1920s Gunny Sack Wilderness Kit: Timeless Survival Tools for Modern Camping
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- Опубліковано 9 лют 2025
- Explore the 1920s Gunny Sack Wilderness Kit, a vintage survival pack that offers timeless tools for today's bushcraft and camping enthusiasts. Discover unique and practical items that wilderness wanderers of the 1920s relied on, many of which still hold incredible value in modern outdoor adventures. Dive into the past and learn how these classic survival essentials can enhance your own outdoor experiences.
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![Cook Like a Hobo! [ 1930s Mulligan Stew Recipe! ]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/mf9MdM4zZOQ/mqdefault.jpg)
![Cook Like a Hobo! [ 1930s Mulligan Stew Recipe! ]](/img/tr.png)
Thanks so much for watching! Please leave a comment and a thumbs up. Make sure and check out the website at www.waypointsurvival.com for the schedule of classes that we teach as well as the required gear list.
50 of 74 years a hobo. Priceless info on old time camping, also could be used even today. I have seen a few of those sewing kits but empty and no thread. So now i know what they were for. The raincoat/long coat idea is good also. I used a 3/4 length army surplus field jacket, which is fairly easy to get, a number of times. Carrying field rations like you showed is very smart and can still be done today. The gunny sack converted into a ruck sack is great also. I would sometimes use a pair of pants as a pack frame of sorts. You may have shown this in one of your videos. Anyway i would put the small stuff in the pant legs and tie the cuff area together with a shoe string to a belt loop. A tarp wrapped around a sleeping bag stuffed in the waist area to top it off.
Add the carrots LAST! When they're done, everything else is done!
I love your channel particularly about travel food not requiring refrigeration. I never thought about pre cooking bacon ... now that I think of it I can buy bacon bits at the store so it seems cooked bacon may last a long time? If you have more videos on this I would be particularly interested. Also why was corduroy popular rather than wool? Thank you and God bless you and all :)
Just curious about something…… i dont recall in any of your kits any sort of games or entertainment being carried…. Speaking as a former soldier, from a long line of veterans, a deck of cards, cribbage board, dice, checkers, etc would be common …. I would think hobos would want to have something similar to amuse themselves and pass the time
@@craigeckhoff99 i a recent video he showed a bag made from a single leg of a pair of pants, cut of or hemmed up at the knee….
Anyone else here obsessed with wilderness survival since they were a kid? I read My Side of the Mountain as a kid and have been into everything survival ever since.
Cub Scout, Boy Scout, it’s always appealed to me.
Yep sadly I was kicked out of the boy scouts for being to rugged. For one of things thy scout master did was show us how to turn our fixed blades into a spear. But I sharpened an oak stick about 5 to 6 feet long and was about 2 inch thick. Started a fire now I don't know the science behind it but if done right. You can harden the wood to make it harder then it was just by heating it. The scout master got mad casue I was suppose to use my knife as the blade. My thought if i only had my knife that's a good way to loss it. But guess who's spear was not only sharper but went deeper into the target. I even did that trick when we did bows and arrows which was when I was kicked out for I was making legit weapons that could and would do damage. Which to me was ok life or death I wana eat not be eaten
@@LoveShaysloco
I will NEVER use my knife for
anything but knife cutting chores. I won't risk breaking
the most important tool I
have on me for a stunt.
That's what I learned from my
folks and in the real scouts
back in the early 70's
Shame that they ostracized you for refusing to do goofy stuff
Was my favorite book
@@williamallen6934
I love the simplicity of the kit. Most people today think the only way to “get away from it all” means taking it all with them.
😆 🤣
Ha!
Kills me when people say they camp, but they take a camper trailer. I have to tell them that's not camping, it's a mobile motel room!
It would be a lot more simple with a back pack and not put everything in a hundred pockets...that sounds very inconvenient
@@tylerpemberton3134 I know I'd forget where I put stuff. LOL!
You are definitely the most well dressed Man in the woods. Good video
It's been a poor quality day for videos, and then this video comes up in my que. Instantly I cheered up because I knew I'd struck gold. I can always count on something worthwhile, interesting, and educational when Waypoint Survival posts. Another top shelf video for sure. Thanks!
