United States
From 4 May 1861, each company of cavalry was authorised a Company Quartermaster Sergeant. The Company Quartermaster Sergeant was responsible for the company wagon and all the property it contained, including the tents, the company mess gear, the company desk, the company library, the ordnance, the subsistence provisions, and the company tools. He was further charged with overseeing the camp set-up of the tents and picket lines. He inspected the company horses and mules, and reported any problems to the Veterinary Surgeon of the regiment. He was also responsible for acquiring fuel, forage for the horses, and straw for bedding for the company. These were normally drawn from the supplies of the Regimental Quartermaster, along with replacements for uniforms and equipment. When they were not available from stores, the Company Quartermaster Sergeant was responsible for forage parties to acquire them. The Company Quartermaster Sergeant was required to sign for the uniforms and equipment that were in his custody and before disbursing these items to a soldier, he required a signature of receipt, countersigned by an officer.
The rank of Company Quartermaster Sergeant was not a command position, although he was required to know the drills, and the duties and responsibilities of the line NCOs. He was the second most senior NCO in the company after the First Sergeant. During combat, his place was safeguarding the company wagon and its supplies. He was generally required to fight only in defence of the company property. In an extreme emergency, he could be used to replace a fallen line NCO, but this was extremely rare. The wagons were driven by Teamsters, who were usually members of the company. Additionally, each cavalry company was authorized a Wagoner with the rank of Corporal.
The Company Quartermaster Sergeant wore three chevrons with a single straight tie in worsted. Although worn by volunteer cavalry from 1862, this rank badge was not incorporated into United States military regulations until 1866.
A Battery Quartermaster Sergeant was also authorised for every artillery battery from 4 May 1861. They began to adopt the same unofficial chevrons as the cavalry from May 1863.
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