Arms & Artillery - Terrible Tools of War

This forum contains profiles of different Small Arms & Artillery types used during the American Civil War.

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We need expert advice from you good folks. When digging a hole for a 6x6 post we found what could be a civil war cannon ball. Our community is called Military because the troops came through this area during the Civil War. We a live in the adjoining community once called Coral, south of Sumrall MS on Hwy 589, which still shows on some maps. I will post photos and any help appreciated. Deb Hazel
At Gettysburg NBMP, by ©Michael Kendra, Sept 2006The 10 pdr. Parrott Rifle, invented by Robert Parker Parrott, was manufactured by the West Point Foundry in the North, and copies were made at several foundries in the South. The patented manufacturing process started with a cast iron barrel, which on it's own was too brittle to use as a cannon, and combined it with a large reinforcing band made of tougher wrought iron overlaid on the breech of the casting. By designing the cannon this way, the barrel was intended to be strong, light, cheap, and effective as a rifled cannon, a relatively new type of field artillery for the era. ARTILLERY PROFILE Models: 10-pdr. Parrott Rifle - Model of 1861, or Old Model Parrott, with a 2.9 inch bore...
Gettysburg NMP, ©Michael Kendra, February 2011The James Rifle is an early rifled field gun. Desperate for ordnance at the wars beginning, the U.S. War Department ordered many examples early on, but by the summer of 1863, it was no longer widely used by Northern units. A notable exception was the 2nd Connecticut Battery, which was still equipped with them at Gettysburg. This class of James Rifles actually include 4 different gun types, and all fired elongated shells and were accurate up to 1,500 yards. Some larger Siege Guns were also rifled in the James method, but that's a story for a different article. ARTILLERY PROFILE Models: 14-pdr. James Rifle - Type I 14-pdr. James Rifle - Type II, & III Rifled 6 Pdr. Guns (Using the James...
ARTILLERY PROFILEGettysburg NMP ©Michael Kendra, Sept 2006. Type: Muzzleloading Rifled Gun In Service With: United States Army - Marked "U.S." State of New Jersey - Marked "N.J." Purpose: Counter-battery & Support the infantry and cavalry forces in the field Invented By: Samuel Reeves, with partners John Griffen, and Emile C. Geyelin; development began in August of 1855 Final Design Requirements by: United States Army Ordnance Board, meeting on July 20th, 1861 Capt. Alexander B. Dyer, president; Capt. Theodore T.S. Laidley, recorder; and Capt. Thomas J. Rodman, member. Patents: U.S. Patent No. 13,984 (J. Griffin) Issued on December 25, 1855 for Manufacture of Wrought Iron Cannon U.S. Patent No. 37,108 (S. J. Reeves) Issued on...
Ball's Bluff Battlefield, VA, ©Mike Kendra, 2012The 12-pdr. Mountain Howitzer was a mountain gun used by the United States Army during the mid-Nineteenth Century, from 1837 to about 1870. It saw service during the Mexican–American War, the American Indian Wars, and during the American Civil War (primarily in the more rugged western theaters.) ARTILLERY PROFILE Model: 12-pdr. Mountain Howitzer Type: Lightweight and Highly Portable Smoothbore Howitzer In Service With: U.S. Army C.S. Army Purpose: Highly mobile and easy to transport artillery for use where typical field artillery wouldn't be practical Rarity: Common to Uncommon Special Notes: Referred to as a Model 1835 or a Model 1841 depending on the source, they were nicknamed...
Located at Fort Donelson, Stewart County, TN June 2010, ©Rusk County Avengers ARTILLERY PROFILE Model: Model 1841 12-pdr. "Heavy" Smoothbore Field Gun Type: Muzleloading Smoothbore Gun In Service With: United States Army (Pre-War) Confederate States Army Purpose: Support the infantry and cavalry forces in the field Invented By: U.S. Army Ordnance Board Rarity: Rare MANUFACTURING US Casting Foundries: N.P. Ames, Chicopee, Massachusetts Cyrus Alger & Company, Boston, Massachusetts CS Casting Foundry: Tredegar Iron Works, Richmond, Virginia Years of Manufacture: 1841-1861 Tube Composition: Bronze Variants: Some 12-pdr. Heavy Field Guns were rifled to extend their useful life at the beginning of the war, using 12 or 18 groove...
12-pdr. "Blakely Pattern" Rifle by Fawcett & Preston, Type 6, at the Old Cyclorama Building Gettysburg NMP, ©Mike Kendra, Sept 2002Smuggled into the South by way of blockade runners, the Confederacy purchased and imported many guns during the Civil War. Of these, Blakley's guns were the most common imported type of rifled artillery. Some were also captured by Union ships that managed to capture an unlucky cargo ship attempting to run the blockade. However, much of the documentation of the use and service history of Blakely rifles has been lost to history. In the 1960's, Warren Ripley assigned type numbers to all surviving Blakely rifles in order to simplify the classification and identification of these guns. His type numbers are still...