Thanks so much, I really appreciate that!
Very interesting! James, you have a unique way of making history come alive. When I was a young boy in the 1940s, we wore lots of corduroy clothing. The baggy legs on our pants would rub together making a whistling sound. Consequently, we called them "Whistle Britches!" Thank you, & may God continuento bless you!
You're welcome and may He continue to bless you as well!
Thank you James, my mother grew up poor during the depression, her family made all kinds of things from flour sacks from bedding to clothing and household items.
My dad always said that a tow sack is how his dad (my granddad) taught him to swim.
He said it was a lot easier once he got out of the sack!
Very seriously, it was a different time. My grandparents wasted nothing. The depression taught them that.
My Mom’s mother made underwear for her 11 (surviving) kids from flour sacks
I wore many a shirt, made from flour sacks, animal feed sacks and just about anything else you could imagine. Granny sewed them for me.
Someday we will be able to sweet talk you into doing some overnighters with the amazing vintage kits you have been putting together- you know just to demonstrate how awesome our forefathers were
@brenttroyer1654 - Add my vote to that one!
Thanks so much! It is on the list of videos to make, for sure
I REEEEALLY want to go back to the olden days!!!!
@@sineriafrankenstein7316 the way the global economy is going you might get your wish.🇬🇧🇺🇸
@@jimcy1319 well I want the old days but without martial law, mad max and civil war.
@@sineriafrankenstein7316 without rickitts,polio, black death and syphilis, gonerea and typhus and cholera. I know what you mean, just the good bits.😂
@@jimcy1319 we still have all that stuff:)
@@sineriafrankenstein7316 where do you live ?, Bangladesh !!.🤔😂
What we called gunny sacks were burlap , usually large animal feed bags. As a kid I chopped wood then loaded it into the bag. I would sling it over my shoulder like Santa Claus and carry it up to the back porch. Worked real well and moved a lot of would that way.
Very cool but a lot of work!
Thanks, James. While it doesn't look the most comfortable pack to wear, it demonstrates fairly strongly that we (and, in times past, they did too) used what they could and made do with it all. It seemed to hold far more items than I expected! Loved the dark lantern!
Thanks so much! It was actually quite comfortable to carry.
@@WayPointSurvival - I'm certain your knowledge (that the old hobos knew or learned) for proper weight distribution and the positioning of the hard and soft items helps immensely. And, yes, you did mention those things!! :D
Back before A&F was obsessed with being a hip, trendy, clothing store. Though whatever smell it was they pumped into their stores was quite enjoyable.
Indeed.
Thank You, Sir.
Edit: I just have to say, whenever I'm having a bad day, watching one of your vids really helps me out.
I sincerely mean that.
Wow, thanks so much for the kind words!
That collapsing metal bucket looks like an interesting option to boil water in as part of a survival kit.
Absolutely!
Love the vintage bushcraft/ hobo stuff. Excellent!!
Thank you very much!
Isn't it amazing how much developments have taken place from fear to society, with both positive and negative.
History is always refreshing.... knowing what the earlier folks did... living, fun, etc.
Thank you, James! Most excellent.
3:21 BRAVO👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼
Let’s all hit pause and consider how many pockets a man dressed for winter/fall might wear and have available for survival necessities. Were he to keep one tool and one form of calories in each pocket he could potentially bear 20+ items and several thousand calories. Remember folks, pockets were built for utility back then. Some coat pockets and even trouser pockets were the size of small haversacks and double or triple stitched. Even the fedora or pork pie hat might carry an extra bandanna and a few matches or fish hooks in the band.
Absolutely!
well done sir
Thank you so much, my friend!
You are all kitted out from head to toe and beyond. Well done.
Thanks!
