Although the Union and Confederate Signal Corps shared many of the same duties, the Confederate Signal Corps was also involved in espionage, including engaging in covert operations and developing a network of informants.įold3 has many records and images related to the Union and Confederate Signal Corps. In addition to passing and receiving messages with wig-wag, signalmen also sometimes served as observers, scouts, and couriers. Because signalmen were in such highly visible locations, they were often the target of sharpshooters. The distance between signal stations was usually determined by how far the signalmen could see with a spyglass and was not often more than 6 miles. If signalmen were in a fairly permanent location, a tall wooden signal tower would often be built otherwise, members of the Signal Corps used whatever was available to help them reach a higher elevation, including hilltops, rooftops, church steeples, and trees.
Both sides used codes to try to keep their messages secret, but they were often able to crack the other’s codes, until the Union instituted the use of a cipher disc.
Wig-wag was a faster way to communicate than sending a courier on horseback and was especially useful in areas where a telegraph system was not set up. There were seven flags of varying sizes and colors that could be used depending on the distance the message was to be passed and what the terrain was like. In wig-wag, either a single flag (during the day) or lantern (at night) was moved in set patterns to the right or left to represent letters, abbreviations, and word substitutes. Meyer, an army surgeon, shortly before the war. The main way they did this was through the use of a flag system called wig-wag (not to be confused with semaphore), which was invented by Albert J. The job of the Signal Corps in both the North and South was to quickly and accurately relay information and orders between the commanders of different units within the two forces (which was especially crucial during battles).
Both the Union and the Confederacy developed an army Signal Corps during the Civil War.
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