Much of the cooking at camp was done on outdoor fires. In the beginning of the war, free slaves were not allowed to fight. They were usually given the job of cooking or similar jobs. The Union army had the best rations of any army, up to that time. But they did have shortages occasionally due to feeding armies of tens of thousands. The Confederacy found it difficult to supply full rations to their troops, because of transportation problems. The Union rations consisted of one pound of hard tack (hard bread), one-and-a-quarter pound of fresh meat, and coffee. The Confederacy had similar rations, but had reduced it by 1862. Many foods became scarce, which lead to many confederate soldiers to forage for food. Many Confederate soldiers were almost starving by the end of the war. |