Age of the Men
During the 1870s, the Army had several different minumum ages for enlistment. In 1874 this was 16. Recruits aged between 16 and 18 were limited to musician positions and recruits aged between 18 and 21 needed parental or guardian consent. The normal minimum age was 21.
The reason for establishing a minimum age was twofold. First was the concern that the ability of youths to provide adequate service while also enduring the physical hardships that military life entailed. Second, and a more humanitarian one, was for the youth's growth and developmental well-being. During the mid 1800s there was a belief that overwork, including military life, drained the energy required for normal development, stunting growth and leading to smaller, deformed adults.
The maximum age for a first enlistment was more rigid than the minimum age. It was 30 years old for the cavalry. Once a man enlisted, reenlistments could occur well past the age of thirty. The US Army at this time did not have a mandatory retirement age.
Research into the records of the members of the Seventh shows some intresting numbers. The average age of a trooper was 25.6 years and the median age, which is less affected by extreme ages was 24. The typical trooper would have been full-grown and in the bloom of his early adulthood, well capable of bearing the strain of military life.
The following table shows a the enlistment ages of the Seventh
17 = 1
18 = 8
19 = 7
20 = 8
21 = 193
22 = 96
23 = 59
24 = 53
25 = 38
26 = 65
27 = 72
28 = 47
29 = 36
30 = 31
31 = 18
32 = 15
33 = 23
34 = 15
35 = 14
36 = 8
37 = 8
38 = 1
39 = 5
40 = 6
41 = 1
42 = 1
43 = 1
44 = 2
45 = 5
46 = 1
48 = 1
49 = 1
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The reason that the American Army does so well in wartime, is that war is chaos, and the American Army practices chaos on a daily basis.
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