That is a fine feather in your cap ;)
What you have is almost exactly the same kit that I had researched and used for 1700-early 1800's rucksack , tin pot or corn boiler , salt horn , polaxe . Oil lantern , even the tins and their content . I have been using it for 16 years now . The similarities are amazing , you would love to see it . The more I learn about camping the more that I see that things have really remained the same . This is ,,, well uncanny , just think , it is aproximately 100 years from my living history kit to your kit . You made my day thank you .
You're very welcome!
That sewing kit was tiny and amazing. Fishing kit was great, I only fish with a hand line. Lantern was awesome, surprised you found one with the lens, and yep that can be used to start a fire. Collapsible bucket was really cool. Respect for having tea not coffee. Pro move with the pre cooked bacon, the hard cheese in paper was great too, that will last. Love your videos, thanks for your effort and time.
Thanks for watching!
I know these type of videos must be a !ot of work. I love them and very much appreciate your efforts!
Thank you very much!
What I enjoy about this channels content is that it’s both informative and theatrical. Interesting combination of skills!
I appreciate that!
I appreciate you!
Awsome step into the past. A terrific look at some forgotten gear. Thanks James. Looking forward to the next one
Thanks!
I just LOVE ❤️ your videos on camping and traveling on the old road years ago. This is so educational! I ALWAYS learn so much when I listen to this video! I only wished I had one of those metal match boxes. They are SO COOL! You are such a great renaissance man!!!! Thank you 🙏 for all your HARD WORK! God bless you AND yours!
Glad you like them and God bless you too!
I like your videos. You remind your viewers how skilfully people used to manage their very limited resources. By the start of the Great Depression in 1929 at the latest, men had to leave their homes to find work somewhere else. Their journeys were anything but comfortable and the gunny sack is what you used if you couldn't afford a proper rucksack. Similar to the Hobo Horseshoe. Simple, efficient and reduced to the essentials. And you threw little to nothing away. Every tea tin could still be used to store things afterwards. And tea could be bought unpackaged, so it was cheaper. You just had to bring your own storage, in this case a small leather bag.
We can learn a lot from this time. Mainly that there are only a few things that we really need. Whenever I pack my rucksack for a hike with my family, I think of your videos.
Wow! Thank you for the kind words!
Nice one, I still have my fathers waxed cotton jacket/overcoat from the 50's if it were rubberised I reckon it would have perished and crumbled to dust by now and you reminded me that we have a canvas bucket in the shed that can hold about a gallon, it was WW2 British Army issue and that rolls up to a very neat package.
I really like your vintage camping and hobo series. It shows us historic camp craft , diy and budget bushcraft/ camp craft people can use the information to improvise camp gear thanks again
You're very welcome and thanks so much for watching!
James, this is an amazing video, many thanks for showing all of those vintage items that you have.
bought a polyester pillow case for my first "knapsack" at a Goodwill store. My next "knapsack" was a USAF issue duffel, eight years later....
Glad you enjoyed it!
A daper man in the woods 🤎
This video was just serendipitous for me; I have been considering turning a large burlap gunny sack into a day trekking pack (both backpack style and sling pack style) for literally years now and this video is great information to help me get started! Thanks James!
Reminds me of when I was a kid. We would head out with our stuff in whatever was handy. A lot of times that was a burlap tow sack
You, sir, are a time traveler! Thanks for bringing us along.
Many thanks, Mr Bender, for the innovative history lesson. Its incredible just how much historical knowledge has been forgotton. We believe we know so much, but we rarely consider how much knowledge has been lost. Stay well & safe...Cheers🙂🙂
Many thanks!
I love watching your videos , You have such wonderful things ,you take me back to my childhood, my mother made me clothing from flour sacks she stopped after I got teased and then used remnants , my Grandpa wore a similar hat . thank you for sharing ,
Thank you so much for watching!
James another great video. Of I watch your the only one I watch over and over. Not much more I can say, so many have said it already. Thank you for your time. Now I do believe you were born to late. You would fit right in the 1920s. What is next?
Thanks so much! I'm not quite sure of the next video but hopefully we'll find out before next week, lol.
Anyone else waiting for James to start a separate vintage style channel? 😄
Always amazed at the vintage gear you find for these videos. Another interesting look at our past adventurers and their kit.
