This regulation Army poncho belonged to Benjamin Densmore. At five feet five inches long, it would have covered almost all of a soldier's body for protection during poor weather. Densmore served in the Third Minnesota, which was sent to fight the Dakota during the U.S.-Dakota War of 1862. He was struck by a bullet in the back of the head. After recovering, Densmore helped organize "contraband" soldiers and served as an officer in the U.S. Colored Heavy Artillery. His daughter, Frances Densmore, became a famous ethnographer.