Ezra Tilden :

One of those individuals associated with the Tilden House is Ezra Tilden, a Stoughton militiaman who served four years as either a militiaman or a six or nine month levy to the Continental Army. While Ezra Tilden never served with the Tenth Massachusetts Regiment., he did leave behind a remarkable chronicle of his travels and service in two diaries, which included his mileage, (for which he was to be reimbursed by the town), his stops along the way, songs and ballads, and for our benefit, the contents of his several knapsacks. The following entry is taken from his manuscript diary, covering the years 1776-1777, which until recently was in the collection of the late Stuart Goldman of Canton:

August 5, 1777
An Account of some things I carried into the Army in my Pack:

A woolen Shirt with a snuff bottle full of ground coffee in it, and one and a half of chocolate in it too, wrapt up in a piece of brown paper and a new cotton and linen shirt and a new milk cheese wrapt up in it which weighed five pounds, a pair of white stockings, a pair of blue stockings, a bag of plumbs, a bag with three pounds and half of sugar in it, a pair of boots, a cap, a powder horn, four sheets of paper wrapt up in a piece of brown paper and four quills in it, a brown paper with two pieces of soap in it, one great pin, four small ones, one brown thread needle, and one worsted darning needle, one ball of white yarn, one ball of blue yarn, some strings, some thread, some sealing wax, a snuff box full of snuff, a pewter bason, a wooden plate, a spoon, a fork, a Jack-knife, a pen-knife, a pair of knee buckles, a pocket book and case to it, a small toothed comb, a pocket looking glass, an under-jacket, a short coat, a great coat, a pair of grey stockings, two pair shoes, a striped shirt, a pair of long trowsers, a hat, two handkerchiefs, a pair of shoe buckles, a pair of garters, a pack to carry my things in, some bread, a pair of arm strings, a pair of leather breeches, a pair of cloth breeches, a leather strap, a cod line, a frock, some tow.

N.B. I have here set down, not only my pack and things in it, but even my clothes and things that I wear, besides the things in my pockets that I carry & other things.

This same diary contains an entry on November 13, 1777 noting that he traded his pack for one of calfskin. On November 28, 1777 he trades this pack for a cloth one "almost worn out". About the same time he also sells a pack that he found on the battlefield at Saratoga. Based on his description of the contents of his pack, and the reference to trading it for a calfskin one, it would appear that the pack was a fairly capacious one, perhaps of a double strap variety.

A second manuscript diary, covering the period 1779-1781, along with a typescript copy of the first diary, can be found in the collections of the Stoughton Historical Society. In 1779 Ezra Tilden served as a private in Capt. Abner Crane's Company in Col. Jacob Gerrish's Massachusetts militia regiment and spent much of his time guarding military stores at Peekskill, NY. On two occasions, in 1779 and 1781, he listed in his diary all of the personal articles he carried in his knapsack, along with his military equipment:

p.20 An acct of things, carryd up, wth me, To Claverick, in yeyear 1779 & c.(viz)

£ s. d.
107 8 0 in cash; L.M. - Left at home
4 4 0 in cash; L.M. (besides 6£ L.M due me from Mr. Haws) & 79 dolrs or more , due to me from ye Select men of Stoughton for things: a gun, Cartridge Box, powder horn, a pipe, some tobacco, wrapt up in a handkerchief, some tow, a spoon, 2 knives, some chalk, a canteen, a pack, a pocket Book, wth anothr book in it, 3 Large Loose papers, & 7 Small ones, Loose in sd Book, a dish, a prof garters, a pr of overhalls, a pr of Leather Breeches, a pr of mittens, a prof muffittees, 2 pr of Stockings, a pr of shoes & taps, a Coat, a Jacket, some yarn, thread, a needle, 4 pins, a string, an inkhorn, wth3 pens, 1 Quill, & a thing to pick my teeth wth in it, 1 hand kerchiefs, a snuff-box wth Snuff in it, some flag-root, some Liquorish, a pr of knee buckles, wthLeathr Straps to yma horn cup, som sugr & tea, Some bread, 2 shirts a Comb, a Blanket, a Surtout, a hat, a pr of knee buckles, wth Leathr Straps to ym, a horn cup, som Sugr & Tea, some bread, & cheese, 6d York in Cash, a sugr Box, 2 shirts, a case to my pocket book & c.

p. 62 An Account of things yt I Carryd up, wth me, to west-point, in ye year 1781, viz. a gun, a cartridge Box, a Blanket, a spoon, 2 knives, a Pocket book, wth paper in it, & Cased to it, 3 pens in ink horn, also an almanack, 3 Lose pieces of paper, & a Paper Buk, Loose in my Pocket Book, also 16 Silver dollars wanting 10 sh. O.T., in silver, 2 red, & 2 white, & 2 black handkerchiefs, silk ditto, a Snuff Box & some Snuff it it, a cap, 2 pipes, a line & some chalk a piece of chalk & some tow, a hat, a canteen, 2 horns, a horn comb; a tin cup; some tea, sugar & chocolate, 1 coat, 1 Jacket, 2 shirts, 1 pair of 'trowsers, 1 pair of Buck Breeches, 2 pair of Stockings, 2 checker'd handkerchiefs, 2 pair of shoes, 1 pair of shoe Buckles, 1 pair of knee Buckles; 10 pins, a pair of sleeve buttons, a pair of gloves; a thing to pick my teeth; a Book Baxter's Call & c, a nother Book Memorable accidents& c… brown thread, needle, some thread, & a pair of garters & c…a razor, a girt to a saddle, & also a Book, Concerning Barnett Davenport, & c…

Information courtesy of Henry Cooke, Randolph, Mass.