Thanks so much!
Wow what a nice little pack set. You must have a blast collecting and putting to use all these unusual antiques and making all the other things by hand. What fun!!!
I do!
Beautiful compass and pruning knife.
Great pack and has all the essential components for a few days in the brush. That collapsible bucket pretty neat. I grew up wearing corduroy has a kid durable stuff for sure. Great video and love the time period. Clothes ! 👍😎🐆🐆
Thanks so much!
7:21 never underestimate the usefulness of 1ft of leather cord. I love it.
Absolutely!
Well, ain't that cool? I appreciate you taking the time to research and put these "old ways" videos together. Well edited and informational as well as entertaining.
Thanks so very much! I really appreciate the kind words!
What an awesome kit. Love the stylish simplicity.
Thanks so much!
Enjoying these old timey kit videos. It's an inspiration to keep things simple. Thank you.
Thanks for watching!
Mt man here watching 👍👍 good vid gunney sack when I was growing up they called them toe sacks as long as it works they used it
That collapsed bucket was interesting. I have a collapsing cup. But i have not seen a bucket like that.
The tiny sewing kit is awesome.
Always a pleasure to see the antiques you have collected for your shows. Much enjoyed from London
Glad you like them and thanks for watching and commenting!
Thanks again I am always some were else wen I watch these videos
Glad you enjoyed it!
That thing to us is called pikau or a Moari Pack. There is company in New Zealand that still makes them and of course I have had one for years
Very interesting, the secondary blade on your Pruner is a Budding and Grafting blade. The 'spud' or 'comb' that sticks up is used for splitting buds for grafting 👍
Thanks for the info!
Always cool and informative content and your channel. Much appreciated !
Thanks!
These historical vids have proven really helpful. Reenactment can get complicated real quick. These are great for ideas.
Thanks!
I always learn something when I watch your videos. Thank you.
You're welcome!
Just fantastic, every video you do. Excellent just love the period stuff. Makes me appreciate the Greatest Generation even more.
Thanks so much! They were an amazing generation, for sure!
Absolutely fantastic documentary. Thank you for the well documented research. You are a legend, Sire… God bless you!
Thank you so very much and God bless you too!
Again, superb demonstration of an era almost no one else talks about... AND I knew Morpheus did not invent those sunglasses in The Matrix
Indeed. Thanks for watching!
Holy Smokes James, what a great video on the Gunny Sack Wilderness Kit! Thanks for sharing and Be Safe and God Bless!
Thanks, you too!
My parents comes from a small town in Macedonia named Berovo. You can look it up. They came to South Carolina as newly married couple, however I've been here 44 of my 44 years. He loves your channel and wanted me to relay the message that he especially likes the HOBO videos. He tells me that was him as a young man. I'm just passing the word from my old man. God bless you, and we all wish you safe travels and blessings wherever you may go. (Your videos make the old man happy). He tells me that kids like me, I'm 44! Have it easy. He says he grew up much like the classic American Hobo you reflect upon in your videos because he was a wanderer when he was a young man in Macedonia. Safe travels brother. Peace and love. 😊
Thank you so very much for all the kind words and may God richly bless you and your family as well! Tell your father I said hello!
Thank you 😊
Very interesting, as usual. Just leaving a comment for the algorithm.
✌️💚 🇬🇧
Thanks so much!
Maybe I'm hungry but that food looked delicious
Excellent video. I especially liked the 2 knives and the dark lamp. I'm always checking out yard sales and flea markets for period items that you have THANKS
You're welcome!
Fashion with function seemed to be popular among our ancestors, good vid
That lantern is really something, wow.
Thanks, I really like it!
Your "Gunny Sack" looks more like a flour sack. Gunny Sacks, Tow Sacks, etc, are typically crudity woven burlap. Back in my younger days they were used for potatoes, in my neck of the woods. The used ones could be gotten for free. Hard to find now, but you can pay Amazon for them. 😀 I enjoy your retro videos, both this and the Hobo series . The frontier videos are great, as well. Keep up the good work!
