Dog tents were used by the cavalry.
Dog tents received extensive use in the Civil War and were given many nicknames during that time. Soldiers on both sides often referred to a dog tent as a fly tent, picket tent, shebang tent or pup tent. Fortunate soldiers carried a rectangle of canvas or oilcloth measuring approximately 5 by 6 feet. The fabric of the rectangle came equipped with heavy-duty buttons and buttonholes. A soldier with a shelter half would team up with another, and they would join their panels together using the buttons as fasteners and support them with two uprights and a ridgepole.
Instructions
1. Lay the shelter halves on the ground. Place the buttonholes of one section over the buttons of the second section and button both together.
2. Slide the ridgepole under the buttoned joint of the shelter halves.
3. Measure 2 inches from one end of the ridgepole toward the center of the shelter halves and push the straight end of a Y-tipped vertical pole into the ground at that point. Carry two notched timbers with you if the area has no foliage. Tie a loop in one end of the manila rope and place it over the notched end of the pole. The rope will help to keep the dog tent upright. Press the pole into the ground with your arms and body weight. A depth of 5 inches will hold the pole upright. Repeat the process at the other end of the ridgepole.
4. Raise the ridgepole, along with the shelter material, and set each end in the Y tip of a vertical pole.
5. Stretch each rope outward from the tent pole and tie it to a metal stake driven into the ground.
6. Stake each bottom corner of the shelter halves to the ground with a metal stake.
Tags: shelter halves, into ground, ground with, halves ground, metal stake, pole into