Colonial Kilts

[Southern Breeze]

I've got a question for the experts and everyone else - how common were kilts in colonial America? I know people owned them and that they were worn on certain occasions such as weddings, but I'd like to know if they were worn more often. I've been researching this and keep coming up with nothing. Anything would help. Thanks.

[Mr. MacDougall]

Consensus among those who are historically knowledgeable around here indicates that they were actually pretty rare. Apparently, when Scots came to the new world, they adopted trousers to blend in.

[george7]

Of course, Kilts probably would have been terribly expensive and hard to come by...
and colonial kilt wearers wouldn't have had the support of xmarksthescot.com.

[hospitaller]

...and of course not even Scots in Scotland wore them all that much to begin with.

[macwilkin]

The majority of kilts would be found in military units, either Highland regiments of the British Army serving in North America during the various colonial wars and the Revolution, as well as in Loyalist militia regiments.

Another example of a militia unit was the Independent Highland Company of Foot, raised in the colony of Georgia:

http://www.hsgng.org/pages/gaprov.htm

Regards,

Todd

[Riverkilt]

Also check out the Sons of the Mountains books about Scots in kilts in British military units in colonial times.

Ron

[macwilkin]

Stephen Brumwell's Redcoats: the British soldier and War in the Americas, 1755-1763 devotes an entire chapter to the Highland regiments and their colonial service ("The Highland Battalions in the Americas") that is worth perusing.

Colin Calloway's White People, Indians and Highlanders is also worth noting. Calloway examines the common ground between Highland immigrants to North America and the First Nations they encountered.

Duane G. Meyer, who used to teach at my alma mater, wrote a very interesting account of the North Carolina Scottish community entitled The Highland Scots of North Carolina 1732-1776.

Regards,

Todd

[Southern Breeze]

Thanks everyone. I suspected they were pretty rare.

Ron, Cajun Scot- thanks for the info. I'll track those books down.

[kiltedsawyer]

The majority of kilts would be found in military units, either Highland regiments of the British Army serving in North America during the various colonial wars and the Revolution, as well as in Loyalist militia regiments.

Another example of a militia unit was the Independent Highland Company of Foot, raised in the colony of Georgia:

http://www.hsgng.org/pages/gaprov.htm

Regards,

Todd

Todd, thank you for that link, very interesting .......... a part of Scottish / Georgia history I didn't know about.
Thanks again,
David

[Spc. Scott]

I found this kind of interesting and might be of some help as well.

http://magweb.n1uro.com/sample/stpp/tp9901un.htm