Could anyone possibly tell me about this uniform?

[KatieCampbell]

He was born around 1836, died in 1880 if that helps any... I've been searching around myself, but can't seem to find which uniform this is, or if it's a uniform of sorts at all.

[Chas]

Is it my imagination, or are the buttons on the wrong side?

[unixken]

Is it my imagination, or are the buttons on the wrong side?

The original photograph was probably a "daguerreotype", which were commonly displayed horizontally flopped.

[bdkilted]

I'm certainly no expert, but it looks like a uniform for a city's marching band. Many cities had brass bands back then.

[KatieCampbell]

Thanks for all the replies! I asked the most knowledgeable person in my family about his history, and from what I know, the rest of the picture says:

"Born in Glasgow, he resided in Glenbuck, Clyde. Bank, Scotland"
He later settled in England.

I was just looking on Google and came upon this as well... could this be it? Something along the lines of it anyway?

[Jock Scot]

Thanks for all the replies! I asked the most knowledgeable person in my family about his history, and from what I know, the rest of the picture says:

"Born in Glasgow, he resided in Glenbuck, Clyde. Bank, Scotland"
He later settled in England.

I was just looking on Google and came upon this as well... could this be it? Something along the lines of it anyway?

Post deleted. Unhelpful information.

[Chas]

Here is a graphic of the British Infantry Regiments circa 1810. The uniforms would be the ones prior to the one in the photo. Although many differences, things like the button groupings and the facings and their colours stayed the same.
Another point of interest is the colour of the hackle on his shako seems to be wrong.

[ASinclair]

Hello, Katie!



If you haven't already, you may want to introduce yourself on the Newbie forum. Sorry I can't help with identifying the uniform.

[Dale-of-Cedars]

A slightly larger version:

- Simon L. Moore http://simonlmoore.deviantart.com/?rnrd=19916

[MacMillan of Rathdown]

He was born around 1836, died in 1880 if that helps any... I've been searching around myself, but can't seem to find which uniform this is, or if it's a uniform of sorts at all.

If you send a copy of the photo to the Army Museum in London, along with the soldier's name, they should be able to assist you. To me it appears to be a photo dating from the period after the Crimean war. At that time the standing collars on British infantry tunics were open, not closed, in the front.

There is one other clue that helps in possibly dating the photograph. The soldier is holding a shako of the type issued between 1861 and 1868. Further, the pompom appears to be black, which would tend to indicate a light infantry company. I can't quite make out the insignia on the right sleeve, but presume it to be some sort of rank insignia.