Check out a Russian veshmock backpack to see how the shoulder straps attach to the top.
You will find it a simple and fast way to get into the gunny sack.
I love it! Such cool items! I would take it out in the woods for a few days and nights! I love and use all of the old stuff like that that I have!
Thanks so much for watching!
you never disappoint, this is another awesome video, thank you James
Thanks for watching!
Thanks James. Take care😊
You're very welcome, my friend!
When I was young I used to grab a couple potatoes every time I went in the outdoors.
I really enjoy these videos. I look forward to the next one each time.
Glad you like them!
James you make me wish for more simple time of the past.
Thank you sir.
You are very welcome!
Pretty cool set up. One of the first things you mentioned is back in the day this would be a fairly inexpensive load out. But with such authentic period pieces now a days I can only imagine how much you might tie up into your kit, I'd expect a lot of what you have in your back would I let be found in an antique shop. Very sweet video, thanks for sharing! Happy trails
Thanks for watching!
love the old tin's
Thanks, they are pretty cool!
Pure satisfaction ❤
Thanks 😀😀
You're welcome!
❤ I love that dark lantern. These things should make a come back, imo.
When we get our yearly winter power outages, a dark lantern would be a hybrid of a candle and paraffin oil lamp. Lamps are a bit ungainly to carry and are prone to breakage, while candlesticks are simply impractical.
Having a light source that creates heat in the dead of winter is a definite bonus over flashlights. Good luck cooking over ayour typical flashlight😅
Right? Thanks for watching!
Love your outfit, the whole ensemble is really thought provoking :)
How the heck does that collapsible bucket still work? Awesome design, engineering, and fabrication!!! Your collection and passion is admirable. Cheers and God bless!
Thanks, you too!
I really do appreciate the content of your videos. Many are similar in what might have been worn and carried back in the day, but it's good to see different ideas about what can be packed into the smallest containers for best use of space. And I always pick up new tips. I'm going to look for leather belts at the thrift store, and upcycle a vest to add more pockets.
I started watching your channel after seeing the video of how to make acorns edible 😂. Thank you, and keep up the good work.
You're welcome!
Many Thanks James !!!!
You're welcome!
Really nice presentation
Thanks a lot!
I'm super jealous of the match tin collection you have. It seems like you have a different one every video and they're all really cool.
Nice vintage historical camping gear.
Thanks!
Back in about 1967 my friend and I worked for s shop that was an antique/junk shop. We were only about 13 years old. I specifically remember the shop having one of those "dark lanterns" for sale. I thought it was so cool looking.......but couldn't afford to buy it. I haven't thought about that lantern in decades. I specifically remember how thick and curved the glass lens was.
Thanks for watching!
I like a lot every and each iteration of your equipment. Different loadouts , different mindsets. Great job !
Thank you very much!
Took an old military style laundry bag (24x32) and use it as Hobo Bedroll, fold 3 layers 24x40 reflectix in half and stick in laundry bag, add down top quilt, polyester jacket, gloves, poncho, hygiene, some nuts/food bars then roll up bag like that bedroll on a horse, use bushcraft ties from 1100 paracord & shoulder strap.
Ty for posting. Your vids are always very interesting and informative.
Glad you like them!
That was an awesome video James!! Nice simple no nonsense kit! Absolutely loved it my friend!!!
Thanks so very much! I do truly appreciate it!
@@WayPointSurvival anytime buddy!!
Love how you found your niche not usual shit
Thanks so much!
This is such a cool channel! You do great work, sir!
Thank you kindly!
Great gear James. Thank you.
Glad you enjoyed it!
That style of Pack goes back many 100s of years !
Indeed.
As always high quality work man 🔥🔥🙏🙏
Thanks so much!
Reminds me of the Australian Jolly Swagman.
The feather that sits outside the hat represents where your from and for show
Always historical and always simply functional. If only our young folks today were to be as imaginable as our great grand parents. Cheers from Australia.
Thanks so much for watching!
You really do a good job with your videos , thank you , lot of good ideas . Some new . Some just bring back some good memories.