietam. He went on to become NYC Police Commissioner.  James Samuel Wadsworth was fifty-six years old at the time of Gettysburg, he led his division with a Revolutionary War saber in his hand.
Sideburns can go as far down as the jaw-line (as in the third photo of me), tho there is some seriöus dispute about the difference between them and muttonchops.
The “Irish Pugilist” Muttonchops
March 2002: Ft. Dauphin, Madagascar Samuel Preston Moore was the confederate surgeon general, a frusterating task with medicines, facilities, and trained presonal at a minimum.  This is the closest I can find to Burnside displaying the facial hair the carries his name.
Sideburns that take a turn towards the chin, with or without shaved cheeks, but definitely without a moustache, are this brand of muttonchops. Once again, I have been outdone.
The “Civil War” Muttonchops
Februäry 2002: also Ft. Dauphin Madagascar. Ambrose Burnside, famous for his bungling attack on Petersburg and lending his name to sideburns  General Alfred T. A. Torbert, an outstanding cavalry commander
The left Civil War officer is Burnside, the man that started it all. Add a moustache to the “Irish Boxer” variëty and you’ve got this one.
The “Brigadier” Muttonchops
June 2005: The morning of Smoose's wedding  June 2005: Th'evening of Smoose's wedding General Edward A. Wild raised NC's Wild's African Brigade in 1863, and apparently displayed remarkable shaving prowess
The fellow on the right is th’only one I’ve ever seen sporting this style, but I was so amazed at this all-in-one facial hair that I had to try it for myself. This combination of the imperiäl and muttonchops hits all of facial hair’s high notes.
The Amish/Chinstrap Beard
March 2003: Bates College Gala, perhaps th'only picture of me in this style that will ever exist! Col. Joseph Plympton was caught without a mustache in this pre-war photograph.  Have we all yet heard the story of how Union Commander-in-Chief Abraham Lincoln grew 'whiskers' because a girl advised he do so in a letter?  Before shaving down to his trademark Fu Manchu, Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain sported the amilitary look.
Amish beïng peace-loving folks, their beards have no moustaches. "Chinstrap" sometimes applies to very narrow full-loop facial hair, but also describes all shaved-cheek, no-moustache beards.
The Full Beard
Newtown PA, 2001; these are Sally Brett's glasses  Lewiston ME, 2003: I don't exactly remember why there was a plate on my head.  Alexandriä, 2005: The end of my experiment to actually let my beard grow. General Ulysses S. Grant was a failure as a civilian, but led union army to victory.  Major General J.E.B. Stuart represented the dashing cavalier to the full, and was called 'Beauty' by his friends.  Irish-born Richard Busteed aided in th'occupation of the Virginia Penninsula, and went on to be a corrupt judge post-war.
An entyrely full beard would cover cheeks and neck, but I’ve only attempted it on my cheeks, and then only for about a month. These Civil War officers, tho, were not nearly so bothered thereby.
Most of the Civil War pictures come from this fabulous book
Some of the Civil War pictures come from this fabulous website
NEW! Stephen Colbert mentions all these facial hair styles in this monologue
The Book of Ratings on facial hair
World Beard and Moustache Champiönships
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