1864 Springfield Questions

MikeDOTB

Cadet
Joined
Apr 10, 2019
Good morning everyone, I was looking through some of the older threads and didn't see answers to some questions I had, and am hoping y'all can give me some good information. I have an 1864 Springfield and it has 1864 stamped on it and what looks like the appropriate markings, but it has a three leaf sight, which as far as I could find, those ended with the 1863 and didn't continue with the 1864 variant. Also I saw ramrods with an eagle on the end, but the ramrod this rifle came with has an opening. I will try to get some pictures and post them.

Another item of interest, this rifle comes from the Western NY area and was a hand me down through the generations. Unfortunately I do not have any further information except there are initials carved into the rifle: T. M. B. I was going through the NPS website, the New York list of regimental rosters and the National Archives hoping to find soldiers from NY with those initials. And of course it is a huge pain in the A$*. Can anyone recommend an easier way to research where you can search without having to scroll through rosters for hours?

Thank you in advance for any information and I will try to get some pictures posted!

Regards,
Mike
 
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Going to try and attach some pictures.... please ignore the laundry and the dog bone lol.

I’m not very good at taking pictures and really not sure what all you would want to see, but here it is.

Oh, and the rifling is definitely present.

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Nice ! I like the way the initials were carved. The ramrod end is concave to cup the nose of the bullet. The musket looks to have been nickel plated for parade use.

I was wondering about the nickel plating as well, is it pretty common?
 
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I was wondering about the nickel plating as well, is it pretty common?
Yes, nickel plated arms turn up pretty often. You may even see some plated Krags or 03 Springfields used by drill teams or in local parades though nowadays they probably use chrome.

From a distance the nickel plate looks like bright steel / iron. The plating is easier to maintain since it doesn't rust like steel does.

It may be reversible if you want. Someone more expert than me can advise on that point. In either case, congrats on your find, it's just swell ! Love the initials and decoration and the rest of the stock looks to be in nice shape too.
 
Yes, nickel plated arms turn up pretty often. You may even see some plated Krags or 03 Springfields used by drill teams or in local parades though nowadays they probably use chrome.

From a distance the nickel plate looks like bright steel / iron. The plating is easier to maintain since it doesn't rust like steel does.

It may be reversible if you want. Someone more expert than me can advise on that point. In either case, congrats on your find, it's just swell ! Love the initials and decoration and the rest of the stock looks to be in nice shape too.

I have an immaculate 03A3 as well but no nickel plating. There isn’t a spot of rust on it. I couldn’t imagine it nickel plated though, that would be strange!
 
Your M-1864 Rifle Musket is original, including the rear sight leaves which were used on the 1864 Model until the transition was made to the single leaf. I can't imagine what you are referring to as an Eagle end on a ram rod? Can you cite a reference for that? As for the initials neatly carved on the stock, remember this musket is 155 years old and has most likely gone through many hands and ownerships in a century and a half. Those initials are not even necessarily from a ACW veteran! If you are going to continue with regimental research, narrow it down to those regiments that were in existence in 1864 and 1865, because the earlier regiments did not have this musket issued to them.
J.
 
The nickel plating would be post war and may have been done by some member of the GAR for parades as nickel plated rifles for parades were common in the 1900's and that's where M1903 Springfields with nickel plating show up.

I think the stamped eagle he is referring to is the one below the cone and not on the ramrod.
 
Your M-1864 Rifle Musket is original, including the rear sight leaves which were used on the 1864 Model until the transition was made to the single leaf. I can't imagine what you are referring to as an Eagle end on a ram rod? Can you cite a reference for that? As for the initials neatly carved on the stock, remember this musket is 155 years old and has most likely gone through many hands and ownerships in a century and a half. Those initials are not even necessarily from a ACW veteran! If you are going to continue with regimental research, narrow it down to those regiments that were in existence in 1864 and 1865, because the earlier regiments did not have this musket issued to them.
J.

Great info, and definitely agree on changing hands and the initials. I will probably continue with the search but keep it in mind. At least it gives me a project for winter time when I have extra time to go through records. Thanks for the info. I’m really excited about this piece.
 
About the ramrod, I was looking at pictures of ram rods on the internet and I saw a couple where the tip was rounded and had an eagle on it. Never seen them before and being completely new I was wondering if that was an original, but I think it was one someone made and tried to make it look fancy. I’ll try and find the link and post it.
 
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