Gun elevated to 35°, At the Arsenal, Washington, D.C. -Mathew Brady, 1862, Washington, D.C. Norman Wiard, a Canadian working for the United States invented several light artillery pieces which, although apparently excellent weapons, do not seem to have been very popular. Wiard advertised his weapons as being made of semi-steel in two calibers: a 6-pdr Rifle with a 2.6 inch bore and a 12-pdr smoothbore with a 4.62 inch bore. However, in practice, only rifled guns were ever sold. ARTILLERY PROFILE Type: Muzzleloading Rifled Field Guns In Service With: U.S. Army Purpose: Support the infantry and cavalry forces in the field Invented By: Norman Wiard Patent: None Found Rarity: Rare MANUFACTURING US Casting Foundry: A mystery yet to be...
Gettysburg NMP, ©Michael Kendra, Sept 2006.When positioned in defensive positions and field fortifications, 24-pounder Field Howitzers were extremely useful pieces of ordnance because of their powerful 5.82 inch shells. Their 1400 pound weight made them a very hard to maneuver in the field, and their 1300 yard effective range put them at a disadvantage to other artillery pieces. Nevertheless, infantrymen could not have relished the idea of charging a battery of 24-pdr howitzers. ARTILLERY PROFILE Model: 24-pdr. Field Howitzer Type: Muzzleloading Field Howitzer In Service With: United States Army Confederate States Army Purpose: To fire heavy explosive shells in a high trajectory over terrain & enemy fortifications for plunging and...
Gettysburg NMP, ©Michael Kendra, Sept 2006The 12-pounder Whitworth Breechloading Rifle, manufactured in England, was invented by Sir Joseph Whitworth, and imported into North America during the Civil War. It was a very rare gun during the war, but was an interesting precursor to modern artillery in that it was loaded from the breech and had exceptional accuracy over an enormous range. An engineering magazine wrote in 1864 that, "At 1600 yards the Whitworth gun fired 10 shots with a lateral deviation of only 5 inches." This degree of accuracy made them effective in counter-battery fire, used almost as the equivalent of a sharpshooter's rifle, and also for firing over bodies of water. They were not popular as anti-infantry weapons...
Gettysburg NMP, ©Michael Kendra, Sept 2006An effective, serviceable cannon before the American Civil War, the 12 pdr. Field Howitzer was a poor weapon in comparison to new weapons such as the 12 pdr. "Napoleon" Light Field Gun, and 3 inch rifles. Most howitzers in Federal service were melted down, and replaced with more Napoleons, except in the west where light and more maneuverable weapons were required. The Confederate Army, with a shortage of usable cannon, maintained them in their arsenal for most of the war. ARTILLERY PROFILE In Service With: United States Army Confederate States Army Virginia Military Institute; Arkansas Military Institute; State of Georgia; State of New York; State of Connecticut Type: Muzzleloading Field...
Gettysburg NMP, ©Michael Kendra, Sept 2006.The 6-pounder Smoothbore Field Gun was a lightweight, mobile piece that was a favorite of the field artillery in the first half of the nineteenth century. This popular workhorse of the Mexican War era was regarded as obsolete by the Union army, but was still employed by a Confederate army that could not afford to pass on functional ordnance with it's shortage of available guns and resources. ARTILLERY PROFILE Models: 1835; 1838 "Light" or "Cavalry"; 1840; 1841 "Standard"; 1841 "Cadet Guns"; Rifled 6-pdrs. Type: Muzzleloading Smoothbore Field Gun In Service With: United States Army Confederate States Army 1841 Cadet Version: Virginia Military Institute, Arkansas Military Institute, Georgia...
Gettysburg NMP, ©Michael Kendra, Sept 2006. The Model 1857 12-Pounder "Napoleon" Light Field Gun, officially called the “light 12-pounder gun” by the United States Army, was the most popular smoothbore cannon used during the American Civil War. The cannon was named after French president and emperor, Napoleon III, nephew of Napoleon Bonaparte. ARTILLERY PROFILE In Service With: French Army United States Army Confederate States Army Type: Muzzleloading Smoothbore gun-howitzer Purpose: Support the infantry and cavalry forces in the field Invented By: French Army in 1853 Patent: N/A Years of Manufacture: In the U.S. - 1857 to 1863 Tube Composition: Bronze or cast iron Bore Diameter: 4.62 inches Rarity: Common PERFORMANCE...
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