General William Haines Lytle’s 1863 Civil War Tailcoat
with silk velvet tunic collar and brown chintz map pockets under the tails
Conserved and restored
Military Coat lining for
Cincinnati Museum Center
by Jennifer Hein 2006
Conservation by Jennifer Hein2
Civil War–CMC Tailcoat Condition 20051863 Navy Boiled Wool Exterior & Shredded Black
Silk Interior Lining with repair patch covers
Conservation by Jennifer Hein3
Conserved upper back and restored tailcoat lining
Conservation of upper chest
area
Restoration of Tailcoat lining
side panels
Conservation of Tailcoat
facing and brown chintz Map
Pockets creased and folded
in Tailcoat as originally
designed, covered with
transparent silk crepeline
Conservation by Jennifer Hein4
Shredded Silk lining (before) then Encased or after treatment
Conservation by Jennifer Hein5
General William Haines Lytle’s Civil War Tailcoat Lower Right and lower left waistbandBefore & After treatment photos
Conservation by Jennifer Hein6
Civil War Military Tunic Tailcoat Inside lining area
The Center Back area
is flattened only at this
point.
The 6 areas of the
waist center back and
sides are conserved
with the stitching
through the three layers
as in a quilt.
Conservation by Jennifer Hein7
CW Coat – Top back white areas are missing lining
Analysis showed typical
sandwich quilting treatment
to be most beneficial.
1st layer black cotton
2nd layer shredded silk
straightened
3rd layer polyester allusion,
net
Quilted through all with
100% cotton thread
Conservation by Jennifer Hein8
Before & after conservation of shredded silk lining in CW coat back
Conservation by Jennifer Hein9
Top back areas had more complete loss similar to the tailcoat lining.
White backing shows
degree of loss to lining
in this section.
Conservation by Jennifer Hein10
The shoulder pad quilting governed the treatment process.
The wool padded shoulder area was originally quilted for warmth.
To stabilize the area, it was covered with silk crepeline to give a
smooth surface for mounting yet allow viewing of the original
construction process.
Conservation by Jennifer Hein11
Chest area lining before & after crepeline cover
Conservation by Jennifer Hein12
CW Tunic Tailcoat Right Chest Area
Conservation by Jennifer Hein13
General Lytle’s Civil War Tunic Tailcoat The original silk shirting sleeve lining was fairly intact except the arm’s eye. It is secured by stitching net bands around the circumference and creating small pockets to encase weak areas of silk.
Conservation by Jennifer Hein14
General Lytle’s Wool Military Tailcoat Interior View of Upper Front Chest
Front chest area after
conservation of original
silk sleeve lining and
wool chest padding.
The wool and silk’s
original purpose was for
warmth and comfort.
Conservation by Jennifer Hein15
Tailcoat Map Pockets Left photo: during the process when I untacked the repair cover.Right photo: after with the transparent silk crepeline cover.
The brown chintz map pockets can be viewed to understand the
original function of the interior tailcoat pockets.
Conservation by Jennifer Hein16
Original Map Pockets & Silk Lining that remained in the tails. Before & After
Conservation by Jennifer Hein17
Gold lettering on black label:
McKee and Roth48 West Fourth St.
Cincinnati Facing & yellow gold silk cross tacking restored
Conservation by Jennifer Hein18
Visual Review of 1863 General Lytle’s Civil War Tailcoat Lining Treatment
Conservation by Jennifer Hein19
Before & After Treatment The Exterior has little change except button detailing. The real change is the inside lining which is now intact to mount for a display. The project was funded so you may view it at the
Cincinnati Museum Center.