Where blanket rolls used during the Civil War, yes to an extent, but I don't think their usage can really be documented to any great deal beyond certain circumstances, but they do appear every so often in the odd image from then. The blanket roll as something to carry your extra goods around in makes almost no sense. First off, they are extraordinarily hot when worn over any issued uniform. Second, you can't really put your issued stuff in one and have it be small enough to be worn. And yes, both sides got issued a lot more than you realized. And finally, no matter which side you wear the thing on, it either keeps you from accessing your cartridge box or interferes with shouldering your weapon. The way that is documented that they did roll them, for the times when you only needed a blanket, like on pickett or advanced guard duty, you would roll up the wool and gum blanket and then have a guy on each end twist it and then once twisted you would ties the ends together until it looks like a twist of tobacco. That is the only way to use a single tie and not have the thing flop around all over your body.
